It’s hard to get the image of the stands at Kenan Stadium watching the North Carolina Tar Heels during Saturday’s 11-point loss to No. 3 Notre Dame out of one’s head. The fact that there were still empty seats, few fans left— even in the fourth quarter of a still-competitive game— and the mistakes made on both sides of the ball show Tar Heels fans aren’t confident yet.
You can’t tell a fan how to be one; their reactions to this UNC football program under head coach Bill Belichick remain generally negative. However, they’ve made legitimate progress, and it showed against Notre Dame. The Tar Heels are much better, but still a ways off.
After their tough defeat to the Fighting Irish, North Carolina has a prime opportunity against a vulnerable No. 25 Pittsburgh Panthers program. It could become a stepping stone for Belichick and the Tar Heels.
Pittsburgh Is Beatable
Panthers coach Pat Narduzzi has been doing this for quite a while, and his program is in the thick of ACC competition, looking to break into the conference championship race. However, they lost their young phenom quarterback Mason Heintschel for the season with a torn ACL, leaving Pittsburgh with Holden Geriner as their starting signal-caller going forward.
Belichick’s defense is ready to take that on.
The Tar Heels have a defense that forces opponents to earn every yard they get on the ground and through the air. Their front four is stout as pass rushers thanks to the trio of edge rushers Melkart Abou Jaoude and Jaylen Harvey, and standout defensive tackle Xavier Lewis. North Carolina’s defensive back-seven is also impressive, showcasing a defense capable of taking on the best in the country.
Not to mention, the Tar Heels have explosive weapons on offense, and Bobby Petrino calls the plays. This group came within one point of tying the Fighting Irish and gave them little to no room to breathe. So, why can the Tar Heels beat Pittsburgh?
North Carolina’s Stepping Stone in the Steel City
The display they showed against a top-three team in the nation shows they can keep up with the best of the best, even if it doesn’t last all 60 minutes. The Panthers are nowhere close to being at the level Notre Dame is, but they are a feisty defense that was able to generate takeaways and short fields despite being outgained by roughly double the total yardage in their last-second win vs. Virginia Tech.
A win in Pittsburgh would bring the fans back to Kenan Stadium for a packed house in a few weeks against the No. 4 Miami Hurricanes. This would be Bill Belichick’s signature win because it is the stepping stone that gets the ball rolling against opponents like Duke and Syracuse.
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