Thursday night NCAA football sees North Carolina going on the road to take on Minnesota. The Tar Heels did not finish last season on a high note, losing their last three games. The GOlden Gophers lost their last four regular season games but did secure a bowl win. With Drake Mae going in the first round, the Tar Heels will need to find a replacement under center. At least to start the season, the plan is to use both senior Max Johnson and sophomore Conner Harrell. Running back Omarion Hampton should take some pressure off the quarterback, as he finished fifth in the country last season with 1,504 rushing yards and he had 15 rushing touchdowns. The defense needs to improve, as they allowed 27.1 points per game. They had the worst pass defense in the ACC. The Golden Gophers defense let them down at the end of the season as they allowed 35.3 points over their last four regular season games, all losses. For the season, they allowed. 26.9 points a game. Darius Taylor led the team in rushing last season with 799 rushing yards and five touchdowns. Max Brosmer will get the start at quarterback. He transferred from FCS University of New Hampshire, where he threw for 8,713 yards and 70 touchdowns over 36 games. The money has been flowing in on Carolina after Minnesota opened as 2.5 favorites. They met last season with UNC coming away with a 31-13 win. With no dominant quarterback on either side,the running game will be a major factor. Taylor has been banged up so his health could be a factor. North Carolina was 6-7 ATS last year and Minnesota was 4-9 ATS. If it comes down to the running game, Carolina has one of the best backs in the country.

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