Tag: 2024 UNC Football Season

How to watch UNC’s first game of the 2024 college football season

Here’s your everything you need to know guide for UNC’s 2024 football opener against Minnesota.

After waiting for what seemed like forever, are you finally ready to watch your North Carolina Tar Heels take the football field?

That waiting stops tonight, as UNC faces Minnesota at 8 p.m. ET in Huntington Bank Stadium. North Carolina won a 31-13, Week 3 clash last year in Kenan Stadium, but it’s the Golden Gophers’ turn to host in 2024.

There’s so much to watch for on the Tar Heels’ 2024 roster: a new starting quarterback, number one wide receiver, offensive line and an experienced defense. UNC also hired Geoff Collins as its new defensive coordinator in the offseason, with hopes the former Georgia Tech head coach can turn around a unit amongst the FBS’ worst.

North Carolina needs a victory tonight in the worst way. Beating Minnesota would showcase two things: the Tar Heels can win in tough road environments, plus compete with Power 4 schools.

If you won’t be in attendance tonight, let us deliver you all the necessary broadcast information:

UNC-MINNESOTA TV, RADIO, AND STREAMING INFORMATION

WHAT: North Carolina (0-0, 0-0 ACC) @ Minnesota (0-0, 0-0 Big 10)

WHEN: Thursday, Aug. 29 at 8 p.m. ET

LOCATION: Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, MN

TV: FOX (Watch and stream the game live on Fox Sports)

ANNOUNCERS: Jason Benetti (play-by-play), Brock Huard (analyst), Allison Williams (sideline reporter)

RADIO: Tar Heel Sports Network. Jones Angell, play-by-play;
Bryn Renner, analyst; Lee Pace, sideline

SATELLITE RADIO: SiriusXM (84 or 193)

WEBSITE: Fox Sports (sign in with TV provider)

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UNC football projected to which bowl game by The Athletic?

UNC is projected to appear in which bowl game for a sixth time?

College football season is finally here – and the North Carolina Tar Heels are eager to showcase their offseason improvements.

UNC begins its 2024 campaign on Thursday, Aug. 29 against the Minnesota Golden Gophers. North Carolina beat Minnesota last year in Chapel Hill, 31-13, in what marked the inaugural matchup between both programs.

The Tar Heels’ 2023 victory over the Golden Gophers was part of their 6-0 start, only for dreams of a College Football Playoff appearance to quickly disappear with consecutive losses to Virginia and Georgia Tech. UNC is hoping that with a fresh slate in 2024, it can jump out to another hot start – but actually finish strong and win a bowl game.

Speaking of, in early-season bowl projections, The Athletic mocks North Carolina to the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Tex. against new Big 10 school USC.

This is not the Tar Heels’ first projection to the Sun Bowl, as Action Network had the exact same pick this offseason.

UNC is no stranger to playing in the Sun Bowl, as it carries a 2-3 record in previous appearances, with its most recent outing a 25-23 loss to new ACC school Stanford in 2016. This game was largely defined by Cardinal defensive lineman Solomon Thomas causing problems at the line of scrimmage.

North Carolina’s ultimate goal is to win a bowl game, but it first has to conquer the regular season with a variety of new starters.

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UNC football players make special trip to Children’s Hospital before flight to Minnesota

The North Carolina Tar Heels begin their football season on Thursday, Aug. 29 at Minnesota. Players first made a special visit on Monday.

College football season is finally here – and the North Carolina Tar Heels are ready to press the reset button after last year’s late-season collapse.

UNC has a golden opportunity to get a rare, season-open road win at Minnesota on Thursday, Aug. 29. North Carolina still doesn’t have a starting quarterback, but instead, head coach Mack Brown said the Tar Heels will roll with both Max Johnson and Conner Harrell in the opener.

There will no doubt be some Carolina Blue in the stands at Huntington Bank Stadium Thursday night, but it won’t be the same as playing in front of the passionate crowd at Kenan Stadium.

