UNC Football: Mack Brown Minnesota Postgame Press Conference (UNC wins 19-17)

or Diet Coke whatever's easiest thank you we ready yeah diet snap can't do that for commercials right that's get myself in trouble here at a happy time tell me thumbs up when everybody's ready everybody got it uh what a great football game number one between um an ACC team on the road at Minnesota it's a hard place to play then you have the distraction of of an hour delay and you're not even sure what time you're going to get to play so we talked to the guys about Sudden Change in their lives and just handling whatever is thrown at them we weren't sure we'd get to loosen up when we got here and all that happened and then we uh played great defense uh the first half and and throughout the game probably as good as we've played since we've been here tough defense especially against the Run uh our kicking game was probably the best we've had we made every field goal we kicked the ball out on on kickoffs all but once and covered it great I don't think he made the 25 on the return and then um um our punter averaged 51 yards a punt and put one down at the one yd line so those are things that win football games and in tight games and especially on the road uh offensively we ran the ball well we didn't run it consistent that om Marian's really good and we'll get better and Darwin Baro will play more in the future as we go uh hated that Max got hurt I thought he was getting his confidence and coming into his own in the third quarter when he got hurt um we're not sure sure how badly he's hurt he's at the hospital with his parents and we will wait uh he's in our thoughts and prayers for sure um and if if we hear something we will we will let you know um but the guys took care of the ball uh Connor had two drives to win the game uh the the play that he made where he looked like he was going to run on the option and and stopped and threw the ball downfield was a game-winning play and that's who he is that's what he can do um Conor never pouted about not starting he was in and when he came off the bench he said let's go I'm I'm ready to play so um what we we haven't done well in my estimation in the last few years we haven't won games where one of the phases didn't play well and we found a way to win this game and that's what's so important is you it's all about winning they played as hard as they could I I hate I really admire PJ Fleck I hate for his team they didn't win I really hate for the young guy I love that our young guy kick the field go through I hate that goty missed it that's tough for him uh and uh it's good for us but I told PJ after the game this is what college football should be about a bunch of great kids that that played as hard as they could play for three hours three and a half hours and it comes down to a last kick and um and then the kids were hugging each other and and praying together after the game that's what college football's all about and I was really really proud of this game tonight questions you mentioned um max you know kind of finding his room that second half what gave you the confidence to kind of stick with him after that first half we felt like that U he hadn't been in this offense before and um we felt in general that the offense was uptight the first half and Minnesota's a good defense we knew that we knew this would be a line of scrimmage game and we were having trouble protecting so we felt like that we would adjust to things at halftime I thought the coaches did and and and gave him some better opportunities and then I thought Max settled down and and and would had more confidence in that third quarter and really hated to to see him get hurt but we've talked about needing two quarterbacks and we talked about Connor was probably going to play in this game at some time um so thank goodness Connor was ready M when Max goes down and has to be carded off that's a pretty tough moment for his teammates to see how what can you say about how they were able to mentally reset and help Conor and the rest of the guys win this game we've talked about uh doing every little thing possible to help with their confidence to to help with their commitment to help with their discipline since January and we're looking at so many different things to figure out how to finish the season better we played more people tonight we had fewer penalties tonight we did a lot of really good things for an opening game most opening games are so ugly you lose them more than you win them and we didn't lose the game tonight we hung in there and we fought and um I'm just just proud of the change in all of these guys confidence and their attitude especially our defense they they got momentum right before the half they they go down and score uh and here we are walking around we got our head down a little bit and we said no we're not doing that anymore we're going to pick it back up and we are going to have confidence this second half and the team had that the kids spoke the whole last month about the freedom on defense and being liberated not being boxed into a system at what point did you see in the last four weeks or so where what happened tonight was possible with this group not just a couple series because they've done that before but stacking those Series yeah every practice I have seen really good Gap control against the run up