The2011 North Carolina Tar Heels football team represented theUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a member of Coastal Division of theAtlantic Coast Conference (ACC) during the2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was led by interim head coachEverett Withers and played their home games atKenan Memorial Stadium. The Tar Heels finished the season 7–6 overall and 3–5 in ACC play to tie for fourth in the Coastal Division. They were invited to theIndependence Bowl, where they were defeated byMissouri, 24–41.

AfterNational Signing Day (February 3, 2011) the Tar Heel's recruiting class was ranked as the 16th best class in the nation by the three major recruiting sites (espn.com,^[1] rivals.com,^[2] and scout.com^[3]). Marquise Williams (QB), Travis Riley (RB), T.J. Thorpe (Ath), Landon Turner (OG), and Sylvester Williams (DT) (Junior College Transfer) all enrolled in January 2011. The entire 2011 recruiting class included 26 players, 22 of which were either four-star or three-star recruits.

College recruiting information (2011)
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	40‡	Commit date
Kiaro Holts OT	Indianapolis, IN	Warren Central HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	267 lb (121 kg)	5.4	Jun 25, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (81)
T.J. Thorpe ATH	Durham, NC	C E Jordan HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	4.5	Mar 7, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (81)
Travis Hughes ILB	Virginia Beach, VA	Kempsville HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	224 lb (102 kg)	4.57	Dec 18, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (80)
Travis Riley RB	Kannapolis, NC	A L Brown HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	4.54	Apr 2, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (80)
Eric Ebron TE	Greensboro, NC	Ben L Smith HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	221 lb (100 kg)	4.67	Mar 18, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (80)
Landon Turner OG	Harrisonburg, VA	Harrisonburg HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	308 lb (140 kg)	5.3	Jul 11, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (80)
Jack Tabb TE	Red Bank, NJ	Red Bank Catholic HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	233 lb (106 kg)	4.8	Jan 14, 2011
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (79)
Marquise Williams QB	Charlotte, NC	Mallard Creek HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	217 lb (98 kg)	4.75	Jun 7, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (79)
Norkeithus Otis OLB	Gastonia, NC	Ashbrook HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	197 lb (89 kg)	4.6	Nov 5, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (79)
Tim Scott S	Stafford, VA	Colonial Forge HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	176 lb (80 kg)	4.4	Nov 5, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (79)
Delvon Simmons^ DT	McKeesport, PA	McKeesport Area SHS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	264 lb (120 kg)	N/A	Feb 2, 2011
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (79)
Romar Morris RB	Salisbury, NC	Salisbury HS	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	173 lb (78 kg)	4.36	Aug 16, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (79)
Devonte Brown DT	Fayetteville, NC	Jack Britt	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	270 lb (120 kg)	N/A	Nov 14, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (79)
Tyler Alberts DE	Lewisville, NC	Forsyth Country Day School	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	4.7	Oct 4, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (78)
Shawn Underwood DT	Fuquay-Varina, NC	Fuquay-Varina HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	316 lb (143 kg)	4.97	Jul 13, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (78)
Jarrod James OG	Pikeville, NC	Charles B Aycock HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	279 lb (127 kg)	5.0	Mar 20, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (78)
Keeon Virgile OLB	North Miami Beach, FL	North Miami Beach HS	6 ft 1.5 in (1.87 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	N/A	Feb 2, 2011
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (78)
Brandon Ellerbe S	Wadesboro, NC	Anson HS	6 ft 0.5 in (1.84 m)	199 lb (90 kg)	N/A	Feb 2, 2011
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (78)
Miller Snyder K	Charlotte, NC	Myers Park HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	183 lb (83 kg)	N/A	Dec 15, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (78)
Alex Dixon CB	Clearwater, FL	Countryside HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	183 lb (83 kg)	N/A	Nov 14, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (78)
Darien Rankin S	Salisbury, NC	Salisbury HS	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	4.6	Jul 7, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (75)
Kameron Jackson ATH/WR	Madison, AL	Madison Academy	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	4.5	Jul 2, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (75)
Samuel Smiley ATH/DB	Jacksonville, FL	William M. Raines HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	N/A	Feb 2, 2011
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (71)
Stephen Houston RB	Independence, KS	Independence Community College	5 ft 10.5 in (1.79 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	N/A	Feb 1, 2011
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (N/A (Junior College))
Sylvester Williams DT	Coffeyville, KS	Coffeyville Community College	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	306 lb (139 kg)	5.1	Dec 15, 2010
	Recruit ratings:Scout:    Rivals:    (N/A (Junior College))
Fabby Desir LB	Scranton, PA	Lackawanna Community College	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	227 lb (103 kg)	4.5	Feb 25, 2011
	Recruit ratings:Rivals:    (N/A (Junior College))
Overall recruit ranking:   Scout: 16   Rivals: 16
‡ Refers to40-yard dash Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "North Carolina Commit List for 2011". Rivals. RetrievedFebruary 17, 2011. "Scout.com Football Recruiting: North Carolina". Scout. RetrievedFebruary 17, 2011. "RecruitTracker 2011: North Carolina". ESPN. RetrievedFebruary 17, 2011. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout. RetrievedFebruary 17, 2011. "2011 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. RetrievedFebruary 17, 2011.

