CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2026 North Carolina

4–⁠2 (2–⁠1 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Bill Belichick. The season’s Wikipedia article records 3–⁠2, over five games to the six on file here.

Schedule and results

North Carolina in 2026, game by game: won vs. TCU 15–10; won vs. East Tennessee State 35–3; lost at Clemson 20–28; lost vs. No. 3 Notre Dame 26–37; won at No. 25 Pittsburgh 21–17; won at Duke 24–20+32−11Won 15–10 vs. TCU+5TCUWon 35–3 vs. East Tennessee State+32East Tennessee …Lost 20–28 at Clemson-8ClemsonLost 26–37 vs. No. 3 Notre Dame-11No. 3 Notre DameWon 21–17 at No. 25 Pittsburgh+4No. 25 PittsburghWon 24–20 at Duke+4Duke
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below; orange marks an upset win.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 29vsTCUAer Lingus College Football ClassicW 15–⁠1030%
Sep 12vsEast Tennessee StateW 35–⁠378%
Sep 19atClemsonL 20–⁠2832%
Oct 3vs3Notre DameL 26–⁠3722%
Oct 10at25PittsburghW 21–⁠1724%
Oct 17atDukeW 24–⁠2025%
Oct 24vsSyracusePreview72%
Oct 31vsMiamiPreview25%
Nov 7atUConnPreview40%
Nov 14vsLouisvillePreview42%
Nov 21atVirginiaPreview40%
Nov 28vsNC StatePreview56%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

Record
4–⁠2
Conference
2–⁠1 tied for 4th in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP now
Unranked
Points
141–⁠115
Coach
Bill Belichick
Elo
1521 +71 this season
SP+ rating
4.9 No. 56 of 138; offense No. 71, defense No. 35, special teams No. 70
SRS
9.6 No. 33 of 138 in FBS
Returning
28% of last season’s EPA, No. 90 of 136
Recruiting class
No. 19 roster talent No. 28 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Bobby Petrino
Defensive coordinators
Stephen Belichick and Brian Belichick
Offense
Veer and shoot
Defense
Multiple 4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense102nd of 138
  • Defense52nd of 138
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted71st of 138
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted49th of 138
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.0342%1.12102nd of 138
Defense0.0642%1.1352nd of 138
Opponent-adjusted0.10 off
0.07 def		44% off
42% def		—71st off
49th def

Passing and running

Pass successDepth of targetDeep throwsLine yardsStuffed
Offense50%7.9 yds8%3.3014%
Defense43%6.2 yds9%3.209%
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played. Passing and running: depth of target is how far downfield passes traveled in the air; deep throws are the share thrown deep, of the passes whose depth and direction the play-by-play describes (about half); line yards are the running yards per carry credited to the blockers; stuffed is the share of carries stopped at or behind the line. The defense’s line is what its opponents did. From CollegeFootballData.com, 2025 on.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense4.0own 2915% allowed
Defense3.1own 3113% caused

CORE rating 0.1, 64th of 138 (offense 0.3, defense 0.2).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsBilly Edwards QB1,259 yds
Passing touchdownsBilly Edwards QB9 TD
Rushing yardsBenjamin Hall RB283 yds
Rushing touchdownsDemon June RB6 TD
Receiving yardsJordan Shipp WR441 yds
Receiving touchdownsJelani Thurman TE4 TD
TacklesDerek McDonald LB55 tkl
SacksXavier Lewis DL7 sacks
InterceptionsGregory Smith DB3 INT

Top recruits in the 2026 class

Kenton Dopson III CB★★★★No. 134
Jakob Weatherspoon S★★★★No. 145
C.J. Sadler ATH★★★★No. 172
Keeyun Chapman WR★★★★No. 192
Travis Burgess QB★★★★No. 245
Calvin Thomas LB★★★★No. 271
D.Q. Forkpa LB★★★★No. 280
Vodney Cleveland DL★★★★No. 298

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2026 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks14.00.916
Running backs13.00.881
Receivers73.30.880
Offensive line83.10.872
Defensive line73.40.888
Linebackers43.50.885
Defensive backs83.30.894
Athletes and specialists43.30.867
Whole class403.30.883

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 111

The 2026 roster

111 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2026 line; 54 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 19

The 2026 portal
Jelani Thurman TE★★★from Ohio State
Jordan Washington TE★★★from Texas
Trech Kekahuna WR★★★from Wisconsin
Ade Willie CB★★★from Michigan State
Andrew Threatt OL★★★from Charleston Southern
Billy Edwards QB★★★from Wisconsin
Donovan Hoilette DE★★★from Richmond
Jaxxon Warren TE★★★from Colorado State
Jaylen Harvey DE★★★from Penn State
Kaleb Jackson RB★★★from LSU
Mason Humphrey WR★★★from Lehigh
Miles O’Neill QB★★★from Texas A&M

And 7 more, lower-rated or unrated.

Transfers out 31

D’Ante Robinson DL★★★★to Oregon
Mikai Gbayor LB★★★★to Florida State
Khmori House LB★★★★to Arkansas
C.J. Mims DL★★★to Texas A&M
Bryce Baker QB★★★to Virginia Tech
Connor Cox TE★★★to Virginia
Tyler Thompson DE★★★to Louisville
Alex Taylor WR★★★to Georgia Southern
Austin Alexander DE★★★to Western Michigan
Chinedu Onyeagoro LB★★★to Long Beach City College
Davion Gause RB★★★to NC State
Giovanni Lopez QB★★★to Wake Forest

And 19 more, lower-rated or unrated.

2026 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Miami4–⁠06–⁠0
Wake Forest4–⁠16–⁠1
SMU3–⁠15–⁠1
North Carolina2–⁠14–⁠2
Clemson2–⁠14–⁠2
Louisville3–⁠24–⁠3
Virginia Tech2–⁠25–⁠2
Pittsburgh2–⁠25–⁠2
Virginia2–⁠24–⁠3
California2–⁠23–⁠4
Duke1–⁠24–⁠2
NC State1–⁠23–⁠3
Boston College1–⁠23–⁠3
Georgia Tech1–⁠22–⁠4
Florida State1–⁠33–⁠4
Stanford1–⁠33–⁠4
Syracuse0–⁠42–⁠4

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.