Bill Belichick, Tar Heels have to be in 'win now' mode
· Yahoo Sports
It's officially game week for the North Carolina Tar Heels as they are set to face off against TCU in Ireland as Week 0 kicks off this weekend. This will be the second season of the Bill Belichick era in Chapel Hill and the hope is that it goes better than last season.
In year one, the Tar Heels finished 4-8 overall and won just two ACC games. They were a disaster from the start and never really recovered. Although they lost a few close games, the Tar Heels didn't live up to expectations.
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But going into the 2026 season, the expectations aren't high. However, they likely need to win now as the hot seat could warm up for Belichick.
In Ross Dellenger's latest piece, the analyst lists coaches who need to 'win now' here in 2026. Among them? Belichick and the Tar Heels. Here is what he wrote about Belichick as he lists him on the hot seat:
The Belichick experiment is still in the early phase, but the results don't bode well for the future — on and off the field. The school suspended general manager Michael Lombardi for a human resources matter and defensive coordinator Steve Belichick, Bill's son, is out with a personal matter. Meanwhile, the Tar Heels get a prime spot to kick off college football with a Week Zero game this Saturday in Ireland against TCU. The country will be watching and so will first-year athletic director Steve Newmark, who most certainly wants to see improvement and progress from Year 1. Can the Tar Heels show it? They play at Clemson and host Notre Dame, Miami and Louisville this year.
North Carolina's schedule is very tough this year, as Dellenger mentions. So it's going to be some tough sledding at times for the Tar Heels.
The importance of this year cannot be overstated for the Tar Heels and time will tell if they can figure out a way to improve on last season.
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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: Bill Belichick, Tar Heels have to be in 'win now' mode