The clearest sign of how hard UNC had to work in its 15-10 win over TCU in the rain at Aviva Stadium in Dublin came from the snap counts. This was not a game for fresh bodies or easy rotations. Carolina leaned on a handful of players who barely left the field.
On defense, middle linebacker Derek McDonald and cornerback Jaiden Patterson were out there for every one of the Tar Heels’ 72 defensive snaps. Strong safety Greg Smith wasn’t far behind at 69, while defensive end Leroy Jackson handled all 58 snaps on the edge. Coach Bill Belichick pointed to that group after the game.
“We get a lot of plays up front from Derek, Leroy, Isaiah [Jackson], and the guys on the edge, Mel[kart Abou Joude] and [Jaylen] Harvey,” Belichick said.
UNC’s offensive line showed the same kind of durability. Left tackle Jordan Hall, left guard Andrew Threatt, center Christo Kelly, right guard Aidan Banfield and right tackle Shaq McRoy never came off the field during Billy Edwards Jr.’s 58 offensive snaps. The protection mostly held up, though the Tar Heels did allow three sacks.
That continuity stood out because it looked nothing like much of last season, when injuries kept forcing changes along the line. It also fit with the discipline Belichick highlighted after the game, when he said the lack of penalty yardage helped separate UNC from a TCU team that repeatedly hurt itself.
Tight end Jelani Thurman also carried a heavy load, playing 55 of 58 offensive snaps to go with his 94-yard, four-catch night. Thurman posted the best PFP offensive grade at 71.7. Only Edwards and wide receiver Jordan Shipp, who played 56 snaps, saw more action among the skill players.
Mason Humphrey logged 39 snaps at wide receiver, while Trech Kekahuna added 29 on offense and eight on special teams, tying for the most special-teams snaps among position players. Benjamin Hall led the running backs with 27 snaps.
C.J. Sadler added 26 snaps at wide receiver, and Jaylen McGill got 25 at running back.
Demon June played nine snaps, with most of his work coming on the final drive, when he ran for 25 yards.
The defensive secondary was the busiest part of the rotation. Kaleb Cost came off the bench for 56 snaps at cornerback, almost matching the starters and reflecting how often Carolina mixed coverages as TCU found chunk plays in the first half before the Tar Heels settled in. Safety Coleman Bryson added 34 defensive snaps and 16 more on special teams, making him the most heavily used reserve on the roster.
Up front, Xavier Lewis and Isaiah Johnson split the nose tackle work, with Lewis playing 54 snaps and Johnson 49. Lewis, the ACC defensive lineman of the week, also had the best PFP defensive grade at 82.4. Melkart Abou Jaoude played 53 defensive snaps without taking part in a special teams unit.
In Other News...
Carson Bertagnole Gives UNC An Early Chance To Make Noise In Knoxville
Carson Bertagnole has given North Carolina a promising opening at the Visit Knoxville Collegiate, where the Tar Heels spent Friday hanging around the top of the board after a steady start in Tennessee. Bertagnole sits one stroke off the lead after rounds of 66 and 69, and his play helped UNC card a 3-under-par first day while staying within reach of the tournament front-runners.
The Tar Heels posted a 2-under 278 in the morning and followed with a 1-under 279 in the afternoon, leaving them five shots behind co-leaders Chattanooga and Memphis. With the field still early in the event, UNC has positioned itself for a weekend push, and Bertagnoles start gives the team a chance to make some noise if the scoring stays within reach. [Read more 🡒]
UNC Already Faces Early Pressure In A Major 5-Star Recruitment
The early buzz around Demarcus Henrys recruitment is already starting to take shape, and North Carolina is right in the thick of it. The 5-star small forward in the 2027 class is one of the marquee names on the board, and his first official visit is set for Louisville, the opening stop in what is expected to become a busy stretch of trips as his process develops.
For UNC, the challenge is simple enough to see and difficult enough to solve: Henry has a long list of heavy hitters around him, including Ohio State, Kentucky, BYU, UConn, Arkansas and Kansas. Louisville coach Pat Kelsey is also said to be making a major push in the recruitment, which adds another layer to a race that is only just beginning to heat up for the Tar Heels. [Read more 🡒]
UNC Found A Defensive Lineman Fans Never Saw Coming
Xavier Lewis was never the obvious name to watch when North Carolina started sorting through its defensive line options, but he has become one of the more intriguing success stories on the roster. A sophomore who was lightly recruited out of high school, Lewis had just one Power 4 offer from UNC and otherwise heard from smaller programs before initially signing with Austin Peay. He later took a preferred walk-on spot in Chapel Hill after Bill Belichick arrived as head coach, and the move has already started to pay off.
Lewis has since turned that opportunity into a scholarship and real defensive production, the kind of rise that speaks to both persistence and fit. His strong showing against TCU stood out as another reminder that UNC may have found a player who was easy to overlook at first but is becoming harder to ignore now. [Read more 🡒]