Q. What's the biggest obstacle do you think you guys had to overcome this season to get to this point?
LARRY FEDORA: The biggest obstacle were the 12 teams we've played. It's hard to win football games. To find a way week in and week out, whether we were at home or whether we were on the road, you know, it's always difficult. To get your team to play at a high level on every Saturday is a difficult thing to do, and it's why I've been so proud of these guys because they have been so consistent throughout the season.
Q. I know you've downplayed your standing or said you don't even know where you stand in the College Football Playoff rankings. But do you have an opinion now that the regular season is over, have you had a chance to look at where you are in the standings and if you have an opinion on where you are?
LARRY FEDORA: Yeah, I still don't know. You know, it comes out, what, Tuesday; is that right? So it comes out Tuesday, and I'll get a look at it then. That will be the first time I've looked at it, and see where it is. It's not going to matter if we don't take care of our business this weekend. It really won't matter. All of our focus will be on Clemson, just like we've done every week. All of our focus will be on the preparation for that game. You know, if that's enough, you know, if you beat the No. 1 team in the country and that's enough to get you in, then our team will be excited.
Q. Larry, do you guys deserve a playoff spot if you beat the No. 1 team?
LARRY FEDORA: Yes, I do feel that way, yes. If we beat the No. 1 team in the country, which Clemson is the No. 1 team in the country, and it's a consensus No. 1, and they've been No. 1 for a long time, I believe that if that happens, our team is deserving, yes.
Q. If you could talk to the committee, how would you explain your loss to South Carolina?
LARRY FEDORA: That was the first game of the year, and we made some mistakes. We turned the football over and didn't get it done. Played well enough to win, we just didn't get it done. I think if you look at our body of work throughout the rest of the season and running off 11 straight games, the games that we had to play on the road from Georgia Tech on the road to a short week against Pitt, who was ranked at the time, to playing in Blacksburg on the road when everybody in the country wanted Frank Beamer to win that game, you know, we found ways to do it, so I think this team would be very deserving.
Q. You obviously have the asset of having a very multidimensional quarterback in Marquise Williams. As you look at going up against somebody like Deshaun Watson, what kind of challenges does that present when you've got to deal with a quarterback who is so capable of making plays in a lot of different ways?
LARRY FEDORA: Well, it usually means defensively you've got to have somebody with their eyes on the quarterback all the time. You can't just put everybody into coverage because he's going to extend plays and make plays with his legs, and then you're going to have breakdowns in coverage and he's going to hit big plays on you. You've got to have people with eyes on him, and you've got to be able to -- when you do bring pressure, you've got to get to him, and you've got to get him on the ground, because if not, he's going to have an opportunity to make big plays.
Q. This is kind of a broad question, but how has the success, the visibility of North Carolina basketball helped build and sustain what you're doing over at the football program?
LARRY FEDORA: Well, I would say you have to give credit to the basketball program for building the brand. I mean, there's not a place you can go in the country that people don't know Carolina blue and the interlocking NC. So that gets us in the door quite a bit. So we're very, very proud of the fact that basketball built this brand, and our job is just to continue to grow our brand in football to try to reach their level at some point. You know, and I think our guys are doing a really good job of making progress in that area.
Q. Is it ever viewed as a challenge to try to maybe create a space for football at a school that has kind of built its brand on basketball?
LARRY FEDORA: I don't think so. I mean, I don't look at it that way. I mean, every day is a challenge no matter what you're doing. We're always striving to be the best that we can possibly be. But I don't look at it as a negative by any means. To me it's been a positive. They've made it easier for us because they've paved the way and people know Carolina blue and they know that interlocking NC.
Q. Back to Deshaun Watson, he had six touchdowns in the game last year. A two-pronged question: That was his first start. Did that make it more difficult to game plan against him, and how much do you now this week look at game tape from that, if that helps you at all?
LARRY FEDORA: Well, we'll look at it from a defensive standpoint. I don't know that we'll look at it as much as -- we'll look at all the games that they've played this year, but from an offensive standpoint we'll look at it because it's pretty much the same offense, the same offensive philosophy, same offensive staff. Yes, he did, he torched us for six touchdowns last year, probably had the best game of his career going into that first game. But that was the 2014 team, and we're a different football team. I can promise you that.
Q. You mentioned earlier involving your upperclassmen in making some decisions about goals for this year, how much do you trust those guys to be involved in that way in your program, and how much has it grown over the course of this year as you guys continued to win?
LARRY FEDORA: Well, I mean, these guys -- I mean, from the very first meeting, I told them they had ownership in this program, and this was their team. This team would achieve whatever they wanted them to achieve and whatever they were willing to make them achieve. So those seniors took it to heart, and I have complete confidence in them and their decision-making process and the things that they do when we -- the questions come up with this team. They're very well thought out, they think about it, they talk about it, and then they make a decision, and we usually roll with it, and I feel very comfortable that whatever decisions are made, they're going to make sure that the entire team knows.
