Dabo Swinney vs Bill Belichick Round 2

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Dabo Swinney vs Bill Belichick round two will take place this weekend. North Carolina will take the trip to Clemson to begin ACC play this season for both programs. The Tigers and Tar Heels look to be on opposite trajectories to start the season. Belichick’s squad is off to a 2-0 start with a win over TCU and East Tennessee State.

Swinney’s team is 1-1 after losing to LSU in the opener, but bouncing back against Georgia Southern last week. Clemson continued to struggle upfront on offense, but left the game with a better idea of who will be the starting quarterback going forward. The Tigers will have to continue developing their identity as they try to hold off the Tar Heels in the conference opener.

Dabo Swinney vs Bill Belichick Round 2

Clemson vs UNC History

This will be the 62nd meeting between Clemson and North Carolina. The Tigers lead the series 41-19-1.

This year’s game will be played in Memorial Stadium. The last meeting these teams had on Clemson’s home field was during the 2023 season, which the Tigers won 31-20. That win is part of the seven straight Clemson has won over UNC, including last year’s matchup in Belichick’s first year. The Tigers won 38-10 last season in Kenan Stadium, giving Swinney the 1-0 advantage over Belichick. Swinney will look to make it 2-0 over one of the greatest football coaches of all-time this weekend.

Tait Reynolds First Start

To get that victory, Swinney is putting his trust in first-year quarterback Tait Reynolds. It was a decision that Swinney announced early in the week, after Reynolds took a majority of the snaps against Georgia Southern.

Originally, it was believed that Reynolds was being named as the starter due to an elbow injury Christopher Vizzina suffered in the first quarter against the Eagles. Swinney has mentioned in his press conference this week that the decision was actually based on performance, not the injury. He said the staff saw Vizzina miss some routine plays in his two starts and felt Reynolds gives them more of what the offense needs right now.

There is no question Reynolds ability to escape pressure and make plays with his legs is needed behind center. The offensive line still hasn’t proven to be good enough to consistently create a clean pocket. Reynolds ability to run also allows Chad Morris to call more quarterback-designed runs, which puts an extra blocker in the run game.

It’s a terrible position for Vizzina to be in after waiting so long for his opportunity. On the flip side, it’s a perfect chance for the staff to find out if they have their quarterback of the future in Reynolds. He’ll have a tall task in his first start going against an improved Tar Heels defense.

Will Swinney Go 2-0 Over Belichick?

This meeting between Clemson and UNC is a bit tough to predict. At this point in time, both programs look to be evenly matched. Currently, FanDuel has the Tigers as the 3.5-point favorite. Much of that has to do with the game taking place in Memorial Stadium.

The biggest key for Swinney is how well his offensive coordinator Morris can use Reynolds’ legs early to get him settled into the game. Right now the best thing Reynolds does is run the ball. Morris needs to allow Reynolds to use that ability to take pressure off himself and the offensive line.

Belichick and his staff have built a solid defensive front that can get after the quarterback. The best way to hold them at the line of scrimmage a second longer is showing Reynolds’ capability to run with designed runs, as well as option plays. Option plays especially will keep edge rushers honest. Then there can be run-pass option plays built off that, giving Reynolds easy reads to work off of.

Reynolds is not at a point in his career where he is going to shred defenses with his passing. The windows need to be opened for him, and that can happen using his legs. If Morris can get Reynolds going on the ground, then he can get his other playmakers the ball. That will put Swinney in a great position to go 2-0 over Belichick and get the Tigers’ conference slate started the right way.

Main Image: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

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