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| Bill Belichick's collegiate coaching debut on Labor Day was a flop. TCU defeated the University of North Carolina 48-14. |
By Tom C. "Midnite" Burke
Welcome to big-time college football, Bill Belichick.
And you, too, Jordon Hudson.
I sure hope you enjoyed your four minutes and five seconds of fame.
Of course, after that, it was nearly 56 minutes of pure hell for you, as the TCU Horned Frogs pummeled your North Carolina Tar Heels, 48-14, in Chapel Hill, NC, before a Labor Day sellout crowd of 50,500 and a national ESPN standalone, primetime telecast audience.
The vast majority of the crowd was there to witness the collegiate coaching debut of “Chapel Hill Bill,” who is North Carolina’s new $10-million-a-year head coach, after a 49-year National Football League (NFL) coaching career (1975-2023) that netted him six Super Bowl rings and the title of “the greatest head coach of all time” (29 seasons as a head coach with the Cleveland Browns and the New England Patriots).
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| Tom "Midnite" Burke |
Other University of North Carolina icons, including two-time Olympic Gold Medalist and FIFA World Cup Winner Mia Hamm, former NFL stars Lawrence Taylor and Julius Peppers, and country music singer/songwriter Chase Rice, also were in attendance.
Rapper Petey Pablo, who is from Greenville, North Carolina, and whose song “Raise Up” became an anthem for North Carolina pride, was recognized before the game, with his song playing over the public address system.
Suffice it to say that it was surprising that the star-studded crowd did not include the POTUS, the Kardashians or the soon-to-be Taylor and Travis Swift!
Jordon, a former Bridgewater State University (BSU) cheerleader and beauty queen who is the 73-year-old Belichick’s 24-year-old girlfriend, was on the North Carolina sideline during pregame. She chatted with Bill, who was guarded by three North Carolina State troopers and one University of North Carolina policeman (the security detail reportedly is larger than the usual security detail of North Carolina Governor Josh Stein).
After visiting with Bill, Jordon watched the game from a newly constructed suite on the west side of the stadium, sitting next to Randy Moss, who starred as a wide receiver for New England from 2007 to 2010, during which time Belichick was the Patriots' head coach.
ESPN announcer Kirk Herbstreit also was at the game, along with his new golden retriever, Pete.
And there were the 8.8 million people who watched the ESPN national broadcast of the game.
- Browse Midnite Madness TCU-North Carolina football game photos: here
- Browse Midnite Madness TCU-North Carolina football gameday photos: here
- Browse Midnite Madness TCU-North Carolina football trip photos: here
Belichick is coaching at North Carolina, which is in the Power-Four Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), because even though he won 296 games (regular season and postseason) with the NFL’s New England Patriots from 2000 to 2023, he was fired after the 2023 season, which capped three losing seasons in four years, and no other NFL team came calling.
Up stepped the University of North Carolina, however, with a $10-million-a-year offering, and suddenly everybody in Chapel Hill was envisioning Belichick automatically delivering the Tar Heels to national championships, like Dean Smith and Roy Williams did with Carolina basketball.
That is, of course, everybody except poor ol’ Mack Brown, the former University of Texas head football coach who had been North Carolina’s head football coach from 2019 to 2024.
To make a vacancy for Belichick to fill, the Tar Heels pushed Brown out the door after a 6-6 record in 2024 (four of the six losses were by 10 points or fewer). From 2019 to 2024 at North Carolina, Brown compiled a record of 44-33.
This was the fourth time in history for TCU to face North Carolina. The Frogs had lost the previous three encounters: 21-14 in 1940, in Chapel Hill; 27-17 in 1994, in Chapel Hill; and 31-10, in 1997, in Fort Worth. This also was the fourth time in history that the Frogs faced an ACC opponent in their season-opener, all on the road.
TCU, of course, came into the game against Belichick and the Tar Heels with experience in facing former NFL stars making collegiate football debuts.
TCU head football coach Sonny Dykes and the Horned Frogs faltered against former NFL star player Deion “Prime Time” Sanders when he made his Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) collegiate head coaching debut with the University of Colorado in Fort Worth on September 2, 2023.
Dykes and TCU were not ready for the prime-time spotlight back then. Sanders and the Buffaloes left Cowtown with a shocking 45-42 upset victory.
