Three storylines going into UNC football's Thursday night matchup with No. 16 Miami

Head coach Larry Fedora rarely lets on that his team’s preparation for one game differs from the next.

Sure, the North Carolina football team (1-2, 1-0 ACC) is playing its first ranked opponent of the season. Tar Heel playmakers on both sides of the ball, including last year’s starting quarterback and a valuable defensive end, are returning to action after suspensions. The team is coming off its first win of the season after it bounced back from a 41-19 loss to East Carolina with a 38-35 win over Pittsburgh.

But none of that changes Fedora’s plan for North Carolina in its mid-week matchup with No. 16 Miami (3-1) on Thursday. The seven-year head coach said the only thing that is adjusted for, really, is time.

“We’ve had a Thursday night game every year we’ve been here, so we’ve got a very consistent plan and a good plan,” he said after Monday’s practice. “Our guys feel comfortable with it.”

Despite Fedora holding his cards close to his chest, there are several reasons why this week is special. Here are three storylines to keep in mind going into UNC’s third road game of the season.

Malik Carney reunites with Jeremiah Clarke

Redshirt senior defensive end Malik Carney, who was one of the nine Tar Heels suspended for four games for selling team-issued gear, is returning to the field on Thursday — and redshirt senior defensive tackle Jeremiah Clarke is excited about it.

Clarke and Carney have known each other since the sixth grade, when they played basketball at rival middle schools. They both went to T.C. Williams High School and have been making plays together at UNC since then.

The last time the Tar Heels traveled to Miami, Carney forced a fumble that Clarke recovered.

“The relationship is there, the chemistry is there, we know how to play off each other well and it’s just exciting when you make a play with one of your brothers who you’ve been making plays with since you’ve been playing football,” Clarke said. 

“It’s just nice to have a one-two punch that, you know, I’ve grown up with, and it’s fun to make plays, celebrate, turn up. And then you go back home and everyone knows who both of you are, so it’s kind of lit on that front.”

Carter returns to Florida

Michael Carter, a Navarre, Fla., native, is playing in his first college football game in the state of Florida. The running back ran for 28 yards on six carries in his sophomore debut against Pittsburgh after suffering a fractured wrist prior to the 2018 season.

When asked about his return to his home state, Carter smiled. 

“Yeah, I’m pumped,” he said. “I got a lot of tickets going in this week. I’m excited to go back down to Florida and play in front of my friends and family — all of my friends and family. I usually don’t get to do that.”

Carter said he got recruited by Miami but the school didn’t give him an offer.

Last season, he was arguably North Carolina’s most efficient offensive player. He led the Tar Heels with eight rushing touchdowns and averaged a team-high 5.8 yards per carry in 2017.

Surratt is now an option

Fedora said on Monday that Nathan Elliott will start Thursday’s game, just like the redshirt junior has all season.

But he also said that Chazz Surratt — the redshirt sophomore quarterback who started seven of the nine games he appeared in last season and received a four-game suspension with Carney —  may be used as well.

“When we knew (Surratt) wasn’t going to play, he was still getting reps,” he said. “He’s been getting reps with the ones and the twos, and he’s been working with the scout team.”

When asked if he would use a two-quarterback system for the rest of the season with Surratt now back, though, Fedora dodged the question: “I could use two or three actually.”

Going into Thursday, the Tar Heels will have one win under their belts, their roster replenished and their toughest test of the season right in front of them.

And by Friday, they’ll have the clearest picture, thus far, of who they are.

@alexzietlow05

sports@dailytarheel.com | @DTHSports