In baseball, it's the guys who are always willing to sacrifice a runner into scoring position rather than swing for the fences.
And in football -- it's the offensive line.
These are the athletes who receive little attention but are absolutely vital to any team's success. If the North Carolina football team expects 2002 to be a success, it starts with the guys up front.
UNC returns starters Jupiter Wilson, Jason Brown and Jeb Terry and hired Hal Hunter as the new offensive line coach, hoping he will put up numbers similar to those he posted as offensive coordinator at Indiana.
Under Hunter, the Hoosiers finished fourth in the nation in rushing offense and allowed just nine sacks in 11 games in 2001.
Hunter scoffed at the notion that he's just plain smarter than other coaches but said his methodology relies on three principles. First, the players must have mental and physical talent. Second, they must know the fundamentals of the game. Third, and most importantly, they must be put in situations where they can succeed, Hunter said.
"Any one of those missing," Hunter said, "and you won't have any success."
With Hunter's system leading the charge for the offense, perhaps 2002 will feature the first 1,000-yard rusher for the Tar Heels since Jonathan Linton rushed for 1,004 yards in 1997.
One way the line expects to achieve that goal is to finish every play.