front I mean every practice the Ted monino has done an amazing job those linebackers stepped up I thought with a club on his hand that Amari Campbell made so many plays tonight he he missed a sack because he couldn't wrap him up um and and we had a third 27 that that for Caleb came in his maybe his first play in college football missed the tackle early uh but I I really felt like that uh the the defense since the spring since Jeff Collins came the coaches are all inclusive they all believe in him the defense believes in him they were singing and dancing before the game and in their team meeting he calls it dabbing up they're all hugging each other and telling them they love them um and and tonight I was so proud that when things didn't look good for us in a couple of situations uh they hung together and popped through it and made Place we've seen flashes from Javari through his three years previously it looked like everything just kind of came together tonight for him it really did I was so proud of him when he ran their quarterback down yeah I thought that big man ran him down and that's usually where you get a a horse collar and he didn't he very carefully grabbed the edge of his jersey and took the other side and tackled him and pulled him down so very very proud of Javari and they're not having to play um 70 plays those guys split reps and in the end we had a a we had like Bo Atkinson and and um jacobe Cowan and and Dez Evans played so good tonight and he was back in the back field all the time and and Cay and Rucker and they weren't going to let them get there they Chi them all night like we tried to chip their ends and they got the ball out of their hands fast but U um I thought it was a a game with two new quarterbacks really three new quarterbacks that hadn't played a whole lot and and the defense dominated the game and the running game uh but both teams have a chance to be good M with with the way the fourth quarter got to seawing back and forth and as you said it it wasn't a work of art at times but some of the plays like the Omari Campbell punching it out with the club Conor Harold to JJ I mean it looked like it was almost a hook shot in basketball with the throw like the the ability to find the plays does that give you guys some pride to take out of here just to be able to find a place to win a game absolutely it's hard to win um this was supposed to be an even game it was even and our guys found a way to win and that's all that's important and it it's funny Adam when you say it wasn't a a what what' you call it a work of art it was if you're a defensive coach was if you're a special teams coach we've just seen offens he's run up down the field and and we haven't played great defense we can get better on offense but the play that good on defense in an opening ball game and and to play that well in special teams where I think you even questioned our punter I just asked you about you you did in in a questioning manner U are you okay with that punter is the way he looks and I think he asked if you were losing sleep at night over it I think this thank you thank you Andrew for being factual with uh Adam here but no uh I I thought um people that um offense sells tickets and people love offense and and so when the offenses don't look as good people say it's an ugly game defensive coaches love ugly games because that means there's not a lot of points scored and that that was a traditional old timey Big 10 football game where you had to run the ball you had to fight for everything you got your kicking game had to be great and you had to play great defense I think there was one turnover each yeah I I I think theirs led to a touchdown ours led to a field goal so so they got seven points out of the interception we got three points out of their quarterback fumble um and then the we made the field goals and they missed two and that's what the game came down to when you think of the way Noah's season ended two years ago and then look at the year he had last year and then what he did tonight is your confidence in him as high as it could be in a kicker at this point because it looked like you were playing to kind of rely on his leg a little bit there yes uh at at the end we wanted to kill the clock we wanted to get rid of their timeouts as much as we could um and and then make them use them and and try to um get it down to where we could kick the field goal and kill the clock because with a two-minute warning now it's harder to kill the clock than it used to be and they had three timeouts when we went below the two minute um but we we uh were very confident him it was funny we had a a kicker kick the game winning phield Golden Rose bow against Michigan and um they well we had Justin Tucker too kick the game-winning field goal at Texas A&M and I remember Justin was going to make it it wasn't any question he always did but the the young kicker for us against Michigan they call three timeouts at that time because you could now you can only call one and U after the third time out I I could tell it was ansy and I walked out there and said you are the luckiest human being in the world you're going to get every girl on the Texas campus that's going to be calling you and getting your number and then they blocked it and it went through about this Hive so he still got all the calls but I started to go out and talk to