Analysis: Four matchups in UNC football's schedule to watch for this fall

After a disappointing 6-7 season last fall, the North Carolina football has a chance to rebound in 2022.

UNC's schedule is highlighted by three in-state road opponents and five games against top-25 teams. Here's a look at some of the key matchups heading into the fall:

Sept. 3 at Appalachian State

There aren’t many football games where you have to pay a $300-plus price tag to be in attendance, but when North Carolina travels to Boone to play Appalachian State, that’s exactly what you would have to pay to be one of 30,000 fans to see the Tar Heels and Mountaineers clash.

In the Tar Heels' first road game, they’ll be battling an Appalachian State team that has appeared in three of the four Sun Belt championship games since 2018.

The last time the Tar Heels traveled to play an in-state non-conference opponent was in 2018, when the Tar Heels lost in Greenville to East Carolina, 41-19. At Kidd-Brewer Stadium in September, they'll face a team that has gone 24-2 at home over the past four years.

Whoever wins the starting quarterback job will have a challenge on their hands, handling their first-ever road game in the pressure cooker that Boone presents.

Oct. 8 at Miami

The last time the Tar Heels faced Miami at Hard Rock Stadium, former running backs Michael Carter and Javonte Williams combined for an NCAA-record 544 rushing yards.Two years later, UNC does not return a healthy running back that compiled as many yards last season as the 308 yards Carter compiled in that game alone.

Miami enters the season as the No. 16 ranked team, and the Hurricanes have hired a new coach to lead the program in former Oregon head coach Mario Cristobal.

Leading the offense is quarterback and 2021 ACC Rookie of the Year Tyler Van Dyke. Van Dyke is no longer the same player who threw three interceptions against the Tar Heels last year. In the next six games, he threw for 2,194 yards and 20 touchdowns with just three interceptions.

If the Tar Heels want to come away with a win, they’ll need to slow down Van Dyke as well as channel some of their offense from the last time they traveled to Miami.

Nov. 12 at Wake Forest

The Demon Deacons planned to return nine of 11 starters from a team that reached the ACC Championship last season, but recently lost starting quarterback Sam Hartman due to a non-football-related medical condition.

No longer will Wake Forest be led by its star signal caller, and instead will find itself in a similar situation to UNC with an inexperienced signal caller. Redshirt first-year Mitch Griffis and third-year sophomore Michael Kern, both of whom have never started a game, will try to keep the Demon Deacons in contention until Hartman returns.

When these teams met last fall, the Tar Heels pulled off the upset at Kenan Stadium to spoil Wake Forest's perfect season. Even without Hartman, the experienced Demon Deacons will play host in Winston-Salem as the reigning Atlantic Division champions seeking revenge for last year's loss.

Nov. 25 vs. N.C. State

When game day comes, it will have been nearly a year since the Tar Heels collapsed in the fourth quarter at Carter-Finley Stadium in a 34-30 loss.

Ranked No. 13 in the AP Preseason Poll, the Wolfpack have all the keys to get their first road win against UNC in four years. N.C. State returns nine of 11 starters on defense and features ACC Preseason Player of the Year Devin Leary at quarterback.

Although they’re ranked just outside of the top 10, the Wolfpack is still projected to finish second behind Clemson in the ACC’s Atlantic Division.

The final regular season game for both schools could have implications on the ACC Championship for both the Tar Heels and Wolfpack. A win could secure the Coastal Division for UNC and eliminate N.C. State's championship hopes.

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