2021 Record Prediction Thread

[uncboy10]

Well here it is folks... your annual thread for throwing down your predictions for 2021. You guys already know I'm not wasting this opportunity to predict a perfect run

@VT W
GSU W
UVA W
@GT W
dook W
FSU W
Miami W
@Notre Dame W
Wake W
@Pitt W
Wofford W
NCeST W

ACCCG vs Clemson - Big fat W

---

Getting out of the gates running against VT is crucial. There are always a ton of goofs and mistakes in week one, and even for great teams, it can just be about surviving those screw ups and getting to week 2. Really wish the GSU and VT games were swapped but oh well...

FSU and Miami at home is huge, especially going into the big one against ND. Need to handle both of those teams and be ready to go to work for 2 weeks to prepare for ND. That BYE week could end up being the difference maker, especially if (when) we have guys get a little banged up in the first half of the schedule.

As much as love to jokingly predict an undefeated regular season, I actually think it's a very real possibility this year. If the o-line makes improvements and stays healthy then the offense should put up the kind of numbers that make it damn near impossible for most of the teams on the schedule to keep up. Hopefully Longo will start opening up the playbook earlier in the game so that we don't have any slow starts. Having to dig your way out of a hole makes winning a helluva lot harder even for the best teams. I don't think it's controversial to say that play-calling has been an issue the past few years. That's gotta stop.

I'm not worried about the defense at all. Tons of talent and frankly, they don't need to be a world beating unit. Teams will have to score 35+ to beat us this year, unless Sam just craps the bed or the RB's cough the ball up. If they can control the opposing running game consistently, a lot of games are going to get ugly. Which would be huge because Drake and Jacoby need as many reps this year as Mack can get them.

 

[tarheel0910]

What it should be, 11-1 with a loss to ND.

What it will be, 9-3 with loses to ND, FSU and some random team we should beat.

 

[matt 1976]

I can talk myself into 11-1 and I can be convinced that we will go 8-4. I think we go 9-3.

 

[manofsteel72tp]

I think this is the year we put it all together and run the table. Schedule isn’t easy, but is manageable. If we’re going to make the progress that’s needed to be a top 10 team year in and year out, you gotta win the games your supposed to win against inferior competition. This is that year. 12-0 baby!

 

[Archer2]

I can talk myself into 11-1 and I can be convinced that we will go 8-4. I think we go 9-3.

I’m with you on the first line. But I feel 10-2 is the end result. I’m worried about replacing the production of our RB’s and receivers, especially the running game.

 

[strummingram]

8-4

Losses to VT, GT, Miami, and ND. They could drop one more, they could win one more, but I think 8 and 4.

I will say that they should, on paper, win 11. They have the horses. I don't believe that the OC and DC have what it takes.

 

[NBBears20124ACHAMPS]

8-4

Losses to VT, GT, Miami, and ND. They could drop one more, they could win one more, but I think 8 and 4.

I will say that they should, on paper, win 11. They have the horses. I don't believe that the OC and DC have what it takes.

Just don't see how one can think that about Bateman with what he has had to work with the first 2 years. You can certainly make the case for Longo and his play-calling at times, but not for Bateman, IMO.

Bateman finally has the depth and the horses in year 3 -- I think the D will make huge strides this season with an experienced Grimes, Evans, Asante, Murphy, Pinder, a healthy Storm Duck/Bingley Jones as well as moving Conley to Safety. His defense needs big boys up front and he now has 7 guys on the DL at 300lbs that can rotate in and out to stay fresh, which he didn't have last year.

 

[strummingram]

Just don't see how one can think that about Bateman with what he has had to work with the first 2 years. You can certainly make the case for Longo and his play-calling at times, but not for Bateman, IMO.

Bateman finally has the depth and the horses in year 3 -- I think the D will make huge strides this season with an experienced Grimes, Evans, Asante, Murphy, Pinder, a healthy Storm Duck/Bingley Jones as well as moving Conley to Safety. His defense needs big boys up front and he now has 7 guys on the DL at 300lbs that can rotate in and out to stay fresh, which he didn't have last year.

Time will tell.

 

[Archer2]

Just don't see how one can think that about Bateman with what he has had to work with the first 2 years. You can certainly make the case for Longo and his play-calling at times, but not for Bateman, IMO.