Q. As well as your season has gone over the last 11 games, are there any things you look at that you need to do better against Clemson on Saturday?
LARRY FEDORA: Oh, no doubt. We start with we've got to be extremely good in our special teams. That's going to be very important, in all four phases. We've got -- offensively we've got to take care of the football. We have got to take care of the football. That's going to be our No. 1 priority, and then defensively we've got to create some takeaways. We have got to limit some possessions for them, and that's going to be very, very important to our success.
Q. Larry, like you said, you can only control whether you win Saturday's game or not, but in the meantime there's going to be a lot of debate from people like me this week about your guys' playoff candidacy. Just the fact that North Carolina is being mentioned like that, that they're part of the discussion this week, what does that mean to you?
LARRY FEDORA: Well, it's a tribute to the staff that I have. You know, and it just reaffirms that the plan that we have for growing this program into a perennial contender is the right plan, and I think our staff has totally bought into that. Our kids have bought into it. So it just really reaffirms what we're doing and that we are doing the right things and that we are making progress despite some huge obstacles that have been thrown at us in these first four years.You know, I think the future is extremely bright, and you know, it's -- I can't say that every day has been fun getting to this point, but it's all been worth it.
Q. And do you feel like just the fact that it's not necessarily considered a given that if you win this game you're in, do you think any of that is attributable to the fact that people just aren't used to seeing you being mentioned as a playoff or national title type team?
LARRY FEDORA: I mean, I think people could make that argument because the committee will go with the ones that are the household names, the football names, and the ones that everybody knows. You know, I think it's -- I don't know, I think that's the great thing about this playoff, you know, is that anybody can get in it and anybody can win it, and so if we're fortunate enough to be in that position, we'll be excited about it.
Q. You've been answering some questions on this call about the national image of your team. Do you think the nation still needs to be introduced to Carolina football?
LARRY FEDORA: I don't know if -- I would say that everybody does know that we're out there, but if you want to get on that, I'd appreciate it. That would be awesome. I mean, we're not going to turn down any publicity. But you know, I think our team has established that we're a really good football team. I think their play and what they've done on the field this year has shown everybody in the country that we can play football and that we've got a really good football team, and so hopefully we will be very representative of that in the ACC Championship Game.
LARRY FEDORA: The biggest obstacle were the 12 teams we've played. It's hard to win football games. To find a way week in and week out, whether we were at home or whether we were on the road, you know, it's always difficult. To get your team to play at a high level on every Saturday is a difficult thing to do, and it's why I've been so proud of these guys because they have been so consistent throughout the season.
Q. I know you've downplayed your standing or said you don't even know where you stand in the College Football Playoff rankings. But do you have an opinion now that the regular season is over, have you had a chance to look at where you are in the standings and if you have an opinion on where you are?
LARRY FEDORA: Yeah, I still don't know. You know, it comes out, what, Tuesday; is that right? So it comes out Tuesday, and I'll get a look at it then. That will be the first time I've looked at it, and see where it is. It's not going to matter if we don't take care of our business this weekend. It really won't matter. All of our focus will be on Clemson, just like we've done every week. All of our focus will be on the preparation for that game. You know, if that's enough, you know, if you beat the No. 1 team in the country and that's enough to get you in, then our team will be excited.
Q. Larry, do you guys deserve a playoff spot if you beat the No. 1 team?
LARRY FEDORA: Yes, I do feel that way, yes. If we beat the No. 1 team in the country, which Clemson is the No. 1 team in the country, and it's a consensus No. 1, and they've been No. 1 for a long time, I believe that if that happens, our team is deserving, yes.
Q. If you could talk to the committee, how would you explain your loss to South Carolina?
LARRY FEDORA: That was the first game of the year, and we made some mistakes. We turned the football over and didn't get it done. Played well enough to win, we just didn't get it done. I think if you look at our body of work throughout the rest of the season and running off 11 straight games, the games that we had to play on the road from Georgia Tech on the road to a short week against Pitt, who was ranked at the time, to playing in Blacksburg on the road when everybody in the country wanted Frank Beamer to win that game, you know, we found ways to do it, so I think this team would be very deserving.
Q. You obviously have the asset of having a very multidimensional quarterback in Marquise Williams. As you look at going up against somebody like Deshaun Watson, what kind of challenges does that present when you've got to deal with a quarterback who is so capable of making plays in a lot of different ways?
