Is UNC football worse than failing a midterm? A student’s ESPN claim goes viral
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- UNC student Anna Yi likened a 48-14 UNC loss to failing a midterm on ESPN
- Social media response: TikTok views surged, a professor used her TV appearance as an example in class
- Yi disclosed a 43 midterm grade but finished with a B+ and a 3.5 quarter GPA
In just 10 seconds, UNC junior Anna Yi delivered a blistering takedown of her school’s hapless football team and its $50 million coach, landing a quote on national television that echoed around the world.
When ESPN stopped her this weekend to gauge the mood on the Chapel Hill campus, she recalled the Tar Heels’ 48-14 loss to TCU with a smackdown so severe the network aired it during Saturday’s blowout loss to Clemson:
“That was one of the saddest feelings I’ve had in university so far,” said Yi, “and I’ve failed midterms before. So that’s saying something.”
And now, thanks to that quote, Yi is basking in social-media glow:
- Her TikTok post of the interview now approaches 500,000 views;
- A UNC professor used her screenshot to illustrate a point in his American studies class;
- A student walking out of the business school pointed and yelled, “I know you! You’re the midterm girl!”
All of this is candy to a UNC student studying PR and advertising.
“This is, A, right up my alley,” she said, “and B, my pipe dream is to be an influencer and make $30,000 a post and not have to get a real job.”
She added this caveat:
“I actually have an interview in a particularly difficult class on Wednesday,” she said, “and my professor said, ‘I hope you don’t fail this one.’”
More curse words
To Yi’s thinking, her comments on ESPN more than represent students’ attitude toward the 2-3 team, celebrity Coach Bill Belichick and the mountain of criticism heaped on the school from fans everywhere.
“I’m going to be honest,” she said, “I think I might have been padding my words a little bit. The general sentiment has been filled with a lot more curse words.”
Curse words flow freely at the mention of Belichick’s $10 million annual salary and what other campus expenses it might cover.
“My freshman dorm is older than the Civil Rights Movement,” Yi said.
What Dad said
On her Tik Tok account, @swag_money_garfield, Yi posted follow-up videos detailing the questions that came with notoriety. Among them:
“They have Asians in the South?”
Uh, yes.
Of course, her parents got wind of their daughter on national TV, and once Dad took a look, he said, “My concern is all your employers are going to know you failed a midterm.”
About that.
On TikTok, Yi explained that grade came during a freshman Korean class, in which she scored a 62. Now it can be told that her true midterm grade for that exam was a 43. But she pulled out a B-plus in class. So there.
She further posted her transcript showing a 3.5 GPA for the last quarter, so the flubbed Korean exam isn’t likely to leave a lasting mark.
Unlike her interview.
“I love the idea,” she joked, “of getting even more attention.”
This story was originally published October 6, 2025 at 4:07 PM.