Earlier Monday before boarding their flight to Minnesota, players took time to thank some of their greatest supporters earlier Monday, visiting the UNC Children’s Hospital.

One of those supporters even included a young Duke fan, who was overjoyed that several Tar Heels took time out of their days to visit with the children.

According to ESPN, North Carolina is a 2-point underdog entering its rematch with Minnesota. UNC handled the Golden Gophers last year, 31-13, when they came to Chapel Hill and fell victim to a 400-yard Drake Maye passing game.

When the Tar Heels return home on Saturday, September 7 to face Charlotte at 3:30 p.m., those same kids are hoping the Tar Heels will be 1-0.

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Coaching legend’s first College GameDay pick involves UNC game

Nick Saban never coached against UNC, but he gave the Tar Heels some love on the 2024 college football season’s first installation of College GameDay.

College football fans across the country can now celebrate, because the season is finally upon us.

Florida State and Georgia Tech officially kicked off the season earlier Saturday, playing in Dublin, Ireland as part of the Aer Lingus Classic. With this being Week Zero’s marquee matchup, the College GameDay crew traveled across the pond.

Who would’ve guessed our North Carolina Tar Heels, who don’t take the field until Thursday, Aug. 29 at the Minnesota Golden Gophers, were one of the first teams mentioned on GameDay?

UNC’s mention came from the GameDay crew’s Week 1 picks. There’s one new crew member you might recognize: longtime Alabama coach Nick Saban.

If you haven’t guessed the correlation between Saban and North Carolina by now, Saban made North Carolina his first-ever GameDay pick.

This is a pretty major kudos coming from the best to ever coach college football.

The Tar Heels will be playing Minnesota for a second consecutive season. Last year, UNC won 31-13 behind a 400-yard passing game from Drake Maye.

Saban was a college football head coach for 27 years, starting at Toledo then making stops at Michigan State, LSU and – most famously – Alabama. Surprisingly, Saban never coached against the Tar Heels.

Regardless of how UNC plays in 2024, it’s nice knowing the greatest coach in college football picked them to win an expectedly tough road game.

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Former Tar Heels QB Bryn Renner to join gameday radio broadcasting team

Do you remember when UNC first adopted the shotgun spread offense? The quarterback behind that will join the Tar Heels’ radio broadcast for football games this coming season.

Remember when the shotgun formation first came about in college football? How about when it became popularized?

For me, I first remember seeing the UNC football team use it during the Bryn Renner days. Renner used to hold the Tar Heels’ all-time passing touchdowns record, until Sam Howell broke it.

If anyone remembers Renner’s name, he played in Chapel Hill from 2010-2013, ending his Tar Heels career with 8,221 passing yards and 64 passing touchdowns. Renner later appeared on five NFL rosters, but never saw any regular-season NFL action.

After several coaching stops, with his most recent being the La Jolla High School football team’s quarterbacks coach, Renner will join Jones Angell on the radio for North Carolina football broadcasts.

“I’m excited for this season,” Renner said on this week’s Inside Carolina episode of Schoett & Vipp. “It’s going to be a new opportunity for me to get a chance to be back in the booth and watch the game as an analyst. I’ve had a lot of experience, obviously, coaching at FIU, and playing at Carolina. Going to give my best shot…I’m pretty aggressive and intense, so hopefully I can be calm during the games and we can have some success.”

The Tar Heels won two bowl games (shocking, right) during Renner’s time in college, which was largely overshadowed by the Butch Davis scandal.

How will UNC perform in 2024, especially now knowing a former player will be calling its games?

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UNC football program bringing back this cool tradition for 2024 season

UNC football helmets might look a little different during gamedays this fall.

After nearly eight months of waiting, how lucky are we to be blessed with the start of college football season?

More teams will have something meaningful to play for this year, as the College Football Playoff expands to 12 teams. Every program aims to make a bowl game, but ones outside of the CFP landscape just don’t have the same excitement surrounding them.

