When the University of North Carolina hired Bill Belichick, it caught the college football world by storm. UNC did not live up to the expectations of the fanbase and media. Moreover, various issues surrounded the program as the coach looked to build a consistent winner. One college football analyst checks in with what he believes is happening in Chapel Hill.
Why College Football Analyst Predicts Bill Belichick’s UNC Program Will Struggle
From the opening game, a 48-14 defeat against TCU, to a 42-19 season-ending loss to North Carolina State, the program suffered. On “Adapt & Respond RJ Young: College Football,” the host believes that the legendary NFL head coach actually assembled quality parts.
“Bobby Petrino is coming in to call your offense. You got a fiery FCS quarterback coming in that might be able to ignite what you’re doing.”
Petrino built quality offenses during his first tenure at Arkansas and Louisville. According to CFB Depth, UNC will run the power spread, which emphasizes a blend of boundary passes like screens and a downhill rushing attack that they hope will sucker defenses into falling for play-action fakes.
Young believes that Western Carolina transfer quarterback Taron Dickens brings upside to the table. Dickens, during his 18-game career at WCU, completed 74% of his passes for 5,063 yards and 54 combined touchdowns.
At the same time, Young believes that the head coach could be a hindrance to UNC.
“But so far, the only guy that ain’t kept up his end is the guy that everybody says is the best NFL coach that ever lived. He might just be mediocre in college. Is he gonna get it figured out?”
Adding diverse athletes to the offense and jettisoning offensive coordinator Freddie Kitchens in favor of Petrino shows an understanding. Mediocrity in college suggests six or seven victories, and outside of the military academies, the option-based attack gave way to the spread, maximizing all three levels of the field. Meanwhile, Young believes that the ACC will keep evolving, making the road back to respectability difficult for UNC.
“But he’s learning. Everybody over there, Carolina is learning. Just because you hired Bill Belichick, don’t mean that everybody else in the ACC, let alone college football, is going to roll over and die for you.”
The ACC is composed of the College Football Playoff runner-up, Miami, and surprising Wake Forest, consistent Louisville, plus a talented SMU offense that plays with pace and accuracy.
Under those circumstances, Belichick and UNC will need to compete offensively. Last season, the Tar Heels landed at the No. 85 spot in the PFSN CFB Offense Impact Rankings. Will that be enough to keep the heat off of Belichick?
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With a $20 million buyout potentially looming overhead, UNC expects more from its football team. It remains to be seen if it can.
