UNC Conner Harrell Game Week Press Conference: Charlotte | Inside Carolina Interviews

what's different in your approach now nothing different um yeah no nothing different uh just just praying like I always would um nothing different how it's nothing different how did you anticipate at some point what it would be like if you go through a full week in the regular season as qb1 I know you had the experience last year before the bowl game but this is I would imagine this is a little bit different um I say like I I said this in the last interview also I always have to prepare like I'm G to play because I get my opportunity I'm not ready and then you know it's it's not the best so I always have to prepare week to week like I'm going to play um and you know I try to do that I try to be the same person uh week to week at this is there a different level of excitement for you knowing that you know last week you didn't know for sure if you're going to play now you know you are so it's there a different level of excitement yeah I'm obviously excited um when I'm not playing I'm excited for M excited for our team and now that I am playing I'm I'm excited you know guys are looking at me in the Huddle so there different type of excitement um but yeah I'm definitely excited going back to the Bowl game when you were going into that as a starter JJ was up here saying you know it's no different as from Drake to Connor and now you know Austin blasy is saying it's no different going from Max to Connor what does that mean to you to have that level of Confidence from the guys that you're going to be relying on that's awesome yeah I mean those guys are looking at me in the Huddle I'm looking at them so it's great to have uh confidence in in them and them have confidence in me it means a lot knowing they know I get the job done so still making the bed every morning Conor is that still still trying yes sir like about the same approach yeah all right how does the play selection change in the game plan this week last week um I mean I've still been practicing all fall you know getting preparing to play so we've it's I mean I I've practic the plays it's not much different I mean we just run running offense I mean are there more certain play that they usually ran more for you than I mean we're going to run plays that you know fit my abilities and then when Max in run plays to fit his ability when job's in run plays for his ability so you everybody does things differently does has different talents so we'll run run different plays within our offense what did you learn you think from playing Thursday um you know always be ready obviously you know you never know how fast it can happen um you know I just learn to you know play with confidence game manage I feel there's a lot a lot of game management going on and and that that's important to win game so I think game management was important about Thursday what was it like I guess it wasn't the game-winning drive so to speak cuz Minnesota got another shot but you're in that moment that's the thing you dream of and you make that big play to set up the field goal what was kind of what was going through your mind your veins and those moment yeah it's crazy like you look before and after you're like man like there's all those fans in the stadium and whatever but when you're and when you're in it it's just you're just thinking about what you have to do next play like everything's just next play you're always thinking uh what if can we get the ball back if Minnesota has it like it's always thinking what you can do so you don't really uh always you know realize what's going on around you con one thing that uh that chip was so about yesterday was you know wanting to create more explosive plays on offense uh kind of having a chance to really see uh you know everything in real time in the first in a live game for the first time what are some things that you guys that you feel like you guys can do as an offense uh to generate more of those explosive um I think you know trusting each other I think that's a huge part you know if we don't have trust and receivers or online whatever then you know we're not going to want to take those shots but you know just having trust everyone trusting that that we can uh execute is is really important kind what did you feel like during camp that you maybe didn't do as well as you wanted to that led to you not winning the starting job like I mean you know we we had heard maybe there were some interception problems I don't know if that's totally accurate but like what do you think kept you from from being named the starter going into the Minnesota game yeah I mean I mean first first first Part Max is a really really good player so I mean that's that's part of it it's like you have to be on it all the time and you're competing with a really good guy and you know obviously I feel like I could have did better uh in Fall camp but um I wouldn't say it's anything specific I just you know competing against a really good guy and you know having to be perfect all the time so I thought I still had a pretty good camp but you know he had a better one have you talked with Max at all since Thursday I texted him I haven't I haven't talked with him yet how much did preparing as a starter last December kind of help you for this week and even when getting thrown in other against a big 10 team he's already faced a big 12 team last year yeah no I say uh you know getting all like the I've already already done all like the the other stuff I've done interviews before I've done whatever I need to do to that comes with with being the starter I've already done that and I know like what it's like so I'm kind of you know prepared for all that and I just focus on on Saturday that's only important thing a lot of snaps against Power Conference teams away from the stadium now you get to start a game here is that kind of exciting get to start one here yeah no it's definitely exciting yeah first yeah first start uh home game in Keenan so I'm excited for that that'll be awesome Conor had in the bowl game you had the ankle injury early and then like as you were saying the other night there was a lot of game managing involved and you know um you know game managing involved like do you feel like and I'm not trying to talk you into it those two games maybe you haven't been able to show you know who you really are the all of your all of the range of your skills because of the injury against West Virginia because you guys were playing for field goals and not trying to turn the ball over the other night is it is there any sense of that I mean yeah I definitely feel like um haven't reached my full potential I've gotten better from last week I've better from last year so I yeah I don't think I've shown you know my the full extent of what I can do for sure yeah on the injury at West Virginia did you have your ankles tape that night uh I did not have my ankles tape to start say I know she have them taped now they're taped every day now is that I guess how is that different you know scrambling or in the pocket or does it really feel any different at all oh it doesn't feel much different though I should have had my ankles tape I that's something you don't really think about and you don't play like it wasn't emphasized to us and I know now I'm always on my ankle state that was one of the big conspiracy theories yeah you should have had ankle St should had ankle State and of course uh we all know what Omarian can do and the type of player that he is and things like that uh the other night you know he had the 30 carries when Max was in there they had the 17 play drive and things like that I guess the ability to take time off the clock in the manner in which you guys did what type of I guess Dynamic does that give you guys as an offense knowing that you can you know shoot clock and and control the ground game yeah being able to run the ball huge but nowadays like being able to control the clock control time of possession you not not letting the offense have the ball giving your defense a rest that's that's huge too that's you know underrated part so um when we can get guys in even when they love the BLX still run the ball that's it's a huge part of the game when you guys had so many snaps in the third quarter Austin said that some of his teammates saw colors did you hear that and if you've ever heard anything like that I I've heard it like that before um I think we ran like a we had a long play we had a reverse so they were running we had a screen so I think there was like three plays in a row and we were going fast too and then I heard uh big Trey he's like I'm tired I'm tired it was fun the big guys out there need some rest sometimes but no yeah I've heard something like that before you people be entire seeing colors yeah yeah see yeah seeing colors yeah Trey would have been our first guess what was it that you saw Conor that allowed you to make the play at the end to JJ which arguably the play of the game or one of the plays of the game I guess you know it was a run pass option right so you have the option just to hand it off like can you take us through that again I know we asked you about it at Minnesota the other night but like looking back what were the things that you saw that led you to make the decisions that you made that end up working out it was the same same play on know I remember Drake making a left-handed pass last year it was the same same play so we run it a lot we practice it and just execute when the time comes why do they he had to throw it left-handed you're going against your body right too so like why is it going to the left every time uh we we can run at either hash it just it the uh just ended up to be on that hash and it was the time to run it so that's that's what happened con what my bad uh what have you seen on Films so far out of Charlotte what sticks out to you about the way they play you yeah they got I think they got really good players we we know some of their players um they play really really physical at the defensive back position um they got good linebackers good D line um they fly around the ball uh they'll have they have a good team so we just got to go out and and play to our standard like Coach Brown says uh just be who we are do you guys still keep up with Dante balour and jar I haven't I Haven as much I I I I did say something to JQ back in the summer I think I was throwing and uh I I saw him saw him around and I said something to I haven't I haven't spoken to Dante in a while or J former coaches out there too yeah yeah a lot of former coaches do guys on the team still keep up with I think so yes sir yeah guys on the team I was uh they're I think they're all like two or three years older than me so I didn't come come in with them should have asked C I forgot