North Carolina Scores on Opening Drive vs. TCU in Invoice Belichick’s School Debut

Invoice Belichick’s first run as a school soccer coach at North Carolina is formally underway.

The NFL teaching nice took the sphere Monday night time for his school debut with the Tar Heels in opposition to TCU, sporting a well-recognized look from the professional sideline with a grey hoodie — solely this one bearing the identify “Carolina Soccer” in that particular shade of sunshine blue.

His Tar Heels, led by South Alabama switch QB Gio Lopez, acquired off to a dash of a begin, too. They marched 83 yards on the opening drive and located the top zone with Caleb Hood’s 8-yard run by means of the suitable aspect — ending what was almost a flawless first possession, then pressured a fast punt on the Horned Frogs’ first possession.

Belichick, 73, led the NFL’s New England Patriots to 6 Tremendous Bowl championships and trailed solely Don Shula on the league’s all-time wins listing. Now he is making the transition to the school stage, the results of an all-in second for UNC to raise its soccer program at a college higher identified for its storied males’s basketball program.

The buildup to the season right here had included loads of added buzz, together with the varsity promoting out all its season tickets — at an elevated worth — and single-game seats for the season. The sport additionally attracted ESPN to carry a pregame studio present from the Kenan Stadium sideline, the place Belichick popped over earlier than the sport to share a hiya with former Alabama coach Nick Saban and the remainder of that crew.

Belichick additionally roamed the sphere throughout pregame warmups as if taking all of it in for the higher a part of a half-hour. At one level, he stood on the UNC finish of the sphere with normal supervisor Michael Lombardi watching the Tar Heels, then shared a fast handshake with ACC commissioner Jim Phillips as he made his means towards midfield.

As soon as there, he shook arms with members of the officiating crew and stood close to midfield watching the Horned Frogs gamers as they went by means of warm-up drills.

The sport attracted notable former UNC figures from years previous, together with NBA legend Michael Jordan — who gained a nationwide championship beneath Dean Smith there in 1982 — and former UNC star linebacker Lawrence Taylor, who performed beneath Belichick when he was an assistant and ultimately defensive coordinator with the New York Giants within the Nineteen Eighties.

Different sports activities figures and celebrities in attendance at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill embrace New York Yankees supervisor Aaron Boone and NFL icon Randy Moss, who was noticed sharing a set with Belichick’s 24-year-old girlfriend, Jordon Hudson. Nation singer Chase Rice, who performed linebacker for UNC from 2005-08, carried out forward of kickoff. Others anticipated to be on the sport are Mia Hamm, Julius Peppers, Eric Church, Blake Snell and Jimbo Fisher.

Reporting by The Related Press.

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