North Carolina Football: 3 reasons the Tar Heels will win the ACC

1. Sam Howell

Don Shula, the winningest head coach in NFL history and the coach of the undefeated 1972 Miami Dolphins once said, “Sure, luck means a lot in football. Not having a good quarterback is bad luck.”

The Tar Heels are pretty lucky to have Sam Howell as their quarterback for this season.

The junior from Indian Trail, N.C. threw for 3,586 yards and 30 touchdowns in 12 games last season for North Carolina as the offense averaged 41.7 points per game, good enough for ninth in the country last year. As a freshman, he had 38 touchdown passes.

Not only is he on the Heisman watchlist, but many project him to be a top pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. ESPN‘s Mel Kiper Jr has Howell ranked as the second-best quarterback (behind Oklahoma’s Spencer Rattler) in his way-too-early 2022 NFL Draft rankings (article by ESPN+, paid subscription required).

Coach Brown had this to say about his QB-1 back in April:

"“Sam Howell is the biggest reason why we’ve made the progress we have in two years…he came in as a high school senior as an early enrollee in January. He’s started every game since he’s been here. He’s smart, he’s smooth. A lot of people compare him, because of stature, to Baker Mayfield. He can run a lot better than you think. He has quick feet. He’s tough as nails. He can throw it whether he’s in the pocket or on the run, he’s very accurate and has a quick release. He’s married to football. He’s in the office more than I am."

Howell possesses incredible accuracy and a big enough arm to throw the ball deep, especially while in the pocket, but he can also scramble out of the pocket to produce big plays. He has been compared to Cleveland Browns quarterback Baker Mayfield, as they both have a similar build and playing style.

He had some talented receivers last years such as Dyami Brown and Dazz Newsome who are now in the NFL, and Khafre Brown, expected to be Howell’s top receiving option, suffered an injury during the spring.

Those question marks surrounding the receivers for the Tar Heels will be a big storyline as the season continues, but Howell will still give the offense consistent play at the quarterback position and make the right throws.

With a light schedule, a rebuilding Clemson team, and play of Sam Howell, the North Carolina Tar Heels look to be a force in the ACC in 2021. With several starters returning on both sides of the ball and the leadership of Coach Mack Brown, be prepared for a special season in Chapel Hill.