Bryce Baker Enters Transfer Portal Without Taking a Snap for UNC
When Bryce Baker committed to North Carolina, Tar Heel fans had every reason to be excited. A consensus top-10 quarterback in the 2025 recruiting class, Baker was seen as a potential cornerstone for the future of the program. And when he reaffirmed that commitment even after Bill Belichick took over as head coach, it felt like UNC had found its quarterback of tomorrow.
But that future is now headed elsewhere.
Baker, who didn’t log a single snap during his true freshman season, has officially entered the transfer portal. The move raises more questions than answers for a UNC football program that’s been searching for stability under center all season long.
A Top Recruit Who Never Got His Shot
Coming out of high school, Baker was ranked as the No. 9 quarterback in the 2025 class and a Top 65 overall recruit. He had the kind of pedigree that programs build around-big arm, high football IQ, and the kind of dual-threat ability that fits the modern college game.
But despite a season filled with quarterback struggles in Chapel Hill, Baker never saw the field. The expectation was that he was redshirting, which made sense on paper-until you looked at how the Tar Heels' quarterback situation actually played out.
UNC cycled through options in 2025, and none of them managed to stabilize the offense. Yet Baker remained on the sidelines, never getting the chance to show what he could do in live action. That decision now looms large, especially as he becomes the latest name to hit the portal.
Quarterback Room in Flux
Baker’s departure is just the latest shake-up in what’s become a chaotic quarterback situation for UNC.
Max Johnson has already entered the transfer portal. Gio Lopez, who’s reportedly locked into a sizable NIL deal, hasn’t shown the kind of upside that suggests he’s the long-term answer. Other returning players from last season’s roster haven’t separated themselves either.
There’s also true freshman Travis Burgess, a talented prospect in his own right, but he’s coming off a season-ending injury suffered early in his senior year of high school. Expecting him to be ready to take the reins by Week 1 might be a stretch.
All of this makes one thing clear: UNC needs to hit the transfer portal hard-and fast-to find a quarterback who can lead this team into 2026. The current options, as they stand, don’t inspire much confidence.
The Unanswered Questions Around Baker
What makes Baker’s exit especially tough to swallow for Tar Heel fans is the lingering “what if?” What if he had been given a chance in a season where the quarterback play was clearly a problem? What if he had been developed with the future in mind, even if he wasn’t ready to start right away?
We’ll never know.
There are legitimate questions to be asked about how his situation was handled. Whether it was a matter of fit, philosophy, or simply timing, Baker never got the opportunity to show why he was so highly regarded coming out of high school.
And now, someone else will.
For UNC, the focus shifts to rebuilding a quarterback room that’s been anything but stable. For Baker, it’s a fresh start-and a chance to finally prove what he can do on the field.