Teams:Syracuse Orange (2-4, 0-4) at North Carolina Tar Heels (4-2, 2-1)
Day & Time:Saturday, October 24, 7:30 pm
Location:Kenan Stadium, Chapel Hill, NC
Line:Syracuse is still not looked upon favorably by the books. The Orange are +8.5 point underdogs according to Fanduel's odds .
TV/Streaming:ACC Network, WatchESPN
Radio: Cuse.com , TK 99/105 , WAER 88.3 , SiriusXM 258
Rivalry:5-3, UNC
Current Streak:3, UNC
First Meeting:If you forgot how long former UNC Head Coach Mack Brown has been around college football, let this be a reminder. The 20th-ranked Tar Heels began their 8th season during Brown's first stint at Chapel Hill in 1995 with a home game against Syracuse. There, a redshirt freshman by the name of Donovan McNabb led 'Cuse to a 20-9 victory at Kenan Stadium. Whatever happened to him?
Last Meeting:The last game that these teams played was last year in the JMA Wireless Dome. That game featured the surprise start of Joseph Filardi at quarterback for the Orange. Syracuse only managed 152 yards of total offense that day as UNC won 27-10.
Head Coaches:Syracuse: Fran Brown (third year, 15-16) | UNC: Bill Belichick (second year, 8-10)
Coach Bio:Belichick was raised in Annapolis, Maryland. His dad, Steve, was an assistant football coach at Navy. Bill attended Wesleyan University and played center and tight end on the football team. He also played lacrosse and squash in college.
Belichick started his coaching career as an assistant with the Baltimore Colts, Detroit Lions and Denver Broncos. His reputation grew with the New York Giants. He started as a defensive assistant and special teams coach with the Giants, eventually adding linebackers coaching to his role. Belichick would then be named defensive coordinator of New York in 1985 under head coach Bill Parcells. The Giants won two Super Bowls with Belichick as defensive coordinator.
His first head coaching job came with the Cleveland Browns. Belichick only had one winning season with the Browns and was fired after the Browns moved to Baltimore to become the Ravens. He rejoined Parcells with the New England Patriots for a season. Both moved to the New York Jets for three seasons. Parcells stepped down after the 1999 season and arranged for the Jets to hire Belichick as Jets head coach. But Belichick decided to join the New England Patriots instead as their head coach.
Belichick won six Super Bowls with the Patriots, all alongside Tom Brady. He finished his New England career with a 266-121 record. Belichick and the Patriots agreed to mutually part ways after the 2023 season. After a short media career, North Carolina hired Belichick as its head coach for the 2025 season.
Last Year:UNC struggled under Belichick in its first season. The Tar Heels only won two ACC games and stumbled to a 4-8 record.
Last Game:UNC rang the Victory Bell last week as the Tar Heels won the Tobacco Road rivalry battle at Duke. The Tar Heels scored with 1:53 left in the 4th quarter to win 24-20 over the Blue Devils.
"Fear Me, I've Killed Hundreds of Timelords":Remember this guy? Former Syracuse linebacker Derek McDonald transferred to UNC in the offseason. He leads the ACC in total tackles with 56 on the season.
If Syracuse Wins:Wow! Positivity!
If Syracuse Loses:If you haven't already, start praying to your Gerry shrine
Fun Fact:Umari Hatcher is tied for first nationally in receptions per game with 8.3 alongside Malachi Toney. Hatcher leads the ACC and is third nationally in receiving yards with 784.