Noah tonight and I said I went out and I was kind of going to say you got this and he never looked at me he looked down so I think that that's just really really proud of him his leg got stronger yeah he's got a really strong leg I didn't realize but he was 18 of 19 last year but I'm saying that was a career long tonight yeah yeah I was I was hesitant on on the 30 ball from the 35 that's a long field goal and in an opening ball game and there was a little breeze in his face but I think it was fourth and six so we we felt like we should go ahead and kick it I think look at the big picture here I mean to go on the road and went in a big 10 environment the way you did and resiliency you showed and you know you lost a quarterback in the first round um what does this do big picture for you and your team and then also ACC getting a road win at the Big 10 we know there's going to be all kinds of arguments come November and de yeah it's uh you you really couldn't have scripted it better last year we won the game 3117 I think and people thought eh Minnesota didn't play good tonight everybody saw exactly what happened and it was a tough hard hardfought game that got down to the end in fact I could tell just looking in PJ's face how he felt and I'd be sitting in here feeling that way if that field goalie gone through but uh that that's what this game's all about it comes down to a play or two and and normally we say there are seven to 10 plays in a game that make a difference and you play for three and a half hours and and tonight that's what we're going to find when we start grading that thing in about an hour on the way home Ma Aiden Banfield got the start on the offensive line as a true freshman in a big 10 Road environment that's that's no small thing uh what can you say about him and what gave you the confidence to to give him that start yeah uh Howard Samson had started maybe two games or not I don't think he started he never hadn't started um Austin blasy had never started um and you start looking at Trey Green had never started I mean that's a bunch of puppies and then you take a freshman and put him in there at the left guard he never played in a game much less on the road and he sprained his ankle last week so we're a little concerned about him tonight and I I just from the sideline he looked like he deserved to be out there he's really smart he's tough his mom's a graduate he loves North Carolina uh and now I'm proud that we've got happy that we've got nine 10 days before Charlotte so it'll give him a little chance to get get home and get well one more M what did you tell Max if anything when you walked out there when he was down he was in such pain I couldn't I mean we all were trying to talk to him but he was really in pain so we we were just trying to pick him up I was so proud of those kids they all came over and they were all patting him on the leg and Sam we're proud of you and and um but he was was just in a little bit of shock and trying to figure it all out himself and and that's why I can't wait to talk to him and and tell him how proud We Are and the guys are are they gave two game balls tonight one to Chancellor Roberts because he's undefeated as the chancellor at the University of North Carolina he's never lost football game that's that's pretty cool um and um we gave one to Max and Max doesn't know it yet we we will get that word to him when when we can talk to him did you get a preliminary report on him at all no I I learned a long time ago that uh we need the doctors and the parents need to find out what's wrong first before any of us do and it's really uh tough on those kids on the sideline if they hear anything uh that's negative about a player so we found its best to get him to the doctor get him to the hospital get him with the doctor make sure we know exactly what happened instead of having speculation on TV where maybe the parents are at home and hear it um so I I have not talked to he or his parents I know the parents are at the hospital with him and I don't know whether he'll go home with us tonight or not we we will find that out we'll yes we'll find that out in a few minutes is there anything else you had one question yes ma'am yes what did you tell Conor when he the game I told Connor you're really really good it came down to the end where we didn't know which one to start go win a game and and you know some kids would have pouted they didn't start some kids would have had a chip on their shoulder the whole game I was looking for him fast and he was warming up by himself and then he came out and said we're good coach and and again that we we've got to figure out exactly what he does Best But that play he made where he could run and throw is is who he is and he can do that and he's uh he's so smart and he's he's so classy borian of his high school top student in our business school um one of the best if not the best leaders on our team he's one of the leading guys and in the leadership committee uh he's going to be fine I'm not worried about him we we've got to find out we've got to make sure that we get a package that he can do and it was hard with he and Max because they're they're different uh right now we'll be able to uh depending on Max's status but will if Max can't play against Charlotte jacobe will now be a factor starting in the morning too thanks y thank you all