North Carolina in familiar shape entering fall

North Carolina will take a trip down memory lane this fall.

The Tar Heels are one of the nation’s perennial powers and have reached the College World Series the last four seasons. But with weekend starters Alex White and Adam Warren and reliever Brian Moran long gone, many wonder if the Heels will be able to simply turn the page.

Perhaps the answer can be found by looking back at the fall of 2006.

UNC was close to winning the national title in ’06 with Jonathan Hovis and the dynamic duo of Andrew Miller and Daniel Bard leading the way. But in eerily similar fashion, both Miller and Bard decided to sign professional contracts after the ’06 season, and the Tar Heels were left in a precarious position, or so they thought.

That fall the Tar Heels leaned on right-handed pitcher Robert Woodward to carry the pitching staff. That ploy was successful. Woodward rose to the occasion in the spring and Luke Putkonen had a campaign to remember. There also was Alex White, who as a first-year player finished the season with a 4.94 earned run average. The bullpen also had little trouble responding from Hovis’ departure.

Three years later, the Tar Heels are in a familiar situation and hope for the same outcome.

“The first year I was at North Carolina, I didn’t have to do anything with Andrew Miller and Daniel Bard in the rotation, but things got interesting when they left,” pitching coach Scott Forbes said. “The next year, we only returned Woodward as a weekend starter, and he wasn’t a power guy. Things, though, still worked out for us.”

In that situation, it was Woodard who got the glory. Now it’s Matt Harvey’s turn to rise to the occasion and take the torch.

Harvey arrived at North Carolina as one of the most highly touted signees in school history. He likely would’ve been a first-round pick had agent Scott Boras not represented him. He also had incredibly high financial demands the Angels were unable to equal.

With the weight of turning a lot of money down on his back, Harvey had little trouble impressing as a freshman. He made 19 appearances and 16 starts and had a 2.79 ERA in 67 2/3 innings. He also struck out 80 and walked 47. To say the least, he proved to be the real deal.

Last season, though, Harvey wasn’t his freshman self. He pressed in tough situations and finished the season with a 5.40 ERA in 75 innings. Teams hit him at a high .293 clip.

If North Carolina wants to continue where it left off last season – as it did in 2007 – Harvey must elevate his game starting this fall.

“We have a lot of confidence in Matt. Sure, he struggled a bit last season, but he’s still a very good pitcher,” Forbes said. “From the day he stepped on campus, he has matured unbelievably as a kid and player. He had a lot of pressure coming to school and really has handled it nicely. Last year, if he had a bad outing he’d think he let the team down. Now he’s finally starting to learn how to recover from those type of things.

“We won’t be surprised if he has a great fall and spring.”

Forbes expects the pitching staff to look different this fall. Sure, the Tar Heels have the tough chore of replacing Warren, White and Moran. But unlike previous squads, the ’09 squad didn’t have a deep bullpen.

On paper, this pitching staff may not have the star power in the weekend rotation. But one thing’s for sure, the pitching staff definitely has more depth.

Harvey certainly is expected to nab a weekend starting job this fall. Junior right-handed pitcher Patrick Johnson, who started seven games and appeared in 27 and had a 3.49 ERA last season, also is expected to find his way to the rotation.

That leaves one spot open, unless Harvey or Johnson decides to take a step back this fall.

“I really thought Johnson could’ve been a solid weekend starter for most teams last season, so we like him a lot,” Forbes said. “For another weekend spot, I think it will get worked out as I think we have a nice combination of younger and older guys.”

Colin Bates made 34 appearances last season and had a 3.15 ERA in 60 innings. Nate Striz, Jimmy Messer and Ryan Leach also are expected to earn significant innings. The Heels also are excited about the additions of newcomers Mike Morin, Cody Stiles and Chris Munnelly.

Perhaps UNC’s situation isn’t as dire as some might think.

Only time will tell if the Tar Heels are able to move forward without White, Warren and Moran. All three meant so much to UNC both on and off the field. But this is still the same program that has been to Omaha the last four consecutive seasons and once again will be ranked top 25 to start the ’10 season.

“Who knows, there may be some guys people don’t know about rising to the occasion,” Forbes said. “A lot of people thought we’d be way down on the mound in ’08, but we had one of our best seasons in school history. Still, it’s going to take a lot of hard work to get where we want to be in the spring.”

North Carolina may have holes to fill on the mound as of today. But chances are it won’t stay that way.