Heel Tough Blog: Stock Report- TCU

UNC Athletics

The Tar Heels kicked the 2026 season off with a bang by picking up the biggest win of the Bill Belichick era in Dublin, Ireland over TCU. This win readjusts the expectations for this season and provides a spark for a program and fanbase that was sorely needed. Here is a look at the stock report after an encouraging start to the 2026 season.

⇧Xavier Lewis

Lewis, a former walk-on, was the best player on the field on Saturday. Last year, Lewis was a guy that the team could only play on obvious passing downs, but it was notable early in the game that he had put on the weight and strength needed to succeed on run downs. His quick release of the line of scrimmage allowed him to shoot gaps throughout the day and make plays in the backfield. He finished the game with seven total tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks and five total quarterback pressures in a monstrous performance that this defense needed. This type of game shouldn’t be the expectation for him, but being a consistent, disruptive piece of that defensive line that plays close to 50 snaps a game feels like something he can be this season.

⇧Jelani Thurman

Just like Lewis’ performance, Thurman’s showing in Ireland has Tar Heel fans buzzing about his potential for this season. The Ohio State transfer tight end led the Tar Heels in receiving, hauling in four passes for 94 yards on eight targets. The majority of his yards (73) came after the catch and that is a promising sign for the short passing game that the team will probably rely on a decent amount with Billy Edwards Jr. at quarterback. He had a chance to catch a touchdown pass in the first quarter but couldn’t haul in a pass thrown behind him, which would have been an exclamation point on his performance. He still may have added that exclamation point, though, with the way that he blocked in the run game. This game shows that the team has a true weapon at the tight end position and that all the talk in the preseason about him was justified.

⇧Offensive Line

There were a lot of concerns around this unit entering the game, but those worries quickly dissipated. The group as a whole didn’t grade out very well in run blocking situations, but it still felt like there was better push than there was a year ago on those run downs. Where they shined was in pass protection, where PFF credited them with allowing just one sack and five total pressures. There is no denying that this unit will face tougher tests in the coming weeks than this TCU unit that failed to produce a lot of pressure a year ago, but this was a nice start for this overhauled group.

⇧Jordan Shipp

The passing game was one of the most satisfying elements of this game and Shipp was one of the guys who shined the most. While Thurman led the team in receiving, Shipp caught a team-high five passes on eight targets for 71 yards and created some nice separation throughout the game. With more options in this pass-catcher room this season and a more accurate quarterback than a season ago, this could have been the start of a big season for him.

⇧Melkart Abou Jaoude

Abou Jaoude came in as one of the focal points on this Tar Heel defense and made some important plays throughout the day. Abou Jaoude may have only tallied two total pressures, but one of those was the important sack fumble that led to the field goal from Aeron Burrell that extended the lead to five. He also finished the day with four total tackles, three of which were solos. This was a nice performance from Abou Jaoude, who is looking to build on what he did last season.

⇧Derek McDonald

It wasn’t a perfect showing from McDonald, but he proved why this staff has developed so much trust in him. After a couple of missed tackles early in the game, McDonald was the team’s most productive tackler, piling up 11 total tackles on the day, and held his own in coverage, allowing just 21 yards on five receptions. His performance should make Tar Heel fans confident that they have one linebacker that they can trust.

⇧Leroy Jackson

There were a lot of expectations for Jackson heading into this season, but he is trending up after a really strong showing in the opener. His eight total tackles were second-most on the team on Saturday, as were his four defensive stops, tackles that constitute a “failure” for the offense. Jackson picked right up where he left off last year as a guy who just constantly sheds and eats up run plays on the interior.

⇧Coleman Bryson

Bryson played some important rotational reps in this game and made some plays when the Tar Heels needed him to. Most of his snaps came in the second half and he made some important plays that helped the team close out the victory, despite only having two tackles and not registering any other significant snaps. If he continues to play the way that he did in the second half of this game, it will be hard not to play him more in that safety spot next to Greg Smith.

⇧Jaylen Harvey

Harvey started the season off with a really solid showing against the Horned Frogs. He was very active around the football, collecting five total tackles and while he may not have gotten to the quarterback for a sack, he did have three pressures, which were the most on the team outside of Xavier Lewis. He wasn’t great at holding the edge in the run game, but it’s hard not to love what he brought from a pass rushing perspective.

⇧Jonathan Agumadu

Like Bryson, Agumadu played the majority of his snaps in the second half as an important sub at linebacker. In 29 snaps, he finished the season with five total tackles, including two defensive stops, and was around the ball throughout the second half. The most important play of the day, the incompletion by Jaden Craig on 4th & 2 on the final TCU offensive drive, happened in large part because of the angle that Agumadu took to the ball carrier. With the way that he played on Saturday, he could legitimately be battling for the starting job at weakside linebacker over the course of the next week.

⇧Billy Edwards Jr.

Edwards was another guy that wasn’t perfect in this game, but made the plays that he needed to for the Tar Heels to win. While he definitely had some misses that he needs to clean up, he still threw for 232 yards, the most by a quarterback in the Bill Belichick era. The thing that really stood out was his decision-making, which is what we were told won him the job in the first place. There wasn’t a single throw that seemed to go somewhere it shouldn’t and with receivers running as open as they were thanks to new offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino, Edwards was able to more consistently move the offense than Gio Lopez did a year ago. Edwards isn’t exactly going to wow you with the plays that he makes, but he justified the reasons that the staff went with him over Miles O’Neill and showed that this team can win some games with him under center.

⇧Bill Belichick

This was a massive victory for Belichick in a multitude of ways. Not only is this a huge boost for this season and the hopes of getting to a bowl game, but this is the most significant win of his tenure so far. This win doesn’t mean that everything is guaranteed to turn in the right direction, but if it does, this could be the moment people point back to. A win like this creates belief in what is taught and preached and that is something that was sorely needed for this staff. This doesn’t erase everything that happened in Year 1, but it is the most promising way that this season could have begun.

⇩Peyton Seelmann

Seelmann was one of the few players that clearly struggled on Saturday in Dublin. He struggled to fill gaps on the edge and was taken advantage of in pass coverage, allowing all three of his targets to be caught for 67 yards. The staff decided to trust Agumadu down the stretch as we talked about above and it sets up for a battle for snaps heading into the game with East Tennessee State.

⇩Aeron Burrell

Burrell handled both the kicking and punting duties for the Tar Heels in Ireland and it wasn’t the best start for him. While he made all of his extra points and his two short field goals, he proved that range might be an issue with his miss from 42 yards in the 4th quarter. He also had his issues in the punting game, averaging just 41.7 yards per punt and setting up with the only TCU touchdown on a line-drive kick that went just 35 yards and netted two yards. The hope is that he can provide more power as both a placekicker and punter if he’s going to hold both roles throughout the season.