‘6 More Total Touchdowns in Half a Season’ — Gio Lopez Thrives at Wake Forest as Bill Belichick, UNC Beat Ranked Pitt

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North Carolina coach Bill Belichick and his former starting quarterback, Gio Lopez, parted ways in January, and both had something to celebrate Saturday afternoon.

North Carolina beat No. 25 Pitt 21-17 for Belichick’s first college win over a ranked team, while Lopez accounted for four touchdowns in Wake Forest’s 38-14 win at NC State.

Lopez, who started 11 games for the Tar Heels in 2025, entered the transfer portal after their 4-8 season. His new team has won three straight and is 5-1, 3-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Bill Belichick-Gio Lopez Breakup Sees Early Returns

The Tar Heels needed only one snap to answer. La’Vell Wright’s 1-yard run put Pitt ahead 17-14 early in the fourth quarter, and on North Carolina’s next play, quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. found tight end Shamar Easter for a 75-yard touchdown.

Pitt outgained the Tar Heels 369-269 and held them to 20 rushing yards on 25 carries, but the Panthers went 0-for-4 on fourth down, including three straight stops by UNC’s defense to end the game. Edwards finished 18 of 26 for 249 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.

It was UNC’s first win over a ranked opponent in three seasons and its first road win over a top-25 team since beating No. 9 Miami in 2020. It also handed Pitt, now 5-1, its first loss.

The win lifted the Tar Heels to 3-2, and Belichick praised their resolve in an interview on ESPN after the game. “Gutsy performance. Kept battling against a good football team.”

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“Bill Belichick gets his first Top 25 win at UNC, knocking off 5-0 Pitt 21-17,” wrote Stewart Mandel, editor-in-chief of college football coverage at The Athletic.

Edwards, a senior who had played at Wisconsin and Maryland, is the quarterback who replaced Lopez. The Durham Herald-Sun reported in January that Lopez’s decision to enter the transfer portal came one day after North Carolina landed Edwards.

Lopez drove to Wake Forest the day after entering the portal and reunited with offensive coordinator Rob Ezell, who built the offense he ran at South Alabama. In 11 starts at UNC in 2025, he threw for 1,747 yards and 10 touchdowns and ran for three more scores.

Lopez told Wake Forest’s athletics website in August that North Carolina gave him his chance to play. “So I’m thankful for every opportunity I had. I got to learn a lot there.”

This season, Lopez took 1,377 passing yards and 15 total touchdowns into Saturday, then added 303 yards and four more scores. One fan did the math. “Gio Lopez has 6 more total touchdowns in half a season for Wake Forest than he did in a full year at North Carolina.”

Gio Lopez Leads Wake Forest Past NC State for Third Straight Win

Against NC State, Lopez went 26 of 33 for 303 yards without an interception, and the Demon Deacons pulled away after trailing 14-10 at halftime. On Pro Football Network’s quarterback board, Lopez’s PFN Impact grade of 89.1 through Week 5 ranks 7th of 165 graded and qualified FBS quarterbacks.

Lopez hit receiver Carlos Hernandez from 6 yards and tight end Jack Foley from 10 in the third quarter, then ran in from a yard out on fourth-and-goal as Wake scored the game’s final 31 points. Foley finished with 156 receiving yards on eight catches, and Hernandez added 12 catches for 117 yards.

The Deacons have won three straight since a 33-20 home loss to No. 5 Miami on Sept. 18, and another fan saw a clear pecking order in the league. “Wake Forest scores 31 unanswered points for a definitive 38-14 win over NC State. Deacs are the real deal No. 2 team in the ACC and it’s not close.”

Wake Forest’s winning streak opened with a 30-27 win at Louisville, then ranked No. 16, and continued with a 57-3 home rout of Stanford. Saturday’s win came against an NC State team that fell to 3-3 and ran for 15 yards on 24 carries.

NC State coach Dave Doeren said before the game that 13 of his 14 meetings with Wake Forest had been one-possession games and that this might be the best Wake team he had faced.

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Still, another fan wasn’t convinced. “Are they better than Duke? Asking for a friend.”

PFN’s College Football Playoff Meter gives Wake Forest a 34.4% chance to reach the ACC title game, a 7.7% chance to win it and an 8.3% chance to make the College Football Playoff. The Deacons were unranked entering Saturday. Those numbers should likely be on the rise after their performance this weekend.

Looking Ahead in Week 7 to Berkeley, Durham

Wake Forest visits Cal next Saturday in Week 7, a game PFN’s College Football Playoff Meter gives the Deacons a 67.1% chance to win. They return home to face Virginia on Oct. 31.

North Carolina plays at Duke the same day, a game PFN’s College Football Playoff Meter gives the Tar Heels a 40.8% chance to win. Belichick had already turned his attention to the rivalry. “We’ve just got to get ready for Duke.”

This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.

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