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Without the chance to schedule an outside scrimmage, the best competition North Carolina coach Joe Breschi could find in the fall was splitting his team into two.

Usually, getting into second-stringers invites a bit of sloppiness. Not for these Tar Heels.

“It was just fun,” Breschi said. “There were not a lot of turnovers, there was not a drop-off. Usually that happens, right? But it’s really good lacrosse.”

Some coaches prefer to play coy about how their team will fare. Breschi isn’t that sort, but even if he was, it would be a waste of time this spring. The giddiness in his voice is hard to miss.

A big assist goes to North Carolina men’s basketball coach Roy Williams, who donated more than $600,000 to cover the scholarships of seniors whose spring seasons were cut short when the pandemic hit last year. That helped ensure the starting midfield of Justin Anderson, Tanner Cook and William Perry would all return for fifth seasons in Chapel Hill.

But the Tar Heels also added Princeton transfer Connor McCarthy and have had a chance to develop some younger players this fall.

“We just looked at it and thought, ‘Wow,’” Breschi said. “We’re as deep as we can be offensively. Last year, you might say, ‘They had a really good first midfield and a really solid second.’ I think we have two really good midfields and a solid third and fourth. That’s pretty crazy to think about.”

It gets crazier. North Carolina, which ranked fourth nationally in goals per game (17.86), fourth in shooting (39.1 percent) and first in man-up offense (77.3 percent) will again revolve around Chris Gray, who had 48 points in just seven games. Juniors Brian Cameron and Nicky Solomon both hit the 10-goal plateau last season, and Jacob Kelly had four goals and four assists in five games.

They’re all back as well — and could be with the Tar Heels for another year after this.

“We’re six attackmen deep, which is pretty powerful in and of itself, and two of those guys could potentially play midfield in Lance Tillman and Alex Trippi,” Breschi said. “But with Chris Gray, Solomon, Kelly and Cameron, all those guys back … it’s a great problem to have.”

The phrase that kept going through Breschi’s mind in the fall was “old school,” and the depth reminded him of his first season in coaching. It was 1991, he had just graduated from North Carolina the previous year, and the Tar Heels rolled out three midfields and five attackmen and ran up and down the field.

They went undefeated and won the national championship, something that’s hardly a given 30 years later since other programs will also benefit from fifth-year returnees and an influx of transfer help. Nonetheless, an already potent offense is older and deeper than last year, and that bodes well for 2021.

“We’re not going to change what we do,” Breschi said. “We’re just going to get better at what we did.”

TOP RETURNERS

Will Bowen, D, R-Fr.

Reportedly transferring to Georgetown after this season (and after graduating in just three years), Bowen should again be one of the ACC’s top close defensemen.

Tanner Cook, M, Sr.

The Canadian and two-year starter scored a career-high 20 goals last season while shooting 51.3 percent.

Chris Gray, A, Sr.

The BU transfer delivered 27 goals and 21 assists in his first season in Chapel Hill, capably working as both a primary ballhandler and an off-ball option.

KEY ADDITION

Connor McCarthy, M, Gr.

The 6-4 Princeton graduate transfer bounced back from an injury-plagued 2019 season to score 13 goals in five games.

ENEMY LINES

“Juggernaut. I was watching their Denver game a couple weeks ago. I did not watch that game before because we did not get to Carolina, and oh my goodness. The final score was 15-13, but it was 13-5 at one point. I did not sleep well that night. They are loaded. … The young defense looked like it was starting to jell by the Denver game. That is a powerhouse. The 800-pound gorilla is Duke, but there’s a 799-pound gorilla right next to them.”

“You look at their top six, that first midfield is an absolute bear. They have a guy they believe is the top kid in the country in Gray and I think they can create so many matchup problems with the depth they have at attack. If you try to short stick and do some different things, they have some personnel who will mess up your plans. They’re ferocious riders. They just suffocated teams. They were playing with confidence and I’m sure they feel they can play with anybody and beat anybody this year.”

NUMBERS GAME

7

North Carolina has won seven consecutive games heading into the 2021 season, the longest active winning streak in the country.