There would be no such failure in Chapel Hill.
Oh, there was a moment of concern among TCU faithful after the Tar Heels, on the game’s opening possession, went 83 yards in seven plays and in just over four minutes for a touchdown and a 7-0 lead, which led to delirious UNC fans rushing to reserve their National Championship Game tickets.
But then everything turned a beautiful shade of purple.
TCU scored the game's next 41 points, including two defensive touchdowns, leading to a sea of disheartened powder-puff-blue-clad fans streaming out of Kenan Memorial Stadium by the middle of the third quarter. Fittingly, none of them were singing “Sweet Caroline.” Instead, they were uttering Dexter and the Moonrock’s “Sad in Carolina.” (Thanks, Ashley!)
There were many reasons for Carolina fans to be as sad as when their favorite local BBQ joint runs out of pulled pork. Among the reasons:
- The 48 points TCU scored is the most points UNC has ever allowed in a season opener.
- The 48 points TCU scored are the most points Belichick has ever allowed as a head coach.
- The 48 points TCU scored are twice Jordan’s age.
- The 48 points TCU scored are just one less than the age difference between Jordan and Bill.
- The 34-point loss by the Tar Heels is their largest losing margin in a season-opener since losing 37-0 to Florida State in the 2003 season-opener.
The day after North Carolina’s humiliating loss, a headline in a local newspaper proclaimed: “For its millions upon millions, North Carolina got sold a Bill of goods.”
“Look, they just outplayed us. They out-coached us,” explained Belichick. “I mean, they were just better than we were.”
TCU (1-0) has won 10 of its last 12 and 19 of its last 23 season-openers.
The Frogs have won nine of their last 10 season-openers that have taken place on the road.
Over the last 20 seasons, TCU has won 16 season-openers. In those 16 years, the Frogs went to bowl games 14 times.
TCU is 6-7 against the ACC, including four of the last five.
This was the Frogs’ 10th straight season-opener in which they have scored at least 30 points.
TCU has a five-game winning streak, going back to the 2024 season, when the Horned Frogs won six of their final seven games, including their final four. The last time TCU entered a season on a four-plus game winning streak was in 2015, after the 2014 team went 12-1 and defeated No. 9 Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl.
“North Carolina comes out and drives right down the field and goes up seven, and our guys never blinked,” Dykes said. “I told the guys before we left the hotel that I really felt like they were prepared well. They have done a great job of doing everything we’ve asked them to do, and we had a lot of confidence that they would go out and play well. And I thought we did overall, for the most part.
“Coming into the game, we all felt a little disrespected,” Dykes continued. “There was a lot of conversation about this game, and it wasn’t about us.
“I have tremendous respect for him (Belichick) and his accomplishments. I mean, it’s without question,” Dykes said. “But we wanted this game to be about us, and it was.”
Dykes has led TCU to more wins (27) in his first three seasons than all but one head coach in program history (Dutch Meyer, 29; 1934-36).
Through his first 41 games, Dykes has led the Frogs to a record of 28-13 (.683). There are only three others who have outperformed Dykes through their first 41 games as TCU’s head coach, including the coach he replaced, Gary Patterson, who went 29-12 over his first 41 games and who over a span of 22 years became TCU’s winningest head coach in history with a record of 181-79.
TCU had a bye on Saturday, September 6.
The Frogs’ next game is their 2025 season home-opener, against Abilene Christian, at 7 pm on Saturday, September 13, in Amon G. Carter Stadium, on the TCU campus. It is a TCU Family Weekend game. ESPN+ will broadcast the game.
Belichick and North Carolina won their first game on September 6, on the road, in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Tar Heels defeated The University of North Carolina at Charlotte 20-27. It wasn’t exactly a signature win for the Heels, but it probably was a win that settled the nerves, at least a little bit, of UNC fans.
With his first win as a collegiate head coach, Belichick improved to 13-23 in his last 36 football games as a head coach, which includes the 2022 and 2023 seasons in New England.
