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Notre Dame football: Irish offense will shut down Sam Howell and UNC

By Daniel Morrison

CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA - NOVEMBER 27: Head coach Mack Brown of the North Carolina Tar Heels shakes hands with head coach Brian Kelly of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish after their game at Kenan Stadium on November 27, 2020 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Notre Dame won 31-17. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
CHAPEL HILL, NORTH CAROLINA - NOVEMBER 27: Head coach Mack Brown of the North Carolina Tar Heels shakes hands with head coach Brian Kelly of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish after their game at Kenan Stadium on November 27, 2020 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Notre Dame won 31-17. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /
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MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA – JANUARY 02: Sam Howell #7 of the North Carolina Tar Heels looks on before the Capital One Orange Bowl against the Texas A&M Aggies at Hard Rock Stadium on January 02, 2021, in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA – JANUARY 02: Sam Howell #7 of the North Carolina Tar Heels looks on before the Capital One Orange Bowl against the Texas A&M Aggies at Hard Rock Stadium on January 02, 2021, in Miami Gardens, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

Notre Dame football: Irish offense will shut down Sam Howell and UNC

Bottom Line on the Tar Heels

North Carolina has a few things going for it in 2021. They have Sam Howell, one of the best quarterbacks in the game, along with a legendary head coach in Mack Brown. They also have a ton of experience and athleticism on the defensive side of the ball, which will be hard to match.

Their schedule is also going to be predictably easy unless they fail to find more consistency than last season. They do have plenty of questions too. The turnover at offensive skills positions is concerning, and despite their talent on defense, they were liable to being exploited.

So, what are the Tar Heels? A very good football team, but not as good as the hype that’s surrounding them early in the season.

Too Early Prediction

These aren’t the same teams that met in Chapel Hill last season, but Notre Dame football is still much better than North Carolina in the trenches. Because of this, Sam Howell is going to have to try and throw out quickly on the Irish secondary.

If he can beat the Notre Dame corners, because he isn’t going to beat Kyle Hamilton, then there is a chance that he forces Notre Dame football into a shootout. Don’t expect that, though. Notre Dame’s offense is going to be methodical and keep the ball from Howell.

Notre Dame 31 North Carolina 21

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