Bill Belichick's North Carolina Tar Heels Secure First Ranked Victory
Head coach Bill Belichick addressed his players and was gifted a game ball after North Carolina's upset win over No. 25 Pittsburgh.
Bill Belichick earned his first victory over a top-25 opponent as the head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels, who defeated the No. 25 Pittsburgh Panthers 21-17. The win moved North Carolina to 3-2 on the season.
The Tar Heels trailed early, down 10-0, but rallied with two touchdowns in the second and third quarters to take a 14-10 lead. After Pittsburgh scored early in the fourth quarter to go up 17-14, North Carolina responded immediately with a 75-yard touchdown pass to secure the 21-17 victory.
Following the game, footage released by UNC's football staff captured Belichick addressing his team in the locker room. "Hey, look, fellas, that's the way to grind it out now," Belichick told his players. "Gotta grind it out. We've been in a lot of close games. We'll probably be in more of them. A couple guys came off the bench, didn't practice much, hadn't worked much, came in there, gave us some big snaps. It was a good team win."
He continued, "You guys did a hell of a job. Let's take it in stride. Let's take it in stride, okay? There's a lot more of these ahead of us. We just got to keep grinding and keep working. That's a hell of a job today. That's the way to out-tough them, out-compete them and I say outplay them in the second half. Great job, congratulations."
In recognition of the milestone, junior wide receiver Jordan Shipp presented Belichick with the game ball. "Before we break, first ranked win. Plenty more to come," Shipp said. "You go through a lot of fire, you help us prepare. You do a lot for us. First game ball, Coach B." The team then celebrated with Belichick, who held the game ball aloft.
