Just how good is UNC's Marvin Austin?

One of the great aspects of the ACC Football Kickoff at the Grandover Resort in Greensboro is you get to catch up with other sports reporters who follow the league closely. And some of the best insights come not in the interviews, but in the press room.

Sunday night, I got into a long discussion about UNC defensive tackle Marvin Austin with some other reporters who closely follow the team. We all agreed that while Austin is very good, he's not as terrific as his reputation might suggest. Austin is super quotable and media friendly, which means he is often on TV and in the paper. And he has a penchant for spectacular plays, so when he is at his best, he is easy to remember.

But play in and play out, he's not one of the best on Carolina's defense, as a fellow reporter aptly noted. The Tar Heels can stand to lose Austin more than some others on that defense.  Austin is highly rated by the NFL, but defensive tackles who can move are always in demand.

So good is Austin? It's an interesting question. He was 10th on the team in tackles with 42, but that's not a fair measure of an interior lineman. He had 4.0 sacks, tied for third on the team.

Much more coming from Greensboro Monday afteroon, and more insights from fellow reporters ahead as well.

Opening stretch is grueling for UNC football team

The news on the North Carolina football team so far has focused on Marvin Austin and the NCAA probe, but here’s a point to keep in mind – Carolina has a really difficult opening schedule.

Everyone knows the Heels open against LSU in Atlanta Sept. 4. But games against Georgia Tech (Sept. 18) and at Rutgers (Sept. 25) follow. So the Tar Heels could be 1-2 or even 0-3 going into the Oct. 2 home game with East Carolina.

It doesn’t get easier after that, with Clemson at home and road trips to Virginia and Miami. (Insert Club LIV joke here). So UNC could easily stumble into November with a losing record. Any player suspensions will only make Carolina’s road that more difficult.

Sometimes a team can have a hard time finding any traction on a season when events go wrong – just ask N.C. State last year. The Wolfpack had a hard time recovering from that early injury to Nate Irving. And all the negativity surrounding UNC now won’t help as it heads into an arduous stretch of games.