Here are scores of the September 6 games that involved Big 12 Conference teams:
- Kent State 7 at Texas Tech (2-0) 62
- Baylor (1-1) 48 at SMU 45 (double overtime)
- Iowa 13 at Iowa State (3-0) 16
- Oklahoma State (1-1) 3 at Oregon 69
- Kansas (2-1) 31 at Missouri 48
- Delaware 7 at Colorado (1-1) 31
- Bowling Green 20 at Cincinnati (1-1) 34
- West Virginia (1-1) 10 at Ohio 17
- Cal Poly 9 at Utah (3-0) 63
- Army 24 at Kansas State (1-2) 21
- Houston (2-0) 35 at Rice 9
- North Carolina A&T 7 at UCF (2-0) 68
- Arizona State (1-1) 20 at Mississippi State 24
- Weber State 3 at Arizona (2-0) 48
- Stanford 3 at BYU (2-0) 27
In the week 3 Associated Press top 25 ranking, Iowa State is ranked 14th, Utah 20th and Texas Tech 21st. TCU is sixth among the "other teams receiving votes" with 58 votes.
In the week 3 USA Today coaches top 25 ranking, Iowa State is ranked 14th, Texas Tech 20th and Utah 21st. TCU is eighth among the "other teams receiving votes" with 36 votes.
TCU ranks 24th in the 2025 week 2 ranking of all 136 collegiate FBS teams by The Athletic.
Frogs’ Offense Was Humming
Against North Carolina, TCU scored in its 408th consecutive game, which is the second-longest streak in NCAA history, trailing only Florida’s streak of 462 consecutive games.
The Frogs' offense scored four touchdowns (two through the air and two on the ground) and two field goals. TCU amassed 29 first downs and 542 total yards of offense: 258 rushing yards and 284 passing yards, both of which alone were more yards than North Carolina had in total offensive yards.
The Horned Frogs’ 258 rushing yards were more than the Horned Frogs had in any game last season.
TCU's rushing attack was an off-season focus. The Horned Frogs rushed for just 113.9 yards per game last season, their lowest per-game average since 1997 (110.2)
TCU’s offensive onslaught came against a North Carolina defense that is coached by Bill Belichick’s son, Stephen (Steve) Belichick, who is in his first year as UNC’s defensive coordinator.
Fort the third consecutive year, TCU junior quarterback Josh Hoover, who is on the watch lists of the nation's awards for college quarterbacks, is leading the Frogs' offensive attack. Hoover completed 27-of-36 passes for 284 yards against the Tar Heels. He threw two touchdown passes and one interception. He was not sacked.
In 2024, Hoover set TCU's single-season passing record with 3,949 yards on 313-of-471 passing. He threw 27 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
TCU junior wide receiver Jordan Dwyer, a transfer from the University of Idaho, opened his TCU playing career with nine receptions for 136 yards and one touchdown. Dwyer's touchdown opened TCU's scoring against the Tar Heels. It came on a 27-yard reception in the first quarter.
TCU senior tight end DJ Rogers had five receptions, including a touchdown catch of four yards in the fourth quarter.
TCU senior running back Kevorian Barnes, a transfer from the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA), led TCU's rushing attack. He gained 113 yards on 11 runs. He scored one touchdown, on a 75-yard run, on the first play of the game's third quarter. The touchdown and extra point gave TCU a 27-7 lead.
Barnes is the first TCU running back to rush for more than 100 yards in a game since Emani Bailey had 150 rushing yards against Oklahoma in the final game of the 2023 season.
TCU redshirt freshman running back Nate Palmer ran seven times for 61 yards. He averaged 8.7 yards per run.
TCU sophomore running back Jeremy Payne ran seven times for 28 yards.
TCU senior running back Trent Battle only ran with the football once against North Carolina, but he made it count. He went 28 yards untouched for a touchdown in the third quarter, as the Frogs increased their lead over the Tar Heels to 34-7.
Sophomore kicker Kyle Lemmermann was two-for-two on field goals (32 yards and 33 yards) and six-for-six on extra-point kicks.
TCU's Defense Was Dominating
TCU's defense, beginning its second season under defensive coordinator Andy Avalos, was dominant. The Frogs limited North Carolina to 222 total offensive yards: 172 passing yards and 50 rushing yards.
Removing the 83 yards over seven plays that UNC gained on its opening drive of the game, TCU allowed the Tar Heels just 139 yards on 42 plays (3.3 yards).
The Tar Heels averaged only 1.8 yards per rush, and until the fourth quarter they only had three drives where they crossed midfield.
