From a humiliating 48-14 loss to a stunning 15-10 upset, Bill Belichick and North Carolina have flipped the script against TCU. After Year 1 went completely sideways, the legendary coach finally appears to be building momentum. But amid UNC’s resurgence, Urban Meyer has revealed just how close he once came to turning against Belichick.
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“But Belichick, you know the respect I have for that guy. At some point, he’s going to get it right. I would have buried him if they had lost—and it’s not Coach Belichick. It’s the fact that the reality is momentum has to, at some point, take part of a program,” said Urban Meyer during a conversation on The Triple Option podcast.
The former college football head coach noted that Bill Belichick had transformed the UNC team, guiding it to a Week 0 victory over TCU despite being without defensive coordinator Steve Belichick and general manager Michael Lombardi.
Being a good friend of Belichick, Meyer didn’t mince his words when predicting what lies ahead for the team, stating that they have certainly improved but will not win the championship.
“They’re not good enough to win the conference, but they’re going to turn this thing, go to a bowl game, and then I think he’s going to continue,” said Meyer.
When Mark Ingram asked whether Meyer was “bullish” on the North Carolina Tar Heels, Meyer responded with a resounding yes. While Bill Belichick’s first year in college football ended disastrously with a 4–8 record, things have drastically changed this season, and the Week 0 matchup against TCU was living proof of that.
What many might have missed is the fact that UNC has drastically changed the way it plays compared to last year. UNC had one of the worst fourth-down defenses in the country last season, ranking 132nd nationally and allowing opponents to convert 75% of the time, the second-worst rate among Power Four teams.
These statistics changed this year. Against TCU, UNC showcased significant improvement, holding the Horned Frogs to just 1 conversion on 5 fourth-down attempts and keeping them scoreless over the final three quarters. UNC was able to string together eight straight defensive stops. As per Belichick, those fourth-down stops played a big role in the team’s victory.
On top of that, UNC ranked 76th nationally in fewest penalties committed last year. This year, however, they have made a clear effort to become even more disciplined. Against TCU, UNC committed just three penalties for 20 yards, while TCU was flagged 11 times for 100 yards.
“I thought the discipline of our players was a big factor in the game,” Belichick said. “We didn’t have very many penalty yards and that definitely forced TCU to earn everything. We were able to fortunately … take advantage of some of their mistakes.”
Last year, UNC struggled to fix its defensive problems and suffered costly losses that could have changed the team’s fate. But in 2026, the Tar Heels have shocked everyone—including TCU head coach Sonny Dykes.
“I give North Carolina a lot of credit. They’ve improved,” TCU coach Sonny Dykes said. “They did a good job. I thought they did what they had to do to win.”
With a win in the bag, the North Carolina Tar Heels and Bill Belichick will be looking for more victories. But will they be able to keep their momentum going? What do you think?