Bateman finally has the depth and the horses in year 3 -- I think the D will make huge strides this season with an experienced Grimes, Evans, Asante, Murphy, Pinder, a healthy Storm Duck/Bingley Jones as well as moving Conley to Safety. His defense needs big boys up front and he now has 7 guys on the DL at 300lbs that can rotate in and out to stay fresh, which he didn't have last year.

Remember, it’s @strummingram we’re talking about here. He’s not known for being optimistic about anything. LOL.

 

[strummingram]

Remember, it’s @strummingram we’re talking about here. He’s not known for being optimistic about anything. LOL.

I'm optimistic about lots of things!

I just know how UNC Football typically goes. I've been watching since the late 70's. I think there have been... 3, maybe 4, seasons?... in over 40 years where there were there were less than 3 losses.

Mack delivered on a few, I'll give him that.

 

[matt 1976]

Bateman has worked wonders. Longo had 2 1K RBs who are going to be starting in the NFL, and had 2 WRs drafted, one of which was one of the most prolific WRs to ever play at Carolina. Not to mention that Longo has made Sam into a Heisman contender in 2 years! SMH, some people just look for things to complain about.

 

[tarheel0910]

Bateman has worked wonders. Longo had 2 1K RBs who are going to be starting in the NFL, and had 2 WRs drafted, one of which was one of the most prolific WRs to ever play at Carolina. Not to mention that Longo has made Sam into a Heisman contender in 2 years! SMH, some people just look for things to complain about.

I think this is the year where they show if they are really good coordinators that can get us over the hump or if they are good coordinators that can get us to the hump.

 

[Archer2]

I will say that they should, on paper, win 11. They have the horses. I don't believe that the OC and DC have what it takes.

So you make that determination after two seasons? Were you saying that Fedora didn’t “have what it takes” after two seasons? I’ll bet not. If you cant give our staff more than two years to turnaround a cluster fork like Fedora left, I’m glad you’re not the AD or the HC.

 

[strummingram]

So you make that determination after two seasons? Were you saying that Fedora didn’t “have what it takes” after two seasons? I’ll bet not. If you cant give our staff more than two years to turnaround a cluster fork like Fedora left, I’m glad you’re not the AD or the HC.

I make that determination after 43 years of watching UNC football. I'm glad I'm not the OC or DC, too.

I'll be pulling for them to win, as always... but...

 

[strummingram]

I think this is the year where they show if they are really good coordinators that can get us over the hump or if they are good coordinators that can get us to the hump.

I think they showed that by losing to UVA and FSU last season.

I can't fault them for the TAMU loss. They had 4 key players quit on the team. But, there's no excuse for losing to FSU and UVA... none! They simply MUST win games like that. And, Carolina always finds ways to lose those games.

They certainly have the chance to prove they can do it. But...

 

[tarheel0910]

I think they showed that by losing to UVA and FSU last season.

I can't fault them for the TAMU loss. They had 4 key players quit on the team. But, there's no excuse for losing to FSU and UVA... none! They simply MUST win games like that. And, Carolina always finds ways to lose those games.

They certainly have the chance to prove they can do it. But...

Well, UVA at their place and FSU has been an almost guaranteed loss under Mack. Beating them would be getting us over the hump. That's what I was referring to.

 

[NBBears20124ACHAMPS]

Bateman has worked wonders. Longo had 2 1K RBs who are going to be starting in the NFL, and had 2 WRs drafted, one of which was one of the most prolific WRs to ever play at Carolina. Not to mention that Longo has made Sam into a Heisman contender in 2 years! SMH, some people just look for things to complain about.

Both Bateman and Longo have recently stated that they can finally now call all the plays they want without concern over depth/experience. Defensively, they're light years ahead of last year. Grimes is up to speed (didn't play nearly half the season last year), Evans is experienced in his position, Conley is free to roam and do more things at the Safety spot, Duck is back after only playing 1 complete game last year, and they now have 7 guys over 300 bills on the DL which will allow them to rotate and keep fresh throughout the game. Then you get to add RaRa, Ritzie, Silver, Echols etc? Yessir.

