September 9, 2025 • 8 mins
The guys talk with Hunter Bailey, Charlotte 49ers beat writer for the Charlotte Observer and co-host of the Highway 49 Podcast, about the loss to the Tar Heels and the team choosing to stick with Conner Harrell as their starting quarterback.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hunter Bailey. He now joins us on Weston Walker covering
the Charlotte forty nine Ers football team. You can follow
up on Twitter at Hunter Underscore Bailey forty five. He
writes for the Charlotte Observer and he talks on the
Highway forty nine podcast Hunter, How are you doing?
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Man? Doing good fellows Hope Yollow? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (00:16):
Absolutely, we appreciate you hopping on with us once again,
and we will go straight to the tim Alvin presser.
I know you just fielded some questions, fielded some answers,
I should say, excuse me from the forty nine ers
head coach. It's Connor Harrel. He's starting at quarterback again
heading into this weekend against Mond Myth. I am not
as mad about it this go around, as concerned as
(00:38):
I was after the app State game. How concerned are
you with Connor Harrel this time around compared to the
way you were feeling after that game against the Mountaineers.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
So to start this past game, we get off to
a close start. He starts game two for five. They
go three and out three straight possessions, which pretty similar
to the week one opening loss against some Mountaineers. He
did kind of find a stride in the second quarter,
completed twelve straight passes, and when you hear your quarterback
is doing that, you're thinking, okay, so they've they're scoring touchdowns,
(01:10):
and then you look at the scoreboard and they're missing
these opportunities, settling for feebles with drives stalling out in
the red zone. Aerl's specific passing game wise, I thought
he did all right. He's got to pull the ball
on and run. We talked about that before the season.
After week one we're talking about it again. Their offense
isn't going to be very good unless the quarterback is
(01:32):
going to run the ball. Tim out and said today
he doesn't want quarterback with double digit carries. He doesn't
want him top right like a running back. He wants
him to be that true quarterback. And when I look
at this offense, I feel like they're not playing to
their strengths with that side of things. And I think
the quarterback battle is kind of finished now. Based on
Grayson Losses's performance, he really struggled. They put him in
(01:56):
with about six minutes to go, and the offense moved
up and down the field perfectly fine. But he did
throw three picks in that span to only two of
them counted, and I'll give them one of them being
a hell Mary you kind of want to like, Okay,
you might as well throw the ball up, is what
it is. One of them was negated due to a
twelve minute on the field penalty for the tar Heels,
(02:18):
and then the other one is just a bad throw.
So it's to a point where I think counter Harrell
is the guy. And now I don't really think there's
a big competition there, but if they're gonna play this
style of offense, he's gonna have to use his legs
for them to beat even Monmouth on Saturday, Hunter.
Speaker 3 (02:33):
You held in C to three points in the second half,
and you, guys, obviously you didn't score, but you outgained them,
held them to just three points. And so what was
your biggest takeaway? Do you feel like that there were
positives to be taken away based off the second half
of that game.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
Yeah, I think the North Carolina offense strode a lot.
I mean, they quite a few questionable decisions from Freddy Kitchens,
including front of beat ball on fourth and one when
you clearly have the talent and size advantage up the front.
So I don't think North Carolina really did themselves any favors.
I did think Charlotte stefense settled into the game. When
you give up a three play touchdown drive a fifty
(03:13):
yard touchdown to open the game, dig yourself a ten
oher hole. You're not doing yourself any favors. But I
agree with what you're saying West. They tightened up in
the second half. You saw Shave Taylor make some plays
from his linebacker position, Dwight blutele at corner. They just
got a couple of miscues to clean up on that
side of the ball, and now they're dealing. They're gonna
(03:34):
finish the rest of the year without DJ Burgess, who's
probably the best pass rusher on the team, so we'll
get to see some depth on the edge. They missed.
