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North Carolina considered a middle of the pack team in 2025 ACC Football Media Poll

Ahead of Bill Belichick's first season at the helm, the expectations aren't very high for the UNC football program.
ByNick Delahanty|
Dec 5, 2020; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; A view of the field with the ACC logo in the second quarter at Kenan Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images
Dec 5, 2020; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; A view of the field with the ACC logo in the second quarter at Kenan Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

The media hype surrounding the UNC football program is at all-time high, but the expectations for the 2025 squad don't seem to match it.

On Wednesday, the annual ACC Preseason Poll was released, as North Carolina was projected by the media to finish eighth in the conference standings.

Clemson was the clear-cut favorite to win the ACC, while Miami, SMU, Georgia Tech and Louisville round out the top five. There was quite a gap between the Tar Heels and Florida State (No. 7 in the poll), as the Seminoles earned over 300 more points in the voting process.

Bill Belichick has drawn a lot of attention to the program since his hiring, but there are still quite a few people who are skeptical about how his tenure with the UNC football program will actually go. The expectations for this year's team are low, in large part to the fact that there are 70 newcomers to the roster and no one knows how the new pieces (coaching staff included) will all gel together.

If you're a Tar Heels fan, you shouldn't be bothered by the preseason polls. Teams like Clemson who have a returning top-tier quarterback and a coach who has led the program for quite some time are going to be the projected favorites, it doesn't mean that it will actually come to fruition.

North Carolina doesn't need any more pressure than it has now that Belichick is in town. The low expectations for the 2025 season should serve as fuel for the players to prove everyone wrong right out of the gate.

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