With just two and a half months left for the regular season, Bill Belichick is finally moving on from the ‘distractions’ surrounding him and focusing on the actual job. In a press briefing on June 11, the Tar Heels head coach came out and addressed the QB room concerns and concluded, “It’ll be good to see how all that plays out.” So, with that focus comes the actual question: What can we expect from Bill Belichick’s first season? And what will make it successful?

UNC football saw its best years under Mack Brown’s first stint in the 1990s, and ever since, they have struggled to focus and make a name for themselves in college football. Brown’s second tenure, which ended with Belichick taking the head coach seat, was modest at best. So, Bill Belichick will have a tough job ahead. But if you ask the former New England head coach about the expectations, he doesn’t give a straight answer.

“I don’t really have any expectations. It’s going to be up to each individual. I know we’ve got a good plan; I know we can do the right things to put a good product on the field,” said Belichick. That said, the head coach has been proactive in the recruiting market and the transfer portal, too. Ever since his arrival, he has brought in 41 players for his 2025 class, which is the highest in the ACC. However, according to Greg McElroy, there’s major uncertainty regarding the 2025 season.

“Will Bill Belichick silence the critics and win nine-plus games at North Carolina this year? Not so fast, my friend, and this has nothing to do with Bill Belichick and has nothing to do with him getting comfortable in the college game. It has nothing to do with the ACC or the upside that North Carolina may have; it’s the fact that I just have no idea what is a reasonable expectation for the Tar Heels this year,” said McElroy in his June 12th episode of ‘ESPN College Football.’ But why the uncertainty and the harsh verdict?

McElroy pointed out a big issue with the program: UNC has lost a staggering 22 players to the transfer portal, and many of them were key starters. Amare Campbell, who was the standout leader on defense, is now at Penn State after racking up 76 tackles last year. Then there’s Beau Atkinson, who made 35 tackles and was becoming a solid edge rusher; he’s heading to Ohio State. The list keeps going with guys like Zach Rice, Christian Hamilton, Joel Sterlings, and Crews Law.

Remember, this is just the players who transferred—there are also several key players who lost eligibility or jumped to the NFL. It’s a tough blow for the team! For example, their star running back, Omarion Hampton, who racked up 1,660 rushing yards last year, has gone to the NFL. Plus, their main wide receiver, J.J. Jones, is now with the Jacksonville Jaguars. But it’s not just the player turnover that McElroy is worried about. The new transfers coming in don’t have a lot of experience, and that’s definitely a bit concerning.

“There are so many guys that need to be replaced, and so many guys that have been backfilled in the portal. I think it could be a great year; I think it could be a pretty average year. I really don’t know; I think North Carolina, along with a handful of other teams, might be the biggest question mark in the sport,” said McElroy.

The leading wide receiver, Aziah Johnson, whom Belichick brought from Michigan State, had just 276 yards last season. Jason Robinson Jr., who came from Washington, hasn’t seen a snap, and tight end Connor Cox from South Carolina had 1 reception last year. This is the same story with most of UNC’s incoming transfers, and hence the concern. That said, inexperience doesn’t mean the talent isn’t there, and these players can also lead the charts, but it’s possible, not guaranteed.

QB woes aggravating Bill Belichick’s concerns?

UNC’s QB from last year, Jacolby Criswell, transferred to East Tennessee State University and took with him the 2,459 passing and 103 rushing yards he produced last year. After his departure, the QB room is a big uncertainty at UNC, and that’s the reason even the 8-time Super Bowl-winning head coach, Bill Belichick, is concerned.

“I think we have good competition there, and our offense is our offense, and we’ll be able to adapt to whoever it is. We’ve, you know, certainly had a lot of quarterbacks through the years with different skill sets, and, you know, we’re able to work with all of them. But we’ll see how it all plays out. So, right now, that position is one that we just don’t have a lot of on-field experience with,” said Belichick.

Right now, UNC’s got Gio Lopez coming in from South Alabama as their top QB. Last year, he threw for 2,559 yards, but moving to a program like UNC—and in the ACC, no less—is definitely going to be a challenge for him. Then there’s Max Johnson, who had some solid seasons at LSU and Texas A&M but has run into injury issues since joining UNC. Belichick mentioned that “Max is doing very well,” which means we might see him at fall camp, although it’s still up in the air. Lastly, we have freshman Bryce Baker, who’s got a lot to learn before he hits the field.