UNC football prepares for stifling Wake Forest defense

Riding a four-game winning streak, the North Carolina football team faces a true offensive test this weekend.

Wake Forest (3-3) comes into Chapel Hill with the nation’s 15th-ranked defense. And after spending its bye preparing for the Demon Deacons, UNC (4-1) knows its in-state rival isn’t one to be trifled with.

“We’re kind of controlling our own destiny right now,” said redshirt senior guard Landon Turner. “We’ve got to make sure we stay focused and really take this one game at a time.”

Before Saturday’s 7 p.m. kickoff, here are four things to note about the matchup.

Protect the blitz

Wake Forest’s 20th-ranked scoring defense relies on its physical blitzing attack.

With constant movement and exotic pressure schemes, the Demon Deacons boast one of the most formidable defensive units in the country.

“If we’re not physical or if we’re hesitant, then it’ll cause lapses in protection and zones and gaps,” Turner said. “We’ve got to be mentally focused, especially with as much as they move.”

Scoring threat

After posting just 13 points in its season opener, North Carolina has featured one of the nation’s most prolific scoring offenses, averaging 45 points in its past four contests.

But against the Wake Forest defense — which shut out Boston College this past Saturday — something has got to give.

“We’re gonna run what we wanna run, and we’re gonna run it to the best of our ability,” Turner said. “It all comes to execution, anyway.”

ACC start

If the Tar Heels win this weekend, they will start 2-0 in ACC play for the first time since 1997.

“It’s a big deal for us,” said junior center Lucas Crowley.

“It would put us at the top in the Coastal (Division), and that’s one of our goals. Another one of our goals is to be state champs, so it would help us in that area as well.”

Flashbacks to 2011

The last time the Tar Heels took down the Demon Deacons was in a 49-24 home win in 2011.

That season was also the last time the Tar Heels started 5-1, a mark the 2015 squad would reach with a win Saturday. But following the Wake Forest game, the 2011 crew dropped three of its next four games to finish a disappointing 7-6.

For Turner and his fellow fifth-year seniors, a different ending to this season is in their sights.

“This season for us has just been about leaving a legacy,” said Turner, a member of the 2011 team. “(It’s about) putting in the work to do that and kind of keeping each other accountable and working off of each other and striving to be that. We just want to leave a legacy.”

@CJacksonCowart

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