Chansky’s Notebook: Streaks on the Line

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Duke-Carolina’s grudge isn’t just because of the victory bell.

The Blue Devils haven’t beaten Carolina since 2018, the year Larry Fedora was fired and replaced by Mack Brown, who served as a football consultant for Bubba Cunningham.

After Fedora finished his final two seasons with a 5-18 record, Cunningham asked Brown if he would return to UNC as head coach.

Mack told him he didn’t want to take anyone’s job away.

Cunningham said he had to fire Fedora because of the apathy that had gripped his program and Bubba would hire a new coach. Under these circumstances, Brown agreed to come back.

It’s eerie that his five-plus years in Chapel Hill mirror what happened in his last five seasons in Texas. The Longhorns were undefeated in the 2009 national championship game against top-seeded Alabama, but lost quarterback Colt McCoy in the first quarter. Brown had not assembled a replacement for McCoy and the inexperienced Garrett Gilbert was unable to lead his team to a victory over the Crimson Tide, which would have been Brown’s second national title.

Brown’s 16-year stay at Texas went downhill after that disappointing loss and he began replacing assistant coaches. The most publicized firing came against 39-year-old defensive coordinator Manny Diaz after the second game of the 2013 season, a 40-21 loss at BYU in which the Horns gave up 550 yards.

Brown maintains that he is still close with Diaz, who was the head coach at Miami when Brown returned to UNC and lost three games to his old boss, including a 62-26 game at Miami and a heartbreaking 45-42 result at Kenan Stadium. Diaz has reemerged as the new head coach at Duke.

Others in Texas say the “friendship” between Brown and Diaz isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. After the loss in Kenan in 2021, “Mentor” Brown tried to comfort Diaz at midfield with a hug and a long handshake. Videos show how the crazy “mentee” tries to break away.

After two years as defensive coordinator at Penn State, Diaz led Duke to a 4-0 start with one of the best defenses in the country. And Carolina is counting on redshirt junior Jacolby Criswell to repeat at least some of his great shots that were eclipsed by the Tar Heels’ 70-50 loss to James Madison.

Diaz’s Hurricanes faced Sam Howell for three years and were gone before Drake Maye took over at quarterback. Brown has beaten Miami in all five games, and Duke has a similar losing streak against the Hall of Famer.

So Manny Diaz has two streaks he’d like to break at Wallace Wade Stadium. And this time, he may have the defense necessary, while Carolina may not have the offense to beat the Blue Devils and their new coach.

Featured image via Associated Press/Ben McKeown

Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including bestsellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has been a contributor to the WCHL for decades, making his first appearance as a student in 1971 The “Sports Notebook” commentary airs daily on 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his opinion column “Art’s Angle” appears weekly on Chapelboro.

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Chansky’s Notebook: Streaks on the Line

Manny Diaz may have the defense to beat UNC, while the Tar Heels may not have the offense to beat the Blue Devils and their new coach.

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