North Carolina enters 2026 with plenty to fix after a rough season, and the Tar Heels’ path back to respectability won’t depend only on newcomers. The players already in the building matter just as much, especially the ones who have shown they can carry real weight when given the chance.
Two returning names stand out as potential breakout stars for North Carolina in the 2026-27 college football season: junior wide receiver Jordan Shipp and sophomore running back Demon June.
Shipp’s profile is a little tricky from the outside. He looks like a productive receiver who still has room to grow, but the bigger issue has been the quarterback play around him.
The 6-foot-2, 190-pound wideout put together a strong 2025 season anyway, finishing with 60 catches for 671 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 11.2 yards per reception. That production came despite Gio Lopez throwing for 1,747 yards, 10 touchdowns and five interceptions.
That context matters. It’s hard for any pass catcher to post eye-popping numbers when the passing game itself is struggling to function, and Shipp has had to work through that reality.
North Carolina did upgrade its quarterback room this offseason with Billy Edwards Jr., Travis Burgess and Miles O'Neill leading the group, and the Tar Heels also added more talent at receiver. That could spread the ball around, but it may help Shipp more than hurt him.
With more threats on the field, defenses won’t be able to simply shade a safety his way and erase him from the game plan.
June is in a different spot, but the case for a bigger season is just as strong. North Carolina used a three-man backfield, yet June still looked like the best runner on the roster.
The 5-foot-11, 215-pound back carried the ball 84 times for 464 yards and two touchdowns in 2025, averaging 5.5 yards per carry. The raw total doesn’t jump off the page, especially over 12 games, but he never had the kind of workload that lets a back settle in and take over.
That should change in 2026. Davion Gause transferred to North Carolina State, and there weren’t any notable additions to the backfield, which puts June in position for a much larger role. If he can take a step forward as a pass catcher, he has a real chance to become one of the Tar Heels’ most dangerous players.
In Other News...
UNC May Regret Losing The Triangle Player It Needed Most
The Triangles latest transfer-portal churn has left all three local power programs staring at different kinds of holes, and North Carolinas loss may be the one that stings most in the long run. Duke is trying to replace a quarterback who carried its offense, while NC State has to rethink its backfield after losing a productive runner, but the Tar Heels are the ones watching a key defensive piece head elsewhere after Khmori House decided to move on to the SEC.
House gave North Carolina a presence in the middle of the defense and was one of the more important in-state names to come through the portal cycle, which makes his departure more than just another roster change. For a program trying to build toward a better 2026 outlook, losing a linebacker like that is the kind of setback that can linger, especially when the rest of the Triangle is dealing with its own portal damage and every edge in the region feels hard-earned. [Read more 🡒]
UNC Faced A Painful Truth Before Moving On From Hubert Davis
North Carolinas move on from Hubert Davis came after a season that never matched the talent in the room, ending with a first-round NCAA Tournament loss and a hard reset for a program that expects to live much deeper into March. Athletic director Steve Newmark made clear the decision was rooted in coaching performance, not a shortage of ability on the roster, a distinction that matters at a place where expectations are never subtle.
Michael Malone has since taken over and quickly put his stamp on the job, rebuilding both the roster and the staff around him. The early work has already changed the feel of the program, and it also hints at how aggressively UNC wanted to move after deciding the old formula was no longer enough. [Read more 🡒]