^Delvon Simmons requested to be released from his letter of intent in March 2011. He was granted release, and will not play for UNC.

On July 27, 2011, UNC chancellorHolden Thorp announced that UNC's board of trustees decided to dismissButch Davis as the head coach of the football team.^[4] The announcement comes a week before the start of fall training camp. The firing is due to the investigations by theNCAA into academic fraud, impermissible benefits, and talking to agents in the2010 season. The next day on the 28th,Everett Withers, the defensive coordinator of the past 3 years, was named as the interim head coach.^[5] Athletic director,Dick Baddour, also announced, on this day, that he would be stepping down from his role once a new athletic director is found for the university.^[6] Baddour added that he wanted the new athletic director to be in charge of hiring the university's next head football coach.

2011 North Carolina Tar Heels football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 3 Joshua Adams So OL 69 Nick Appel RFr RB 26 Giovani Bernard RFr QB 15 A.J. Blue So OL 60 Russell Bodine RFr G 76 Travis Bond Jr WR 87 Jheranie Boyd Jr FB 38 Curtis Byrd Sr G 62 David Collins So C 64 Jonathan Cooper Jr TE 85 Eric Ebron Fr TE 84 Sean Fitzpatrick RFr OT 71 Carl Gaskins Sr QB 14 Braden Hanson Jr WR 88 Erik Highsmith Jr C 65 Cam Holland Sr OL 72 Kiaro Holts  Fr RB 32 Ryan Houston Sr OT 68 James Hurst So TE 89 Nelson Hurst Jr OL 51 Jarrod James  Fr G 63 Peyton Jenest Jr WR 83 Dwight Jones Sr RB 44 Matt Kolojejchick Jr OT 75 T.J. Leifheit Fr OL 58 Jordan Marsh So RB 21 Romar Morris  Fr FB 39 Kenny Owens Jr FB 45 Devon Ramsay  Sr QB 2 Bryn Renner So RB 8 Travis Riley  Fr TE 80 Jack Tabb III Fr WR 6 Sean Tapley RFr WR 5 T.J. Thorpe Fr G 78 Landon Turner  Fr WR 81 Reggie Wilkins RFr OT 73 Brennan Williams Jr QB 12 Marquise Williams  Fr TE 33 Christian Wilson Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DE 86 Tyler Alberts  Fr S 10 Tre Boston So LB 45 Josh Bridges Jr CB 12 Charles Brown Sr DL 74 Devonte Brown So LB 47 Zach Brown Sr S 36 D.J. Bunn So LB 43 Curtis Campbell So LB 56 P.J. Clyburn RFr DE 90 Quinton Coples Sr DE 94 Adam Curry Jr LB 49 Fabby Desir Jr DB 16 Alex Dixon  Fr DB 20 Brandon Ellerbe Fr DT 96 Ethan Farmer RFr S 29 Brian Gupton Sr LB 57 Dion Guy Jr CB 13 Todd Harrelson Jr LB 9 Travis Hughes Fr DB 34 Kameron Jackson  Fr DL 93 Tim Jackson So LB 23 Darius Lipford So CB 31 Pete Mangum Jr DE 95 Kareem Martin So S 25 Matt Merletti  Sr DT 78 Jordan Nix Sr LB 41 Ebele Okakpu Sr LB 52 Norkeithus Otis Fr DE 98 Donte Paige-Moss Jr DE 53 Alec Petrocelli RFr DT 91 Tydreke