The 2026 North Carolina Tar Heels football team represents the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) during the 2026 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Tar Heels are led by Bill Belichick in his second season as their head coach. They play their home games at Kenan Stadium located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Offseason Coaching changes After the conclusion of the 2025 season, the following changes were made to the Tar Heel football staff for the 2026 season.
Freddie Kitchens Offensive coordinator Dismissed Bobby Petrino
Departures NFL draft
Transfers Source: Name No. Pos. Height Weight Hometown Year New school Connor Cox 81 TE 6'5" 225 Jacksonville, FL Junior Virginia Chris Culliver 3 WR 6'2" 180 Maiden, NC Junior Marshall Jason Robinson Jr. 5 WR 5'10" 145 San Juan Capistrano, CA Freshman Portland State Paul Billups 11 WR 6'2" 185 Chesapeake, VA Sophomore Norfolk State Khmori House 7 LB 6'2" 210 Bellflower, CA Sophomore Arkansas Ty White 0 CB 5'11" 185 Buford, GA Sophomore NC State Jani Norwood 56 IOL 6'4" 300 Ramseur, NC Freshman Boston College Yasir Smith 82 TE 6'5" 265 Summerville, SC Freshman East Tennessee State William Boone 71 OT 6'6" 340 Conyers, GA Senior Texas State Aziah Johnson 81 WR 6'2" 175 Richmond, VA Sophomore «» Max Johnson 14 QB 6'4.5" 215 Watkinsville, GA Senior Georgia Southern Javarius Green 9 WR 5'11" 190 Shelby, NC Sophomore Boston College Davion Gause 37 RB 5'10" 205 Hollywood, FL Sophomore NC State Miles McVay 54 IOL 6'6" 373 East St. Louis, IL Sophomore Mississippi State Khalil Conley 26 CB 5'11" 170 Arden, NC Freshman Appalachian State Jake Johnson 19 TE 6'4.5" 206 Bogart, GA Junior Auburn Kenedy Uzoma 83 WR 6'6" 212 Baltimore, MD Freshman Temple Malcolm Ziglar 3 S 6'1.5" 195 Fuquay Varina, NC Sophomore South Florida Tyler Thompson 40 EDGE 6'4" 225 Cary, NC Sophomore Louisville Devin Ancrum 93 DL 6'3" 280 Buford, GA Freshman Charlotte Alex Taylor 0 WR 6'3" 175 Greensboro, NC Freshman Georgia Southern Bryce Baker 2 QB 6'2.25" 200 Kernersville, NC Freshman Virginia Tech Chinedu Onyeagoro 28 EDGE 6'2.5" 225 Los Angeles, CA Freshman Long Beach City Kamarion Thomas 86 DL 6'3" 280 Brooklyn, NY Freshman UMass Jaylon Nichols 20 RB 5'11" 170 Monroe, LA Freshman «» Bo Burkes 57 IOL 6'4" 288 Centreville, AL Junior Jacksonville State Austin Alexander 47 EDGE 6'3.5" 240 Burlington, KY Freshman Western Michigan Gio Lopez 7 QB 5'11" 233 Madison, AL Sophomore Wake Forest Guytano Bartolomeo 97 K 5'10" 170 Oradell, NJ Freshman Merrimack Mikai Gbayor 4 LB 6'2" 230 Irvington, NJ Senior Florida State C.J. Mims 92 DL 6'3" 288 Vanceboro, NC Junior Texas A&M D'Antre Robinson 6 DL 6'3.5" 315 Orlando, FL Freshman Oregon
«» Indicates player has not yet enrolled at a new school.
