The Triangle Foes Serve Last Opportunity for UNC's Bowl Eligibility

Duke and NC State are UNC's last hope to get to a bowl game.

Oct 17, 2025; Berkeley, California, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Bill Belichick stands on the sidelines against the California Golden Bears in the first quarter at California Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

Duke and NC State are UNC's last two opponents on the schedule of year one of the Bill Belichick era. North Carolina sits at a record of 4-6 overall and 2-4 in ACC play after its outing against Wake Forest, where it lost 28-12 on the road. Kicker Rece Verhoff was the lone bright spot for the Tar Heels, as he was the only source of putting points on the scoreboard, or else there may have been a zero after all.

The Blue Devils are 5-5 on the season and 4-2 in ACC play. Head coach Manny Diaz has led his team to wins over Elon, NC State, Syracuse, California and not too long ago, Clemson. Its losses? Then-ranked No. 11 Illinois, Tulane, then-ranked No. 12 Georgia Tech, UConn and recently No. 19 Virginia. Atop Duke's offensive scouting report for North Carolina should be quarterback Darian Mensah.

Oct 31, 2025; Syracuse, New York, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels running back Demon June (12) gives a stiff arm to Syracuse Orange defensive back Braheem Long Jr. (0) while scoring a touchdown in the third quarter at the JMA Wireless Dome. Mandatory Credit: Mark Konezny-Imagn Images | Mark Konezny-Imagn Images

Mensah, a sophomore, has thrown for over 3,000 yards, including 25 touchdowns and four interceptions. The San Luis Obispo, California, native has a quarterback rating of 74.6. Last season, as a freshman at Tulane, he completed with 2,723 yards, 22 touchdowns, and six interceptions, getting sacked 17 times. He achieved a quarterback rating of 166.7 by the end of 2024.

In addition to Duke's signal caller, running back Nate Sheppard will cause problems. Sheppard has 700 rushing yards on 112 carries and has reached the end zone seven times. He averages 6.3 yards per carry. Sheppard, in the Blue Devils' win over Syracuse, ran for 168 yards on 15 carries. His longest run during that game stretched for 49 yards.

Oct 25, 2025; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels running back Benjamin Hall (28) with quarterback Gio Lopez (7) on the field in the third quarter at Kenan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

There Goes the Wolfpack

But what about NC State? What about the Wolfpack? Well, head coach Dave Doeren has coached his team to a 5-5 season record and 2-4 in ACC play, just like North Carolina. CJ Bailey, NC State's quarterback, has accumulated over 2,500 passing yards, which have resulted in 19 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Bailey has a quarterback rating of 77.5.

Running back Hollywood Smothers, a sophomore, has 127 carries for 823 yards, scoring six touchdowns. Smothers has averaged 6.5 yards per carry, an efficient runner like Duke's Sheppard.

North Carolina will have its hands full with offenses that can produce, but its defense is not the problem — the offense will need to show up if there is any hope in achieving a bowl game in Belichick's first year at the college ranks.

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