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#UNC coach Mack Brown press conference after victory over Wake Forest to clinch bowl eligibility
Nov 17, 2024
#UNC coach Mack Brown press conference after victory over Wake Forest to clinch bowl eligibility
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proud of our guys that uh uh back to
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bowl eligible again for the sixth
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straight year and that's a uh last time
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since I think Jeremy was it or Jeremy is
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not in here Rick did you say the the
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late 70s yes sir I think we were seven
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in a row in the 90s but uh proud that
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our guys have extended their season um a
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lot of young people couldn't come from
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the whole they were in to the positive
0:25
attitude that they've had for the last
0:27
three weeks uh this game was very tough
0:30
you got to give Wake Forest a lot of
0:31
credit we didn't play as well
0:33
offensively in the passing game as as we
0:35
have the last three weeks defensively we
0:38
continued to play great we're stopping
0:40
the run and running the ball uh we won
0:43
the turnover game tonight and when you
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do that the large majority of the time
0:47
you're going to win a game and the
0:49
kicking game was good uh so I'm I'm
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really really proud of our guys and want
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to give Dave Clawson credit and his team
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credit because they always are so well
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coached and they play so hard
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and um and they didn't let up and and we
1:03
knew that you're you're not going to
1:04
make those guys quit so um proud of our
1:07
guys proud of Marian uh he uh he passed
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Kelvin Bryant and Don mccaulay which are
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two of the iconic players in this uh in
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this University's history um he had 249
1:21
yards and another uh another touchdown
1:24
uh he's tough he takes care of the ball
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he protects in the passing game he's
1:29
very very um um he he's um very humble
1:34
he never asked for the ball I guess you
1:35
don't have to when you get it 35 times
1:37
but he's uh he usually makes some plays
1:39
when when he has to to help us win the
1:41
game so very very proud of him um
1:44
defensively we did so many good things
1:46
there's a couple of things that that
1:47
we've got to fix um you'd like to have
1:50
shut it down in the end but but so they
1:52
they were the difference in the ball
1:54
game by forcing the turnover especially
1:56
on a short field and and giving us a
1:58
chance to win uh I was disappointed we
2:00
didn't score a touchdown on the first
2:02
drive uh we had two sacks in a row when
2:04
we were at the four yd line you can't do
2:06
that then we missed field goal uh so we
2:08
could have gotten started right I was
2:10
proud that we got the field goal with a
2:12
one minute drive right before the half
2:14
and I was proud that we uh we had a long
2:16
drive uh right after they had a drive to
2:18
answer so we won the middle 10 10 to 7
2:22
um so all of those things were different
2:24
in winning but uh really really proud
2:27
Ty's mom was in the locker room after
2:29
the game and she broke him down with
2:31
keep swinging which was his favorite
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slogan uh and she had a smile on her
2:35
face and went to see his locker so it
2:37
was really good to have her in there and
2:39
see her with a smile on her face um can
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I answer
2:44
questions a lot of times last couple
2:46
years about Mar so I'm going to ask you
2:48
about him again can you maybe describe
2:50
something describe it maybe in a
2:52
different way than you have before
2:55
just all of these young people are very
2:58
talented or they wouldn't be here
3:01
and you you you ask them why they play
3:03
they play because they're very talented
3:05
but they have to love to compete because
3:07
that's what they do at the highest level
3:09
and I told him before the game you work
3:12
350 days for 13 Saturdays or 14
3:17
Saturdays so it's got to be so important
3:19
to you and you've got to be consistently
3:22
good to be great he is consistent with
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everything he does in his life he eats
3:28
right he works out he has has no Vice
3:30
he's he he's a good student he's a great
3:33
person he's very unselfish when we
3:35
weren't moving the ball or blocking very
3:37
well for him in the third quarter uh
3:39
he's quiet but I saw him slip down and
3:41
and go to Every offensive lineman and
3:43
just tap him on the head and say we're
3:45
good come on let's let's finish this
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thing uh so he's got such a a gentle um
3:51
strength of of leadership about him uh
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but he's one of the best players and
3:56
people that I've ever been around and
3:58
