The most-anticipated opening football game in North Carolina history has everything to do with the presence of legendary NFL coach Bill Belichick, and all of the expectations that come with it.
It has been the biggest offseason story in college football. The first chapter introducing an opponent is about to be written.
The Tar Heels anxiously await TCU for their Monday night matchup at Chapel Hill, N.C., a primetime Labor Day tussle placing Belichick prominently on the college football marquee.
“I enjoy all of it and hope that I can help our players and our coaches and our team perform well by doing my job and giving leadership to the program,” Belichick said.
Belichick had a season off in 2024. He parted with the New England Patriots last January and interviewed for vacant jobs to remain in the NFL, but none panned out.
College coaching is a throwback venture in some ways. Belichick was often on the scene at Navy with his late father, Steve, where he played catch after practice with Roger Staubach and began to dedicate his life to the game.
Gameday could not arrive soon enough for North Carolina’s athletic department, which was subject to speculation and sideshows involving Belichick and his 20-something girlfriend.
On the field matters take center stage, and there are many layers to sort for Belichick.
A complete roster overhaul at North Carolina brought 70 new players into the program.
One of them is quarterback Gio Lopez, who transferred from South Alabama and will be the starter. Yet Max Johnson, who suffered a season-ending leg injury in the 2024 opener and made a somewhat unexpected recovery, had been in the mix. Both quarterbacks are left-handed passers.
“I can’t tell you how players are going to perform,” Belichick said. “That’ll be up to them.”
Sonny Dykes enters his fourth season as TCU’s coach. He’s the “other” coach for this matchup.
“Our game is going to be a big topic of conversation, I’m sure,” Dykes said.
The Horned Frogs have a proven quarterback in Josh Hoover. He set the school season-single record last year for passing yards (3,949) while throwing 27 touchdowns.
“He really got better last year as the season went on,” Dykes said.
Dykes knows far less about the Tar Heels. Belichick infamously plotted new schemes based on the opponent and the element of surprise was a defined strength during his NFL tenure. Dykes knows the football minds on the home sideline can put a lot of different ingredients in the blender. Of course, there is no true game film on North Carolina’s offense or defense to be reviewed.
“A brand-new football team,” Dykes said of what he’s walking into Monday. “Seventy new football players. I think 30 new additions just from spring (practice) until now. We don’t really know exactly what you’re going to get, how it’s going to get blended all together.”
TCU was 9-4 last year, including splitting two games with Atlantic Coast Conference newcomers Stanford and SMU. It’s the second time in three seasons that the Horned Frogs tangle with a high-profile coach making his debut with a new team, losing to Deion Sanders and Colorado in 2023 at home.
“We’ve got to make sure we do a better job of getting our players prepared,” Dykes said. “There’s going to be a lot of eyes (on this game).”
The Horned Frogs will try to embrace the exposure, just not get caught up in what’s going on with the Tar Heels.
“I always believe Week 1 really is about you and your team and how you handle the situation,” Dykes said. “Our guys I feel are dialed in and excited to go play.”
