UNC football looking to build ‘Carolina offense’ in Belichick’s second season
Blaring tunes from the likes of Post Malone, John Summit and the Jackson 5, UNC began preseason football camp Thursday with a relaxed on-field vibe amid external turmoil surrounding general manager Michael Lombardi’s administrative leave.
During the portion of practice available to media, players mostly engaged in tame drills, with quarterbacks practicing handoffs and cornerbacks participating in low-effort one-on-ones. The first few days will be about acclimating to the flow of preseason camp, second-year coach Bill Belichick said.
As the Tar Heels build toward their Week 0 opening match against TCU on Aug. 29 in Ireland, looking to remedy a 4-8 season that kicked off with a 48-14 loss to the Horned Frogs, they have a vision for how to improve this season:
Build a distinct Carolina offense.
“When I got here, you know, I wasn’t looking to run my offense,” new offensive coordinator Petrino said. “We wanted to put together the North Carolina offense.”
Petrino arrived in January as UNC’s new offensive coordinator following the struggles of the Tar Heels’ Freddie Kitchens-led offense of last year. He said he was looking to combine his experience with Belichick’s pedigree and the rest of the coaching staff’s knowledge to produce a clear offensive brand.
Petrino spent the past two seasons at Arkansas and has worked at both the collegiate and NFL levels. But he is best known for his work coaching now two-time NFL MVP Lamar Jackson during his Heisman Trophy-winning 2016 season at Louisville.
Last season, the Tar Heels finished 14th among 17 ACC teams in offensive efficiency and lost every game in which their defense gave up more than 15 points. It ended up only winning two games against power conference opponents.
To start, Petrino said the team is allowing its four-person quarterback battle play out, then it will focus on shaping the surrounding offense.
“Once you know who your quarterback is,” Petrino said, “the offense molds around his abilities of what he does really well, and try to hide what he doesn’t do really well.”
‘No timeline’ for UNC to name starting quarterback
At ACC Kickoff in Charlotte earlier in July, Belichick said there was “no leader in the clubhouse” in the quarterback race, and he maintained his stance Thursday. In picking between transfers — Billy Edwards Jr. and Miles O’Neill — and young talents — Au’Tori Newkirk and Travis Burgess — he said he does not have a timeline for naming a starter.
“Once it becomes apparent and clear,” Belichick said, “then that’s my decision.”
Though perhaps Belichick clued the media into a bit of his early thinking when he noted that Edwards has “played a lot of football … and (has) had a lot of production” in the past.
In 2024, the then-Maryland quarterback threw for 2,881 yards, 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions before missing most of last season with a PCL strain in his left knee at Wisconsin.
Belichick added that the upcoming season is Edwards’ last year of eligibility. But he also praised O’Neill as one of the best athletes on the team, Newkirk for improving since last year and Burgess rehabbing through the summer from a torn ACL.
“They all kind of have a little different, won’t say necessarily strengths and weaknesses, but they just come from different places,” Belichick said, “and (I) want to see how it all comes together.”
UNC has to ‘run to win’
Regardless of how the quarterback situation turns out, Petrino said a pivotal area will be the running back room, which returned its two leading rushers, Demon June and Benjamin Hall.
While Petrino didn’t reveal whether UNC would be a pass-first or run-first team this season, he began his press conference by noting the importance of the ground game overall. For red zone and clock-bleeding situations, he said those players are essential.
“Everybody’s got to be able to run to win,” Petrino said.
Belichick expects the tight ends to step up in all aspects of the game, which could include supporting the run. Petrino said those players have impressed the coaching staff with their ability to “make plays.”
In 2025, UNC received little production from its tight ends — which amassed just 226 yards on 29 receptions last season. But heading into this season, Belichick touted the room, which added Ohio State transfer Jelani Thurman, Texas transfer Jordan Washington and Colorado State transfer Jaxxon Warren. Freshman Carson Sneed will also look to carve out a role.
In the NFL, Belichick’s teams regularly spent premium money on tight ends, and he said he “craves” contribution from that position.
“That room’s been a total makeover,” Belichick said. “It’s a lot of new players, a lot of talented players. These guys have really worked hard.”
Continuity allows for UNC to take ‘giant step forward’
Despite being projected as one of the worst teams in the ACC preseason media poll, UNC is drawing confidence from having most of its team together since the spring, compared to later arrivals last season following Belichick’s hiring. The NCAA’s reduction of the transfer portal to just a single offseason window has allowed for greater continuity as well.
Hall said having the same group of players from the spring to preseason camp allowed the team to build a culture, which he expects to benefit the team in the regular season.
“College football today is like a revolving door,” Hall said. “If you really want to be a good team, you’ve got to build culture.”
Petrino said the team has made tremendous progress in its practice of tempo situations since the spring. While he said the team still isn’t where he wants them to be, that is the case for every squad he’s coached.
There is always room for growth, but this UNC team is optimistic about its prospects in year-two of the Belichick experiment.
It’s looking to form an identity.
“Not having new guys, like no transfer portal guys (arrive after the spring),” Petrino said, “has allowed us to take a giant step forward.”
This story was originally published July 30, 2026 at 4:06 PM with the headline "UNC football looking to build ‘Carolina offense’ in Belichick’s second season."