MIAMI GARDENS, FL – Here is what some of the Tar Heels had to say after their 20-13 win over No. 16 Miami at Hard Rock Stadium:
Malik Carney
On how the team has responded to the change over the past few weeks...
“We are just staying together, and just understanding this game to the fullest. We are just holding our guys to be responsible. We are trying to impress and get corrected in practice and that’s what we did today.”
On the final sequence in today’s game...
“I knew it was wet out there. I knew that tackle likes to reach down. I was taught to get low and just get around him.”
On how the defensive backfield helped the defensive line get to Miami QB Brad Kaaya...
“What my coach calls it is a coverage sack. Those guys back there are doing their job. If everybody is doing their job, there isn’t anywhere to throw the ball. Sacks will eventually come. When everybody does their job, guys just make plays and that’s what we’ve got to keep doing.”
Mitch Trubisky
On seeing opportunities and the success he had rushing the football in today’s game...
“Well, those were kind of in the gameplan this week. We knew that the quarterback run has been giving them some trouble. So, that’s what I was asked to do, to just get more comfortable as the game goes on. I needed to run the ball, try to pick up some yards, follow my blocks — really just playing within the offense. Credit to my teammates for throwing blocks for me and putting their bodies on the line. It’s just a mindset. You’ve just got to get the yards for the team. That’s something that we saw and something we worked on this week and I think that helped us move the ball sometimes.”
On if he felt that the team may have left points on the field...
“Definitely. The feeling is that we just left points on the field. I can’t tell you any specifics right now. We’ve got to go back and look at the film. Obviously, when you get on the goal line, we’ve got our big package down there. We’ve got to be able to punch the ball in the endzone or spread them out and find some holes. Definitely felt like we left some things on the field — we need to convert some more third downs. Our defense played a spectacular game. We were able to stay on the field in crucial times like that last drive just moving the chains. But yeah, it did feel like we left a lot of plays out there.”
On how it feels to beat a ranked opponent after the loss last week...
“It’s huge bounce-back game for us. Coming down on the road again against another ranked opponent — a very good opponent — a great defense. It was crucial for us to jump on top early and just keep the lead. The defense played a great game keeping them off of the field and keeping them out of the endzone. It was a great team win. It was a gritty effort. We had to get it done somehow. It wasn’t pretty but we came out with a W so I’m proud of my team.”
Nazair Jones
On how they felt they had success against Miami ...
“I think it was just due. We’ve been trying to put together four quarters for a very long time and we finally got it done today. I think we did a good job cancelling their inside gaps and making them earn everything they got.”
On Malik Carney’s strip sack ...
“I loved it. We have got guys that make plays. We just have to get them more consistently. When it was time to make a play, the defensive line definitely stepped up on that last possession.”
On the how the secondary played ...
“They did a great job. They just gave us time to get to the quarterback and that goes for all of us really. So the better they do the better they make us look.”
Ryan Switzer
On the importance of this win ...
“Guys knew that if we didn’t come out of here with a win, we’d be hard pressed to get to Orlando. It gave us a little motivation to come down here and play well against another ranked team on the road and bounce back from that tough loss last week. We came out focused and thought we jumped on them well. We did a lot things in the second half to try and lose the game, but our defense played really well today and we’re fortunate enough to come out of here with a win.”
On Justin Vogel’s punting ...
“He was getting a lot of hang time on it. Not much you can do when the punter is doing his job. There were a couple of times when I tried to make something happen, but the guy did his job.”
Jeremiah Clarke
On if it was time for the defense to get the win ...
“I definitely think so. We’ve been waiting for a whole team game where every aspect of the game is on their A game. As far as this one, we always felt like the defense was going to have a two-minute situation. You never know which game it’s going to come down to, we wished it could’ve been Florida State, but we needed that to learn for this game, so that way we didn’t make the same mistakes we did against FSU.”
On if they could sustain the momentum with all the injuries ...
“Yeah we are all banged up at multiple positions. A lot of people were nursing injuries, but I just believe that we have a next-man-up mentality, so it doesn’t matter. You saw Marlon Dunlap go out there today as a true freshman, burning his redshirt. It’s just next man up and do the best you can when you go out in the field.”
