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Carolina is getting better and, literally, just missed beating the 16th-ranked team in the nation.<\/a><\/p>\n For the second time in eight days, the Tar Heels showed continued improvement but fumbled away a chance to claim their third win of the season and first ACC victory of the Bill Belichick era.<\/p>\n On their last sustained possession of the tough 21-18 loss at Cal,<\/a> they were inches away from taking the lead when Nathan Leacock got stripped of the ball as he was about to cross the goal line.<\/p>\n Back home against Virginia on a magnificent Saturday afternoon in Kenan Stadium \u2013 where a purported sellout was far from full \u2013 their first of three turnovers came on the sixth play of a 74-yard drive early in the first quarter.<\/p>\n Kobe Paysour lost the ball when stretching for a touchdown that would have given his team the lead it never had for the rest of the game. Almost four hours later and a scoreless second half for both teams, Belichick chose to go for two and win in overtime.<\/p>\n After Carolina won the toss and elected to play defense, Virginia scored to take a 17-10 lead. Lopez\u2019s 9-yard scoring pass to Davian Gause drew the Tar Heels within a point, and Belichick went for the win. Ben Hall took a pass in the right flat and was stopped when his knee hit the turf just before he touched the pylon at the corner of the goal line.<\/p>\n Both plays required video reviews upstairs to uphold the calls, and when the officials ran off the field we knew the 17-16 result would stand.<\/p>\n UNC\u2019s fourth straight loss was much closer than blowouts against TCU, Central Florida and Clemson and by far Carolina\u2019s best effort against another foe favored by double-digits.<\/p>\n If the Heels can clean up the turnovers that stopped promising drives while dominating team statistics and time of possession against Virginia, they will win at struggling Syracuse on Halloween night Friday and happily trick or treat their way home from upstate New York with a 3-5 record and be three more wins from bowl eligibility. That would be an amazing accomplishment, considering.<\/p>\n UNC\u2019s last four games are versus Stanford and Duke in Kenan and at Wake Forest and N.C. State, all winnable if improvement continues as it did against Virginia, which notched its third overtime win in the last four games and went home 7-1 overall and 4-0 in ACC games.<\/p>\n This recent stretch has shown the Tar Heels\u2019 resilience and growth, even though the results were frustrating. They appear more cohesive on both sides of the ball, signaling that a breakthrough could be imminent. Fans who grumbled as they fled the TCU and Clemson losses early seemed at least satisfied with this effort.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of these guys have gotten better,\u201d Belichick said afterwards. \u201cThere\u2019s been a number of players who have gotten more playing time through the course of the last few weeks. You earn that playing time through practice and showing the coaches and your teammates that you\u2019re ready to go.\u201d<\/p>\n North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick looks towards the field during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Virginia in Chapel Hill, N.C., Saturday, Oct. 25, 2025. (AP Photo\/Ben McKeown)<\/p>\n One example of that was freshman wide receiver Madrid Tucker, who was playing his first college game and caught a game-high eight passes from Lopez. Jordan Shipp, the sophomore leading receiver, had seven catches for a team-high 67 yards including several acrobatic grabs. Another newcomer getting his most snaps of the season was freshman Jaylen McGill, who had 37 total yards.<\/p>\n \u201cGio has been working his butt off,\u201d Shipp said. \u201cHe\u2019s a hard worker in everything he does, and I have nothing but respect and love for Gio. He knows that, and I just feel like he knows we\u2019re all behind him. No matter what\u2019s going on, we\u2019re all behind him.\u201d<\/p>\n Lopez continues to up his game, completing 23 of 36 passes for 208 yards. He sneaked in for the touchdown that tied the game 10-10 at halftime, followed by a defensive struggle that yielded no points and then overtime.<\/p>\n UNC QB Gio Lopez (#7) rushed and threw for a touchdown against Virginia Saturday. (Image via Chapel Hill Media Group\/Chance Bragg)<\/p>\n Carolina missed a chance to go ahead before halftime when Rece Verhoff pulled a 50-yard field goal wide left. He had booted it through the uprights just after Virginia called timeout. Verhoff had put Carolina on the scoreboard for the first tie with a 34-yarder in the second quarter.<\/p>\n Another name to remember is 6-foot-5 junior defensive lineman Melkart Abou-Jaoude with a career high three sacks of the team\u2019s six that harassed Cavaliers quarterback Chandler Morris, who came in with more publicity but was matched evenly by Lopez.<\/p>\n \u201cIt feels good to see the things I do in practice show up in the game,\u201d said Abou-Jaoude. \u201cYou have to give credit to Steve [Belichick], the play calls and our secondary. The quarterback was back there pump faking because the coverage was so good, so it feels good for everything to come together.\u201d<\/p>\n The Hoodie added:<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s one of our hardest working guys and he has continued to improve since the day got here. He works hard in the weight room, on the practice field, on his fundamentals and film study in preparation for the game. So it\u2019s great to see him have that production.