LARRY FEDORA: Well, it usually means defensively you've got to have somebody with their eyes on the quarterback all the time. You can't just put everybody into coverage because he's going to extend plays and make plays with his legs, and then you're going to have breakdowns in coverage and he's going to hit big plays on you. You've got to have people with eyes on him, and you've got to be able to -- when you do bring pressure, you've got to get to him, and you've got to get him on the ground, because if not, he's going to have an opportunity to make big plays.
Q. This is kind of a broad question, but how has the success, the visibility of North Carolina basketball helped build and sustain what you're doing over at the football program?
LARRY FEDORA: Well, I would say you have to give credit to the basketball program for building the brand. I mean, there's not a place you can go in the country that people don't know Carolina blue and the interlocking NC. So that gets us in the door quite a bit. So we're very, very proud of the fact that basketball built this brand, and our job is just to continue to grow our brand in football to try to reach their level at some point. You know, and I think our guys are doing a really good job of making progress in that area.
Q. Is it ever viewed as a challenge to try to maybe create a space for football at a school that has kind of built its brand on basketball?
LARRY FEDORA: I don't think so. I mean, I don't look at it that way. I mean, every day is a challenge no matter what you're doing. We're always striving to be the best that we can possibly be. But I don't look at it as a negative by any means. To me it's been a positive. They've made it easier for us because they've paved the way and people know Carolina blue and they know that interlocking NC.
Q. Back to Deshaun Watson, he had six touchdowns in the game last year. A two-pronged question: That was his first start. Did that make it more difficult to game plan against him, and how much do you now this week look at game tape from that, if that helps you at all?
LARRY FEDORA: Well, we'll look at it from a defensive standpoint. I don't know that we'll look at it as much as -- we'll look at all the games that they've played this year, but from an offensive standpoint we'll look at it because it's pretty much the same offense, the same offensive philosophy, same offensive staff. Yes, he did, he torched us for six touchdowns last year, probably had the best game of his career going into that first game. But that was the 2014 team, and we're a different football team. I can promise you that.
Q. You mentioned earlier involving your upperclassmen in making some decisions about goals for this year, how much do you trust those guys to be involved in that way in your program, and how much has it grown over the course of this year as you guys continued to win?
LARRY FEDORA: Well, I mean, these guys -- I mean, from the very first meeting, I told them they had ownership in this program, and this was their team. This team would achieve whatever they wanted them to achieve and whatever they were willing to make them achieve. So those seniors took it to heart, and I have complete confidence in them and their decision-making process and the things that they do when we -- the questions come up with this team. They're very well thought out, they think about it, they talk about it, and then they make a decision, and we usually roll with it, and I feel very comfortable that whatever decisions are made, they're going to make sure that the entire team knows.
Q. As well as your season has gone over the last 11 games, are there any things you look at that you need to do better against Clemson on Saturday?
LARRY FEDORA: Oh, no doubt. We start with we've got to be extremely good in our special teams. That's going to be very important, in all four phases. We've got -- offensively we've got to take care of the football. We have got to take care of the football. That's going to be our No. 1 priority, and then defensively we've got to create some takeaways. We have got to limit some possessions for them, and that's going to be very, very important to our success.
Q. Larry, like you said, you can only control whether you win Saturday's game or not, but in the meantime there's going to be a lot of debate from people like me this week about your guys' playoff candidacy. Just the fact that North Carolina is being mentioned like that, that they're part of the discussion this week, what does that mean to you?
LARRY FEDORA: Well, it's a tribute to the staff that I have. You know, and it just reaffirms that the plan that we have for growing this program into a perennial contender is the right plan, and I think our staff has totally bought into that. Our kids have bought into it. So it just really reaffirms what we're doing and that we are doing the right things and that we are making progress despite some huge obstacles that have been thrown at us in these first four years.You know, I think the future is extremely bright, and you know, it's -- I can't say that every day has been fun getting to this point, but it's all been worth it.
Q. And do you feel like just the fact that it's not necessarily considered a given that if you win this game you're in, do you think any of that is attributable to the fact that people just aren't used to seeing you being mentioned as a playoff or national title type team?
LARRY FEDORA: I mean, I think people could make that argument because the committee will go with the ones that are the household names, the football names, and the ones that everybody knows. You know, I think it's -- I don't know, I think that's the great thing about this playoff, you know, is that anybody can get in it and anybody can win it, and so if we're fortunate enough to be in that position, we'll be excited about it.
Q. You've been answering some questions on this call about the national image of your team. Do you think the nation still needs to be introduced to Carolina football?
LARRY FEDORA: I don't know if -- I would say that everybody does know that we're out there, but if you want to get on that, I'd appreciate it. That would be awesome. I mean, we're not going to turn down any publicity. But you know, I think our team has established that we're a really good football team. I think their play and what they've done on the field this year has shown everybody in the country that we can play football and that we've got a really good football team, and so hopefully we will be very representative of that in the ACC Championship Game.