The Frogs scored two defensive touchdowns, one on a 25-yard interception return by safety Bud Clark and another on a 37-yard fumble return by defensive end Devean Deal. It marked the first time TCU had scored a pair of defensive touchdowns since a pair of pick-sixes against Iowa State on November 26, 2022.
TCU's defense recorded eight tackles for loss and two sacks.
Junior safety Jamel Johnson led the Frogs’ defense with seven tackles, including one tackle for loss.
In addition to his 12th-career interception, Clark, a senior who is on watch lists for the best collegiate defensive back in the country, had five tackles. For his overall defensive achievements in the game, Clark was named the Big 12's Defensive Player of the Week. It is the first weekly honor from the conference in Clark's career.
After logging a career-high 68 tackles last season, Clark opted to return to TCU rather than head to the NFL. Clark's 12 career interceptions are one shy of cracking the program's record book.
Sophomore linebacker Max Carroll had four tackles, including .5 tackles for loss
Senior linebacker Kaleb Elarms-Orr had three tackles.
In addition to his fumble return for a touchdown, Deal, a senior, had three tackles, including .5 tackles for loss. Deal’s touchdown and the extra point increased TCU's lead to 41-7 in the third quarter and started the mass exit from the stadium by dismayed North Carolina fans.
Sophomore safety Kylin Jackson had three tackles, including one tackle for loss.
Junior defensive end Jonathan Bax, had two tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss, one sack, and one forced fumble.
Sophomore defensive end Zach Chapman recorded one sack and one fumble recovery.
TCU’s defense held North Carolina running back Caleb Hood to 31 yards on 10 carries. Running back Benjamin Hall was limited to 22 yards on six carries. Running back Davion Gause gained only seven yards on five rushes.
TCU's defense sacked North Carolina starting quarterback Gio Lopez twice.
Lopez, a highly touted and highly paid transfer from the University of South Alabama, completed only four-of-10 passes for 69 yards. He went more than two hours without completing a pass and generated more touchdowns for the Frogs (two) than UNC (one).
Last season at South Alabama, Lopez completed 66 percent of his throws for 2,559 yards and 18 touchdowns. He was intercepted just five times. He rushed for another 463 yards and seven scores.
Lopez left the game in the second half because of an injury.
North Carolina backup quarterback Max Johnson completed nine-of-11 passes against the Frogs, including a touchdown pass of two yards in the third quarter. Johnson was the Tar Heels' starting quarterback last year, but he suffered a season-ending broken leg in the first game.
North Carolina wide receiver Jordan Shipp caught four passes for 84 yards against the Frogs' secondary. He had a long reception of 39 yards.
Outside of the pre-game hoopla and North Carolina’s opening drive, this game was more about the talent, speed and exploits of the Horned Frogs than the coaching genius of Bill Belichick and the possible rejuvenation of North Carolina football.
Belichick’s collegiate head coaching story, of course, still is to be written, but the opening chapter resembled that of a Stephen King horror novel, at least to him, Jordan and a whole bunch of North Carolina football fans.
- TCU-North Carolina box score: here
- TCU North Carolina highlights: here
- Sonny Dykes, Josh Hoover, Bud Clark, Devean Deal and Kevorian Barnes talk about the Frogs' win: here
- Bill Belichick talks about North Carolina's loss: here
Abilene Christian University Visiting Fort Worth
TCU returns to action on Saturday, September 13, when the Horned Frogs host Abilene Christian University (ACU) in a 7 pm (Central) game, in Amon G. Carter Stadium, on TCU’s campus in Fort Worth, Texas.
TCU is 2-0 against Abilene Christian, with their last meeting being in 1930.
Abilene Christian competes in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), in the United Athletic Conference.
The Wildcats are 1-1. They lost their season-opener at Tulsa, 35-7, on August 30. They rebounded and won their home-opener in Abilene over Stephen F. Austin, 28-20, on September 6.
Abilene Christian’s head coach is Keith Patterson, who is in his fourth season leading the Wildcats. He is 22-16 in his first head coaching position.
Patterson came to ACU from Texas Tech, where he was defensive coordinator. He also has been a defensive coordinator at Utah State, Arizona State, West Virginia, Pittsburgh and Tulsa.
Abilene Christian’s associate head coach/co-offensive coordinator /quarterbacks coach is legendary Texas high school and Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell, who joined the Wildcats’ staff on January 28. He was the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Purdue University during the 2023 and 2024 seasons.
