Extra Points: Redemption

Trotting off the field at halftime of Saturday's game against TCU, Carolina's football team had begun to answer some of the multitude of questions posed by fans, media, the blogosphere and opponents.

Could they move the ball on offense, and could newcomer quarterback Billy Edwards serve as an effective playmaker and distributor and caretaker of the ball? The answer was yes, with Edwards hitting medium-length and short throws for 152 yards to a variety of receivers, including four each to Jordan Shipp and Jelani Thurman.

Could the defense make some big stops and get off the field? That answer was affirmative as well, as TCU managed just one touchdown and players like Melkart Abou Jaoude and Xavier Lewis were consistently in the Horned Frog backfield.

And could the Tar Heels protect the ball, play disciplined and avoid giving the opponents freebies? Carolina had just two penalties during the first half, and its only turnover didn't do any damage.

So as Carolina left the field with a 12-10 lead, center Christo Kelly was fired up. He flailed his arms, chest bumped several Tar Heels who passed him, patted some helmets.
A team that suffered a long night at the hands of this Horned Frog team a year ago in Chapel Hill and dodged all manner of darts and arrows during a difficult first year under Coach Bill Belichick had made a major accomplishment in 30 minutes of football.

It proved it belonged.

"I just felt a lot of emotion at the moment," Kelly said. "Last year was tough. But you have to put that aside. That first half was a glimpse at what we can be. We beat against each other day after day, we go through all these workouts, all the training leads up to playing in this game.

"We have a relentless attitude, we're never going to quit, we're always going to keep fighting. We had this unwavering belief that we were going to win this football game. We have a relentless mindset. It was so much fun to finally get out there in a real game and show some success."

Two hours later, Kelly was still fired up and emotional. Now he was hugging Belichick after the Tar Heels added one second-half field goal, played outstanding defense and played another half of largely mistake-free football. The result was a 15-10 triumph over TCU in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic in Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland.

"We love our coach," Kelly said. "He's doing an incredible job, empowering people to take ownership of what we want this program to be. He is such a special guy. He's humble, he's demanding, he's a winner and he empowers everyone on the team. We have such good camaraderie and team culture, and it starts with him."

Any number of elements went into a successful launch of the 2026 season. Certainly, Belichick's coaching acumen and ability to tweak the entire operation over 12 months was one. Adding a veteran coach and the uber-successful offensive guru Bobby Petrino to the staff has been a significant boost. This team has been together now all of 2026—through winter conditioning, spring practice and summer player-led practices.

"I think the whole building feels a little rejuvenated, revitalized and a new energy after last year," running back Benjamin Hall said. "Putting the record aside, we were just a few plays away from winning some more games. It's just a new environment, and I think it's been a blessing to be a part of it."

The Tar Heels return to Chapel Hill from Dublin on Sunday and have two weeks to prepare for East Tennessee State, which comes to Kenan Stadium for a noon kick-off on Sept. 12.

"We've got a long way to go, but we certainly saw some good things tonight," Belichick said. "We got a lot of big plays on fourth down, something we didn't do too much of last year. Our red area defense was solid, and we were able to keep them out of the end zone some. We played good team defense. A lot of credit to the guys up front. TCU had a good running game and gave us problems in the first half. Then we settled down.

"I thought the discipline of our players was a big factor in the game. We didn't have many penalty yards and that forced TCU to have to beat us. We did not get the pre-snap penalties and the post-whistle penalties that are very much in our control.

"Obviously, we didn't play competitively enough against TCU last year, and we came with a whole different attitude. We were ready to fight for 60 minutes, and we did that."

The Tar Heels take home with them a scrapbook full of memories of the Ireland trip and also a handsome trophy made of Waterford crystal.

"I think we can find a case for this trophy somewhere," Kelly said. "I think it will look pretty good back home in Chapel Hill."

Lee Pace has been covering Carolina football since 1990 under the "Extra Points" banner. Write him at leepace7@gmail.com and follow him on X at @LeePaceTweet.

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Players Mentioned

Melkart Abou Jaoude

Benjamin Hall

Christo Kelly

Xavier Lewis

Jordan Shipp

Jelani Thurman

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