CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA – Four words from Kaimon Rucker essentially said it all Saturday afternoon, some 40 minutes after North Carolina took apart Virginia 41-14 at Scott Stadium.
‘“The Butcher’ is back!”
Rucker’s nickname is “The Butcher,” and him being back meant UNC had its best defensive player doing what he always does on a football field, at least when healthy. And that’s where the he’s-back part of this is relevant.
Rucker missed four games before returning to play only nine snaps in a loss to Pittsburgh, and then he logged 55 snaps in a loss to Georgia Tech. But Rucker wasn’t close to 100% and later admitted he was playing a bit too much with his repaired knee in mind. But not against the Wahoos.
Eight tackles, three sacks, and an interception mark Rucker’s performance. And yeah, he was back in a big way.
“When you get the surgery, there's going to be some things that mentally you have to get over more so than a physical standpoint," Rucker said. "So, for me, it was a mental hump to get over, because I've had some knee procedures in the past. But once I got over it, knowing that it's healed, it's been fixed. Prayed over it, all these things. Now, I've got to just do my job and just be me."
Rucker being Rucker had a clear effect on the rest of UNC’s defense. He wasn’t interested in accepting any responsibility in Carolina’s performance against UVA in which it allowed only 288 yards and registered 10 sacks, the most by a Tar Heels team since 2000.
Instead, Rucker said he fed off of his teammates. But it doesn’t take much dot connecting to see how UNC (4-4 overall, 1-3 ACC) is different on that side of the ball when a healthy Rucker is doing his thing.
Minnesota managed only 244 yards and 14 first downs in the opener, with the Golden Gophers rushing for 79 yards on 33 attempts. Five of those “runs” were sacks by the Tar Heels for a loss of 24 yards. At Virginia, the Wahoos ran for 7 yards on 29 attempts. The 10 sacks cost UVA 67 yards.
So, in the two games in which Rucker has been 100% healthy, opponents have a combined 532 yards on 125 offensive plays with 15 credited as sacks for a loss of 91 yards.
Rucker won’t acknowledge it, but it’s clear his effect on the defense is significant.
"You start looking at the defense, Kaimon and Power (Echols) are the two strongest leaders,” UNC Coach Mack Brown said after the win over the Cavaliers. “All those kids look for them. And then, every time there is a pass rush, Kaimon has a chance to get there. He's that good. And we lost both of those elements when we lost him, and even when we got him back the last week and a half, he was kind of careful. He didn't have his spirit.
“Today, I could see his face light up because he knew he was back, and that makes so much difference for us."
In the six games since the 19-17 win at Minnesota and before Saturday’s matinee on The Grounds, the Heels managed just 10 sacks and allowed 5.5 yards on 227 rushing attempts. In Rucker’s two healthy games, the Gophers and Hoos amassed only 86 yards on 62 attempts, which is a 1.4 average.
It wasn’t just that Rucker infused his mates, though, he was outstanding himself. He finished with eight tackles, three of which were sacks, and had an interception that set up a UNC touchdown.
But again, his narrative was about the team, not himself.
"Obviously for the past few weeks it's been a drought," he said, noting that UNC had zero sacks in the previous two games. “Just dealing with all the things that we’ve dealt with. But man, I think this was a turning point for our team, our defense. Because we're capable of doing what we did today every single game for 60 minutes, the first through the fourth quarter."
The next test for the Heels is at Florida State next Saturday. And they should once again have a fully healthy Rucker, and ‘The Butcher’ will make a difference.
