Is UNC's Offensive Line the Best in the ACC?

If there has been one position group that North Carolina doesn’t have to worry about is its offensive line.

The Tar Heels return three of their five returning starters from the year before: Aidan Banfield, Austin Blaske and Trevyon Green. The offensive line also had a massive haul of offensive linemen that came through the transfer portal, most notably Daniel King (Troy), Christo Kelly (Holy Cross) and Will O’Steen (Jacksonville State).

Carolina’s offensive line could be one of the ACC’s best as it goes eight or nine deep, which is an excellent situation for head coach Bill Belichick to have in his first season. However, there can only be five starters, so that will be the hard part.

Here are three key reasons why UNC’s offensive line is one of the best in the ACC?

Large Amount of Experience

UNC — North Carolina offensive lineman Austin Blaske | Jackson McCurdy, North Carolina Tar Heels On SI

The offensive line room has as many as 10 offensive linemen who have started at least a season of games.

Blaske returns after starting every game at center, logging 759 snaps without allowing a sack in 437 pass-blocking snaps and earning an 84.4 PFF grade. The super senior brings versatility, having played guard and tackle. Banfield, who started 11 of 13 games as a freshman, offers athleticism and upside on the interior.

Troy transfer King, a three-year starter and two-time All-Sun Belt pick, allowed just nine sacks in 1,396 pass-blocking snaps and was a team captain. Holy Cross transfer Kelly, an All-Patriot League center, is expected to start, moving Blaske to guard. Chad Lindbergh (Rice) and Jakai Moore (South Carolina) add experienced depth.

At tackle, O’Steen — a 39-game starter and two-time All-CUSA selection at Jacksonville State — is favored to start at either tackle spot after helping his team rank top five nationally in rushing. Green returns after starting every game at left tackle in 2024 but must improve his pass protection after posting a 49.3 PFF grade.

WIlliam Boone allowed no sacks and earned a 78.0 grade last season at Prairie View A&M and Alabama transfer Miles McVay could challenge him.

Will Friend Preaches Physicality on the Offensive Line

UNC — North Carolina offensive line coach Will Friend coached future Pro Bowl offensive lineman Trey Smith at Tennessee. He also has had nine offensive linemen who were NFL draft picks. | Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel

The offensive line is coached by Will Friend, one of the best in college football. In his 20 years as a full-time offensive line coach, Friend has developed nine NFL draft picks, including Pro Bowl offensive lineman Trey Smith (Kansas City Chiefs) and 2019 first-rounder Darnell Wright (Chicago Bears). He coached both at Tennessee from 2017 to 2020.

“I think Coach Friend is an extremely smart coach,” Blaske said about his position coach. “He just doesn't tell us where to block. He tells us how to do it and the best way to do it. And he goes into depth about the X's and O's and just tells us everything we need to know about the play, not just, you know, block the guy, do this, but this is why we're running this play. So we get down to the schematics of what we have to do.”

Friend embodies the “Tough, Smart, Discipline” approach that Belichick has instilled in the Carolina program as Belichick and offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens demand physicality in their offensive scheme.

“I think this year our message is just the toughness that he's been giving us in the O-Line room,” Blaske said. “You know, just showing up day in and day out, working. Because as the O-Line goes, as the team goes, so I think that's been the big point of this so far this fall camp.”

So Much Versatility, Who do you Choose?

If there’s one thing that this unit brings, it is versatility, as there are multiple players on the offensive line who can play multiple positions, such as Blaske. Because of that, the position battles on the offensive line will be one of the most intriguing storylines throughout fall camp.

“That's a position group where there's a lot of competition,” Kitchens said. “We kind of welcome competition because we think you've got two guys competing at guard, three guys competing at guard, whatever it may be, it's going to make all three of those guys better, or it shows itself, and you show who, who ends up being the starter or second team or whatever. So we welcome all that. So of course, it's great.

However, the final sports will not be decided until the end of fall camp as the Tar Heels will not be going into full pads into next week. Because of the lack of hitting, Belichick explained why it’s hard to evaluate the offensive line compared to other positions.

“Without pads and without full contact, it's kind of hard to see exactly how that's going to go until you get to that point, Belichick said. “With the receivers, defensive backs, things like that, you don't have those kinds of collisions. Power can neutralize speed, speed can offset power. There's a better evaluation of that than there is with the big guys.”

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