The North Carolina Tar Heels are hoping to making something out of their season, in which very few outside of Chapel Hill have high expectations for them. UNC returns star running back Omarion Hampton and sack machine Kaimon Rucker, but does not have a clear-cut starting quarterback.

Even if North Carolina doesn’t make the CFP, head coach Mack Brown is giving his players something to play for.

In a performance-based motivator, the Tar Heels will bring back an old tradition of adding stickers to their helmets. This dates back to the 1970s, when Bill Dooley was the head coach.

“We felt like visible rewards were something to help motivate the guys and show who was doing well,” Brown told Lee Pace. “Everything we’re doing now is trying to get from winning eight or nine games to winning every game,” Brown says. “So, we’re pulling out every little stop we feel might help our guys to get better.”

Incentives that players can gain stickers for include: winning the opener at Minnesota, a running back hitting 100 total yards or 50 yards after contact, an offensive lineman executing a pancake block, a linebacker recording 10+ tackles, pinning an opponent inside its own 20-yard line and earning Player of the Week honors.

Will this incentive-based performance system actually help UNC win more games? North Carolina has a fairly favorable schedule, so there’s a solid possibility players exceed expectations.

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North Carolina Tar Heels projected to win how many football games according to USA Today?

With the college football season upon us, check out how many games USA Today predicts UNC to win this fall.

The UNC football team may not have Drake Maye, Devontez Walker or Cedric Gray anymore, but it has an extremely talented, eager group led by sack machine Kaimon Rucker and All-Pro running back Omarion Hampton.

North Carolina also has a considerably easier football schedule this coming fall. After facing Minnesota on the road Thursday, Aug. 29, the Tar Heels return home to Kenan Stadium and face Charlotte, NC Central and James Madison in consecutive weeks.

UNC ends September at archrival Duke, then plays Pitt and Georgia Tech before its first bye week. North Carolina has a winnable game at Virginia, then ends its regular season with a tough stretch that includes Florida State, Boston College, and NC State.

Wake Forest is in the season-ending slate, but the Demon Deacons are coming off their worst year since 2015.

With all this being said, USA Today predicts the Tar Heels finish with an 8-4 (5-3) record. Check out what Paul Myerberg had to say about UNC’s chances:

“Miami and North Carolina have the talent to surge past our eight-win projections, though the Hurricanes could just as easily disappoint, as we’ve seen.”

Speaking of Miami, this year will be the first time – since 2003 – the Tar Heels don’t face Miami.

Can UNC exceed expectations and possibly compete for an ACC Championship?

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Only one CBS Sports expert picks UNC to finish Top 5 in the ACC

The CBS Sports “experts” don’t have a very favorable outlook on UNC’s 2024 football season.

On Thursday, Aug. 29, the North Carolina Tar Heels make their long-awaited return to the football field.

UNC heads up north for a rematch with the Minnesota Golden Gophers, whom came to Chapel Hill last season and fell victim to a 400-yard Drake Maye passing game. The Tar Heels and Golden Gophers hadn’t ever battled before 2023, so it’s exciting to see what could be the start of a new rivalry.

Looking at North Carolina’s larger roster, there’s no two players more important than running back Omarion Hampton and Kaimon Rucker. There’s a ton of talent across UNC’s roster, but no Maye or Devontez Walker.

Even with an easier schedule, there isn’t a ton of hope for the Tar Heels in 2024. This is highlighted in the CBS Sports’ college football experts’ ACC rankings.

Richard Johnson has North Carolina finishing fifth, the highest amongst expert picks. Jerry Palm, Tom Fornelli and Chip Patterson picked UNC to finish seventh, Will Backus, Shehan Jeyarajah and David Cobb have the Tar Heels ending the year eighth, while Dennis Dodd ranks North Carolina 10th.

The expert picks are valid, but think about how many times we’ve seen teams exceed – or underperform – preseason expectations. I don’t know how much UNC has listened to what the experts are saying, but with a passionate bunch like this year’s team (just visit social media), the Tar Heels will be eager to prove people wrong and finish the season strong.

