CHARLOTTE – Following the 2014 season, North Carolina football head coach Larry Fedora knew his defense needed a change.
After watching the Tar Heels give up 39 points per game that season – 119th nationally – he brought in Gene Chizik, the former national championship-winning coach at Auburn, to become UNC’s new defensive coordinator.
And while Chizik was no miracle worker, he implemented pragmatic changes – namely a switch to a 4-3 scheme from a 4-2-5 and a greater emphasis on limiting explosive plays – that helped the Tar Heels reach the 2015 ACC Championship.