Game Day Tune-Up: Bill Belichick, Tar Heels Against TCU

The North Carolina Tar Heels football team takes on the TCU Horned Frogs in the 2025 season opener inside Kenan Memorial Stadium, Monday night.

Eight-time Super Bowl champion Bill Belichick begins his first season ever as a college head coach. The wait and anticipation that have built up among Tar Heel fans, as well as the entire college football world, since he was officially given the position back in December, have led to this day, Labor Day, to be exact. Students, families, and lovers of the sport get to spend the day off from school and work (for some) and prepare for the 8 p.m. kickoff — prime time football.

It has been almost 28 years since the two schools faced off on the gridiron, and it was a then-ranked No. 5 UNC team that defeated TCU on the road, 31-10. The Tar Heels scored 10 points in the first quarter, seven in the second, and capped off the contest with a 14-point fourth quarter — putting the game out of the Horned Frogs' hands.

All time, North Carolina has beaten TCU a total of three times after three matchups, the first being in Chapel Hill on October 12, 1940, where the Tar Heels won by a touchdown, 21-14. The next outing was on September 3, 1994, as UNC won by double-digits, 27-17.

Nov 9, 2024; Fort Worth, Texas, USA; TCU Horned Frogs head coach Sonny Dykes reacts during the first half against the Oklahoma State Cowboys at Amon G. Carter Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

The Fort Worth, Texas-based school finished with a 9-4 record last year, going 6-3 in the Big 12 Conference, tied for fifth. Head Coach Sonny Dykes of TCU helped influence the following statistics: scoring offense (33.5, ranked No. 25), scoring defense (24.6, ranked No. 63), rushing yards (113.9, ranked No. 112), rushing defense (160.5, ranked No. 83), passing yards (312.9, ranked No. 8) and passing defense (185.2, ranked No. 23).

UNC — Bill Belichick | Jackson McCurdy, North Carolina Tar Heels On SI

For UNC, here are its stats in those same categories: scoring offense (30.9, ranked No.44), scoring defense (28.1, ranked No. 89), rushing yards (182.3, ranked No. 38), rushing defense (149.5, ranked No. 66), passing yards (224.4, ranked No. 72) and passing defense (226.3, ranked No. 80).

During UNC's presser this past Wednesday afternoon, Coach Belichick announced that South Alabama transfer Gio Lopez would be the starting quarterback, beating Max Johnson for the job as signal caller.

Lopez performed well last year under Head Coach Major Applewhite, throwing for 2,559 yards and 18 touchdowns, coughing up five interceptions in the process. His longest throw of the season stood at 75 yards. The Madison, Alabama native completed 206 of his 312 pass attempts (66%).

UNC — Gio Lopez | Jackson McCurdy, North Carolina On SI

From playing in the Sun Belt Conference to now in the Atlantic Coast Conference under a Super Bowl champion, Lopez's transition is one big step, but in the eyes of Coach Belichick, there's a reason he chose him to take snaps underneath the center.

The Day Has Finally Arrived for UNC Football

Everybody has been waiting, from the diehard fans to casual, children awaiting their first experience of watching a football game, to alumni who may not have experienced a game during their time as a student at the university, and even media members. Now, it's over, it's all gone, time is up for North Carolina to show itself to the whole football world what it can do.

Will the Tar Heels succeed? Or fold under the bright lights in their first game of a new era?

UNC, Jordan Shipp — North Carolina wide receiver Jordan Shipp | Jackson McCurdy, North Carolina Tar Heels On SI

In a sold-out crowd, the lights, cameras, and the national media attention have been on this Monday, September 1, Labor Day. This contest will be the only one televised, as those watching from home or wherever add to the environment this game has managed to create.

Everything that could have been done up until this point has been done, and now it's only a matter of hours until both teams square off. There is only one thing left: wait and see what happens.

UNC and TCU round out the holiday weekend (that already has been eventful with other college football games) and begin each of their seasons in huge way, keeping fans mindful of what is about to go down.

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