Aug. 14, 2007

By Adam Lucas

Most Carolina practice periods are between 10 and 15 minutes long. Tuesday, the Tar Heels went through a mammoth 40-minute period.

What could be important enough to warrant a 40-minute session devoted exclusively to one aspect of the game? The running game? Pass skeleton drills? Tackling?

Try special teams. The Tar Heels drilled every aspect of their special teams for 40 full minutes.

"That tells you a lot," special teams ace Kendric Williams said. "It tells you the importance Coach Davis places on special teams. He knows it can be the difference between winning and losing and that's the way we're going to treat it."

Let's just hope a situation never arises where Carolina needs a backup hands team. That role was filled Tuesday by the quarterbacks, whose role during a 40-minute special teams period is primarily limited to timing hang time on punts and filling in where needed.

"We get in there when we can," Cameron Sexton said with a smile. "But I don't think you're going to see me on the hands team."...

Williams, more familiar to most of his teammates as T-37, was back in his number-37 jersey on Tuesday. The previous owner, Da'Norris Searcy, has switched to 30, which enabled Williams to trade the 14 he wore for the first ten days of camp for the 37 he preferred.

No matter what jersey he has worn, Williams has spent the majority of camp at first-team cornerback. "I've taken extra time this year to learn my playbook and know my assignments," Williams said. "I've also worked a lot harder this year watching tape. As soon as I get out of the shower and finish eating, I head straight to watch tape. I'm watching to be able to anticipate what the offense is doing. It enables me to pick up those little things I have to do well."...Kentwan Balmer earned the coveted yellow jersey for Tuesday's practice...

Ryan Houston drew praise from Butch Davis following Saturday's scrimmage. What enabled him to run more effectively than his previous camp efforts? A pep talk from former middle school teammate Hakeem Nicks. "Hakeem said, 'You're not running the ball like you did in high school,'" Houston said. "I said, 'It's a different game.' But he said, 'You still have to do your thing.'...In high school I could run up high and still run people over. Here they're strong, so you're not going to run anyone over up high. I got my pads low and got decent yardage. I was getting four or five yards per carry. I felt like I was on a roll."...Nicks and Houston, by the way, were teammates at Albemarle Road Middle School. Improbably, that team actually lost two games that year. Nicks played running back and Houston played quarterback--one of the losses came when Houston had a self-described "bad game" under center. Had he stayed at QB, Jared Lorenzen might look like a wiry little quarterback...

As a reward for what Butch Davis and the coaching staff considered the team's best practice of camp on Monday night, Tuesday's practice was more abbreviated than originally scheduled...That's good news for the squad, because Wednesday promises to be a long day. The Tar Heels have two practices plus the Football 101 clinic for women Wednesday night at 5 p.m. Woody Durham will emcee the event, which will include presentations from Tammy and Butch Davis, offensive coordinator John Shoop, defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano, special teams coordinator John Lovett, head athletic trainer Scott Trulock, strength and conditioning coach Jeff Connors, equipment manager Dominic Morelli, and much more. Interested women should come to the Sonja Haynes Stone Center at 5 p.m...

Thanks to the efforts of Tar Heel supporter Vernon Glenn, Charleston, S.C., now has a Tar Heel Sports Network radio affiliate. WQNT, 1450 AM, will carry all the Carolina broadcasts this season. For more on this year's radio plans, make sure to check back tomorrow morning.

Adam Lucas most recently collaborated on a behind-the-scenes look at Carolina Basketball with Wes Miller. The Road To Blue Heaven will be released on September 1. Lucas's other books on Carolina basketball include The Best Game Ever, which chronicles the 1957 national championship season, Going Home Again, which focuses on Roy Williams's return to Carolina, and Led By Their Dreams, a collaboration with Steve Kirschner and Matt Bowers on the 2005 championship team.