 

[strummingram]

Well, UVA at their place and FSU has been an almost guaranteed loss under Mack. Beating them would be getting us over the hump. That's what I was referring to.

Those are just excuses for losing, as you know. There are endless excuses, especially when there endless losses that should have been wins.

I'm not sure that the offense can replace what was lost from last season. If they still had those players? It might be a different story. Even if just Williams had come back, it would be different. They have all the OL starters, but they lost major play-makers.

There are simply too many uncertainties at this point, for me, and the one thing that is for certain-- UNC always finds a way to lose games they should win. It's difficult for me to forget that factor.

 

[uncboy10]

Those are just excuses for losing, as you know. There are endless excuses, especially when there endless losses that should have been wins.

I'm not sure that the offense can replace what was lost from last season. If they still had those players? It might be a different story. Even if just Williams had come back, it would be different. They have all the OL starters, but they lost major play-makers.

There are simply too many uncertainties at this point, for me, and the one thing that is for certain-- UNC always finds a way to lose games they should win. It's difficult for me to forget that factor.

There's some serious talent in the WR group. Largely unproven at this point, but off the top of my head I think there's at least 3 guys who were higher ranked recruits than Dazz and Dyami were coming out of high school. And people are definitely sleeping on Beau. He's had the best hands on the team since he got on campus, and he will easily body up most corners with the ball in the air.

In all your years of watching Carolina football, we've never had a QB anywhere close to Sam's level. A significantly less talented Carolina team managed to go 11-1 not so long ago. And the coaching staff was nowhere near as good as the one we have now. If there is a time to end that streak, it's now.

 

[strummingram]

There's some serious talent in the WR group. Largely unproven at this point, but off the top of my head I think there's at least 3 guys who were higher ranked recruits than Dazz and Dyami were coming out of high school. And people are definitely sleeping on Beau. He's had the best hands on the team since he got on campus, and he will easily body up most corners with the ball in the air.

In all your years of watching Carolina football, we've never had a QB anywhere close to Sam's level. A significantly less talented Carolina team managed to go 11-1 not so long ago. And the coaching staff was nowhere near as good as the one we have now. If there is a time to end that streak, it's now.

I'll gladly eat a convoy of crow, if it happens. I enjoyed the 2015 season... until the end! That was sort of a fluke season, though.

I agree that Sam is a better QB than UNC usually brings to the table. And, I hope he has matured even more, and maybe even gained more confidence in his ability to control the game on offense. I'd love to see the team succeed and Sam become a Heisman candidate.

Bottom line; We all know what they must do. THEY know what they must do. They just need to do it. If they can win the games they're supposed to win, it will help their momentum in winning the games that are toss-ups or even underdogs. They're not lacking talent. I hope the coordinators get their acts together and capitalize on the elite talent they've acquired.

I'm just predisposed to caution, and maybe even "don't get your hopes up!" when it comes to the Heels. When I was a kid, I just wanted them to beat NC State, and go to a bowl of some kind. In '96 and '97, I was really on-board, and living in Charlotte. I was very optimistic in those years. Aside from always losing to FSU, it was a fun era!

 

[uncboy10]

I agree that Sam is a better QB than UNC usually brings to the table.

That's a little bit of an understatement. Sam is multiple rungs higher on the ladder of both talent and execution than anyone UNC has ever had at QB. If it weren't for LT and Julius Peppers, he'd be the best player in the history of Carolina football.

That being said, idk why anybody would try to bust your balls for criticizing Longo. His play-calling has been atrocious at times and IMO he has probably cost the team multiple wins over the last two years.

 

[strummingram]

That's a little bit of an understatement. Sam is multiple rungs higher on the ladder of both talent and execution than anyone UNC has ever had at QB. If it weren't for LT and Julius Peppers, he'd be the best player in the history of Carolina football.

That being said, idk why anybody would try to bust your balls for criticizing Longo. His play-calling has been atrocious at times and IMO he has probably cost the team multiple wins over the last two years.

There's no excuse for the UVA and FSU losses last year.

 

[matt 1976]

That's a little bit of an understatement. Sam is multiple rungs higher on the ladder of both talent and execution than anyone UNC has ever had at QB. If it weren't for LT and Julius Peppers, he'd be the best player in the history of Carolina football.

