All Tar Heels

Social Media Reacts to Belichick's Season Opening Disaster

Well, it was an embarrassing night for Bill Belichick and North Carolina. Social media let everyone know.
Grant Chachere|
Sep 1, 2025; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Bill Belichick on the sidelines in the first quarter at Kenan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images
Sep 1, 2025; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Bill Belichick on the sidelines in the first quarter at Kenan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

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North Carolina Tar Heels

Well, it was an embarrassing night for Bill Belichick and North Carolina.

I think everyone was expecting a competitive game between two of the best minds in football, with Belichick and TCU's Sonny Dykes trying to outmaneuver one another like two chessmasters. However, Dykes made Belichick look like a rookie rather than a master.

Sep 1, 2025; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels fans react in the fourth quarter at Kenan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

There were a lot of reactions to the game, some were filled with aura and some were down right funny.

Here are some of the best social media posts of the night.

Well, It Started Off Great

UNC got the ball first and it was pretty electric. Caleb Hood was gashing TCU's defense. Then, quarterback Gio Lopez threw a dime to wide receiver Jordan Shipp off of a play-action pass for 39 yards.

Lopez connected with Shipp once again on a perfectly executed 19-yard pass off of an RPO. Hood finished off the drive with an eight-yard score and the crowd went wild.

Michael Jordan loved it as he celebrated the opening touchdown with former UNC basketball coach Roy Williams right next to him.

Well, everyone did, except for Belichick.

Belichick became a meme after his stoic reaction to the touchdown and it had aura. Lots of it.

It Never Got Better, It Just Got Worse

After UNC went 7-0 with 10:55 left in the first quarter, the Horned Frogs scored 41 unanswered points before the Tar Heels finally scored late in the third quarter. The final tally ended up being 48-14. The Horned Frogs outgained the Tar Heels 542 to 222 as TCU had its way throwing and running the ball. Also, two of North Carolina's turnovers turned into touchdowns.

The excitement did not last long, just like Aaron Rodgers' time with the New York Jets.

It was just pure domination and the Twitter post below I thought perfectly summed it up.

However, it was still competitive.

But when Lopez threw a pick-six with 3:57 left in the first half, it started to unglue just a bit. It started to look like the Tar Heels started to give up just a bit. One Twitter/X account acknowledged that they were taking Labor Day off like the rest of the audience watching on TV.

If that wasn't the dagger, then Kevorian Barnes' 75-yard touchdown run down the sidelines in front of the UNC bench. I'm not saying I believe in the "commentator's jinx," but ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit may have jinxed the Tar Heel defense. However, the defense looked awful before that run and I think we should give Herbie a break.

While the offense was responsible for 14 of TCU's 48 points, the defense was awful as they let TCU run all over them for 258 yards and were missing tackle after tackle all night long. The Horned Frogs haven't rushed for over 200 yards since Sept. 16, 2023 in a 36-13 victory over Houston.

One fan even sarcastically said that Belichick should fire his defensive coordinator even though he probably wouldn't because it's his son, who just happens to be his son, Steve.

The Offense Isn't Getting Off Easy

The only time the offense had any identity was the first drive and when Max Johnson came in after Lopez injured his back on the play when he strip-sacked and the ball was picked up for a scoop-and-score in the third quarter.

In the middle of the second quarter, there was an interesting statline. Just read the tweet below.

It got worse midway through the third quarter.

One of our beat writers, Jeremiah Artacho, got a great video of the students finally giving up after it decided to stay even as it got worse.

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Grant Chachere
GRANT CHACHERE

Grant Chachere holds a B.A. in Mass Communication from Louisiana State University and has a passion for college sports. He has served as a reporter and beat writer for various outlets, including Crescent City Sports and TigerBait.com. Now, he brings that passion and experience to his role as the North Carolina Tar Heels beat reporter On SI.

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