Nobody in Fort Worth forgot the last time Sonny Dykes opened a season against a legendary coach making his debut. Back in 2023, Deion Sanders strolled into Amon G. Carter Stadium and Colorado walked out with a 45–42 stunner that flipped the college football world upside down. Fast forward to 2025, and Dykes is staring down another debut—this time it’s Bill Belichick in Carolina blue. The football gods cooked up another banger with TCU and Sonny set to face the UNC Tar Heels football, and a man with Super Bowls to his name. Dykes knows the traps are set for both his squad and himself when they head to Kenan Stadium on September 1.

When asked about studying Belichick’s old Patriots film, Dykes leaned into the mic and kept it a buck on August 27: “I mean, look, there’s a lot. Obviously, Coach Belichick had a long career and had a lot of success. My guess is a lot of those things that he did well as the head coach of the Patriots or before that, we’re going to see a lot of those things. From talking to people, that’s kind of what they say — he does a really good job teaching, and these are the things he believes in, this is what makes him successful. My guess is we’ll see a lot of that.”

Translation? Don’t expect Belichick to roll out some watered-down version of his playbook just because this is college. The man built dynasties out of tight ends and 5’10-ish group of white receivers, and he’s about to test TCU with that same brainpower on a different stage.

The parallels to Colorado 2023 are impossible to ignore. Back then, TCU came in overconfident, fresh off a national title appearance, only to get roasted by Shedeur Sanders’ 510 passing yards and Travis Hunter’s Ironman routine. Dykes admitted this week that he’s haunted by that day. “Yeah, we’re trying to make sure it doesn’t happen. They’re kids sometimes. I think we’ve taken a little bit different approach as coaches for sure. One thing that happened that year is we had a lot of new faces too. We were trying to instill our culture because we had kind of a senior group in ’22, and then we lost, I think, seven juniors to the NFL Draft.” He explained the roster turnover, the cultural reset, and even blamed himself and his staff for not locking in the locker room. In short, he’s not about to let Belichick catch him slipping again.

And the stakes? Way bigger than just avoiding another embarrassing Week 1. TCU went from playing for a natty in 2022 to missing a bowl in 2023. That Colorado loss was the start of a tailspin, and Dykes knows a repeat in Chapel Hill would set the tone for another nightmare season. Belichick isn’t coming to Chapel Hill to “learn the ropes.” He’s coming with a defense that’s about to test TCU’s offensive line, play recognition, and composure like few teams in the country can.

The scary part? UNC’s got the perfect trigger man to help Belichick’s system hum.

Sonny Dykes gives props to Gio Lopez

Last week, Bill Belichick named Gio Lopez his QB1, passing over veteran Max Johnson. Lopez isn’t some random athlete thrown to the wolves either—he balled out at South Alabama in 2024 with 2,559 passing yards, 18 touchdowns, just five picks, and a slick 150.8 passer rating. Add in 465 rushing yards and seven more scores with his legs, and you’ve got yourself a legit dual-threat.

Sonny Dykes wasn’t shy about what Lopez brings to the table. “Yeah. Obviously, to try to figure out what his skill set is. He’s a good player. I like the way he plays the game. He’s a good runner, throws the ball well, can move around, can extend plays, [and] can also make plays with his feet. I liked him. You could tell he had some charisma and inspired some confidence in his teammates. I liked what I saw from him.” Luckily, Sonny Dykes got baller on the defense to counter that.

The Frogs do have a unit built for this kind of test. TCU defensive coordinator Andy Avalos has nine returning starters and a defense that tightened up down the stretch in 2024. Linebackers Namdi Obiazor and Kaleb Elarms-Orr anchor the middle, while transfers like Ansel Din-Mbuh add muscle to the front. In the secondary, Bud Clark and Jamel Johnson give TCU some nasty, ball-hawking presence. If they can keep Lopez from freelancing into big plays, they’ll have a shot at slowing UNC’s rhythm.

But make no mistake—this is Belichick’s show. Lopez may be the quarterback, but the storyline is still the Hoodie vs. the Horned Frogs. TCU fans know the ghosts of Colorado still linger, and the question now is simple: can Sonny Dykes exorcise them, or will Belichick write the next viral upset script? September 1 in Chapel Hill has all the makings of another college football classic.