In 2024, the Wildcats enjoyed their best season in their Division I era (since 2013) with a 9-5 overall record (7-1 in conference), a United Athletic Conference Championship and a trip to the FCS Playoffs.
The conference championship was Abilene Christian’s first since winning the Division II Lone Star Conference in 2010.
ACU earned an automatic berth in the FCS Playoffs and, as the No. 15 seed, thrashed Northern Arizona, 24-0, to advance to the second round. In the second round, the Wildcats held a 17-3 lead over eventual national champion North Dakota State before losing, 51-31.
Offensively, Abilene Christian is averaging 17.5 points per game and 315.5 offensive yards per game: 126 rushing yards per game and 189.5 passing yards per game. The Wildcats have scored four offensive touchdowns. They have allowed six sacks.
Redshirt senior quarterback Stone Earle (#4), a transfer from the University of North Texas who is from Birdville High School in North Richland Hills, Texas, leads ACU’s offense.
Earle has completed 36-of-53 passes. He has not thrown a touchdown pass. He has thrown one interception and has a long pass completion of 42 yards. He has rushed 30 times for a net 87 yards. He has scored two rushing touchdowns and has a long run of 21 yards.
Redshirt senior Jordon Vaughn (#26), a transfer from Wyoming, is the Wildcats’ leading rusher. He has carried the football 38 times for 137 net yards and an average of 3.6 yards per carry. He has scored two rushing touchdowns and has a long run of 28 yards.
Redshirt senior wide receiver Javon Gipson (#7), who is a transfer from Baylor, has 10 catches for 155 yards. He has not caught a touchdown pass. He has a long pass reception of 42 yards.
Redshirt senior wide receiver J.J. Henry (#1), a transfer from Ole Miss, has 12 receptions for 102 yards. He has not caught a touchdown pass. He has a long pass reception of 26 yards.
Defensively, Abilene Christian is allowing 27.5 points per game. The Wildcats are allowing 157.5 rushing yards per game and 242 passing yards per game. Opponents have scored five touchdowns: two touchdowns on the ground and three touchdowns through the air.
ACU’s defense has recorded three sacks and recovered two fumbles.
Redshirt junior linebacker Rahson Myles, Jr. (#14), a transfer from Northern Illinois, leads the Wildcats’ defense with 22 tackles. He also has one interception and one pass breakup.
Redshirt senior linebacker Will Shaffer (#1), a transfer from Utah State, has 18 tackles, including 0.5 tackles for loss. He also has one pass breakup.
Redshirt senior safety Dorian Plumley (#3), a transfer from Oklahoma, has made 17 tackles> He has one tackle for loss and .5 of a sack.
Redshirt senior defensive back Jordan Mukes (#2), a transfer from Oklahoma, has recorded 13 tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss.
Redshirt senior defensive lineman Korlin Rausaw (#95), a transfer from the University of North Texas, has made 1.5 tackles for loss and recorded 1.5 sacks.
Redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Isaiah Crawford (#46), a transfer from Texas Tech, has one tackle for loss and one sack.
The Wildcats’ punter is Hugo Nash (#33). He has punted nine times for an average of 39.22 yards per punt. He has not had a punt blocked.
Brandon Perez (#38) has punted one time, for 34 yards.
Kicker Kyler Meschi (#39), has missed his only field goal attempt, as has Perez.
Over the past two months, Texans have used green ribbons with bows to commemorate the lives lost in the July 4 Hill Country flooding, which killed more than 100 people, including more than two dozen girls and counselors from Camp Mystic in Hunt.
Green is significant because it’s Camp Mystic’s official color.
For last weekend’s season-opening slate of games, several Texas college football teams sported ribbons, in the form of a special decal on players’ helmets depicting an outline of the state of Texas with a green bow at its center.
Among the schools was TCU, whose players and coaches also wore green ribbons on their lapels at Big 12 Media Days back in July, less than a week after the flood.
TCU players again will wear the helmet decals in the game against Abilene Christian.
TCU’s initial show of solidarity with victims and their loved ones originated with Dykes’ wife, Kate. She’s the one who went to a craft store and bought the ribbons and stick pins to give the players and coaching staff to wear as they were being interviewed at Big 12 Media Days.
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