TOUGH SCHEDULE THUS FAR
The 10 teams Carolina has faced this season are a combined 75-26 (.743). Rutgers is 9-0 and ranked seventh in the Associated Press poll, Virginia Tech is 8-2 and ranked 19th, Furman is 8-3, Clemson is 8-3 and ranked 25th, Miami is 5-5, USF is 7-3, Virginia is 4-6, Wake Forest is 9-1 and ranked 14th, Notre Dame is 9-1 and ranked 6th and Georgia Tech is 8- 2 and ranked 18th. In the Sagarin rankings, North Carolina has faced the nation’s eighth-toughest schedule thus far.

STRONG PLAY AGAINST GEORGIA TECH
Making his third consecutive start, redshirt freshman cornerback Jermaine Strong played an important role in limiting Georgia Tech to just seven points and 221 yards of total offense in Carolina’s 7-0 loss. Matched up against All-America wide receiver Calvin Johnson, Strong had five tackles, one forced fumble and one pass breakup. Strong forced Johnson to fumble after a catch (would have been a 4-yard loss) and Carolina recovered the ball.

Strong also broke up a pass to Johnson, knocking the ball in the air and right into the hands of teammate Chase Rice for an interception. Strong helped hold Johnson to just three catches for 13 yards and Georgia Tech was limited to just 78 yards passing.

NICKS MAKES PUSH FOR ACC FRESHMAN HONORS
North Carolina wide receiver Hakeem Nicks is making a push for ACC Rookie of the Year honors. The freshman from Charlotte, N.C., ranks second in the league with 543 receiving yards and is averaging 60.3 yards per game. Among ACC wideouts with at least 25 receptions, Nicks is third in yards per catch at 17.0 (32 for 543).

Against Notre Dame, Nicks set a UNC single-game freshman record with 171 receiving yards on six catches. The previous record was 165 yards by Octavus Barnes vs. Duke in 1994. Nicks caught touchdown passes of 13 and 72 yards against the Irish. The 72-yarder was the the Tar Heels’ longest play from scrimmage this year and tied for the 20thlongest pass play in school history.

With 32 catches, Nicks is just six receptions shy of Kory Bailey’s freshman record of 38 in 1998. UNC’s freshman record for receiving yards in a season is 609 by Octavus Barnes in 1994.

L. EDWARDS RETURNS FROM COLLARBONE INJURY
Senior linebacker Larry Edwards, who missed three games after fracturing his collarbone in the loss to USF, returned for the Georgia Tech game.

“Nothing surprises me about that kid,” said head coach John Bunting. “He worked very hard to get back before the end of the year.”

Edwards started against the Yellow Jackets, but had to leave the game after spraining his ankle in the first half. Edwards was ruled out of the game for good, but after an x-ray did not reveal a break, he returned in the second half and finished with five tackles.

Press Conference Quotables
Head Coach John Bunting
I'll begin by addressing yesterday's news that Butch Davis is the next head coach here at Carolina. I've met or spoken with Butch on a few occasions, and that is the extent of our relationship. I certainly wish him well here, and I'll do whatever I can to help him if he'd like that help. There are several pieces of our program that are on solid footing, including our team's academic performance, our current recruiting class and the fact that we redshirted almost this entire class. I think he'll be inheriting some good things. He's got some work to do, and I wish him well. Other than that, I want to discuss N.C. State and answer questions related to this week's game and our football team.

On where he's seen the biggest improvement in the last three games
Well, I see improvement, but we still have the same problem: inconsistency. We haven't played well together as a team the whole year - not one game where the whole team played together. That's why we're at where we're at. That's what this game is all about. Playing as a team. Working together. One phase will play well; the other phase doesn't. All three phases need to be in sync to have success, and we haven't had success because we have never been able to do that.

On N.C. State:
I feel their pain. They have, recently, some of the same problems. I think their defense has played very well. Their offense has played well at times. They've made some big plays at times. The way they controlled that football last week versus Clemson, particularly in the first half, was absolutely very impressive. They've got a couple good runners. I think their quarterback has done a fine job coming in mid-way and taking over. Mistakes are what hurt you in any game, and, occasionally, they'll break down. We've seen a lot of that on our end, last week being no exception - with great protection and receivers open and us not finding the connection. Defensively, they're always good despite the changes on the back of the jerseys. They play hard. They're in your face. They're aggressive. They've had a break or two not go their way. They've lost several close games, which we can relate to here some. They're playing hard, they're playing physical and they're in the games each week until the end, which I can relate to some last year - matter of fact a lot last year - and a little bit this year. You want to come out on the winning side of those things. Lately, they've not been able to do it. This game now between us is a great rivalry game, and it's not hard to get your players ready to play emotionally. Hopefully, they play smart and together and for 60 minutes.

On what this game means to him:
I take every game very, very personally. But the N.C. State-North Carolina rivalry is special. It's unique.

On if he has any special emotions about this being his last home game:
Not really. Each day I come to work or each day I leave work I know that there's a limit to how much this will continue. When you deal with finality in things, you begin to deal with them. I've dealt with that a while ago.

On watching players he recruited play their final home games:
Well, that will be difficult, and it always is. These are pretty much one of my first full classes - this class. They are some special kids in this class, and I certainly never envisioned that we'd be here talking like this. But it's still something that's extremely important to me that they have some success this season. They deserve it in some ways, and of course, you always have to go out and earn it. I'm hopeful that they will play their best games here at home in front of their people, in front of their fans, and have some success. That would give me great pleasure.

On if Larry Edwards is full strength:
He will practice limited today. He did some things last evening. This is a different injury than he had, so we're going to watch how he practices today, see how he gets around, and then see what he's like tomorrow. We're thinking this is more like a bruise than a sprain, so hopefully, as the week progresses, he'll get better.

On N.C. State's running game:
They come in the Clemson game and they just are running the ball. Out of multiple personnel groups, tight formations, spread formations. [Toney] Baker who we all know is a great back. A couple plays to Andre Brown. They absolutely dominated that first half running the football. A lot of third-and-shorts - just what you want. So they did a tremendous job beginning that game, and then Clemson managed somehow to get back some control of it themselves.... They are a team that has been so close so many times. Those things just start to really gnaw at you as a player and as a coach. But this week will be a different story.

North Carolina Two-Deep Depth Chart

OFFENSE

29 - Justin Warren (6-1, 198, Junior, Germantown, Md.) OR