So far it looks like there are believers that the “Patriot Way” will take hold and work for Bill Belichick at the University of North Carolina.

Though he has never coached in college before, ESPN experts have positive expectations for Belichick’s firsts season in Chapel Hill.

As a part of their preseason bowl predictions for 2025, Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach both selected UNC to make a bowl game this season. Outside of the 12-team College Football Playoff, 70 teams will play in bowl games this season.

In order to qualify, a team must at least have a .500 record, meaning Bonagura and Schlabach think that Belichick’s first year with UNC should at least be competitive.

Prior to Belichick becoming head coach, Mack Brown had qualified the Tar Heels for six straight bowl games.

UNC however, has not won a bowl game since 2019 when they won the Military Bowl over Temple.

Last year, the team played at Fenway Park in the Fenway Wasabi Bowl. Although Belichick did not coach that game for UNC, he had already signed his deal with the school and was a major part in the environment surrounding it.

This season, while Bonagura and Schlabach did not offer a prediction into Belichick’s specific record with the Tar Heels, they did share what bowl games they think he’ll get to coach in.

Bonagura is circling the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium for UNC. He thinks they would face off with Illinois in the contest at noon, on Saturday, Dec. 27.

Schlabach on the other hand thinks the Tar Heels will play the Vanderbilt Commodores in the Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa on Friday Dec. 19 at 3:30 p.m.

Before they even begin to think about bowl season however, Belichick and UNC will have their season opener on Monday Sep. 1 at 8 p.m. at home against TCU.

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