Jalen Johnson didn't play last week either. With someone like
Curtis Simpson, Braydon Mullen, guys like that are going to
have to step up. But as you said, Wes, you
lost three in the second half and you still lose
the game. In my mind, that was maybe not a
(03:56):
winnable game. You had your opportunities. You could have definitely
made it into the fourth quarter. But again They're not
going to be competitive in these games if they shoot
themselves in the foot, and there was a ton of
that on offense with these fumbled snaps. I mean, you're
rushing for less than one yard per carry right now,
and that's not a winnable recipe.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
How do Mama's high flying offense to All American quarterback
Derek Robertson is back. I mean, how worried should Charlotte
fans be about this matchup?
Speaker 2 (04:26):
Yeah? When I when I think to previous FCS games,
some of them have been the blowout type that you
feel like Charlotte should be able to get. And then
the others, I think back to William and Mary a
couple of years ago at home. I think to even
Gardner Webb last season where Charlotte's getting blown out in
that game and needs their third string quarterback Trucks Varievy
(04:47):
to lead a comeback. But Manus is a top twenty
five SCS team. You're right, their quarterbacks back again. They're
scoring over forty points per game, They've got great skilled
position players, and talking to Charlotte's players able to day
Caleb Curtin and Mason Bowers, they're not treating this like
an SCS team, and I think that's the right approach
for Charlotte. This doesn't need to be look at it
(05:08):
as a pushover game because, like I said, I mean,
Mona's to score on over forty a game and Charlotte
is scoring just seven a game and hasn't even scored
touchdowns in both games. So I looked for the defense
to have the type of performance they did in the
second half. They're gonna need them to, and I want
to see more from the running game. It sounds like
Henry Rut which is now awaiting an MRI, so not
(05:29):
sure that we'll see him again this week, but you're
gonna need more from guys like CJ. Stokes, Rob Daney
Junior in the backfield because, like I said, this is
the type of game where your offensive line, your running
game gets right. This is against lesser talent, and like
I say, the SCS side of things, they need to
find a way to run a ball Saturday to win
(05:49):
this game.
Speaker 1 (05:50):
Yeah, Hunter, that's exactly where I wanted to go next.
How surprised are you that the offensive line has been
as lackluster as they have.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
I think the riding was on the wall. They're in
the in the offseason with Tim Oubn talking about wanting
versatility up front, you knew Johnny King was kind of
the returner, the senior leader, the I guess, the heart
beat the offensive line, and now he's dealing with an injury.
Didn't practice today, so they're doing more flip flopping that
on that front. I admittedly I expected it to be
(06:22):
a little bit better in pass bro I wasn't one
hundred percent sure about the running game, knowing they don't
have Mitchell May's and they're still awaiting his waivers. So
in my mind, they're going to have to sere that out.
Whatever the musical chairs that Tim Alvin is set up front,
they need to find a way to find that right
five and at least get some positives not be so
(06:43):
far behind the chains. Guys. I mean, their average third
down distance the last game is over ten yards, so
your first and second down has been a huge struggle,
and I think you're seeing that with so many three
and ounce with these guys.
Speaker 1 (06:55):
Last thing, Hunter, what was something Tim Alvin said today
that you found particularly noteworthy?
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Yeah, I think, and it sticks up front. He said,
the roster is kind of what it is, so he
knows there's deficiencies, and you're one. I think it's pretty clear.
You know some of the portal additions you want to
make in the off season, what you're going to want
to focus on with high school recruiting. I think they'll
again look to get another quarterback this offseason. They'll look
(07:22):
for more help, more big bodies up front. And he
talked about one hundred and five player roster limit, and
they got their numbers down to that and then I
guess the NCAA ruled that they could have more of
two point fifteen, and so they're missing some of the
guys that they would normally have and it's affecting how
they're practicing on the offensive line. He said they only
(07:42):
have about eight guys available right now, so they can't
even go with two full units due to some of
the injuries the numbers that they have, so that's impacting practice.
I think until they kind of find, like I said,
that correct five to push forward, I think it's going
to be a struggle upfront, which is going to result
in making it harder for someone like Connor Harold to
really find a stride this season.
Speaker 1 (08:02):
Hunter Bailey from The Charlotte Observer The Highway forty nine podcast.
You can follow him on Twitter at Hunter Underscore Bailey
forty five hundred. Great stuff. As always, man, we appreciate
your time.