Malik Carney
On how the team has responded to the change over the past few weeks...
“We are just staying together, and just understanding this game to the fullest. We are just holding our guys to be responsible. We are trying to impress and get corrected in practice and that’s what we did today.”
On the final sequence in today’s game...
“I knew it was wet out there. I knew that tackle likes to reach down. I was taught to get low and just get around him.”
On how the defensive backfield helped the defensive line get to Miami QB Brad Kaaya...
“What my coach calls it is a coverage sack. Those guys back there are doing their job. If everybody is doing their job, there isn’t anywhere to throw the ball. Sacks will eventually come. When everybody does their job, guys just make plays and that’s what we’ve got to keep doing.”
Mitch Trubisky
On seeing opportunities and the success he had rushing the football in today’s game...
“Well, those were kind of in the gameplan this week. We knew that the quarterback run has been giving them some trouble. So, that’s what I was asked to do, to just get more comfortable as the game goes on. I needed to run the ball, try to pick up some yards, follow my blocks — really just playing within the offense. Credit to my teammates for throwing blocks for me and putting their bodies on the line. It’s just a mindset. You’ve just got to get the yards for the team. That’s something that we saw and something we worked on this week and I think that helped us move the ball sometimes.”
On if he felt that the team may have left points on the field...
“Definitely. The feeling is that we just left points on the field. I can’t tell you any specifics right now. We’ve got to go back and look at the film. Obviously, when you get on the goal line, we’ve got our big package down there. We’ve got to be able to punch the ball in the endzone or spread them out and find some holes. Definitely felt like we left some things on the field — we need to convert some more third downs. Our defense played a spectacular game. We were able to stay on the field in crucial times like that last drive just moving the chains. But yeah, it did feel like we left a lot of plays out there.”
On how it feels to beat a ranked opponent after the loss last week...
“It’s huge bounce-back game for us. Coming down on the road again against another ranked opponent — a very good opponent — a great defense. It was crucial for us to jump on top early and just keep the lead. The defense played a great game keeping them off of the field and keeping them out of the endzone. It was a great team win. It was a gritty effort. We had to get it done somehow. It wasn’t pretty but we came out with a W so I’m proud of my team.”
Nazair Jones
On how they felt they had success against Miami ...
“I think it was just due. We’ve been trying to put together four quarters for a very long time and we finally got it done today. I think we did a good job cancelling their inside gaps and making them earn everything they got.”
On Malik Carney’s strip sack ...
“I loved it. We have got guys that make plays. We just have to get them more consistently. When it was time to make a play, the defensive line definitely stepped up on that last possession.”
On the how the secondary played ...
“They did a great job. They just gave us time to get to the quarterback and that goes for all of us really. So the better they do the better they make us look.”
Ryan Switzer
On the importance of this win ...
“Guys knew that if we didn’t come out of here with a win, we’d be hard pressed to get to Orlando. It gave us a little motivation to come down here and play well against another ranked team on the road and bounce back from that tough loss last week. We came out focused and thought we jumped on them well. We did a lot things in the second half to try and lose the game, but our defense played really well today and we’re fortunate enough to come out of here with a win.”
On Justin Vogel’s punting ...
“He was getting a lot of hang time on it. Not much you can do when the punter is doing his job. There were a couple of times when I tried to make something happen, but the guy did his job.”
Jeremiah Clarke
On if it was time for the defense to get the win ...
“I definitely think so. We’ve been waiting for a whole team game where every aspect of the game is on their A game. As far as this one, we always felt like the defense was going to have a two-minute situation. You never know which game it’s going to come down to, we wished it could’ve been Florida State, but we needed that to learn for this game, so that way we didn’t make the same mistakes we did against FSU.”
On if they could sustain the momentum with all the injuries ...
“Yeah we are all banged up at multiple positions. A lot of people were nursing injuries, but I just believe that we have a next-man-up mentality, so it doesn’t matter. You saw Marlon Dunlap go out there today as a true freshman, burning his redshirt. It’s just next man up and do the best you can when you go out in the field.”
