The confetti has barely settled on the Seahawks’ Super Bowl victory, but the countdown to the next season has already begun. In between, we’ll have spring practices, combines, and the draft, but the next time players return for a nationally televised game outside of preseason, we’ll see an unlikely matchup.

The TV schedule is out. As we already know, college ball starts before the pros are back into action in the first week of September. As is the tradition, Week 0 starts with a trip to Ireland. In the matchup that officially kicks off the 2026 season, Bill Belichick’s UNC will take on TCU in Dublin, Ireland, on August 29.

The TCU-UNC matchup carries significance for Belichick for many reasons. First and most obvious, it marks the opening college football game of the season.

The second reason is that the game will also serve as a rematch of the 2025 game, a game Belichick would like to forget (apart from the first drive). For close to 10 minutes, with stars like Michael Jordan on the sidelines, the Tar Heels had the attention of the entire nation. For that brief period, it seemed like Bill Belichick would take to college ball like a fish to water.

But the Horned Frogs had other plans. They demolished the home team, and the final score (14-48) justified the kind of carnage and embarrassment it was for the Tar Heels. That loss began a series of negative news cycles that ultimately became the only constant of Belichick’s first year at UNC.

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But his second year at UNC? Well, it’s time for redemption. Belichick wants to get things right this season. The first season can be forgotten, but no improvement in the second season of his tenure could hurt Belichick’s image. Being a six-time Super Bowl champion and widely regarded as one of the greatest head coaches ever comes with its risks, especially after a 4-8 season last year.

One season alone cannot define or diminish his legacy, but it did raise questions about how a three-time NFL Coach of the Year struggled at the collegiate level. Some reports pointed to a toxic culture being placed within the program. Other reports claimed the locker room was divided between transfer additions and players recruited under the previous regime. It also didn’t help that the head coach’s personal life brought unnecessary drama for the program.

Whatever the reasons were, Belichick knows he cannot have a repeat this season. And while he prepares for 2026, he will have an added layer of motivation after being snubbed from the Hall of Fame.

NFL legend angry at Bill Belichick’s HoF snub

While his college football career did not start great, Bill Belichick’s NFL achievements are undeniable. So, it did come as a shock to many when Belichick was snubbed from being inducted into the Hall of Fame, even though his name appeared on the ballot. Alongside Belichick, New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft couldn’t make the coveted list.

That did not sit well with legendary wide receiver Randy Moss, who couldn’t sit quietly by amid the “disrespect.”

“I’m not going to really sit up here and just badmouth the Hall, ’cause there are some guys that just got selected to this year’s Pro Football Hall of Fame that I do not want to take the light from,” Moss said. “But one thing about not electing Robert Kraft, not electing Bill Belichick, is the one thing that I would talk to all the voters. I really believe, as a football player, if you didn’t play it, if you didn’t coach it, you shouldn’t have a vote. I don’t care who you are, I don’t care how you feel about it. Like I said, I don’t wanna take no shine away from the guys elected today, and that’s it for me.”

That wasn’t just Moss’ words. It represented the dominant discourse post the snub. Many HoFers questioned the committee’s composition and even suggested limiting voting to former players or HoFers. It’s likely that Belichick will get in on the second attempt, but it will be a bittersweet moment for a person whom many consider a historian of the NFL.