15 North Carolina

While tending the full-service pumps at the Eastgate BP gas station in Chapel Hill this summer, North Carolina quarterback Oscar Davenport got used to hearing two phrases. "Fill 'er up" was the first. Davenport would promptly flip on the pump and offer to check the customer's oil while Tar Heels linebacker Brandon Spoon washed the vehicle's windows. Both players then waited for the driver to lean out the window and yell, "Hey, when are you guys going to beat Florida State?"

Talk at the pump is generally brief, but a more pertinent question would have been, "Hey, how are you guys going to deal with losing your coach and an ACC-high 14 starters, including three defenders who were taken in the first round of the NFL draft, most of your offensive line, your only 1,000-yard rusher and your tight end?"

The play of the 6'4" Davenport, a fifth-year senior who is in his first season as the full-time starter, may provide the best answer to that question. Despite a fractured right fibula that kept him out of the final two games of the regular season and a 42-3 romp over Virginia Tech in the Gator Bowl, he was the team's offensive MVP last year and is equally dangerous as a passer (his 63.7% career completion rate is the best in school history) and a scrambler. To help avoid the nagging injuries that have hampered him throughout his college career, Davenport pumped plenty of iron as well as gas this summer. He will start the season at 210 pounds, 20 more than last year.

With mostly unproven underclassmen behind him in the backfield and just one returning starter in front of him on the offensive line, Davenport must remain healthy if North Carolina, which is coming off its highest final ranking since 1948, is to stay within striking distance of perennial ACC champ Florida State. "We've won a lot of games because our defense has been one of the best in the country," says Davenport. "It's time for the offense to step up to a new level."

Under new coach Carl Torbush, who was promoted from defensive coordinator after Mack Brown left for Texas, the Tar Heels plan to open up their offense. Davenport will call more audibles to isolate his deep and talented receiving corps led by seniors Na Brown (107 catches in the past two years) and L.C. Stevens (45 catches in '97). But will Davenport have enough time to throw? After tight end Alge Crumpler blew out his knee in the spring, junior guard Mike Gimbol was left as the only returning starter from a line that was arguably the team's weak link (36 sacks allowed) last year. "Without a doubt," says Torbush, "the biggest key to our season is getting guys to step forward on our offensive line."

Rebuilding the defense will require a similar commitment. Torbush lost seven starters from the 1997 unit, which ranked second in the country in total defense and held opponents to zero or negative yardage half the time. However, one of the returning first-teamers is two-time All-America cornerback Dre' Bly, the most dominant defender to wear Carolina blue since Lawrence Taylor. In his two seasons in Chapel Hill, Bly has intercepted 16 passes, one short of the ACC career record held by five players. This fall he vows to be an even more forceful presence. "This is my team now," he says. "I can't wait. All I've ever wanted to do is lead this team and be the Man. My job is simple: After last year we have no choice but to go 12-0."

No choice? With all the turnover on the North Carolina roster, it's more like no chance.

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