Baker has guts for game

Have you ever wondered what 60,000 people holding their breath sounds like?

Near the end of the third quarter in Saturday's loss to Wisconsin, North Carolina quarterback Matt Baker squirmed on the ground, clutching his chest after sustaining a shot to the ribs by a Badger defender.

Chapel Hill collectively came to a halt, and Tar Heel fans scurried to check the return policy on their season tickets.

John Bunting's worst personnel nightmare was becoming a reality - and far sooner than anyone had feared.

Two realities became incredibly clear in the 14-5 defeat: Last year's 109th-ranked defense might show up this season, and protecting Baker will mean the difference between an intriguing season or resurrecting the infamous Brooklyn Dodgers slogan, "Wait 'till next year."

But if Saturday's game was any indication, the former won't matter much if the latter is watching the game from the sidelines in jeans and tennis shoes.

Prior to becoming a powder-blue tackling dummy for the Badger defense in the third quarter - and even afterward - Baker piloted the Tar Heel offense rather effectively despite being inundated with penalties. Offensively, UNC out-gained Wisconsin by 34 yards - and those aren't garbage-time numbers.

With Baker in the game, UNC managed only three offensive points. It's hard to imagine an offense being less productive points-wise than that, but take a moment to think how inept the unit would have been had Baker not taken every snap but one.

While it may not be fair to judge backups Joey Bozich and Ben Johnson before they throw a collegiate pass, the mere fact that Baker re-entered the game one play after he "couldn't breathe at all for a about a minute out there" might be a testament to the preparedness of his replacements.

If there was any question as to whether Baker was tough, that issue was put to bed Saturday. And his toughness might have served to inspire the defense's sound night.

"He's a tough quarterback," said defensive end Tommy Davis. "He can take a shot or two. He finished the game strong, and I'm proud of him."

But there's a difference between toughness and durability. You can ask the Tennessee Titans' Steve McNair about that. Sure, sore ribs in the season's second game might be surmountable, but if little is done to prevent a bevy of hits like Baker took in Saturday's second half, Bunting might have to resort to plucking kids out of the student section to take some snaps while Baker is scraped from the Kenan Stadium sod.

"I thought our quarterback was very gutty staying in there," Bunting said. "I also would like to protect him better. And we've got to get to the bottom of that."

So that's a stated goal for this week's film and practice sessions - and it's a vital one. With Baker at the helm, the 2005 Tar Heels have accumulated moral victories against Georgia Tech and Wisconsin. Without him, the actual victories that are expected to follow might never materialize.

"I didn't care if I had broken ribs, I was going to go back and play," Baker said. "Broken ankle, I was going to be in there playing, there was no doubt about that."

Baker's gung-ho attitude is commendable, but even he has to realize that any significant length of time he isn't on the field might result in this season being a wash.

The entire Tar Heel fan base will be holding its breath.

 

Contact Matt Estreich at estreich@email.unc.edu.