North Carolina’s quarterback picture got a harsh dose of reality in Zach Koons’ latest Power Four rankings, and Billy Edwards Jr. didn’t come out looking great.
Koons placed every Power Four quarterback from No. 68 all the way to No. 1, and Edwards Jr. checked in at No. 61 out of 68. That’s not a flattering spot for a player expected to lead the Tar Heels, though it’s also not hard to see why he landed there.
Bill Belichick paired a young roster with a sixth-year college quarterback who is coming off a major knee injury that wiped out his 2025 season at Wisconsin. That alone makes the setup feel unusual, and Koons pointed to that as part of the reason the ranking sits where it does.
Edwards Jr. arrived in Chapel Hill after a brief stop in Madison and a three-year run at Maryland. He started only one season there, in 2024, and finished that stretch with a 65% completion rate, 2,881 passing yards, 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
Even with Edwards Jr. listed as the projected starter, the job is still very much up for grabs. Miles O’Neill, Au’Tori Newkirk and Travis Burgess are all still in the mix for North Carolina’s QB1 role.
O’Neill transferred in from Texas A&M as a redshirt freshman and brings limited college experience. Newkirk is in a similar spot, having redshirted with UNC last season and appeared in two games for the Tar Heels.
Burgess has the least college experience of the group. The four-star prospect from Georgia is heading into his freshman season in Chapel Hill.
Edwards Jr. has the edge because he’s the most seasoned option, and that’s the clearest argument for him to open the year as the starter. But with so little proven production across the board, North Carolina could still end up in a better place than many expect if one of those quarterbacks takes hold of the job.
For Belichick, it’s a tricky decision. For UNC fans, the wait continues.
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The uncertainty is bigger than one lineup wrinkle, too. UNC is heading toward the 2026-2027 season without much preseason title buzz, and the questions around Malones fit only add to the pressure on a program that expected a cleaner reset. Trotter also raised the broader issue of whether Malone is the long-term answer in Chapel Hill or simply the next stop on a search that already passed on other top names. [Read more 🡒]
Michael Malone May Already Be Changing UNCs Recruiting Ceiling
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