CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – North Carolina offensive coordinator Phil Longo has upped the ante for his players in learning his version of the Air Raid scheme.

“They only give us the signal one time and then it’s up to us,” junior wide receiver Beau Corrales said after the fourth practice of spring ball on Tuesday. “So we’ve got to look to each other and really communicate. If you don’t see the signal, you’re looking to talk to a teammate to get the signal.”

The Tar Heels are well accustomed to Longo’s up-tempo approach given former head coach Larry Fedora’s proclivity for pushing the pace. That being said, there is significantly more stress involved in the early goings of the Mack Brown era due to the new scheme and terminology. There’s also the matter of the previous staff’s willingness to relay the signal multiple times to ensure accuracy.

“In our previous offense a lot of times we’d look back and check the play,” Corrales said. “Right now he’s just giving it to us and we’re going.”

Brown decided to hire Longo, as well as defensive coordinator Jay Bateman, because of their complicated-looking schemes that are relatively simple for the players to learn. The initial deep dive, however, is challenging.

Beau Corrales

“Make them learn, make them understand, make them communicate with each other,” Brown said when asked about the strategy behind the signaling approach. “Make them turn their head immediately. If you do it four times, they may not turn until the fourth time, especially when they get tired. So they all have to look immediately, they all have to get the call and then if one of them misses it, he looks to his friend and his buddy next to him says, ‘here’s the call.’ That’s the purpose.”

After a week off for spring break, the Tar Heels reconvened for their first practice in 12 days with a planned reboot in place. The first three practices allowed coaches and players to learn about one another and understand preferred teaching methods. With fresh minds and legs, the Tar Heels are now reinstalling Longo’s scheme to correct any errors and polish the edges as the belly of spring ball begins.

It should come as no surprise that UNC’s trio of freshmen quarterbacks – redshirts Cade Fortin and Jace Ruder as well as early enrollee Sam Howell – are drinking water out of a fire hose at this point.

“I think the biggest struggle right now would be for the quarterbacks,” Brown said. “This is a completely new offense and there’s been more interceptions than Coach Longo or I would like. Part of that is receivers not knowing the routes and there’s some adjustments on the routes to do. As simple as the offense seems, it’s still unique and different, so guys are having to learn.”

Longo’s dynamic approach has the players buzzing about the potential scoring bonanza to come.

“It’s fun, especially at my spot,” Corrales said. “It’s a lot of fun. It’s the kind of offense you dream to play in as a wide receiver, so it’s exciting to have this opportunity.”