UNC star Xavier Lewis has been dominating on the field for the Tar Heels this season.
The North Carolina Tar Heels will be back on the field this week following a bye week to regroup after a tough loss to the Clemson Tigers.
North Carolina sits at 2-1 on the season, and they will now be facing one of the toughest teams in the country. The Tar Heels will be hosting a game against the No. 3-ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish, giving this team a challenge on their hands.
If North Carolina wants to have a chance to upset the Fighting Irish, the defense is going to have to come up big in the game. The Tar Heels' defense is much improved from a year ago, but Notre Dame's offense is something that this group hasn't seen before.
Sophomore defensive tackle Xavier Lewis has been one of the bigger reasons why the Tar Heels have seen success this season. Lewis is in the midst of a full breakout season for North Carolina, and his talents can't be overlooked on the field.
So far through the first three games of the season, Lewis has recorded 17 total tackles (8.5 for loss) and six sacks. His six sacks rank as the fourth most in the entire country, showing dominance on the field for the Tar Heels.
Making the performance from Lewis even more impressive is the fact that he's only played in three games, while the other players ahead of him have seen one extra game. Lewis has recorded two sacks in each of the first three games of the season for North Carolina.
Lewis only put up 0.5 sacks last season as a freshman, seeing 11 games of action. His development has been awesome to see for the Tar Heels, and he's been one of the main reasons why this team has seen success.
Lewis is 10 sacks away from tying the all-time record for North Carolina in a single season, which is held by Lawrence Taylor. His 16-sack feat has stood since 1980, but Lewis is on pace to at least come close if he can keep it up.
It remains to be seen if Lewis will be able to keep up this level of success as the season goes on. But if he can, the Tar Heels could continue to surprise people in the ACC going forward.
It will be tough to continue registering two sacks a game in all likelihood, but Lewis seems determined to put together a truly special season for the Tar Heels.
