Davis, his coaching staff, support people and the players on campus have continued to improve UNC's recruiting, getting an even firmer grip on the state of North Carolina.

Athletes from this state play college football around the country, and a lot of those kids have gone on to play professional football. Many of them over the years played for the Tar Heels.

But in this decade, the numbers of future pro football players at Carolina dwindled, as did the victories in Chapel Hill.

Now, all of that is changing.

Last season, defensive lineman Kentwan Balmer went from being a virtual unknown out of high school to a first-round draft choice out of UNC. Hilee Taylor, another resident of the Tar Heel state, also made a professional roster after playing for Davis and Carolina.

With the obvious infusion of talent in the last couple of seasons at Carolina, it's apparent that those numbers, along with UNC's wins on the field, are going to rise.

This past week, 6-foot-2, 185-pound wide receiver Jheranie Boyd of Gastonia announced he will sign with Carolina to play football. Ranked by Rivals.com as the second-best player in the state this season, Boyd picked the Tar Heels instead of Oklahoma, N.C. State, Missouri and Illinois. Boyd lived in Illinois for 12 years before moving to North Carolina.

Boyd had made official visits to all the other schools. He has not made his official visit to UNC yet, but being within a three-hour drive, he has been to Chapel Hill for unofficial visits before.

"I made up my mind about a month ago," he said after a news conference at his school on Thursday. "I knew where I wanted to go, but I still wanted to look at some other options. Oklahoma impressed me a lot. It was a hard decision, coming down between Oklahoma and Carolina."

In the end, Boyd said that being near his family, and playing for Davis, the other position coaches and the style of offense that Carolina utilizes all played a big part in his final decision.

"I like Coach Davis," Boyd said. "He's one of the best college coaches, probably ever. He's sent a ton of guys to the pros. He knows how to help you out academically.

"I like all the coaches at Carolina, and that's what it came down to. I believe in having great character. That's the kind of people I want to be around, people with good character. I try to carry myself well.

Boyd also likes the pro-style run by UNC offensive coordinator John Shoop, former offensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears.

"He knows what he's doing," Boyd said. "He turned around the program in two years with Butch Davis. They've got Coach (John) Blake, Coach Tommy Thigpen, Coach (Charlie) Williams. I like all of them. I mean, they're all turning the program around."

If the recruiting continues to go the way it has so far this season, as well as in Davis' first two years, the turnaround is going to be enormous.

Earlier this year, Davis and his staff received a commitment from the top player in the state, 6-4, 235-pound defensive end Donte Moss of Jacksonville.

Moss is an extraordinary athlete. Moss has been timed repeatedly at 4.6 seconds or faster in the 40-yard dash at several elite camps. That's Julius Peppers' territory.

UNC now has four of Rivals' top 10 players in the state committed, a list that includes Chapel Hill High School defensive lineman Jared McAdoo and Smithfield linebacker Justin Dixon.

Two others from the top 10, linebacker Hawatha Bell of Matthews and defensive back Terry Shankle of South Stanley, are believed to be leaning toward UNC.

In addition, the Tar Heels have four other players ranked among the top 30 who have made oral commitments. Two others from North Carolina -- linebacker Kevin Reddick and overall athlete A.J. Blue -- are attending Hargrave Military Academy and are scheduled to join this class.

This is just a sampling of what might be the best class to ever sign with UNC by the time national signing day rolls around in February.

For example, Bryn Renner is one of the top players in Virginia and one of the best quarterback prospects in the country. Joshua Adams is a 6-4 receiver from Connecticut that ranks among the nation's best prospects. Both chose UNC.

In all, the Tar Heels have 19 kids committed already and will likely accept the maximum of 25 in this next class.

It's just the next step in a progression that began on signing day in Davis' first season, when he landed the top-ranked defensive tackle prospect in the country in Marvin Austin and managed to get Greg Little of Durham away from Notre Dame at the last second.

These are definitely the kind of building blocks on which successful football programs are erected.