3 Reasons UNC Football Fans Should Stay Grounded After Win

It was a great weekend for the North Carolina Tar Heels, who defeated the TCU Horned Frogs in the season opener in Dublin, Ireland.

While the result of the game is most important, the Tar Heels have several areas to improve. Despite that, the buzz around the program is at an all-time high since Bill Belichick took over as head coach last offseason. However, we need to pump the brakes on the hype around North Carolina and not overreact. Here are a few reasons why.

Jaden Craig Struggled

Aug 29, 2026; Dublin, Co. Dublin, IRL; TCU Horned Frogs quarterback Jaden Craig (1) breaks the tackle of North Carolina Tar Heels defensive lineman Jaylen Harvey (11) in the first half at Aviva Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Laszlo Geczo-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

With all due respect, the Harvard transfer quarterback was abysmal on Saturday. Craig completed 20-of-32 passes for 175 yards, while averaging 5.5 yards per attempt. The 6-foot-3, 225-pound quarterback missed plenty of layups against North Carolina and also failed to connect on a handful of chunk plays that were there for the taking.

On the missed fourth-down conversion with a little over four minutes left in the game, Craig missed an open Jeremy Scott in the end zone. It was on the move, but it was a throw that Craig needed to make. He didn't even give Scott a chance. The Tar Heels were fortunate to win this game, and if quarterback play had been marginally better, TCU could easily have won.

Run Defense Was Glaringly Bad

Aug 29, 2026; Dublin, Co. Dublin, IRL; TCU Horned Frogs running back Jeremy Payne (26) breaks the tackle of North Carolina Tar Heels defensive back Kaleb Cost (2) in the second half at Aviva Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Laszlo Geczo-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

TCU is a quality opponent, but it's not even close to the caliber of team the Tar Heels will regularly go up against in ACC play. Horned Frogs’ running back Jeremy Payne rushed for 142 yards on 25 carries. Payne had yet to surpass 650 rushing yards in a season in his first two years.

In the ACC, the Tar Heels will be blown out of the water if they allow this rushing output to the majority of the teams in the conference. This also ties back to the last subtopic with Craig, as most quarterbacks would expose the open areas of the field left vacant by linebackers committing to the run. Successfully producing on the ground creates opportunities off play-action passes, which other quarterbacks will undoubtedly take advantage of.

TCU Blew Several Opportunities

Aug 29, 2026; Dublin, Co. Dublin, IRL; TCU Horned Frogs head coach Sonny Dykes has a discussion with the officiating crew in the first half against the North Carolina Tar Heels at Aviva Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Laszlo Geczo-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

We already mentioned Craig's missed touchdown pass to take the lead in the fourth quarter, but there were multiple instances where the Horned Frogs failed to take advantage. The first occurred late in the second quarter when Trech Kekahuna fumbled the ball near midfield, giving TCU a chance to get into field-goal range. Instead, TCU allowed the clock to expire.

Before the aforementioned missed fourth-down throw, TCU was given a short field when Benjamin Hall had the ball punched out inside the Tar Heels' 25-yard line. The Horned Frogs maneuvered into the 10-yard line before being stuffed on fourth down. That was another opportunity to take the lead in the second half. Those miscues by North Carolina will be punished against better teams.

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