really really proud of of what he
3:59
accomplished and we've said before that
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he could have left here very easily in a
4:05
time of nil where people are are um
4:08
talking to your players and they're
4:09
they're leaving for always greener grass
4:12
and and he stayed here and and it it's
4:14
worked for him too and what a followup
4:16
to that you had some big time backs when
4:18
you were here the first time in Texas
4:20
what's a common bread that he had some
4:22
of those guys he's uh uh he's so
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powerful he gets better in the fourth
4:27
quarter than he does the first he's got
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44 speed at 220 lbs and that's that's
4:34
freakish uh but to be unselfish to be a
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team guy that the players all love and
4:40
admire um it's just a very unique
4:43
quality that makes him special one of
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his last carries of the
4:49
game he did
4:51
kind it it is who he is he he knew that
4:54
the the we had a chance to put the game
4:56
away uh they were all on the line of
4:58
scrimmage we weren't throw it they knew
5:00
it we knew it and they were ducking down
5:03
low and submarining the line of
5:04
scrimmage he just jumped over them and
5:06
then ran it in uh which again is a a
5:09
great Instinct for for a tremendous back
5:12
M the Tar Heels who have rushed for two
5:15
at least 200 yards in three different
5:17
games are Kelvin
5:19
Bryant Mikey
5:22
mik Kelvin Bryant Amos lawence and Mario
5:25
Hampton first of all did he give a
5:26
speech in the locker room again and
5:29
second of all I mean you mentioned how
5:31
he just stays levelheaded and makes no
5:34
deal about whether he gets 32 carries or
5:36
12 carries me yeah when you like when no
5:40
when you you rush for 249 yards I told
5:43
them and they all said really oh my gosh
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but he didn't want to talk so he he not
5:47
going to say anything and it gets pretty
5:49
natural for us for him to to run like
5:52
that he's just a uh he is a he is a a
5:55
player that changes games he makes their
5:58
defense line up to stop him him and
6:00
where we've got to get better is we've
6:02
got to take advantage of those uh
6:04
alignments that are just totally in
6:07
place to stop him uh so we can finish
6:10
strong he he get a speech no he he did
6:13
not in fact September's mom talks about
6:16
as much as Omarian did and I asked her
6:18
to and she said good job so that would
6:20
have been about what Omarian would have
6:22
said not be topic of B ability you kind
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of clinched it I guess at different
6:27
points in your second year back you've
6:28
gotten it at 6 and0 six And1 you know
6:31
getting toward the end here how I guess
6:34
you crucial is it for you guys to just
6:36
kind of get out the way just kind of get
6:38
taken care of you know next I think uh
6:43
it's not our goal it's an early goal
6:45
it's not the ultimate goal obviously uh
6:49
but when you're 6-0 and six and one and
6:52
get to a bowl you kind of say h we knew
6:55
that we're we're we're going to do that
6:58
anyway that that's fine but now we've
7:00
got other things for this team to been
7:02
in such a Hole uh very few teams in my
7:06
estimation could have come out of this
7:09
um and that means they've got great
7:11
character um I'm I'm so proud of the
7:13
coaches that they've hung in there uh
7:15
because they were in a hole and
7:17
everything was negative and then you
7:19
lose a 23y old that's crushing it's it
7:22
doesn't happen very often in your life
7:23
and you never want it to happen um and
7:26
you can take two different paths you you
7:28
can go down and just quit and you got
7:30
plenty of excuses and they didn't do
7:33
that they kept their head up they kept
7:35
fighting they kept competing and I think
7:37
that's why they're so proud tonight and
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I told them two had been easy this one
7:41
wasn't easy but you kept your head up
7:43
and you kept fighting and and that's
7:45
what you've learned uh through all the
7:48
the turmoil and tribulation through the
7:51
the the season this year uh and I've
7:53
learned I've learned probably as much in
7:56
in the last six weeks as I've learned my
7:58
whole life
8:00
and and it's U it's a u sometimes it's
8:03
it's a
8:05
a to to see the stars you got to go
8:07
through the darkness and and that's kind
8:09
of what we've done and and and I like
8:12
what's happened with this team and how
8:14
they've responded to it defensively how
8:17
did you guys shut down I don't shut down
8:19
24 points but it seemed really like
8:21
defens control the whole night how you
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guys do it yes I I we've been a great
8:26
defensive team now for 3 weeks and we've
8:29
done it and they've got the slow mesh
8:30
which is tough and their running back's
8:32
a great player he's not a good player he
8:34
he made uh um he made us miss I won't
8:38
say who it was in the in the hole and
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and ran for about 25 yards and we're
8:43
right in the hole and he's uh you look
8:46
up and and they hand it to him on the
8:48
slow mesh and he's made five yards and
8:50
you can't even see it we're all around
8:52
it we're trying to knock them back um so
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uh I'm really really proud We we U
8:58
offensively we we gave Wake Forest a
9:01
really short field like they did us at
9:03
the six yard line with a fumble which
