North Carolina Forecast to Struggle Against Pittsburgh This Week

The North Carolina Tar Heels showed a lot of fight last week against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, keeping the game close thoughout the contest.

But showing fight doesn't result in wins a lot of the time, and this team has now dropped two straight games after a strong start to the year. North Carolina now sits at 2-2 to open the new season, with them getting ready to take on the No. 25-ranked Pittsburgh Panthers this week.

North Carolina will be heading out on the road for the game, giving them more challenges ahead. The Panthers sit at 5-0 on the season, and this game could really be a make-or-break week for the Tar Heels.

This team will try to build off the performance against Notre Dame, hoping that some of the outing can translate moving forward. But the Tar Heels have to get something going this week; otherwise, they could be in danger of going on a tough stretch of games.

After the game with Pittsburgh, North Carolina has a matchup with the Duke Blue Devils, who are also undefeated at this time. The Tar Heels will then play Syracuse, but for now, all the focus is centered on the Panthers, even if they are being overlooked.

Entering the game, North Carolina has been given a low chance to take down the Panthers this week. According to ESPN's game predictor, the Tar Heels only have a 25.5 percent chance to win against Pittsburgh

North Carolina has talent on the roster, but this team as a whole just isn't where they need to be. Head coach Bill Belichick has done what he can, but even his job status has been questioned this season.

The Tar Heels under Belichick haven't progressed to the manner that the school believed they would when he was hired last season. Belichick has been trying to adjust to the college level, but it hasn't worked out well so far.

North Carolina has a lot of pressure on itself this week to right the ship, while trying to grab a massive win for the program. If they were to fall short again, more questions will rise around the program, giving unnecessary distractions to this team.

But a win can silence everything, at least for a week, giving Belichick a signature win.

The kickoff between the Tar Heels and Panthers is scheduled for 9:00 a.m. PT/12:00 p.m. ET on Saturday from Acrisure Stadium.