Powell Sr CB 4 Jabari Price So S 27 Darien Rankin  Fr LB 48 Kevin Reddick Jr S 1 Gene Robinson Jr DB 7 Tim Scott Fr CB 24 Terry Shankle So DB 11 Sam Smiley  Fr S 28 Jonathan Smith Sr DT 97 Shawn Underwood Fr LB 54 Keeon Virgile  Fr DT 92 Sylvester Williams Jr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class PK 11 Casey Barth   Sr P 30 C.J. Feagles So P 15 Thomas Hibbard Fr DS 61 Mark House Sr H 19 Trase Jones Sr DS 67 Mack Lloyd So P/PK 17 Miller Snyder  Fr PK 14 Thomas Moore Fr	Head coach Everett Withers (interim) Coordinators/assistant coaches Sam Pittman -Associate head coach/offensive line Ken Browning -Running backs Troy Douglas -Defensive backs Art Kaufman -Linebackers Allen Mogridge -Tight ends Tom Myslinski -Head strength and conditioning coach Joe Robinson -Defensive line John Shoop -Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks Steve Sisa -Safeties Charlie Williams -Wide receivers Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt Roster Last update: September 7, 2011

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 3	3:30 p.m.	No. 15(FCS)James Madison*	Kenan Memorial Stadium Chapel Hill, NC	RSN	W 42–10	57,000[8]
September 10	12:30 p.m.	Rutgers*	Kenan Memorial Stadium Chapel Hill, NC	ACCN	W 24–22	53,000[9]
September 17	3:30 p.m.	Virginia	Kenan Memorial Stadium Chapel Hill, NC (South's Oldest Rivalry)	ESPNU	W 28–17	55,000[10]
September 24	12:00 p.m.	at No. 25Georgia Tech	Bobby Dodd Stadium Atlanta, GA	ESPN	L 28–35	46,849[11]
October 1	8:00 p.m.	atEast Carolina*	Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium Greenville, NC	CBSSN	W 35–20	50,610[12]
October 8	12:00 p.m.	Louisville*	Kenan Memorial Stadium Chapel Hill, NC	ESPN2	W 14–7	51,500[13]	[14]
October 15	12:30 p.m.	Miami (FL)	Kenan Memorial Stadium Chapel Hill, NC	ACCN	L 24–30	60,000[15]	[16]
October 22	12:00 p.m.	at No. 8Clemson	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC	ESPN	L 38–59	79,000[17]	[18]
October 29	3:30 p.m.	Wake Forest	Kenan Memorial Stadium Chapel Hill, NC (rivalry)	ESPNU	W 49–24	57,000[19]	[20]
November 5	12:30 p.m.	atNC State	Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC (rivalry)	ACCN	L 0–13	57,583[21]	[22]
November 17	8:00 p.m.	at No. 9Virginia Tech	Lane Stadium/Worsham Field Blacksburg, VA	ESPN	L 21–24	66,233[23]
November 26	3:30 p.m.	Duke	Kenan Memorial Stadium Chapel Hill, NC (Victory Bell)	RSN	W 37–21	58,500[24]
December 26	5:00 p.m.	vs.Missouri*	Independence Stadium Shreveport, LA (Independence Bowl)	ESPN2	L 24–41	41,728[25]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings fromAP Poll released prior to the game All times are inEastern time