9:04
you can't do and especially when you're
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up 24 to 10 that's when uh we have to
9:09
learn at 24 to 10 they're not a throwing
9:12
team if you you take that drive and go
9:14
score and you make it 31 to 10 then they
9:17
have to go faster they have to open it
9:19
up and that's not who they are and and
9:21
we didn't do that and and that was a
9:23
disappointment but just really proud of
9:26
of Jeff Collins and the defensive staff
9:28
they've stopped the Run run they've
9:30
disrupted the
9:31
quarterback uh we haven't we forced two
9:34
turnovers last week what we had four
9:36
tonight or three had three tonight uh so
9:41
now they're they're starting to force
9:43
more turnovers and go into Boston
9:45
College they're running the ball really
9:46
really well so we'll have our hands full
9:49
going on the road next week again in all
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in all the games all the great running
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backs coach particularly here at UNC
9:58
where do Mar H game R ranked tonight all
10:04
well it's as good as any I mean 249
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yards is is just absolutely unbelievable
10:09
I was on a radio show at before the
10:12
season started and somebody said where
10:13
does he rank in the great backs you've
10:15
coached and I said he's in the middle of
10:17
it and he really is and there's some
10:19
great ones but uh everybody in the
10:21
country would want Omari and Hampton on
10:23
their team and he's going to be a great
10:25
Pro
10:25
player first recruiting Mar you to be
10:30
this good this
10:32
excellent you you you do but you never
10:35
know for sure because the competition's
10:38
so much tougher here than it is in high
10:40
school and you watch him and he's so
10:42
dominant in high school uh but you're
10:44
just you're just not sure you if you're
10:47
you're taking 17y olds and you're
10:49
projecting 22 year olds and are they
10:52
going to act right are they going to go
10:53
to school are they going to stay out of
10:55
trouble when they get away from their
10:56
parents um are they going to make their
10:59
grades uh are they going to stay healthy
11:02
and and thank goodness he's done all of
11:04
the above and and what you you try to do
11:07
is recruit a player that you can project
11:09
from a good player to be a great player
11:12
and he was a really good player playing
11:15
against 16 15 year olds uh he has been a
11:19
great player playing against older guys
11:20
that are really talented so on that
11:22
point he stilling you or are
11:25
you uh I'm I'm getting kind of that
11:28
point now just expected and in fact when
11:31
I uh I look up and I don't realize he's
11:33
carried at 35 times and I'll tell Coach
11:35
Porter why is he out of the game and he
11:37
said he run it 15 straight times you
11:40
know so he needs a break well he was the
11:43
only player I think that I would call a
11:45
timeout for to get him back in if we
11:47
were around the goal line because he
11:49
needed to be that way so and and tight
11:52
end or timeouts are precious but I would
11:54
call a timeout to get him back in the
11:55
game in a critical situation m is the
11:58
the sacks have piled up the last couple
12:01
weeks we've been preaching the need for
12:03
more turnovers the ones you got tonight
12:06
the pig six by power rical the one late
12:09
where Travis sh up the P Josh Harris is
12:11
in there like I mean he ended up helping
12:14
you seal the game I mean he not only not
12:17
only preaching it you had to have it
12:19
tonight is what I guess the point I'm
12:21
trying to make we did your you're uh
12:23
when you have three
12:24
phases uh sometimes one of them doesn't
12:27
work as well and tonight we didn't throw
12:28
the ball as well and that's something
12:30
we've got to do better and if you're
12:32
you're not clicking in one of those
12:34
phases somebody else has to step up and
12:37
uh and the defense started saying
12:38
tonight it it's 24 to1 they don't score
12:41
again they can't win and then and then
12:43
when it was even 24 to 17 they don't
12:45
score again they can't win and and even
12:48
to a point that they forced a turnover
12:50
and and let us pretty much finish the
12:52
game and and that's something we haven't
12:54
done around here for six years and and
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what Jeff promised me when I hired him
12:59
is what I've seen for the last three
13:01
years I mean three weeks and I'm really
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really proud of that and and running the
13:06
ball and stopping the run and disrupting
13:08
the quarterback and winning the turnover
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battle is going to win you 80 something
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to 90% of the games and and that's what
13:16
we've done for the last three weeks and
13:18
just just to follow up on that I mean
13:20
the different the different people the
13:23
last couple weeks Rucker B ritzy
13:26
tonight's Power and some of those
13:28
interior dudes is it heartening for you
13:31
as the coach that more and more guys are
13:33
coming to the Forefront here with some
13:34
of these gamechanging plays it really is
13:36
and and you um um you you look up after
13:39
the game you have to go back and see who
13:40
made the sacks and I thought Dez showed
13:43
up a lot tonight and and he was back
13:45
around the quarterback so when you put
13:47
Dez and ritzy and um uh bo and Rucker in
13:53
there together that's for the best pass
13:55
rushers in the country so it's really
13:57
