For the first time in three weeks, Mack Brown got to do a post-win presser on Monday as he recapped the Tar Heels’ 59-7 beatdown of the Campbell Fighting Camels.
Prior to him taking the stand, the team provided their latest injury update, one that focused on slot receiver Nate McCollum, who will be monitored throughout this week. The junior who transferred in during the offseason, missed the game on Saturday with a lower-body injury he sustained against Georgia Tech.
McCollum has struggled since a great start in the first three games he was at full strength for. After a groin injury kept him out the majority of the first two games, he burst onto the scene with a remarkable performance against Minnesota where he caught 15 passes for 165 yards and a touchdown. He would build upon that performance in the next two games against Pittsburgh and Syracuse, catching 12 passes for 182 yards.
Since that Syracuse game, though, he simply hasn’t been able to make much of an impact. In the three games prior to last week, McCollum caught just six of his 21 targets for 32 yards and registered a handful of drops in the game against Virginia. The hope is that the week off can allow him to get healthy and serve as a reset that allows him to return to the type of player that he was in those first three games. For now, Doc Chapman is in line to be the starter after holding down the role this weekend against Campbell and catching both of his targets for 50 yards.