Speaker 3 (08:11):
Thanks Hona, it's sir as you gues
Hunter Bailey. He now joins us on Weston Walker covering
the Charlotte forty nine Ers football team. You can follow
up on Twitter at Hunter Underscore Bailey forty five. He
writes for the Charlotte Observer and he talks on the
Highway forty nine podcast Hunter, How are you doing?
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Man? Doing good fellows Hope Yollow? Yeah?
Speaker 1 (00:16):
Absolutely, we appreciate you hopping on with us once again,
and we will go straight to the tim Alvin presser.
I know you just fielded some questions, fielded some answers,
I should say, excuse me from the forty nine ers
head coach. It's Connor Harrel. He's starting at quarterback again
heading into this weekend against Mond Myth. I am not
as mad about it this go around, as concerned as
(00:38):
I was after the app State game. How concerned are
you with Connor Harrel this time around compared to the
way you were feeling after that game against the Mountaineers.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:48):
So to start this past game, we get off to
a close start. He starts game two for five. They
go three and out three straight possessions, which pretty similar
to the week one opening loss against some Mountaineers. He
did kind of find a stride in the second quarter,
completed twelve straight passes, and when you hear your quarterback
is doing that, you're thinking, okay, so they've they're scoring touchdowns,
(01:10):
and then you look at the scoreboard and they're missing
these opportunities, settling for feebles with drives stalling out in
the red zone. Aerl's specific passing game wise, I thought
he did all right. He's got to pull the ball
on and run. We talked about that before the season.
After week one we're talking about it again. Their offense
isn't going to be very good unless the quarterback is
(01:32):
going to run the ball. Tim out and said today
he doesn't want quarterback with double digit carries. He doesn't
want him top right like a running back. He wants
him to be that true quarterback. And when I look
at this offense, I feel like they're not playing to
their strengths with that side of things. And I think
the quarterback battle is kind of finished now. Based on
Grayson Losses's performance, he really struggled. They put him in
(01:56):
with about six minutes to go, and the offense moved
up and down the field perfectly fine. But he did
throw three picks in that span to only two of
them counted, and I'll give them one of them being
a hell Mary you kind of want to like, Okay,
you might as well throw the ball up, is what
it is. One of them was negated due to a
twelve minute on the field penalty for the tar Heels,
(02:18):
and then the other one is just a bad throw.
So it's to a point where I think counter Harrell
is the guy. And now I don't really think there's
a big competition there, but if they're gonna play this
style of offense, he's gonna have to use his legs
for them to beat even Monmouth on Saturday, Hunter.
Speaker 3 (02:33):
You held in C to three points in the second half,
and you, guys, obviously you didn't score, but you outgained them,
held them to just three points. And so what was
your biggest takeaway? Do you feel like that there were
positives to be taken away based off the second half
of that game.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
Yeah, I think the North Carolina offense strode a lot.
I mean, they quite a few questionable decisions from Freddy Kitchens,
including front of beat ball on fourth and one when
you clearly have the talent and size advantage up the front.
So I don't think North Carolina really did themselves any favors.
I did think Charlotte stefense settled into the game. When
you give up a three play touchdown drive a fifty
(03:13):
yard touchdown to open the game, dig yourself a ten
oher hole. You're not doing yourself any favors. But I
agree with what you're saying West. They tightened up in
the second half. You saw Shave Taylor make some plays
from his linebacker position, Dwight blutele at corner. They just
got a couple of miscues to clean up on that
side of the ball, and now they're dealing. They're gonna
(03:34):
finish the rest of the year without DJ Burgess, who's
probably the best pass rusher on the team, so we'll
get to see some depth on the edge. They missed.
Jalen Johnson didn't play last week either. With someone like
Curtis Simpson, Braydon Mullen, guys like that are going to
have to step up. But as you said, Wes, you
lost three in the second half and you still lose
the game. In my mind, that was maybe not a
(03:56):
winnable game. You had your opportunities. You could have definitely
made it into the fourth quarter. But again They're not
going to be competitive in these games if they shoot
themselves in the foot, and there was a ton of
that on offense with these fumbled snaps. I mean, you're
rushing for less than one yard per carry right now,
and that's not a winnable recipe.
