No. 24 North Carolina is heading into ACC play with momentum, and the first two tests come right down the road.
The Tar Heels open conference action this weekend with matches at NC State on Sept. 25 at 7 p.m. and at Wake Forest on Sept. 27 at 4 p.m., after finishing non-conference play at 5-3 and coming off a win over FGCU.
Carolina has made a habit of handling in-state opponents under Mike Schall. Since he took over in 2024, the Tar Heels are 14-4 against teams from North Carolina and have won their last nine such matches. Schall’s record against in-state programs includes a 4-0 mark against Duke, 2-0 against Wake Forest, 1-1 against NC State, and 1-0 records against App State, ECU, Davidson, UNCW, and Western Carolina.
The Tar Heels are also chasing a few milestones this weekend. A win would give them their 10th and 11th straight victories over in-state opponents, a third straight 1-0 start in ACC play, a third straight 2-0 start in conference play, their first win at NC State since Oct. 21, 2022, and a third straight win at Wake Forest.
UNC’s early-season numbers have already turned heads. The Tar Heels swept opening weekend and did it with efficiency on both sides of the ball.
They hit .470 against UNCW on Sunday, the program’s most efficient offensive performance since Nov. 11, 2016.
Defensively, they held UNCW to a -.010 hitting percentage, the lowest by an opponent since Boston College posted the same mark on Oct. 21, 2016.
Through two matches, Carolina is limiting opponents to a .055 hitting percentage, which ranks second nationally this early in the season.
There has also been a breakout performance already on the schedule. Bridget Malone delivered the best match of her career against Colorado State on Sept. 4, finishing with 23 kills and four blocks in a five-set win.
The Tar Heels’ top producers are already showing why this group has expectations attached to it. Through eight matches, Safi Hampton leads the team with 86 kills and 3.24 points per set, while Jackie Taylor paces Carolina with 39 blocks and 11 service aces. Eight matches into her third season, Taylor has moved into the top 10 in program history in block assists and is 30 blocks away from cracking the top 10 in total blocks.
Carolina’s roster brings back a massive amount of production, too. The Tar Heels did not lose anyone to the transfer portal for a second straight year, and nearly everything from last season is back: 1,535 of 1,536 kills, all 342 blocks, 90.2% of the aces, and 69.7% of the digs. Hampton and Chelsea Thorpe were both named to the Preseason All-ACC Team ahead of the 2026 season.
The leadership group for 2026 is Zoe Behrendt, Chelsea Thrope, and Sadie Swift.
The schedule ahead is loaded. UNC will face eight teams that made last season’s NCAA Tournament, including national runner-up Kentucky, national semifinalist Pitt, and 2025 overall No. 1 seed Nebraska, all on the road.
The Tar Heels will also travel to SMU, host Stanford and Georgia Tech, and play Louisville and Miami both home and away. In all, Carolina will see six teams in the AVCA Preseason Top-11 across seven matches, with five of those on the road and two at home.
There is plenty of familiarity in the program as well. Laynie Smith and Emily Bobbitt already share a club connection from Triangle Volleyball Club, the same place Erin Curtis, Lindley Miller, and Carly Markham played before college. Erin Curtis’ father, Jason, co-founded the club, and Schall also worked there as an associate director before arriving in Chapel Hill.
This is year four of the Schall era, and Carolina is trying to keep building on what has come before. The Tar Heels are ranked in the preseason AVCA Top-25 Coaches Poll for the first time since 2017 and were picked fifth in the ACC Preseason Coaches Poll.
Schall opened with a 13-14 season, then followed with a 23-8 year in 2024 that brought UNC its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2021, and a 22-9 campaign in 2025 that included another first-round NCAA Tournament win. Carolina is now aiming for three straight NCAA Tournament berths for the first time since its seven-year run from 2010-16.
Several Tar Heels also carry notable athletic bloodlines. Jackie Taylor’s father, Sean, played football at the University of Miami from 2001-2003, was part of the 2001 BCS National Championship team, and later became the No. 5 pick in the 2004 NFL Draft by the Washington Redskins, where he was a two-time Pro Bowl selection in 2006 and 2007.
Her mother, Jackie García, played midfield for Miami’s women’s soccer team. Erin Curtis’ father Jason was a captain on Santa Clara’s men’s volleyball team, while her sisters Emily and Maggie also played collegiately.
Julia Bohlinger’s father, Rob, played football at Wyoming and later in the NFL for the Carolina Panthers. Carson Overbeck’s mother, Carla, was a three-time All-America and four-time NCAA champion on UNC’s soccer team, captained the 1995 U.S.
World Cup squad that reached the semifinals, and led the 1996 U.S. Women’s Soccer Olympic Team to gold before becoming an assistant coach for Duke women’s soccer.
In Other News...
UNC Suddenly Faces A QB Decision That Could Define The Season
The bye week arrived at a useful time for North Carolina, because the conversation around the offense changed fast after the 28-20 loss to Clemson. Billy Edwards Jr. had a rough afternoon through the air, finishing 13 of 30 for 135 yards with a touchdown and an interception, while the defense faded after halftime and left the Tar Heels chasing the game. In a season where every small edge matters, the quarterback spot has suddenly become one of the most consequential decisions on the table.
A change is at least being discussed internally, and the timing makes sense with a break in the schedule to reset before the next stretch of difficult games. Still, this is not a simple plug-and-play call, and the context around the offense suggests any move could be premature if the staff believes the bigger issues go beyond one position. For now, UNC has a week to sort through whether it needs a new answer under center or simply a better version of the one it already has. [Read more 🡒]
UNC Just Got An Eligibility Boost With Bigger Questions Ahead
A court ruling out of Indiana has given North Carolina football kicker Rece Verhoff and three Tar Heels field hockey players a temporary path back to competition, restoring a fifth season of eligibility while the broader legal fight plays out. The decision also covers Ryleigh Heck, Sietske Brning and Dani Mendez, and it comes as part of a challenge to the NCAAs new age-based eligibility model for athletes in the high school Class of 2022.
For UNC, the immediate effect is simple enough: the athletes are allowed to return during the 2026-27 academic year if they choose to keep going. The bigger issue is still unresolved, though, because the injunction only addresses eligibility for now and leaves the larger question of how the NCAAs new standard will hold up in court hanging over players who thought their college timelines were already set. [Read more 🡒]
UNC Already Has 3 Breakout Stars Fans Need To Notice
North Carolinas 2-1 start has given the Tar Heels a little breathing room heading into their Week 4 bye, and it has also surfaced a few names worth keeping on the radar. The early buzz starts up front with defensive tackle Lewis, who has been a major force in the pass rush despite the team dealing with injuries around him, while linebacker Seelmann has quickly made his presence felt after arriving from Richmond and settling into a bigger role.
On the offensive side, tight end Thurman has stepped into the mix at an important time after the injury to projected starter Jaxxon Warren, becoming a more reliable part of the passing game. For a team still sorting out its identity this early in the season, those kinds of breakout performances matter because they can help stabilize both sides of the ball while the Tar Heels use the bye week to reset and prepare for what comes next. [Read more 🡒]