Additions Incoming transfers Source:
Name No. Pos. Height Weight Hometown Year Previous school Billy Edwards Jr. 9 QB 6'3" 215 Burke, VA Senior Wisconsin Andrew Threatt 75 IOL 6'3" 310 Chesterfield, SC Junior Charleston Southern Jaxxon Warren 17 TE 6'7" 235 Flower Mound, TX Junior Colorado State Jaylen Harvey 11 EDGE 6'2" 250 Potomac, MD Freshman Penn State Trech Kekahuna 2 WR 5'10" 180 Las Vegas, NV Sophomore Wisconsin Tarvorise Brown 14 DL 6'7" 296 Miami, FL Sophomore Florida Ade Willie 3 CB 6'2" 185 Baltimore, MD Senior Michigan State Miles O'Neill 8 QB 6'4.5" 218 Marblehead, MA Freshman Texas A&M Peyton Seelmann 10 LB 6'1" 225 Mechanicsville, VA Sophomore Richmond Mason Humphrey 4 WR 6'4" 215 Grayson, GA Junior Lehigh Jac'Qawn McRoy 71 OT 6'8" 370 Pinson, AL Sophomore Arkansas Aeron Burrell 92 K 6'2" 180 Bossier City, LA Sophomore LSU Rowan Byrne 52 IOL 6'4.5" 285 New Rochelle, NY Freshman Clemson Derek McDonald 15 LB 6'4" 230 Atlanta, GA Senior Syracuse Jelani Thurman 45 TE 6'6" 233 Fairburn, GA Junior Ohio State Jordan Washington 80 TE 6'4" 220 Houston, TX Freshman Texas Donovan Hoilette Jr. 5 DL 6'4" 245 West Palm Beach, FL Senior Richmond Brandon Homady 55 IOL 6'3.5" 280 North Royalton, OH Freshman West Virginia Kaleb Jackson 5 RB 5'10" 195 Baton Rouge, LA Junior LSU
Recruiting class Source:
Personnel Coaching staff North Carolina Tar Heels coaches Bill Belichick Head coach 2nd Michael Lombardi General manager 2nd Bobby Petrino Offensive coordinator 1st Will Friend Offensive line coach 2nd Matt Lombardi Quarterbacks coach 2nd Garrick McGee Wide receivers coach 2nd Natrone Means Running backs coach 6th Corey Gaynor Offensive assistant/offensive line 1st Caleb Pickrell Tight ends coach 5th Stephen Belichick Defensive coordinator/linebackers coach 2nd Bob Diaco Defensive line coach 2nd Brian Belichick Defensive backs/safeties coach 2nd Armond Hawkins Cornerbacks coach 2nd Jamie Collins Inside linebackers coach 2nd Ty Nichols Outside linebackers coach 2nd Manny Miles Defensive assistant 4th Billy Miller Special teams assistant 2nd Brian Hess Head strength and conditioning coach 8th Brian Simmons Senior advisor to head coach 3rdReference:
Roster 2026 North Carolina Tar Heels Football RosterQuarterback 3 Travis Burgess – freshman (6'4, 193) 8 Miles O'Neill – sophomore (6'5, 220) 9 Billy Edwards Jr. – graduate (6'3, 228) 10 Au'Tori Newkirk – freshman (6'3, 200) 15 DJ Mazzone – sophomore (6'0, 175) 18 Andres Miyares Jr. – sophomore (6'1, 210)
Running back 0 Demon June – sophomore (5'11, 215) 5 Kaleb Jackson – junior (6'0, 234) 7 Benjamin Hall – junior (5'11, 235) 20 Crew Davis – freshman (5'11, 199) 23 Charleston French – junior (5'9, 205) 26 JoJo Troupe – freshman (5'8, 200) 27 Jaylen McGill – sophomore (5'10, 200)
Wide receiver 1 Jordan Shipp – junior (6'2, 190) 2 Trech Kekahuna – junior (5'10, 185) 4 Mason Humphrey – senior (6'4, 215) 6 Dayton Sneed – junior (6'0, 196) 11 Nathan Leacock – junior (6'3, 217) 14 C.J. Sadler – freshman (5'9, 183) 16 Zamaurious Robertson – freshman (6'0, 167) 17 Nyqir Helton – freshman (5'11, 182) 24 Jaden Jefferson – freshman (5'9, 165) 81 Kymistrii Young – freshman (6'2, 192) 82 Keeyun Chapman – freshman (6'3, 209) 83 Carnell Warren – freshman (6'3, 208) 86 Madrid Tucker – freshman (5'10, 170)
