The unique construction of UNC’s schedule meant the Tar Heels had two open dates in the season’s first month. That lighter workload came with a caveat: from Oct. 3 onward, it’s nine straight weeks of football, football, football.
Some gridiron junkies and fans might be into something like that. But for a team as battered and bruised as Carolina, it means finding solutions to numerous roster problems. For example, against Syracuse last weekend, UNC played only three wide receivers: Jordan Shipp, Trech Kekahuna and freshman Nyqir Helton.
Helton, who’s earned the nickname “Boomer” because of his explosive capabilities, made the first two catches of his collegiate career against the Orange. He did so while playing in a role previously filled by fellow freshman C.J. Sadler. Both head coach Bill Belichick and receivers coach Garrick McGee noted consistency and dependability are key factors in deciding who sees the field, with McGee praising Helton’s development since the beginning of the season.
“He’s been coming on strong since we got started,” McGee said. “We always knew he was tough, he was really fast. But there were just a lot of things that he had to learn, a lot of details. And we started to see him the last few weeks, he was making plays, he was playing tough, taking the right angles. Seems like it’s starting to come to life for him.”
McGee mentioned the Tar Heels’ weekly “Sunday Night Football” games provided a window into Helton’s potential. In those intrasquad scrimmages, players who did not participate in the previous game suit up and go at it with their teammates, giving the coaching staff a glimpse into what they can do in a game setting.
Already, these sessions have helped many a Tar Heel make a jump up the depth chart. That includes Demon June, who began 2025 as an afterthought but ended it as the team’s lead back, and Jaylen McGill, who has risen from RB3 into a rivalry game hero and again played a large role in the offense against Syracuse. Earlier this week, June said McGill’s newfound prominence is no surprise thanks to his play in those scrimmages.
“It was never a secret,” June said. “It was all about when the breakthrough was gonna happen. We practice so hard, and you see the spurts and you see what he brings to the group and brings to the team, day in and day out, whether it was on the practice field or the game field. We always knew. It was just waiting for it to happen.”
Sunday Night Football has proved especially important to UNC’s defensive backfield, which was without three starters last Saturday against Syracuse. Out were Kaleb Cost, Tre Miller and Peyton Waters. In were Kenton Dopson, Khristian Dunbar-Hawkins and Coleman Bryson. Bryson credited Sunday Night Football with easing the transition for that trio.
“You see people, especially last year, that were on Sunday Night Football and now are on Saturday night football, out there making plays and helping us win games,” said Bryson. “It’s awesome to see dudes develop. When they first come in, they’re raw. They’re not used to college football. They get that extra experience, and then they get to go out on Saturdays and make huge plays.”
The play in the secondary has been uneven at best since Bryson, Dopson and Dunbar-Hawkins started filling in for their injured teammates. But Dopson still found his way into a signature moment, intercepting a pass in the fourth quarter at Duke to help seal UNC’s win. Bryson said that play would not have happened without Sunday Night Football.
“It seems that maybe Khristian or Kenton hadn’t gotten those plays, but they have in practice,” he said. “They’ve practiced on that stuff and they’ve watched the film just like everybody else has. It’s just their turn to get the opportunity and make the most of it when they get in there.”
With Miller likely out for an extended period of time, players like Dopson and Dunbar-Hawkins will be pressed into even more action as we enter the final month of the regular season. If they create a signature moment this week or next, it may come as a surprise to some. Not their teammates, though. Because nobody sees the field in Chapel Hill unless they can first prove themselves on Sunday night.
Featured image via UNC-Chapel Hill
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