Helllooooooo College Football! The 2026 season officially kicks off in Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland with the Aer Lingus College Football Classic between the TCU Horned Frogs and the North Carolina Tar Heels. The Week Zero table-setter across the pond is a rematch of the 2025 season opener in Chapel Hill, NC where the Frogs eviscerated the Heels 48-14 in new UNC head coach Bill Belichick’s collegiate debut.
North Carolina would go on to have a disappointing campaign in 2025, finishing 4-8 (2-6 ACC) and falling well short of expectations to miss a bowl for the first time since 2018, a lowly state never reached during the tenure of Belichick’s predecessor Mack Brown. As tumultuous as the on-field product was for the Heels, Belichick brought a circus of attention around the program as well. Even as that outside noise continued this offseason with more podcast exposes and the unceremonious departure of the General Manager of the “33rd NFL Team” Mike Lombardi, the Tar Heels brought in a top-20 ranked recruiting class, good for 2nd in the ACC. The biggest addition to the program ahead of this season is new Offensive Coordinator Bobby Petrino who had been serving as OC & interim head coach at Arkansas. He brings with him a scheme set to disorient defenses and set up his skill talent up for success. Behind center for the Heels this season will be former Wisconsin & Maryland QB Billy Edwards
TCU finished the 2025 campaign at 9-4 (5-4 Big 12) with an Alamo Bowl win over USC and a No. 25 ranking in the AP Poll. Now entering the fifth season under head coach Sonny Dykes, the Horned Frogs are searching for something approaching the heights of Dykes’ debut season at TCU, which ended in the National Championship Game. TCU is also debuting a new OC and QB in Dublin, bringing in Jaden Craig from Harvard to lead the offense on the field and Gordon Sammis from Connecticut to call the plays from the sideline. Sammis led a Huskies offense that featured both a 1,200 yard rusher and 1,200 yard receiver in 2025 and will be looking to bring some of that success to the Aviva Stadium field Saturday and throughout the season.
Under the spotlight of the season opening Week Zero showcase, which squad will open the season in the win column? Join the conversation in the comment section below as we ride the game day rollercoaster together. Go Frogs!
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