Placekicker 92 Aeron Burrell – junior (6'2, 190) 97 David Green – freshman (5'10, 183)
Punter 91 Adam McCann-Gibbs – freshman (6'0, 208) 93 Jacob Horvath – junior (6'1, 190) Tight end 19 Jaxxon Warren – sophomore (6'8, 245) 45 Jelani Thurman – junior (6'6, 250) 80 Jordan Washington – sophomore (6'4, 264) 84 Shamar Easter – junior (6'5, 215) 85 Dream Rashad – freshman (6'5, 222) 87 Carson Sneed – freshman (6'6, 242) 88 Deems May – senior (6'2, 230)
Fullback 47 Henry Martello – freshman (6'4, 250)
Offensive line 51 Peter Pesansky – sophomore (6'2, 290) 52 Rowan Byrne – freshman (6'5, 296) 54 Jonah Rodriguez – junior (6'4, 294) 55 Brandon Homady – freshman (6'3, 298) 56 Christo Kelly – graduate (6'4, 305) 57 Will Conroy – freshman (6'2, 290) 60 Cristian Alvarez – freshman (6'4, 285) 65 Zion Smith – freshman (6'3, 320) 66 Jordan Hall – junior (6'8, 336) 67 Dujuan Davis – freshman (6'9, 380) 68 Aidan Banfield – junior (6'3, 300) 70 Byron Nelson – freshman (6'3, 300) 71 Jacqawn McRoy – sophomore (6'8, 335) 72 Eidan Buchanan – sophomore (6'9, 330) 73 J.B. Shabazz – freshman (6'5, 333) 74 Nick Fiumara – freshman (6'4, 297) 75 Andrew Threatt – senior (6'3, 315) 77 Trey Blue – freshman (6'6, 330) 79 Anthony Hall – freshman (6'3, 356)
Defensive line 0 Isaiah Johnson – senior (6'2, 320) 5 Donovan Hoilette Jr. – graduate (6'4, 245) 9 Melkart Abou Jaoude – senior (6'5, 260) 11 Jaylen Harvey – sophomore (6'2, 246) 14 Tarvorise Brown – junior (6'7, 296) 25 Joseph Mupoyi – junior (6'5, 261) 29 Zavion Griffin-Haynes – freshman (6'5, 235) 56 Viliami Moala – freshman (6'2, 357) 88 Vodney Cleveland – freshman (6'3, 320) 89 Emmanuel Nwaiwu – freshman (6'4, 250) 90 Xavier Lewis – sophomore (6'0, 250) 91 Leroy Jackson – sophomore (6'1, 290) 92 Jimmy-Phrisco Alo-Suliafu – freshman (6'3, 271) 93 Trashawn Ruffin – freshman (6'3, 350) 94 David Jackson III – freshman (6'0, 208) 96 Nicco Maggio – freshman (6'1, 290) 97 Trey Giddens – freshman (6'3, 275) Linebacker 8 Jonathan Agumadu – sophomore (6'2, 220) 10 Peyton Seelmann – junior (6'1, 225) 12 Calvin Thomas – freshman (6'3, 207) 15 Derek McDonald – graduate (6'4, 230) 26 DQ Forkpa – freshman (6'1, 226) 33 Tyler Houser – freshman (6'2, 220) 35 Ashton Blatt – freshman (6'3, 230) 36 Jayden Griffin-Haynes – freshman (6'2, 198) 42 Jordan Avinger – freshman (6'1, 221) 43 Lantz Pascal – freshman (6'1, 225) 44 Jake Bauer – freshman (6'1, 225) 54 Timir Hickman-Collins – sophomore (6'2, 215) 95 Daniel Anderson – sophomore (6'1, 245)
