Postgame Quotes
No. 17 North Carolina 49, Western Carolina 9
Kenan Stadium
Chapel Hill, N.C. | Saturday, Dec. 5, 2020
Att: 3,535

Western Carolina Head Coach Mark Speir
Overall thoughts on the game at North Carolina
"We played a great opponent in North Carolina. They have as explosive an offensive as there is in the country and they're as good as advertised. Up until about three minutes left in the first half, I thought we were battling. We couldn't match up with those receivers and most of the ACC can't. I thought our defense played really hard. Offense moved the ball really well at times. You can't have a negative play against a team like that and expect to overcome it. I think we came out in the second half and continued to battle and play hard. I know they had some backups in, but their backups are still pretty good players and close to what we're going to be playing against in the Southern Conference and our guys came out and held them to seven points in the second half. We've got a young team and they've been through a lot since July with all of the COVID procedures and practicing during exams this week.

"Overall, I'm really proud of these guys. We've learned a lot, we've grown a lot. I think we're so much better on defense. You see some big numbers, but we've played two of the best offenses in the country in Liberty and UNC. It was very productive, and I appreciate (our administration) making it possible for us to play."

On preparing for North Carolina quarterback Sam Howell
"He is as good as advertised. He's going to be an NFL quarterback one day. We didn't get a lot of pressure on him today, that's kind of where we're hurting right now. We don't have a lot of depth at defensive line. We didn't want to blitz because we couldn't hold up against zone coverage against some of the best receivers in the country. Preparing for him is really hard because keeps plays alive, he can run; I think he's like Baker Mayfield. He can run, extend plays and is an unbelievable talent throwing the ball.  They've got three great receivers, two unbelievable running backs, their offense is a complete package."

"I thought our (student-athletes) battled their tails off other than the three minutes right before half where I thought we got wide-eyed, played sloppy and kind of lost our composure. We challenged them at halftime, and I think they came back and stood up to that challenge in the second half."