As a senior at Raleigh’s Leesville Road High, Beau Atkinson chose North Carolina over Miami and Michigan, a four-star recruit looking to join Mack Brown’s football program at UNC.
Atkinson changed his junior year, the defensive end wants to add weight and improve his mobility.
Atkinson did just that, putting on 20 pounds. He played in all 13 games for the Tar Heels last year, getting his first real taste of college football — of being in the field with “live bullets flying,” as he said.
Atkinson enters his sophomore season listed as the backup to Des Evans. But the two are hotel roommates during fall camp — think two 6-foot-6, 265-pound guys crammed into the same room — and they may have developed a defensive plan in time. of them.
What about Evans on one side and Atkinson on the other, with tight end Kaimon Rucker at, say, linebacker? How about those three together?
“That would be a problem for me and Beau both there. That would be crazy,” Evans said last week.
Not that Geoff Collins, the Heels’ new defensive coordinator, isn’t listening. He might have something like that in mind, too, for a few spot situations. Or not.
“That would be a scary look to pass,” Atkinson said Saturday.
Evans, a senior, could see Atkinson get more snaps and make a bigger impact on defense this season, even if some of those snaps come at the expense of home.
Beau worked very hard. He’s dedicated,” Evans said. “He’s going to be one of the best pass rushers to come to UNC, for sure. I can see that. I’m not going to lie.”
Pro Football Focus (PFF) ranked Atkinson fourth among Power 5 rookies in 2023 — Miami’s Reuben Bain Jr. had the team’s highest. Atkinson had 229 defensive snaps, according to PFF; Evans, by comparison, had 571 snaps and Rucker 872.
Atkinson is one of those “constant-motor” players that coaches appreciate. On the first day of fall practice, No. 12 spoke like everyone else in the Koman Practice Complex, loudly and passionately urging the defense.
“That’s him a lot strong,” linebacker Amare Campbell said Saturday. “In the weight room he does small lifts (routines) where he gets really strong.
“He is a good player. He’s 6-6, he can run, he can do anything. He’s a great athlete, he’s smart, he’s very smart.”
Atkinson, an All-ACC Academic selection last year, said he continues to work on his burst from the rim. You’re quick and you’re quick, but you want to be quick.
Atkinson said Collins’ defensive style is “all the time attacking,” which suits him and his football philosophy. He said working with defensive backs coach Ted Monachino also helped him with the mental side of playing the position.
Monachino spent 16 years in the NFL, coaching players like Terrell Suggs, Khalil Mack and Elvis Dumervil while winning a Super Bowl as an assistant with the Baltimore Ravens. He joined the UNC program as a defensive analyst in March 2023 but was promoted to defensive backs coach for 2024.
“Sometimes last year, like when I was starting to learn defense, I might learn my craft,” Atkinson said. “Understanding what’s going on around me all the time, even in the background, can open up a lot of things, and he’s helped me a lot with that.”
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