UNC football breaks into ACC win column. What we learned in Tar Heels’ victory
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- UNC earned its first ACC win under Bill Belichick, a 27-10 road victory.
- Tar Heels posted season highs in rushing (209) and passing (216) to fuel scoring.
- Defense produced sacks and a fumble recovery, while offense stalled in red zone.
After losing their past two games by a matter of yards, the Tar Heels’ gradual in-season improvement finally showed up on the scoreboard.
North Carolina (3-5, 1-3 ACC) earned its first conference win under head coach Bill Belichick with a 27-10 victory over Syracuse (3-6, 1-5) at the JMA Wireless Dome on Halloween night. The win is also Belichick’s first against a Power Four opponent — coming eight games into the season.
The Tar Heels were outscored 120-33 by their first three Power Four opponents, and then suffered one-possession losses to Cal and No. 16 Virginia over the past two weekends. But on Friday, there was no blowout or late-game goal-line snafu in sight. Instead, North Carolina thrashed the ACC’s worst defense to the tune of 209 rushing yards and 216 passing yards — both season highs. Friday also marked the first time this season the Tar Heels have scored more than 20 points against an FBS team.
Gio Lopez, who has improved week after week since returning from injury, had his best performance of the fall: 15-of-19 passing (a 79% completion rate), two touchdowns and no interceptions. Freshman running back Demon June led the team in rushing yards (101) and receiving yards (81).
Here’s what we learned from the Tar Heels’ Halloween-night victory over the Orange:
Demon June takes advantage of weak Syracuse rush defense
By halftime, June had outgained the entire Syracuse offense — racking up 80 yards to just 71 for the Orange — but had little to show for it as the Tar Heels took a 10-6 deficit into halftime.
Early in the third quarter, North Carolina finally broke through with a play that showcased both savvy coaching and June’s explosive ability. On a well-executed screen pass, Lopez found June drifting out of the backfield. The running back caught a short pass and did the rest of the work himself — making at least two defenders miss before stiff-arming another. He sprinted untouched on the right sideline from about the 40-yard line to the end zone for his first career receiving touchdown.
That touchdown and ensuing extra point handed UNC a 13-10 lead.
As a team, North Carolina looked much more explosive, taking full advantage of a Syracuse defense that entered the game ranked next to last in the ACC in rushing yards allowed, giving up 162.5 per contest. The Tar Heels’ success on the ground and ability to create chunk plays provided a much-needed spark — especially as earlier miscues kept the game tighter than the stat sheet might suggest.
Defense continues to make big plays
North Carolina’s defensive front once again offered a textbook performance.
The defensive line asserted early leverage and the Tar Heels — building off an impressive performance against UVA — kept the sacks coming.
Melkart Abou Jaoude’s performance stands out. After sacking Orange quarterback Joseph Filardi to halt Syracuse’s first drive, Abou Jaoude made a game-changing play in the fourth quarter when he sacked Filardi again for a loss of 10 yards and forced a fumble. Defensive lineman Smith Vilbert hopped on the loose ball and recovered it for the Tar Heels — just the fourth fumble recovered by UNC this fall. North Carolina then started the drive on Syracuse’s 34-yard line and, four plays later, scored to go up 27-10.
But Abou Jaoude wasn’t the only Tar Heel who made some big defensive plays.
In the third quarter, UNC linebacker Tyler Thompson earned a sack for a loss of four yards on third down — his fourth sack in the last three games. The Orange were then assessed a delay of game penalty and were forced to punt. North Carolina scored on the ensuing drive to go up 20-10.
Before that, two UNC cornerbacks forced incompletions. On Syracuse’s second drive, dual-sport athlete Kaleb Cost punched the ball free from Orange wide receiver Johntay Cook II to bring up third down.
North Carolina’s defense didn’t let up, employing a well-disguised Tampa 2 coverage to confuse the Orange’s freshman quarterback on fourth down — leading to another early three-and-out for Syracuse. Filardi never got comfortable in the passing game, as he finished with 39 yards on four complete passes.
UNC defensive back Marcus Allen also earned a pass breakup, disrupting a pass intended for Darrell Gill Jr. in the second quarter and forcing the Orange to settle for a field goal.
New week, same offensive issues
A new opponent and new venue, but North Carolina’s same old problems traveled north. Much like Ebenezer Scrooge, UNC was visited by numerous ghosts of its past in the first half.
For all the Tar Heels’ early gains — highlighted by a few explosive plays for Lopez and Kobe Paysour — North Carolina again struggled to capitalize in the red zone, stalling deep in Syracuse territory on a promising second drive and settling for a field goal after getting to the one-yard line.
The topic of ball security — something Belichick has repeatedly emphasized this season — will certainly be brought up in film review after this game. Just after UNC tight end Shamar Easter completed his first catch of the season in the first quarter, he fumbled it. Syracuse defensive back Devin Grant was credited with forcing the fumble, which his teammate Anwar Sparrow recovered and returned 51 yards for a touchdown. That’s the Tar Heels’ second fumble recovery touchdown allowed this season, the first coming in UNC’s season-opening loss to TCU.
Sparrow’s pick-six gave Syracuse an early lead, despite the Orange offense having recorded negative yardage at that point in the game.
UNC’s third-down inefficiency continued. The Tar Heels converted just one of their first seven third downs and four of 13 on the game. North Carolina ranks last in the ACC in third-down conversions, having completed nearly 33% of its chances entering Friday.
This story was originally published October 31, 2025 at 11:10 PM.
