Bill Belichick Previews What NC State Brings Defensively

The Tar Heels enter their season finale with a rivalry game at North Carolina State. Belichick spoke to reporters on Tuesday, previewing the game against their in-state rival.

Nov 22, 2025; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Bill Belichick watches play during the first half against the Duke Blue Devils at Kenan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Howard-Imagn Images | William Howard-Imagn Images

It has been an outright failure of a season for the North Carolina Tar Heels, who enter the season finale with a 4-7 record and no hope of qualifying for a bowl game.

It is the first time in seven years that the Tar Heels will not be featured in a bowl game, and that is disappointing when the program hired Bill Belichick as head coach. The 73-year-old head coach was supposed to elevate the culture to heights it has not been in recent memory.

Instead, North Carolina is one of the worst teams in the ACC and will not be competing for any meaningful hardware this season.

While speaking with the media during his press conference availability on Tuesday, Belichick elaborated on some of the challenges his team will face against North Carolina State on the road.

Belichick's Thoughts

UNC football coach Bill Belichick during a press conference on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025 inside the Kenan Football Center. | Rodd Baxley/The Fayetteville Observer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

• "It's a super competitive environment, and we look forward to it again, similar what we saw last week," Belichick said. "Like I said, very highly competitive atmosphere. It is the last regular season game, so there will be a lot of energy out there."

Belichick has a ton of respect for the Tar Heels' opponent this week, highlighting the coaching and personnel.

• "[North Carolina State] is very well coached, they're disciplined, and they they're absolutely, tough. You see that on film defensively," Belichick said. " They got a very strong front - those two defensive linemen, [Travali] Price and [Brandon] Cleveland are big, strong guys, very physical inside, hard to move. [Sebastian] Harsh is one of the better defensive ends that we'll see. Those guys are really disruptive."

• "[Caden] Fordham is leading the ACC in tackles, so he makes a ton of plays as well, they [have] productive players. So, they're very good front," Belichick continued. "I know they've been a little banged up in the secondary, but they've got pretty good group there too."

Nov 22, 2025; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback Gio Lopez (7) rushes around the end during the first half against the Duke Blue Devils at Kenan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Howard-Imagn Images | William Howard-Imagn Images

Unlike last week against the Duke Blue Devils, North Carolina's offense will have a much tougher task against North Carolina's State well-rounded defense. However, similarly to Duke, as Belichick mentioned, North Carolina State's secondary is littered with injuries, which could open up the passing attack for Gio Lopez.

In Week 13, Lopez completed 21-of-27 passes for 204 yards and one touchdown while adding 20 yards and another score on the ground.

Oct 31, 2025; Syracuse, New York, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Bill Belichick looks to the clock in the fourth quarter game against the Syracuse Orange at the JMA Wireless Dome. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

If the Tar Heels' offensive line is able to hold up in pass protection, Lopez could replicate his performance from last week.

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