By R.L. Bynum

The numbers behind Carolina’s 15–10 win over TCU tell a story of two units with a lot of endurance in the rain at Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

Middle linebacker Derek McDonald (top photo), the ACC linebacker of the week, and cornerback Jaiden Patterson each played all 72 defensive snaps, evidence of just how long UNC’s defense was out there against a TCU offense that leaned on the run and moved the chains often enough to make the Tar Heels earn every stop.

Strong safety Greg Smith was right behind them at 69 snaps, and defensive end Leroy Jackson played all 58 of UNC’s snaps on the edge, part of a defensive front that Coach Bill Belichick credited as a group after the game.

“We get a lot of plays up front from Derek, Leroy, Isaiah [Jackson], and the guys on the edge, Mel[kart Abou Joude] and [Jaylen] Harvey,” Belichick said.

The offensive line matched that kind of endurance. Left tackle Jordan Hall, left guard Andrew Threatt, center Christo Kelly, right guard Aidan Banfield and right tackle Shaq McRoy did not come off the field for a single one of Billy Edwards Jr.’s 58 offensive snaps, protecting a quarterback for the most part but giving up three sacks.

It’s in stark contrast to most of last season when injuries kept forcing the coaching staff to shuffle the players on the line. That kind of continuity up front lines up with the discipline Belichick praised after the game, when he pointed to the lack of penalty yardage as a difference-maker against a TCU team that shot itself in the foot repeatedly.

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More on UNC’s win

— Video: “Tar Heel Tribune Podcast,” TCU postgame, with Britt Whitmire, R.L. Bynum and Doc Kennedy
— Tight end Thurman turns heads, tops last season’s numbers at Ohio State in one game
— Billy Edwards Jr. wasn’t spectacular, but he was sold. He said the Heels left “meat on the bone.
— There was a lot of passionate talk among the defensive players at halftime before they began to lock down
— What went well and what needs work? Doc Kennedy dissects it all in his Good, Bad and Ugly Report
— Billy Edwards Jr. wasn’t spectacular, but he was sold. He said the Heels left “meat on the bone.
— Video: Bill Belichick postgame press conference
— Video: press conference with Jelani Thurman, Xavier Lewis and Billy Edwards Jr.
— Video: TCU press conference with Coach Sonny Dykes, QB Jaden Craig and Jamel Johnson

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The workload for tight end Jelani Thurman, who had the best PFP offensive grade at 71.7, backed up his 94-yard, four-catch night. The tight end played 55 of the 58 offensive snaps, more than every skill player except Edwards and wide receiver Jordan Shipp, who logged 56.

Mason Humphrey rotated in at wide receiver spot for 39 snaps, and wide receiver Trech Kekahuna added 29 while also chipping in eight special teams snaps, tied for the most on the roster among position players.

Benjamin Hall led the running backs with 27 snaps, with reserves C.J. Sadler (26 wide receiver snaps) and Jaylen McGill (25 at running back) rounding out a rotation that kept fresh legs in the game late. The majority of Demon June’s nine snaps came on the final drive when he ran for 25 yards.

Defensively, the secondary saw the heaviest rotation of any position group.

Cornerback Kaleb Cost came off the bench to play 56 snaps, nearly as many as most of the starters, an indication of how much Carolina mixed and matched in coverage against a TCU passing attack that found chunks of yardage in the first half before the Tar Heels adjusted.

Safety Coleman Bryson added 34 snaps on defense to go with 16 more on special teams, the busiest overall workload of any reserve on the roster. Up front, nose tackles Xavier Lewis, the ACC defensive lineman of the week who had the best PFP defensive grade at 82.4, and Johnson split time (54 and 49 snaps, respectively), while outside linebacker Melkart Abou Jaoude played 53 snaps without leaving for a single special teams unit.

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Snap counts

Offense

Starters	Pos.	Snaps	Special teams
Shaq McRoy	RT	58	4
Aidan Banfield	LG	58	4
Andrew Threatt	RT	58	4
Jordan Hall	LT	58	4
Christo Kelly	C	58
Billy Edwards Jr,	QB	58
Jordan Shipp	RWR	56
Jelani Thurman	TE	55	4
Mason Humphrey	LWR	39	4
Trech Kekahuna	WR	29	8
Benjamin Hall	RB	27
Reserves	Pos.	Snaps	Special teams
C.J. Sadler	RWR	26
Jaylen McGill	HB	25
Shamar Easter	RTE	12
Carson Sneed	LTE	10
Demon June	HB	9
Peter Pesansky	RG	2

Defense

Starters	Pos.	Snaps	Special teams
Jaiden Patterson	LCB	72	5
Derek McDonald	MLB	72	9
Greg Smith	SS	69	5
Leroy Jackson	RE	58	2
Xavier Lewis	NT	54	5
Jaylen Harvey	DLE	54	5
Melkart Abou Jaoude	LOLB	53
Isaiah Johnson	NT	49	2
Tre Miller	SCB	47	2
Peyton Seelmann	WLB	42
Peyton Waters	FS	42	4
Reserves	Pos.	Snaps	Special teams
Kaleb Cost	SCB	56	6
Coleman Bryson	FS	34	16
Donovan Hoilette Jr.	DLE	31	1
Jonathan Agumadu	WLB	29	9
Trey Giddens	DLT	13
David Jackson III	DLT	7	5
Kenton Dopson III	LCB	6
Javion Butts	FS	1
Ade Willie	SCB	1

Exclusively special teams

Player	Pos.	Snaps
DJ Forkp		13
Jakob Weatherspoon		12
Jaziel Hart		12
Aeron Burrell	K	11
Ade Willie		11
JoJo Troupe		8
Calvin Thomas		7
Gannon Burt	LS	7
Daniel Anderson		5
Eidan Buchanan		4
Trey Blue		4
Jacob Horvath	P	4
Jonah Rodriguez		4
Nathan Leacock		4
Kaleb Jackson		4
Shamar Easter		4
Timir Hickman-Collins		4

Photo courtesy of UNC-Chapel Hill