That being said, idk why anybody would try to bust your balls for criticizing Longo. His play-calling has been atrocious at times and IMO he has probably cost the team multiple wins over the last two years.

Serious question. Who would you guys rather have than Longo, who we would have a realistic chance of getting? No OC or DC is perfect. And even if they are, you still need all 11 players to execute the call.

You keep bringing up the UVA and FSU losses, which were terrible and I put those more on Mack than the coordinators. We scored 41 points and put up 536 total yards against UVA. We scored 28 points (last year that should be enough to beat FSU) and put up 558 yards against the Seminoles. So, in the 2 games that we are complaining about, Longo’s offense scored 69 points and put up almost 1,100 yards!

 

[uncboy10]

There's no excuse for the UVA and FSU losses last year.

Agreed

 

[strummingram]

Serious question. Who would you guys rather have than Longo, who we would have a realistic chance of getting? No OC or DC is perfect. And even if they are, you still need all 11 players to execute the call.

You keep bringing up the UVA and FSU losses, which were terrible and I put those more on Mack than the coordinators. We scored 41 points and put up 536 total yards against UVA. We scored 28 points (last year that should be enough to beat FSU) and put up 558 yards against the Seminoles. So, in the 2 games that we are complaining about, Longo’s offense scored 69 points and put up almost 1,100 yards!

You're making an even stronger case for how they should have won the games. It SHOULD have been... but, it wasn't. The Tar Heels were the more talented team... but they lost both games.

I don't have a list of coordinators. I just know that the two we have helped to lose two games that should have been wins.

 

[tarheel0910]

If it weren't for LT and Julius Peppers, he'd be the best player in the history of Carolina

I think the list is longer than that, but football is hard to judge like that because positions are so much different.

 

[Archer2]

Serious question. Who would you guys rather have than Longo, who we would have a realistic chance of getting? No OC or DC is perfect. And even if they are, you still need all 11 players to execute the call.

You keep bringing up the UVA and FSU losses, which were terrible and I put those more on Mack than the coordinators. We scored 41 points and put up 536 total yards against UVA. We scored 28 points (last year that should be enough to beat FSU) and put up 558 yards against the Seminoles. So, in the 2 games that we are complaining about, Longo’s offense scored 69 points and put up almost 1,100 yards!

You will never change Strum’s mind about anything.

 

[uncboy10]

Serious question. Who would you guys rather have than Longo, who we would have a realistic chance of getting? No OC or DC is perfect. And even if they are, you still need all 11 players to execute the call.

You keep bringing up the UVA and FSU losses, which were terrible and I put those more on Mack than the coordinators. We scored 41 points and put up 536 total yards against UVA. We scored 28 points (last year that should be enough to beat FSU) and put up 558 yards against the Seminoles. So, in the 2 games that we are complaining about, Longo’s offense scored 69 points and put up almost 1,100 yards!

Putting up nearly 600 yards and only scoring 28 points is a perfect reflection of how terrible Longo’s redzone playcalling has been at times. I’m not saying he’s all bad, but he has a habit of making terrible calls at crucial points in close games.

 

[uncboy10]

I think the list is longer than that, but football is hard to judge like that because positions are so much different.

If he has the kind of year most are expecting him to have, he could end up with the ACC career and single season passing TD records. He's already got basically all of the UNC records. If we're judging just based on college careers, he may be at the top of the list by the time all is said and done. It is difficult to compare across positions and eras, and QB's do tend to get favored in those debates because of how crucial the position is.

 

[uncboy10]

You will never change Strum’s mind about anything.

Yeah and you're the perfect embodiment of open mindedness

 

[Archer2]

Yeah and you're the perfect embodiment of open mindedness

And another member of the idiot clique joins in, an island of insanity. Anytime someone criticizes one of you, the other 3-4 of you circle the wagons.

 

[uncboy10]

And another member of the idiot clique joins in, an island of insanity. Anytime someone criticizes one of you, the other 3-4 of you circle the wagons.

I’m just glad you like this staff better. It would be shame if you had to go back to pulling against Carolina because you don’t like the coach.

 

[strummingram]

I’m just glad you like this staff better. It would be shame if you had to go back to pulling against Carolina because you don’t like the coach.

Which wagon were you supposed to pull?