Defensive back 1 Greg Smith – sophomore (6'4, 215) 2 Kaleb Cost – senior (5'11, 195) 3 Ade Willie – senior (6'1, 190) 4 Jalon Thompson – junior (5'11, 185) 6 Tre Miller – junior (5'10, 180) 7 Peyton Waters – sophomore (6'1, 185)16 Coleman Bryson – senior (6'2, 210) 17 Jakob Weatherspoon – freshman (5'11, 165) 18 Jaiden Patterson – junior (6'1, 195) 19 Reggie Love II – junior (5'8, 175) 20 Xavier Jackson – freshman (6'1, 188) 21 Kenton Dopson III – freshman (6'0, 190) 23 Khristian Dunbar-Hawkins – sophomore (5'11, 185) 24 Javion Butts – freshman (6'1, 175) 27 Graham Reintjes – freshman (6'1, 185) 28 Jamarrion Gordon – freshman (5'11, 202) 30 Jaziel Hart – freshman (5'11, 180) 31 Julian Peterson – freshman (6'2, 183) 32 Jermaine Anderson – freshman (6'2, 195) 34 David Davis – freshman (6'0, 191) 38 Julian Burns – freshman (6'3, 194)Long snappers''' 40 Roman Wazni – freshman (6'0, 205)48 Gannon Burt – junior (6'1, 205)''* North Carolina Tar Heels Football Roster as of 6/24/2026
Schedule
Game summaries vs. TCU (Aer Lingus College Football Classic)
Statistics UNCTCU First downs 20 17 Plays–yards 57–322 71–281 Rushes–yards 29–90 39–106 Passing yards 232 175 Passing: –– 16–28–0 20–32–0 Turnovers 2 1 Time of possession 26:58 33:02 Team Category Player Statistics North Carolina Passing Billy Edwards Jr. 16/28, 232 yards Rushing Benjamin Hall 11 carries, 36 yards Receiving Jelani Thurman 4 receptions, 94 yards TCU Passing Jaden Craig 20/32, 172 yards Rushing Jeremy Payne 25 carries, 142 yards Receiving Ed Small 9 receptions, 65 yards
East Tennessee State (FCS)
Statistics ETSUUNC First downs 16 23 Plays–yards 67–255 53–427 Rushes–yards 35–77 27–161 Passing yards 178 266 Passing: comp–att–int 23–32–1 18–26–0 Turnovers 2 0 Time of possession 33:44 26:16 Team Category Player Statistics East Tennessee State Passing Mason Mims 23/31, 178 yards, INT Rushing TJ Peyton 13 carries, 52 yards Receiving Charlie Browder 3 receptions, 50 yards North Carolina Passing Billy Edwards Jr. 15/20, 244 yards, 2 TD Rushing Benjamin Hall 4 carries, 49 yards Receiving Jelani Thurman 4 receptions, 71 yards, TD
At Clemson
Statistics UNCCLEM First downs 20 20 Plays–yards 69–349 66–401 Rushes–yards 39–214 36–186 Passing yards 135 215 Passing: –– 13–30–1 20–30–1 Turnovers 2 2 Time of possession 33:32 26:28 Team Category Player Statistics North Carolina Passing Billy Edwards Jr. 13/30, 135 yards, TD, INT Rushing Benjamin Hall 18 carries, 130 yards Receiving Jordan Shipp 6 receptions, 68 yards Clemson Passing Tait Reynolds 20/29, 215 yards, TD, INT Rushing Gideon Davidson 16 carries, 105 yards, TD Receiving T. J. Moore 7 receptions, 38 yards
No. 3 Notre Dame
Statistics NDUNC First downs Plays–yards Rushes–yards Passing yards Passing: –– Turnovers Time of possession Team Category Player Statistics Notre Dame Passing Rushing Receiving North Carolina Passing Rushing Receiving
At No. 25 Pittsburgh
Statistics UNCPITT First downs Plays–yards Rushes–yards Passing yards Passing: –– Time of possession Team Category Player Statistics North Carolina Passing Rushing Receiving Pittsburgh Passing Rushing Receiving
At Duke
Statistics UNCDUKE First downs Plays–yards Rushes–yards Passing yards Passing: –– Time of possession Team Category Player Statistics North Carolina Passing Rushing Receiving Duke Passing Rushing Receiving
Syracuse