Analyst Reflects on Bill Belichick's High Expectations Crash Against TCU

Pat McAfee discussed his experience during UNC and Bill Belichick's season opener.

Bill Belichick / Jackson McCurdy, North Carolina Tar Heels On SI

The North Carolina Tar Heels football team caused the entire Kenan Stadium to explode, and for a small portion of time, they thought that everything had actually changed. Quarterback Gio Lopez led a charge on the field that looked seamless — rushes through the TCU's defensive line, connecting with wide receiver Jordan Shipp for big gains — each catch surrounded by ginormous cheers.

Pat McAfee went on his show, detailing what he saw and shared the meltdown he and everyone else in the stadium witnessed following the one notable drive North Carolina had during the first half.

• "Kickoff, they go down and score, the place goes crazy, we're sitting there, 'This place is going to host a college football playoff game,'" said McAfee. "We're saying that there's going to be college football playoff game here. Bill Belichick, of course — we just saw what Matt Patricia did to the Texas offense — Bill Belichick, obviously, it doesn't matter if he's got all the five-stars. He's going to be able to out-navigate, outcoach, he's going to be the superior product on the field."

Pat McAfee helps to kick off the Pro Football Hall of Fame Festival Fan Fest with a live broadcast outside the Pro Football Hall of Fame. July 31, 2025. / Julie Vennitti Botos / Canton Repository / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

• "He's going to be a Bill Belichick team, that's what was being said, by us and everybody," McAfee added. "The place was going crazy, music, all of it. All of the lights, they turned off the lights after the touchdown — fit the whole thing — it was like, 'This is what it is, welcome to North Carolina, back to big time football.' It changed, they [TCU] scored a lot of points, that other team scored a lot of points."

• "It all goes back to one timeout, where they didn't play music; it was just the band playing. The lights were out, during a timeout, just the band playing over there, drumline did a great job — just the band playing over there. I felt it; I felt the entire [gesturing with hands of air shrinking] — just come out of that place. And on the other side, it was a TCU smack in the mouth fest."

Bill Belichick / Jackson McCurdy, Tar Heels On SI

UNC failed. It failed to make it competitive; it failed to make it a close game, and struggled to get into a groove at all through the 60 minutes of play.

The Reality of UNC's matchup against TCU

There is one underlying truth about UNC's season opener: all the talk was about Coach Belichick, and rightfully so. However, that may have been the problem, and considering there are 70 new players (40 transfers and 30 freshmen), the team was never talked about much (except the quarterback room, given Lopez and Max Johnson's battle) in comparison to the 73-year-old head coach.

The number of unknowns of what the team could do on the field once the lights turned on was exposed. Coach Belichick, along with Offensive Coordinator Freddie Kitchens as well as Defensive Coordinator Steve Belichick, had a hard time managing against an experienced and talented TCU team — the 34-point loss at home speaks for itself.

All of the Tar Heel fans who experienced what happened in Coach Belichick's first-ever college game will be able to share how it all crashed. The buildup leading to kickoff time, depending on who you ask, may have been the highlight of the day.

UNC's Chapel Thrill Game Day experience gathered students tailgating and families around the Bell Tower, along with some scattered throughout campus. And let this serve as a reminder that each home game will be the exact same way: grand, large, and filled with a lot of beer.

Regardless, UNC will lose more games until it finds a way to make changes mid-game and keep opposing offenses in control. And possibly after that, the Tar Heels can match the hype that has been building since last December.

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