Speaker 3 (04:15):
How do Mama's high flying offense to All American quarterback
Derek Robertson is back. I mean, how worried should Charlotte
fans be about this matchup?
Speaker 2 (04:26):
Yeah? When I when I think to previous FCS games,
some of them have been the blowout type that you
feel like Charlotte should be able to get. And then
the others, I think back to William and Mary a
couple of years ago at home. I think to even
Gardner Webb last season where Charlotte's getting blown out in
that game and needs their third string quarterback Trucks Varievy
(04:47):
to lead a comeback. But Manus is a top twenty
five SCS team. You're right, their quarterbacks back again. They're
scoring over forty points per game, They've got great skilled
position players, and talking to Charlotte's players able to day
Caleb Curtin and Mason Bowers, they're not treating this like
an SCS team, and I think that's the right approach
for Charlotte. This doesn't need to be look at it
(05:08):
as a pushover game because, like I said, I mean,
Mona's to score on over forty a game and Charlotte
is scoring just seven a game and hasn't even scored
touchdowns in both games. So I looked for the defense
to have the type of performance they did in the
second half. They're gonna need them to, and I want
to see more from the running game. It sounds like
Henry Rut which is now awaiting an MRI, so not
(05:29):
sure that we'll see him again this week, but you're
gonna need more from guys like CJ. Stokes, Rob Daney
Junior in the backfield because, like I said, this is
the type of game where your offensive line, your running
game gets right. This is against lesser talent, and like
I say, the SCS side of things, they need to
find a way to run a ball Saturday to win
(05:49):
this game.
Speaker 1 (05:50):
Yeah, Hunter, that's exactly where I wanted to go next.
How surprised are you that the offensive line has been
as lackluster as they have.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
I think the riding was on the wall. They're in
the in the offseason with Tim Oubn talking about wanting
versatility up front, you knew Johnny King was kind of
the returner, the senior leader, the I guess, the heart
beat the offensive line, and now he's dealing with an injury.
Didn't practice today, so they're doing more flip flopping that
on that front. I admittedly I expected it to be
(06:22):
a little bit better in pass bro I wasn't one
hundred percent sure about the running game, knowing they don't
have Mitchell May's and they're still awaiting his waivers. So
in my mind, they're going to have to sere that out.
Whatever the musical chairs that Tim Alvin is set up front,
they need to find a way to find that right
five and at least get some positives not be so
(06:43):
far behind the chains. Guys. I mean, their average third
down distance the last game is over ten yards, so
your first and second down has been a huge struggle,
and I think you're seeing that with so many three
and ounce with these guys.
Speaker 1 (06:55):
Last thing, Hunter, what was something Tim Alvin said today
that you found particularly noteworthy?
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Yeah, I think, and it sticks up front. He said,
the roster is kind of what it is, so he
knows there's deficiencies, and you're one. I think it's pretty clear.
You know some of the portal additions you want to
make in the off season, what you're going to want
to focus on with high school recruiting. I think they'll
again look to get another quarterback this offseason. They'll look
(07:22):
for more help, more big bodies up front. And he
talked about one hundred and five player roster limit, and
they got their numbers down to that and then I
guess the NCAA ruled that they could have more of
two point fifteen, and so they're missing some of the
guys that they would normally have and it's affecting how
they're practicing on the offensive line. He said they only
(07:42):
have about eight guys available right now, so they can't
even go with two full units due to some of
the injuries the numbers that they have, so that's impacting practice.
I think until they kind of find, like I said,
that correct five to push forward, I think it's going
to be a struggle upfront, which is going to result
in making it harder for someone like Connor Harold to
really find a stride this season.
Speaker 1 (08:02):
Hunter Bailey from The Charlotte Observer The Highway forty nine podcast.
You can follow him on Twitter at Hunter Underscore Bailey
forty five hundred. Great stuff. As always, man, we appreciate
your time.
Speaker 3 (08:11):
Thanks Hona, it's sir as you gues
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