When Bill Belichick was hired by the University of North Carolina to replace Mack Brown, it sent shockwaves through college football. It also opened a lot of eyes around the NFL.
Belichick’s first season in Chapel Hill was nothing short of a disaster. The Tar Heels went 4-8 overall and 2-6 in the ACC. Things were so tough that there was talk that Belichick and UNC might have moved on from each other in the middle of the season. That never happened.
Now getting ready for his second year at North Carolina, there were some big changes earlier in the offseason with the roster and staff. There are still over four months away from the 2026 season beginning, but one CBS Sports college football writer paints a grim outlook for the Tar Heels beginning in September.
North Carolina Gets Tough Prediction for the 2026 Season
Spring games are wrapping up across the country. Cody Nagel of CBS Sports made one bold prediction for every ACC team. As far as North Carolina goes, he predicted that UNC would finish in the basement of the ACC. That is bold.
“Expectations aren’t high in Chapel Hill entering Year 2 of the Bill Belichick era. FanDuel sets the win total at just 4.5, with North Carolina carrying the third-worst ACC title odds. The schedule doesn’t help. Six games come against projected top-half ACC teams, plus a tough non-conference slate that starts with TCU in Dublin, Ireland, and also includes Notre Dame. And that Dublin opener matters. The last four teams to lose the opener there haven’t finished above .500 in the same season. Not exactly a trend UNC wants to test,” Nagel wrote.
There is no doubt that TCU and Notre Dame are difficult non-conference games. The ACC switched to nine conference games for teams that are playing just one power conference in the non-conference, and the conference schedule remains at eight for teams playing two. In the big picture, all ACC teams are going to be required to play 10 power conference teams a season.
North Carolina Faces Daunting ACC Schedule
Two games could be considered wins on UNC’s 2026 schedule. At home against East Tennessee State in September and at UConn in November. That won’t be easy, however. As far as the conference slate goes, road games at Clemson, Pittsburgh, Duke, and Virginia are tough games. Duke and UVA played for the ACC Championship in December.
Belichick’s home games in ACC play are against Syracuse, Miami, Louisville, and North Carolina State. The Hurricanes made a run to the National Championship Game before losing to Indiana, and Louisville is expected to be good. Syracuse is coming off a three-win season, and NC State is a wild-card each week under Dave Doeren.
There is a long way to go before the season begins and gets played out to see if this prediction comes true. However, UNC being picked to finish in the basement in the same conference as Boston College is certainly something. If that happens, then there might not be a Year 3 for Bill Belichick in Chapel Hill.
Bill Belichick and North Carolina Get Brutal Bold Prediction for 2026 Season