really tough and we're starting to stop
13:59
to run more now on first and second down
14:01
so we're getting more third and Longs
14:03
where you can put your pass rush team in
14:05
and and have a champ better chance to
14:07
get turnovers the defense has three
14:09
touchdowns in the last five games one at
14:11
each level what have you seen from
14:13
really make those game changing play
14:16
confidence confidence is such a powerful
14:18
thing in our lives and when you don't
14:21
have it it's like a a a
14:24
disease um it just it it just beats you
14:27
down when you you walk into a room
14:29
without confidence somebody in there has
14:31
more confidence than you do they're
14:32
going to take over whatever you want to
14:34
take over and our our defense has never
14:36
had confidence they've been up and down
14:39
they've talked about it they've never
14:40
done it for three weeks they've done it
14:42
and right now it's a very confident
14:44
bunch I thought our offense lost some
14:46
confidence in the third quarter and I
14:48
was glad to see them come back out and
14:49
do some really good things in the in the
14:51
fourth quarter in fact I I really wish
14:53
JJ had caught the ball on Third and
14:55
three because I think if he catches that
14:57
one we go score then instead of having
14:59
to to force the turnover and that kills
15:02
the clock there was 507 left at that
15:05
time in the clock we're going to get it
15:06
down to the two-minute warning uh excuse
15:09
me I'm supposed to say two-minute
15:11
timeout uh for whatever reason but um
15:13
still hadn't understood that but I'm
15:15
supposed to uh but but confidence is
15:18
such a wonderful thing in all of our
15:21
lives and if you don't have it you're
15:23
not going to end up on top and right now
15:26
our defense has got it our offense has
15:28
it some our kicking game is getting it
15:31
and um our offense just needs to to to
15:35
keep going they've had it for two weeks
15:37
they didn't have it all the time tonight
15:38
so this will be a great week for them to
15:41
to get their confidence back up going on
15:42
the road on top that that's five
15:44
different games where you had a
15:46
non-offensive touchdown yeah that's got
15:49
to be a massive especially during a per
15:51
a third quarterback everybody try to
15:53
come together yeah I was I was so proud
15:56
of Javari ritzy at at Virginia he's
15:58
worked so hard here for so many years
16:00
and and and that was just an
16:01
unbelievable play and his mom was
16:03
sitting next to Sally in the stands and
16:06
uh jumped on her uh so they were
16:08
celebrating up in the stands and and
16:10
then for power power has done so much
16:11
for this program and this year his name
16:14
hadn't been talked about as much so for
16:16
him to intercept the ball and I was so
16:18
proud that not only did he intercept it
16:20
but he he ends up running it back to the
16:23
touchdown um those are two special young
16:26
people that deserve to get recognition
16:28
and I was glad they got it and Marcus
16:30
Allen made a tremendous play tonight too
16:33
um I I I thought there were a couple of
16:36
questionable calls on on the pass
16:38
interference on on both ends um I mean
16:41
on both teams uh but uh so we we've got
16:44
a couple of those to turn in but uh uh
16:47
really proud of the the the ball in the
16:50
end zone before they threw the touchdown
16:52
when they had the defensive pass
16:53
interference I thought Marcus was going
16:55
to intercept that one and finish the
16:57
game then so but really really proud of
16:59
those guys speaking of confidence um not
17:03
un end of the years have been last few
17:06
years what did you see when you walk in
17:07
the lock room get the feeling guys are
17:09
kind of getting
17:11
loose yeah when I was walking off the
17:15
field and and seeing the students all
17:18
still there singing the fight song and
17:20
seeing those guys so happy and then as
17:22
as I was walking in the tunnel one of
17:25
our great players that's a senior looked
17:27
at another one and started screaming and
17:29
said we are Bowl eligible man this is so
17:32
cool and I thought you know that's why
17:36
we have bowls um it's been too easy for
17:39
us to get there we hadn't finished but
17:41
this team is is kind of um they're own
17:44
mission to finish right and that's what
17:46
we said in January and that's what
17:48
they're doing uh we didn't start right I
17:50
wish we could do both uh but we haven't
17:52
learned to do that yet uh but right now
17:55
they're they're uh they're playing good
17:57
football and I'm really really proud of
17:59
them and and and I'm enjoying watching
18:01
them play watching them have
18:03
fune was sack I think four times in the
18:06
first quarter and then only one time in
18:08
the remaining three quarters was it just
18:09
a matter of shi protection what do
18:11
youbute to I don't know I'll have to go
18:13
back and watch it I was surprised
18:15
because we've protected so well and we
18:17
were running the ball so well uh the two
18:19
on the goal line we're we're kind of um
18:23
I got mad at chip you're on the Ford and
18:25
you got Omari and I wouldn't be dropping
18:28
back
18:29
um so um so I I had a little anger
18:34
management issue there at that point uh
18:37
but that was two of them um uh so uh but
18:41
I didn't think we protected very well
18:42
there were some guys wide open and he
18:44
got hit or got rushed and he bounced a
18:47
couple of balls to uh jacobe that were
18:49
um I mean to uh to Kobe pesur that were
18:53
wide open uh so we've got to go back and
18:55
look at
18:57
that any body
18:59
else and here is Omarian
19:03
Hampton come on up here
19:07
Omarian thank you very