This was the first ever game as a head coach for Everett Withers. The Tar Heels never trailed in the game, scoring on the opening drive of the game with a 34 yard touchdown pass from Bryn Renner to Dwight Jones. The Heels gave up only one touchdown, which came off of the ensuing drive after a mishandled snap, which resulted in a blocked punt. In his first ever collegiate start, Bryn Renner set school and ACC records for the highest completion percentage (95.7%) in a single-game and was just shy of the NCAA record of 95.8% set in 1998 byTennessee'sTee Martin.^[26]

North Carolina was able to hold on to a 2 point win despite turning the ball over 5 times (2 fumbles and 3 interceptions) and not having a single takeaway. A key defensive stand came in the first quarter when a Rutgers interception was returned to the UNC 2 yard line. The UNC defense was able to hold the Rutgers offense and on 4th down from the 1 yard line held the line of scrimmage forcing a turnover on downs. The UNC defense was also able to hold Rutgers to only 1 yard rushing total for the game, the lowest total since holdingWake Forest to a negative 2 yards in 2000.^[27]

With its win against Virginia, UNC started their ACC schedule with a win for the first time since2001. The Heels were able to effectively run the ball against the Cavaliers, finishing the game with 222 rushing yards by 8 different offensive players. The Heels defense recorded their first takeaways of the young season when Matt Merletti recorded 2 interceptions in the fourth quarter to seal the Carolina victory.^[28]

Georgia Tech entered this meeting of unbeatens as one of the top offenses in the nation averaging 53.3 points and 675.3 yards a game.^[29] The UNC defense, however, was able to hold them to only 35 points and 496 yards. Trailing 28–14 in the fourth quarter, UNC rallied behind an Eric Ebron touchdown reception and a 55 yard Giovani Bernard touchdown run to tie the game up with 7:22 left in the game. Georgia Tech took the lead for good with a Tevin Washington touchdown run with 5:20 remaining. With the win, Georgia Tech goes to 4–0 for the first time since their national championship season in1990.^[30]

UNC did not commit a turnover in a game for the first time all season. They were +4 in the turnover margin for the game (2 fumble recoveries and 2 interceptions). Giovani Bernard became the first Tar Heel sinceNatrone Means in 1992 to rush for over 100 yards in 3 consecutive games. His 7 touchdowns through 5 games ties the individual high forJohnny White as the team leader for the year in 2011. The UNC offense continued to perform in the red-zone scoring touchdowns on 3 of 4 trips, bringing their season total to 15 touchdowns in 18 trips in the redzone. The defense, however, has held opponents to only 7 touchdowns in 18 trips into the redzone so far this year.^[31]

Despite having the ball for 22:08 in the first half, Louisville only gained 173 yards of offense. This was, however, 113 more yards than UNC going into the locker rooms at the half. In the second half however, UNC outgained Louisville 202 to 95. Louisville's only score of the game came with only 42 seconds left to end the shutout for the UNC defense. Giovani Bernard became the first ever freshman running back to rush for over 100 yards in 4 straight games. With this win, UNC has won 8 straight games against non-conference opponents. Their last lost was against LSU in theChick-fil-A Kickoff Game.^[32]

UNC gave up a touchdown in the first quarter for the first time this season. Miami took a 14–0 lead before UNC ever took the field on offense. Miami scored on their opening drive of the game and then, on the ensuing kick-off, recovered a fumble by kick returner T.J. Thorpe and scored on their next play from scrimmage. The Heels nearly made an improbable comeback when, down by 13, they scored a touchdown with 46 seconds remaining in the game. They then recovered the on-side kick on their own 44 yard line. They were able to advance the ball to the 30 yard line after a 15 yard pass reception by Dwight Jones and an 11 yard reception by Giovani Bernard. Bernard also rushed for another 110 yards giving him 5 100+ yard games in a row. This ties for the second most in a season by a UNC freshman. The other two UNC freshmen with this record areAmos Lawrence (who finished with 6 in 1977) andLeon Johnson (who finished with 5 in 1993).^[33]

