CBS Sports has UNC facing Big 12 school in early bowl projections

In just three short months, your North Carolina Tar Heels will be taking the football field. After an extremely disappointing 2025 season, UNC is hoping for better fortunes in Bill Belichick’s second go-round.

North Carolina faced a fairly easy schedule last year, playing just one ranked team in Virginia. The Tar Heels nearly won that game, but a failed 2-point conversion sealed their fate.

UNC’s schedule is amongst the country’s toughest in 2026, but a bowl game is still within reach. In CBS Sports’ post-spring bowl projections, North Carolina will face Cincinnati in the Servpro First Responder Bowl. It would be their first bowl game since the 2024 season after missing out in year one under Bill Belichick.

The Tar Heels start their fall with an across-the-pond, August 29 rematch vs. TCU in Dublin, Ireland. UNC has its first of two bye weeks over Labor Day weekend, then opens at home vs. East Tennessee State on September 12.

North Carolina’s gauntlet begins Sept. 19 at Clemson, then continues two weeks later vs. Notre Dame. Road trips at Pitt (October 10) and Duke (Oct. 17) follow, before hosting Syracuse (Oct. 24) and 2026 CFP Finalist Miami (Oct. 31).

The Tar Heels travel to UConn (November 7), host Louisville (Nov. 14), head to Virginia (Nov. 21) and welcome NC State (Nov. 28) to end their regular season.

Fans don’t have a super-clear picture of UNC’s 2026 roster yet, but expect a higher-power offense led by Bobby Petrino. Billy Edwards and Taron Dickens will battle for starting quarterback reps, while Derek McDonald and Jaylen Harvey are some defensive stars to look out for.

Looking at North Carolina’s schedule, how many games do you see the boys winning? Six will be tough, but everyone is currently 0-0.

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This article originally appeared on Tar Heels Wire: UNC Football: Tar Heels projected to return to bowl game