\u201d<\/p>\n There was buzz over reports that Morris had wanted to transfer to UNC and play for Belichick but was rejected by general manager Mike Lombardi. Morris came in leading an offense averaging 40 points and 462 yards. He was held to a net 180 after being chased by Abou-Jaoude and other rushers on Steve Belichick\u2019s defense. He had been sacked a total of five times in the Wahoos\u2019 first seven games and suffered six by the Tar Heels.<\/p>\n UNC defensive lineman C.J. Mims celebrates a sack against Virginia, one of six for the Tar Heels on the day. (Image via Chapel Hill Media Group\/Chance Bragg)<\/p>\n As a team, the \u2018Hoos were held to a season low 259 total yards and 17 points and continues with a soft schedule (Cal, Wake Forest, Duke and Virginia Tech) and could vie for a spot in the ACC championship game in December.<\/p>\n Coach Tony Elliott is in his fourth year at Virginia and having his first winning season after serving as Clemson\u2019s offensive coordinator for six years.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a game of inches and we\u2019ve got to get our rhythm back,\u201d Elliott said. \u201cThere are some plays we\u2019ve made before, and right now we\u2019re just an inch or two off.\u201d<\/p>\n That inch or two was what Carolina needed to pull off the upset.<\/p>\n Of Belichick going for two and the win, Elliott said, \u201cI would have kicked it and given the guys another opportunity in the second overtime. But, man, he\u2019s won a lot of football games.\u201d<\/p>\n The two-point attempt was at the same endzone where UNC attempted to beat top-ranked Clemson in 2019 but Sam Howell was also stopped just short of the goal line in that 21-20 loss.<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Featured image via Chapel Hill Media Group\/Chance Bragg<\/p>\n Chapelboro.com<\/a>\u00a0does not charge subscription fees, and you can\u00a0directly support our efforts in local journalism\u00a0here<\/a>. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by\u00a0signing up for our newsletter.<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Related Stories<\/p>\n \u2039<\/p>\n Danny Talbott, a two-sport athlete at the University of North Carolina and member of the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame, has died after a long battle with cancer. He was 75. Media outlets report that Talbott died Sunday morning at his home in Rocky Mount. Talbott played varsity baseball and football for the Tar [\u2026]<\/p>\n <\/a> A bill that would allow alcohol to be sold at athletics events on campuses across the UNC System is awaiting the governor\u2019s signature to become law. And UNC \u2013 Chapel Hill officials appear eager to see its approval. The North Carolina House overwhelmingly voted this week to approve the Senate version of the bill. Advocates [\u2026]<\/p>\n <\/a> UNC hosts its Basketball Analytics summit this weekend.<\/p>\n <\/a> A Mecklenburg County judge has dismissed a lawsuit in which two former University of North Carolina athletes alleged the school failed to provide them and other athletes a quality education by directing them toward sham classes. Superior Court Judge Richard Ervin cited arguments by attorneys representing UNC that said both the statute of limitations and [\u2026]<\/p>\n <\/a> Nine UNC administrators were given raises by the university Board of Trustees during the meeting on Thursday. Athletic Director Bubba Cunningham received the biggest raise to $642,268, a $58,388 bump \u2013 which is a 10 percent increase over his previous salary. The raises were part of the consent agenda at the full board meeting after [\u2026]<\/p>\n <\/a> Another lawsuit has been filed alleging UNC did not provide a proper college education to its student athletes. A class action lawsuit was filed in Durham County on Thursday afternoon. WCHL\u2019s Blake Hodge spoke with Attorney Bob Orr who filed the suit. You can listen to that interview here.<\/p>\n <\/a> Plates were full for administrators, faculty, and students at UNC this holiday season, with commencement, final exams, and reviews from the UNC System Board of Governors. There was certainly a lot to cover on Friday, and Chancellor Folt made an effort to touch on everything in front of the Faculty Council. She encouraged as many [\u2026]<\/p>\n <\/a> UNC Chancellor Carol Folt says the big decisions about athletics that ultimately affect the University come down to the chancellor.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/AP25298643383942-scaled.jpg\")
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Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers\u00a0\u201cGame Changers,\u201d \u201cBlue Bloods,\u201d and \u201cThe Dean\u2019s List.\u201d He has contributed to WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His\u00a0\u201cSports Notebook\u201d commentary airs daily on the 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his \u201cArt\u2019s Angle\u201d opinion column runs weekly on Chapelboro.<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Talbott_Runs_Logo.jpg\"\/){kind=logo}
Former UNC Athlete Talbott Dead of Cancer at 75<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/UNC-vs.-Duke-007.jpg\"\/)
UNC – Chapel Hill Monitoring Bill that would Allow Alcohol Sales at Athletics Events<\/p>\nAt UNC, The Science Of Basketball<\/p>\n
Judge Dismisses Student-Athlete Lawsuit Against UNC<\/p>\n
UNC AD Cunningham Receives 10% Salary Hike<\/p>\n
Another Lawsuit Filed Against UNC by Former Student Athletes<\/p>\n
Temporary Process To Report Suspicious Academic Activities Unveiled<\/p>\n
Chancellor Folt Involved In Hairston Discussion<\/p>\n
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UNC Sports: Men’s Soccer Loses, Women’s Soccer Wins, Volleyball Splits Weekend Homestand<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/DSC1306-scaled.jpg\"\/)
Art’s Angle: Matter of Inches<\/p>\n