How PFF Evaluated North Carolina’s Defensive Performance Against Richmond

How Pro Football Focus scored Tar Heels’ defnsive showing in its 41-6 win over Richmond.

Sep 13, 2025; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels defensive lineman Joseph Mupoyi (25) breaks up the pass intended for Richmond Spiders wide receiver Isaiah Dawson (10) in the second quarter at Kenan Stadium. | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Pro Football Focus released its graded breakdown of North Carolina's 41-6 victory over Richmond on Sept. 13.

The Tar Heels only allowed 199 yards of offense. While UNC allowed 124 yards of rushing, it was on 48 carries, meaning that the Spiders only had 2.6 yards per carry. It was also the second consecutive game the Tar Heels did not allow a touchdown, a first since 2012.

Here's an explanation of how PFF's grading works: On every play, a PFF analyst will grade each player on a scale of -2 to +2, ranging from a pick-six to a late touchdown pass with expected plays graded as a 0. Each game is graded by two different analysts and any discrepancies are settled by a senior analyst. Grades are then normalized to account for game situation and converted to a 0-100 scale.

Here is a breakdown of the defense according to PFF.

North Carolina defensive lineman Leroy Jackson | Jackson McCurdy, North Carolina Tar Heels On SI

Overall Defensive Grades

30-39: Very Poor

40-49: Poor

50-59: Below Average

60-69: Average

70-79: Above Average

80-89: Good

90-100: Elite

Defensive PFF Grades

Category	Grade
Defense	90.8
Run Defense	92.8
Tackling	90.6
Pass Rush	78.6
Coverage	80.5

Top Performers

North Carolina Defensive End Melkart Abou-Jaoude | Jackson McCurdy, North Carolina Tar Heels On SI

DE Melkart Abou-Jaoude - 90.6 Defense, 87.8 Pass Rush, 80.5 Tackling, 77.7 Run Defense

Abou-Jaoude was a disruptive presence off the edge, overwhelming Richmond’s offensive line throughout the afternoon. He finished with three tackles, two sacks and a fumble recovery, while posting a 36.4% win rate. In true pass sets, that number jumped to 60%.

LB Andrew Simpson - 83.1 Defense, 90.9 Run Defense, 70.1 Tackling

Andrew Simpson had another strong game as he had seven tackles, which was tied for a team-high. He also had 0.5 tackles for loss and made five stops (plays resulting in a failure for an offense).

DT Leroy Jackson - 82.7 Defense, 78.5 Run Defense, 78.6 Tackling, 75.3 Pass Rush

Leroy Jackson was tied for the most amount of tackles defensively.

Sep 6, 2025; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Charlotte 49ers quarterback Conner Harrell (15) is tackled by North Carolina Tar Heels linebacker Andrew Simpson (2) for a sack during the second half at Jerry Richardson Stadium. | Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images

LB Mikai Gbayor - 80.4 Defense, 76.0 Run Defense, 78.6 Tackling, 75.3 Pass Rush

Mikai Gbayor was the player of the game defensovely, picking up six tackles, a sack, forced fumble and a 62-yard scoop-and-score. He earned ACC Linebacker of the Week honors for his efforts.

CB Marcus Allen - 79.7 Defense, 78.6 Tackling, 80.3 Coverage

Marcus Allen has been on a redemption tour after his embarassing performance against TCU where he allowed nine catches on nine targets for 135 yards and a touchdown (39.8 Coverage grade) and missed on four of six tackle attempts (25.3 Tackling grade).

He had two tackles and a pass breakup in the game against Richmond on Saturday.

Rushing Defense

*Richmond had 48 rushes for 124 yards, which is an average of 2.6 yards per attempt. Combined with the win at Charlotte the week before, UNC's defense has allowed 145 yards on 77 attempts the last two games, which is 1.9 yards per attempt.

*The Spiders had 95 yards after contact, 8 first downs came on running plays, no runs as long as 15 yards, 3 runs of 10+ yards, and a long of 12 yards on the day.

Coverage

CB Thaddeus Dixon | Grant Chachere, North Carolina Tar Heels On SI

• Cornerback Marcus Allen was targeted three times, allowing 2 catches for nine yards, one dropped interception, a PBU, and a long of six yards.

• Cornerback Reggie Love was targeted twice, allowing no receptions and recording a pass breakup.

• Linebacker Khmori House was targeted two times, allowing 2 catches for 7 yards with a long of 5 yards.

• Nickelback Kaleb Cost was targeted two times allowing two catches for 40 yards, with a long of 28 yards.

• Cornerback Thaddeus Dixon was targeted two times allowing obe catch for 9 yards and with a pass breakup.

• Linebacker Jonathan Agumadu was targeted 1 times, allowing a catch for 7 yards.

• Safety Jaiden Patterson was targeted one time, allowing zero catches with an interception.

• Khalil Conley was targeted one time and did not allow a catch.

• Tre Miller was targeted one time, allowing one catch for three yards.

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