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CHAPEL HILL — The ball left Tom Maginness’ foot on his rugby-style punt on a rainy night in Charlotte after a three-and-out deep in UNC territory, soaring 55 yards. It was the kind of punt Bill Belichick loves. A play that flips the field and makes it easier for his defense. The legendary coach has built a strong special teams identity, and that includes his senior punter from Melbourne, Australia.
CHARLOTTE — Gio Lopez needed a reset after a rough opening night. Five days later, the North Carolina quarterback delivered.
CHARLOTTE — North Carolina still has plenty of work, but may have found a budding running back star on its way to a decisive first victory in the Bill Belichick era. The Tar Heels ground out a 20–3 victory over Charlotte on Saturday before a Jerry Richardson Stadium record crowd of 19,223. With a 14-point halftime lead, UNC was content to lean on its rushing attack and burn clock to put away the victory.
CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina’s quarterback situation is unclear after Monday night’s loss to TCU left plenty of questions.
CHAPEL HILL — For one fleeting moment, North Carolina’s defense looked like it had found the answer. Late in the first half, with TCU threatening to stretch its lead, Kaleb Cost delivered the kind of play defenders dream about.
CHAPEL HILL — A year ago, Max Johnson lay on the field with a gruesome leg injury that ended his season soon after it began. On Monday night in Chapel Hill, he completed a journey few thought possible to add a positive note on a night that otherwise went horribly wrong for North Carolina in a 48–14 loss to TCU in Bill Belichick’s debut.
Here are some of the images from UNC’s 48–14 opening-game loss to TCU.
Words are hard to find for the egg that was laid in Kenan Stadium on Monday night for the debut of the most successful coach in NFL history. The 48–14 drubbing at the hands of Texas Christian was very bad, worse than the five-touchdown margin indicated.
CHAPEL HILL — All day before the game and for one drive, the thrill and the anticipation of the Belichick era hit a fever pitch. That excitement quickly gave way to frustration and disbelief.
There are a lot of unknowns about UNC’s opener Monday night, but you can be sure about the TCU offense: It’s built to stretch the field horizontally and vertically, forcing the Tar Heels to defend every blade on the natural grass that has returned to Kenan Stadium.
CHAPEL HILL — Bill Belichick is less than a week away from his first game as North Carolina’s head coach. In typical Belichick fashion, with no emotion on his face, he said he was excited. We’ll take his word for it.
When North Carolina closes out college football’s Week 1 on Monday night against TCU, it will face plenty of challenges from the Horned Frogs, who are 3½-point favorites. The depth chart is redacted on TCU’s media notes, but there’s plenty to know about the program ahead of the 8 p.m. kickoff (ESPN).
Steve Newmark grew up in Chapel Hill, rode his father’s shoulders during the 1982 NCAA championship celebration on Franklin Street, and once got permission to skip a college exam to watch the 1993 Final Four with his family. He says honoring the UNC athletics traditions will require bold changes that some Carolina fans might resist.
There will be a season-long docuseries on Hulu about the Carolina football team that EverWonder Studio will produce, Coach Bill Belichick announced to the team in a video UNC released on Sunday.
CHAPEL HILL — When Alex Taylor arrived in Chapel Hill last year, the four-star wide receiver out of Greensboro knew patience would be key. He spent most of last season watching and learning, but the redshirt freshman says that time gave him perspective.
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