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Nine Tar Heels named to prestigious Reese’s Senior Bowl Watch List

The UNC football team sports plenty of 2025 NFL hopefuls on its 2024 roster.

Every college football player’s goal is to help their team win a national championship, but they also hope to be lucky enough for NFL Draft selections.

The Reese’s Senior Bowl, seen largely as a post-college football season All-Star Game, is a great way for NFL Draft hopefuls to showcase their talents in front of NFL scouts.

Despite UNC losing football standouts Drake Maye, Devontez Walker and Cedric Gray to the 2024 NFL Draft, there are several more Tar Heels on the current roster who are 2025 NFL Draft prospects.

Those Tar Heels – Marcus Allen, Power Echols, Desmond Evans, Omarion Hampton, Max Johnson, J.J. Jones, Willie Lampkin, Bryson Nesbit and Kaimon Rucker – are being recognized with nominations to the 2025 Reese’s Senior Bowl Watch List.

Hampton is amongst the country’s best running backs, leading the ACC and finishing fifth nationally with 1,504 rushing yards last season. Rucker is one of college football’s top edge rushers, as he led North Carolina with 15 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks in 2023.

Nesbit is amongst the country’s best tight ends, combining for over 1,000 yards and eight touchdowns the past two years. Jones is poised to take over UNC’s top wide receiver spot – he led UNC with 711 receiving yards last season.

Texas A&M transfer Max Johnson is battling for the Tar Heels’s starting quarterback spot with Conner Harrell. If Johnson starts, he’ll be protected by the likes of All-ACC lineman Willie Lampkin.

Finishing up with defense, Echols will form a deadly duo with Rucker by returning 102 tackles and 5.5 tackles for loss. Evans is coming off a 33-tackle, five tackles for loss and 3-sack season that many expect out of a 5-star recruit, while Marcus Allen will arguably lead the secondary after his sophomore season with 49 tackles, an interception and a North Carolina-best eight pass breakups.

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Two UNC football standouts amongst CBS Sports’ top 151 players

Where do Omarion Hampton and Kaimon Rucker land in CBS Sports’ 2024 college football player rankings?

With all the turnover within the UNC football program this offseason, there’s a lot of mystery in Chapel Hill entering the 2024 campaign.

There was just one major coaching change, as Geoff Collins replaces Gene Chizik at defensive coordinator, but the roster changes are far greater, headlined by the departures of quarterback Drake Maye and wide receiver Tez Walker to the NFL.

Despite the roster changes, North Carolina returns two of college football’s best at their respective positions: running back Omarion Hampton and linebacker Kaimon Rucker.

CBS Sports also recognizes the talent amongst the Tar Heels’ star-studded 2024 duo, with Rucker (59) and Hampton (64) taking Top-75 spots in CBS Sports’ rankings of college football’s Top 151 players.

Check out what CBS Sports first had to say about Rucker, who led UNC with 15 tackles for loss and 8.5 sacks in 2023:

“Rucker is somewhat undersized, but doesn’t let that keep him from the quarterback,” CBS Sports’ Blake Brockermeyer wrote. “He plays with a demonic edge and is a great team leader. North Carolina has plenty of raw talent on defense, but Rucker is one of the few who has put it all together.”

Let’s now shift over to Hampton, who led the ACC and finished fifth amongst 2023 running backs with 1,504 rushing yards:

“Hampton led the ACC with almost six yards a touch en route to a 1,500-yard, 15-touchdowns season,” Brockermeyer wrote. “The bruising back added another 30 catches for 232 yards and a touchdown. Hampton had 36 explosive runs and excels in the zone scheme where he can cut back at the lineman’s heels. Excellent feet and tough to arm tackle. An area for improvement? He had three fumbles last season.”

If the Tar Heels can get consistent contributions from both Hampton and Rucker on a weekly basis, they could surprise some folks in the ACC this season.

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