North Carolina’s bowl picture is getting murkier, and ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura thinks the Tar Heels could be headed for a second straight year without a postseason trip.
That’s a tough place to be for a program trying to steady itself under Bill Belichick. After the heartbreaking loss to Clemson, Bonagura isn’t sold on where UNC stands right now, and the possibility of missing bowl games in both 2025 and 2026 looms as a serious setback for the organization.
Not everyone sees the Tar Heels fading out completely. ESPN’s Mark Schlabach has UNC slipping into the JLab Birmingham Bowl, which would at least keep the Belichick era on the right side of the postseason line. It’s not a glamorous landing spot, but for a team trying to get back on track, simply getting in would count as progress.
UNC’s offense is now being guided by Wisconsin transfer quarterback Billy Edwards Jr., with Texas A&M transfer Miles O'Neill ready behind him if the staff needs to make a change. That quarterback situation could become a major swing factor over the next few weeks.
In Schlabach’s projection, North Carolina would meet Auburn in the JLab Birmingham Bowl at Protective Stadium in Birmingham, Alabama. That would mean lining up against an SEC opponent after Auburn just surrendered nearly 50 points to a now-ranked Florida Gators team.
The Tar Heels would also have plenty to sort through before that point, with No. 3 Notre Dame waiting after their bye week. That stretch will tell a lot about whether UNC can keep its postseason hopes alive.
The bowl discussion comes against a rough recent backdrop. North Carolina went 6-6 in 2024 and still reached the Wasabi Fenway Bowl, where it lost to UConn, 27-14. The program has dropped its last five bowl games, though it had been a regular bowl participant until 2018.
One of the clearest reminders of how different things looked not long ago came in 2019, when UNC finished 6-6 in the regular season and then beat Temple, 55-13, in the Military Bowl presented by Northrop Grumman.
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UNCs Clemson Collapse Put Several Tar Heels Roles Under The Microscope
North Carolinas ACC opener turned into a frustrating one in Clemson, where a halftime lead gave way to a loss that left several rotational questions hanging over the Tar Heels. The game also came against a shifting personnel backdrop, with C.J. Sadler ruled out because of an off-field incident and other receivers, including Humphrey, seeing their roles expand in his absence.
On the ground, Hall looked like the most reliable presence in the offense, playing 38 of 70 snaps while rushing for 130 yards and a touchdown to reinforce his status as the primary back. On defense, Harvey logged 47 of 72 snaps, while Donovan Hoilette Jr. was on the field for an unexpectedly heavy 56, a usage pattern that suggests the Tar Heels are still sorting out exactly where some of these pieces fit after a game that exposed plenty more than the final score. [Read more 🡒]