Tar Heels believe season can still be successful

Posted 5:50PM on Friday 13th October 2006 ( 18 years ago )

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. - They're losing by an average of 18 points per game, three of their four losses have been double-digit whippings and their lone victory was a struggle against a Division I-AA school. Still, North Carolina (1-4) can see an end to the misery if it can get past resurgent South Florida (4-2) on Saturday. ``We can still turn this thing around,'' linebacker Larry Edwards said. ``We can still do things if everybody gets on the same page, working toward the same goal and having the same type of mentality that we're going to play every play like it's our last one. If we do that, then everything's going to take care of itself.'' Reversing their luck appears to be a tall order based on what's happened to Edwards and his teammates. Ray Rice ran for 201 yards in a 21-16 loss to Rutgers. The next week, Branden Ore ran for 111 yards and three touchdowns in Virginia Tech's 35-10 victory. North Carolina broke the losing streak, but needed to rally against Division I-AA Furman to take a 45-42 victory. In that game, Furman's Jerome Felton ran for four touchdowns, and the Paladins, who gained 521 total yards, actually held a lead before the last of Ronnie McGill's four touchdown runs put the game away. The Tar Heels are coming off of a 27-7 loss to Miami last week. Edwards and wide receiver Jesse Holley said they still have some hope after that game that the season isn't lost. ``I think collectively as a team we competed,'' Holley said. ``I don't think the final score was indicative of how we played the game. It was a hard fought game and we gave them some things that they capitalized on. ``But we saw a lot of fight in a lot of players that may not have been there in the week before,'' Holley said. ``But we are going to continue to fight until this thing is over.'' The fight this week is against a freshman quarterback who's turning heads. South Florida's Matt Grothe is the national leader among first-year players in total offense, passing yards and rushing yards by a quarterback. And he's a top-ten performer in total rushing yards among all players. He's thrown for 1,230 yards and eight touchdowns, and he has led the Golden Bulls to three come-from-behind victories, settling a quarterback situation that was unsettled as coach Jim Leavitt opened the season. Leavitt said Grothe, who replaced senior starter Pat Julmiste when he was injured in the opener against McNeese State, has become a leader. That was evident as he led the Golden Bulls to a 38-16 victory over Connecticut last week. Grothe threw for 146 yards and one touchdown, and ran for 82 yards and three scores against the Huskies. ``It's like anything, anybody playing. The more you play, the more you experience, the more things you see. Your decision making is going to, hopefully, be better as you go through the year,'' Leavitt said. ``I think he's doing an awfully good job, doing a very good job.'' North Carolina coach John Bunting and Edwards are hoping to clamp down on Grothe and the entire South Florida offense. ``We are going to work hard and we are hungry for a win and we are going to keep moving toward success,'' Edwards said. ``So, becoming complacent is not part of our character and I don't think that anybody is happy with losing or accepting losing, so we are going to do everything we can to get a win.''

http://accesswdun.com/article/2006/10/102352