4
Friday, August 30,1996
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James Hamilton, 016 Kivuusaroa Mays, LB Brian Simmons, Olfi
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Junior linebacker Kivuusama Mays (53) led UNC in tackles with 138 in 1995 and was named first-team all-ACC.
It’s time to run...
to the
PARTY
fa . - before the
I|P demson Game!
join CAROLINA as we kick off
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f/#* Who’s Invited?
ft *4L ALL Carolina Fans
ft When? August 31 4 from 1 -3pm
(Prior to the 3:3opm kickoff against Clemson)
J Where? Lawn outside Gate 6 I
Who’s Performing?
& much morel
FOOTBALL 1996
Linebackers face new challenge
after breakthrough 1995 season
BY JOSEPH ROUSON
SPORTSATURDAY EDITOR
A year ago, North Carolina’s line
backers were a touchy subject.
The Tar Heels had just lost their top
three linebackers to graduation, and with
them went countless tackles, sacks and
clutch stops. Left to fill the void were two
sophomores and a junior, none of whom
received much fanfare.
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But not long into the season, those
three unheralded replacements jun
iors Brian Simmons and Kivuusama
Mays and senior James Hamilton
blitzed into stardom. Based on their ex
ploits last season, they are rated the top
linebacking corps in the nation by The
Sporting News.
Yet with the plaudits will come double
teams. And triple teams. And offenses
running plays in the other direction.
So Mays, Hamilton and Simmons face
possibly the most difficult test of then
careers staying at the top.
“(The ranking) can put some pressure
on you, but we tend not to talk about it,”
Mays said. “We feel like we did a lot of
things lastyear to achieve that status, and
we want to go out there and have fim.”
The linebackers entertained them
selves in ‘95 by chasing quarterbacks,
stuffing running backs and disrupting
offenses. No matter where opposing ball
carriers roamed, they couldn’t dodge
Mays & Cos.
And while speed accounted for much
of the linebackers’ success, it was defen
sive coordinator Carl Torbush’s aggres
sive scheme that allowed them to roam
recklessly.
“We had too much speed just to sit
there and wait for the play to come to us, ”
Mays said. “So Coach Torbush blitzed
more and told us to let it loose.”
So that’s what each of the 'backers did.
Mays punished ball carriers to the tune of
138 tackles, including 82 primary stops.
He became a headhunter, tracking down
runners and slamming them to the turf.
Simmons combined the roles of line
backer and defensive back. One moment
he was stalking quarterbacks in the
backfield. The next, he was in the second
ary slapping away passes. At season’s
end, Simmons’ combination of quick
ness and jumping ability resulted in 113
Hbr Saily (Tar Heel
tackles and eight tipped passes.
“Linebackers have to be versatile,”
Simmons said. “It’s not all about being
able to hit you’ve got to be quick
enough to cover a receiver.”
Ever since the unit’s first start,
Hamilton acted as the group’s on-field
coordinator. Whensomethingwasawry,
Hamilton usually set it straight.
And if a ball carrier managed to elude
Mays or Simmons, Hamilton was there
to dash his hopes.
“Simmons goes back and forth, back
and forth he’s all over,” Hamilton
said. “K Mays isn’t going to wait for
anything, because he’s always after the
ball.
“I’m kind of in between them I
know where K is, I know where Brian is,
and I get over and help them.”
But now that the linebackers have
emerged from the shadows, offenses will
do everything to shut down the trio.
Torbush, however, doesn’t have any
special remedy for the double- and triple
teams. Instead, the linebackers will rely
on what brought them to this point
natural ability and Torbush’s tutoring.
“They have all the physical attributes
we could ask for, and they have the inten
sity,” Torbush said. “But we’ve always
coached them really hard, and I still am
coaching them hard.
“They haven’t been treated like they’re
prima donnas.”
Equally as important to the trio’s suc
cess is its on-field communication. Off
the field, the players’ relationships are
cordial. But on the field, good or bad,
they don’t hold anything back.
“We get along on and off the field,”
Mays said. “But on the field, if I mess up,
(Simmons) is in my ear. And I do the
same to him.
“We don’t take it negatively it’s
business when we’re out there. But we do
take it as constructive criticism.”
So when the season kicks off, it will be
back to business for the Tar Heel ‘back
ers. Just like lastyear, they’ll touchhands,
take the field and set off on another mis
sion proving that it’s no fluke; they
really do comprise the best linebacking
corps in the country.
“When the pressure’s on, you tend to
do things that you don’t think you can,”
Mays said. “When it’s time to produce,
you just go. We’re ready to go out and
show people we deserve all the compli
ments we’re getting.”
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