On Saturday afternoon, there was definitely a growing concern regarding Gio Lopez's apparent lower-body injury that he suffered in the UNC football program's loss to UCF.
Lopez was forced to leave the game and was taken into the locker room on a cart, as the left-handed quarterback looked to be in some serious pain as his head was buried into his hands as he departed the field.
While the UNC football program has yet to reveal any specifics, Pete Nakos of On3 provided a positive update regarding the injury.
North Carolina starting quarterback Gio Lopez did not suffer a season-ending injury Saturday at UCF, sources tell @On3sports.
— Pete Nakos (@PeteNakos_) September 22, 2025
Tar Heels are on the bye before hosting Clemson on Oct. 4.
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The good news is that Lopez's injury isn't expected to be season-ending. However, a potential timetable for return has not been revealed, leaving room to think that this could be something that could take a few weeks to heal. The report from On3 goes on to say that an early-October return isn't out of the question for Lopez.
With the Tar Heels only scheduled to play one game over a 26-day span, it might buy Lopez some more time to return. After the "bye week" this weekend, the UNC football program hosts Clemson the weekend following, then will have another week off to reset and refresh.
For now, the UNC football program will breathe a sigh of relief that the injury wasn't essentially the worst-case type of scenario. Now, it remains to be seen if (and how long) this injury will sideline Lopez, playing another role in the program's quarterback situation moving forward.
If Lopez misses any time, expect Max Johnson, who has relieved Lopez twice thus far this season, to take over the reins as the team's starting quarterback.