Annual ACC Kickoff Event Represents Humbling Reminders for UNC Football
By David Glenn
There has been a lot of excitement — and understandably so — surrounding North Carolina football since the Tar Heels’ headline-grabbing hiring of six-time Super Bowl champion head coach Bill Belichick in December.
At the time, UNC’s official athletic website put it this way: “Football Icon Bill Belichick Named Tar Heel Coach.” An ESPN article described that front-page development as “one of the most stunning and compelling moves in college football history.”
Nearly eight months later, there’s still plenty of buzz around Carolina football, but there also are many humbling reminders about the difficult challenges the Tar Heels will face during Belichick’s first season in Chapel Hill.
(AP Photo/Chris Seward)
At the Atlantic Coast Conference’s annual media kickoff event in Charlotte this week, for example, UNC was the only team with the following combination of foundational elements: new head coach, three new coordinators (OC Freddie Kitchens, DC Steve Belichick, STC Mike Priefer), a new starting quarterback (likely South Alabama transfer Gio Lopez), zero All-ACC honorees from recent seasons, and only about half of its 2024 production returning overall.
In the “returning production” category, which reflects last year’s offensive and defensive statistical contributions from returning players only (not incoming transfers), the Tar Heels rank near the bottom among the ACC’s 17 teams.
ACC Returning Production
Pct. (Offense/Defense)—Team
80% (85/76)—Clemson^
65% (68/62)—Georgia Tech
64% (56/73)—Stanford^
64% (66/61)—Pitt
63% (60/66)—Virginia^
62% (63/61)—Boston College
61% (66/57)—NC State^
60% (66/54)—SMU
59% (60/58)—Duke^
59% (57/60)—Florida State
58% (58/57)—Louisville
57% (52/62)—Miami
55% (51/60)—Wake Forest^
53% (47/58)—Virginia Tech
51% (56/46)—North Carolina
51% (48/53)—Cal^
46% (32/60)—Syracuse^
^—2025 UNC opponent
The contrast between Carolina and ACC favorite Clemson, who will clash at Kenan Stadium on Oct. 4, is particularly striking.
Dabo Swinney, who has led the Tigers to two national championships and nine ACC titles, has now had 17 years (23 if you count his time as an assistant) to build his rock-solid program, which has posted 14 consecutive top-25 finishes in the national polls.
(For comparison, UNC has had only two top-25 finishes since 1997 — #15 under Larry Fedora in 2015, and #17/#18 under Mack Brown in 2020.)
Incredibly, there’s actually a realistic possibility that all four of the players Swinney brought with him to Charlotte for the ACC Kickoff event — quarterback Cade Klubnik, defensive end TJ Parker, wide receiver Antonio Williams and defensive tackle Peter Woods — will end up as first-round selections in the 2026 National Football League draft. Each qualifies as a truly proven commodity for the Tigers, having earned postseason All-ACC recognition last year.
In stark contrast, the four players Belichick took to Charlotte — Lopez, cornerback Thaddeus Dixon (a Washington transfer), safety Will Hardy (a 2024 backup) and wide receiver Jordan Shipp (a 2024 backup) — collectively have started only a handful of games for the Tar Heels, although Dixon and Lopez certainly were standouts at their previous schools.
(Two outstanding players who might have represented Carolina at this year’s ACC Kickoff event, defensive end Beau Atkinson and linebacker Amare Campbell, transferred out of the program after spring practice, to Ohio State and Penn State, respectively.)
Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami and SMU, along with perhaps Florida State and Pitt, also appear to have firmer foundations this season than what Belichick and his staff have to work with during their first season in Chapel Hill. However, amazingly, none of those six ACC teams is on Carolina’s schedule this year.
With that in mind, especially for UNC football fans seeking more of a glass-half-full perspective on the 2025 Tar Heels, it’s important to remember two more key facts.
First, other than Clemson and perhaps TCU (the Horned Frogs visit Kenan Stadium on Sept. 1, in the opener for both teams), everyone on Carolina’s regular-season schedule is dealing with plenty of question marks, just like the Tar Heels.
Second, Belichick and his staff reeled in an intriguing transfer class that included a bunch of players who were standouts at their previous schools.
In addition to Dixon (honorable mention All-Big Ten last season) and Lopez (honorable mention All-Sun Belt), the Tar Heels are hoping for immediate impacts from linebacker Mikai Gbayor (a Nebraska starter last year), safety Gavin Gibson (an East Carolina starter last year), punter Jacob Horvath (a two-year starter and all-conference pick at Eastern Illinois), linebacker Khmori House (also followed Steve Belichick from Washington), offensive lineman Daniel King (a three-year starter and two-time All-Sun Belt honoree at Troy), linebacker Andrew Simpson (an All-Mountain West Conference selection at Boise State) and defensive end Pryce Yates (a three-year starter and 2024 Fenway Bowl Defensive MVP for UConn), among others.
David Glenn (DavidGlennShow.com, @DavidGlennShow) is an award-winning author, broadcaster, editor, entrepreneur, publisher, speaker, writer and university lecturer (now at UNC Wilmington) who has covered sports in North Carolina since 1987.
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