Where UNC Needs To Improve Most After Statement Win

Here are areas the Tar Heels must address as soon as possible.

Aug 29, 2026; Dublin, Co. Dublin, IRL; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Bill Belichick stands on the sidleline against the TCU Horned Frogs in the first half at Aviva Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Laszlo Geczo-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Winning is the most important statistic at the end of the day, but that doesn't exempt the North Carolina Tar Heels from criticism.

Yes, the Tar Heels left Saturday with a 15-10 win over the TCU Horned Frogs, but the operation was far from perfect. The conditions certainly played a part in that, but there were several areas the team needs to improve, especially with conference play on the horizon. Here are a few things North Carolina needs to work on, as they exit their season-opening win in Dublin, Ireland.

Stopping the Run

Aug 29, 2026; Dublin, Co. Dublin, IRL; TCU Horned Frogs running back Jeremy Payne (26) is tackled by North Carolina Tar Heels linebacker Derek McDonald (15) and linebacker Jonathan Agumadu (8) in the second half at Aviva Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Laszlo Geczo-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

North Carolina boasts one of the strongest defensive lines in the country, headlined by Melkart Abou Jaoude, but the pass rusher can be disintegrated if it can't stop the run. We saw that to an extent, especially in the first quarter against TCU, as running back Jeremy Payne rushed for 55 yards on three carries. Payne would finish the game with 142 yards on 25 carries, which is problematic.

Consistently running the football at a high clip like that makes it impossible to establish a pass rush, as that development forces defensive linemen to hesitate and stay disciplined against the run. That's why play-action becomes so effective when the running game is consistently gashing an opposing defense.

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

Eventually, the Tar Heels were able to generate a pass rush, but most teams in the ACC will have stronger quarterback play that can expose those gaps vacated by linebackers crashing the line of scrimmage.

Running the Football With Efficiency

Aug 29, 2026; Dublin, Co. Dublin, IRL; North Carolina Tar Heels' North Carolina Tar Heels running back Benjamin Hall (7) stiff arms TCU Horned Frogs linebacker Michael Short (11) in the first half at Aviva Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Laszlo Geczo-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

We'll stay with this theme, but flip to the offensive side of the conversation. Quite frankly, I wasn't impressed at all with North Carolina's rushing attack. Benjamin Hall handled the bulk of the workload, leading the backfield with 11 carries, but he produced only 36 yards with those opportunities.

Meanwhile, Demon June, who I expected to have a significant role in this offense, didn't record his first carry until late in the fourth quarter. Although he produced 25 yards on six attempts, it's still disappointing that he’s seemingly behind running back Jaylen McGill in the pecking order. In total, those three running backs compiled 94 yards on 22 carries, averaging 4.3 yards per attempt.

That's solid, but again, this disappointment resides more with Hall's inefficiencies and June's diminished role.

Ball Security

Aug 29, 2026; Dublin, Co. Dublin, IRL; North Carolina Tar Heels wide receiver Trech Kekahuna (2) is tackled by TCU Horned Frogs safety Julius Simms (7) in the first half at Aviva Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Laszlo Geczo-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

North Carolina was extremely fortunate that their fumbles didn't prove costly. Trech Kekahuna coughed up the ball late in the first half when the offense was driving and looking to take firm control of the game heading into halftime. Luckily, TCU stalled near midfield and never reached field-goal range.

In the second half, deep in their own territory, Hall had the ball punched out, setting up the Horned Frogs with the ball on the Tar Heels' 24-yard line. North Carolina's defense held up and stuffed Payne on fourth down. North Carolina may have escaped without consequence in this game, but in conference play, those miscues will come back to bite this team.