The Tar Heels turned the ball over 6 times in their 59–38 loss to Clemson. This was the most points allowed by UNC since they gave up 69 toLouisville in 2005. UNC was only down by 7 going into the half and their defense had only allowed 15 yards of rushing up to that point. However, Clemson's 35 points in the third quarter became only the second time in school history to accomplish this feat, the only other time being by the1981 National Championship team. T.J. Thorpe became only the second Tar Heel in history to record a kickoff return of 100 yards for a touchdown.^[34]

With their win over Wake Forest, North Carolina became bowl eligible for the 4th straight year. The Tar Heel defense caused 5 Deacon turnovers (3 interceptions and 2 fumbles) after Wake Forest had committed only 5 turnovers the entire season coming into the game. UNC's 49 points was the most they had scored in a game since their opener againstWilliam & Mary in2004 and the most against an ACC opponent since the2001 season. The Tar Heel defense was led by senior Zach Brown who had 9 tackles (2.5 for a loss), an interception, a sack, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery.^[35]

The Tar Heels were shut out for the first time since a 7–0 loss toGeorgia Tech in2006, and their first shut out by NC State since 1960. Bryn Renner was knocked out of the game with concussion-like symptoms early in the second half. The UNC offense had its worst performance of the season, being held to a game low of 165 total yards. Giovani Bernard was, however, able to become the 15th Tar Heel to rush for 1,000 yards in a season and the third freshman to rush for 1,000 yards. The only point in the game in which it seemed UNC was going to put points on the scoreboard was on a 75 yard touchdown reception by Dwight Jones that was called back because ofholding on the offensive line.^[36]

Virginia Tech's Logan Thomas fumbled on the first play from scrimmage when he was sacked by Sylvester Williams. This set up UNC with a 3 play, 20 yard drive that concluded with a Giovani Bernard 4 yard touchdown. After preventing Virginia Tech from converting a 4th down on the UNC 26 yard line, the Heels drove the length of the field to the 5 yard line where Ryan Houston fumbled the ball and it was recovered by the Hokies. The last time that UNC and Virginia Tech played on Thursday night was in2009 when Virginia Tech fumbled the ball on a drive in the fourth quarter that eventually lead to a UNC victory. After coming 5 yards from taking a 14-0 lead, UNC found itself giving up 24 unanswered points to the Hokies by the fourth quarter. However, with 7:06 left in the game, Bryn Renner completed a pass to Erik Highsmith to reduce the lead to 10 points. After forcing the Hokies to punt on their next possession, Renner completed a 25 yard pass to Dwight Jones, then a 64 yard pass to Erik Highsmith to the 2 yard line where Houston punched the ball into the endzone to cut the lead to 3 with 2:32 left in the game. The Heels recovered the onside kick on the subsequent kick-off, but upon further review, it was judged that the ball did not travel the required 10 yards on the kickoff which gave the Hokies the ball. They were able to run the clock down to where only one play would be left for UNC, who was not able to convert it into a touchdown.^[37]

UNC beat Duke for an 8th straight year, the last loss coming in2003. Dwight Jones broke the single season reception record with 79 receptions for the season. The previous record of 74 receptions was held byHakeem Nicks. Bryn Renner tied the single season record for most passing touchdowns with 23. In addition, Giovani Bernard ran for a season high 165 rushing yards. Duke quarterback, Sean Renfree, was taken out of the game during the third quarter due to numbness and swelling in his right hand. Because of this, Anthony Boone saw the most snaps of his freshman year and lead the Blue Devils in rushing for the game.^[38]

• 2011 Atlantic Coast Conference football season
• North Carolina Tar Heels football seasons
• 2011 in sports in North Carolina

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