As the quarterback for the North Carolina Tar Heels, Bryn Renner had a very good season in 2012. But Larry Fedora won’t settle for “very good” in 2013 as he wants his quarterback to break through as one of the elite signal callers in the ACC and in all of college football. Last season, Renner showed phenomenal growth as the season went on and must continue that positive trend if he wants to lead the Heels to the top in 2013.
Through the first six games of the 2012 season, Renner was playing all right. He completed 63.7 percent of his passes for 1,616 yards, throwing 15 touchdowns and just four interceptions. But offensive coordinator Blake Anderson felt his play was too sporadic and that Renner was trying to do too much and forced throws where they just wouldn’t go. Over time, Anderson was able to get Renner to settle into the offense and play up to his potential.
That prompted a stark improvement in the second half of the season, even as the Heels’ competition got tougher. In their final six games, Renner completed 67.8 percent of his passes for 1,740 yards and tossed 13 touchdowns to only three interceptions. Over the final four games, Renner threw for more than 300 yards each contest, throwing 11 touchdowns and only two interceptions in that span and UNC finished the year 3-1. In the final two games of the year, Renner was laser-focused, completing over 70 percent of his passes.
If Renner is able to continue that positive growth through the offseason and into next fall, North Carolina will have one of the premier quarterbacks in all of college football. Will that be the key to getting them an ACC title?
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