UNC Tar Heels' Blueprint to Beat Duke Blue Devils

Although the North Carolina Tar Heels' path to victory over the Duke Blue Devils is narrow, there are certainly multiple avenues that head coach Bill Belichick and his staff could explore to exploit Duke.

North Carolina's expectations for the 2025 season grew exponentially high following the head coaching hire of Belichick. However, his success in the NFL, which was lacking near the end of his tenure in New England, has not immediately transferred to the college atmosphere. And that should not have been expected in the first place, as college football is wildly contrasting from the NFL.

Nov 15, 2025; Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels running back Benjamin Hall (28) runs with the ball against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wake Forest Athletics via Imagn Images | Wake Forest Athletics via Imagn Images

Nonetheless, the Tar Heels sit at 4-6, with wins becoming a necessity if the program wants to feature in one of the many bowl games this postseason.

That starts with a much-needed victory over the Blue Devils. Here are a couple of key factors for North Carolina if it wants to leave Week 13 with a win.

Generate Pressure on Darian Mensah

Nov 8, 2025; East Hartford, Connecticut, USA; Duke Blue Devils quarterback Darian Mensah (10) throws a pass against the UConn Huskies in the second half at Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | David Butler II-Imagn Images

One way to disrupt a quarterback's rhythm, timing, and trust in the protection up front is to create pressure without dialing up blitzes.

Luckily for the Tar Heels, that is a consistent feature of the defense, as they possess two edge rushers - Melkart Abou Jaoude and Tyler Thompson - who are each capable of beating their assignment off the edge. Jaoude leads the team with 10 sacks, while Thompson is second on the defense with seven sacks.

Sep 13, 2025; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels defensive lineman Melkart Abou-Jaoude (9 ) celebrates with defensive lineman Smith Vilbert (8) after making a sack in the first quarter at Kenan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

Although Mensah has proven to be one of the best young quarterbacks in college football, pressure has exposed some tendencies in his game that can be exploited. His willingness to hold onto the ball too long has led to untimely sacks.

In addition, the increased pressure rate over the last two weeks, specifically, has led to Mensah committing four turnovers during that span.

Control the Tempo of the Game

Nov 8, 2025; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback Gio Lopez (7) hands the ball off to running back Davion Gause (37) in the second quarter at Kenan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

There are multiple ways of controlling the overall flow of the game. What Virginia demonstrated last week would be the perfect game plan, but North Carolina's passing attack is clearly not on the same level as the Cavaliers.

However, the rushing attack can emulate to a certain extent of what Virginia produced last week against the Blue Devils.

The Tar Heels average 29.7 rushing attempts per game this season, and that will be the focal point of the offense, barring Duke's offense jumping out of the gates with a double-digit lead, which is completely possible.

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