North Carolina finds redemption as Dublin’s college football tradition rolls on

DUBLIN, IRELAND – College football has been coming to Ireland long enough now that the Aer Lingus College Football Classic can claim a history of its own. On Saturday, North Carolina added a little redemption to it.

The Tar Heels defeated TCU 15-10 at Aviva Stadium, reversing last year’s 48-14 humiliation in Chapel Hill and giving Bill Belichick the sort of victory he badly needed after a first season in college football that produced far more headlines than wins.

Dublin’s college football history grows

Ireland’s relationship with major college football began in 1988, when Boston College beat Army 38-24 at the old Lansdowne Road. Pittsburgh and Rutgers followed in 1989, while Notre Dame and Navy brought the spectacle to Croke Park in 1996 and returned at the new Aviva Stadium in 2012. Penn State and UCF played at Croke Park in 2014 before Boston College and Georgia Tech contested the first game carrying the current Aer Lingus College Football Classic name in 2016.

After the pandemic erased the planned 2021 game, the event finally became an annual fixture. Northwestern upset Nebraska in 2022, Notre Dame overwhelmed Navy in 2023, Georgia Tech stunned Florida State in 2024 and Iowa State edged Kansas State last year. TCU-North Carolina was therefore the fifth consecutive Classic and the latest evidence that Dublin has become college football’s European home away from home.

American fans bring the atmosphere

The travelling support remains the engine behind it. More than 14,000 Americans came to Ireland this week and TCU reportedly sold its entire 9,000-ticket allotment. Purple cowboy hats, Carolina blue, pep rallies, marching bands and tailgating pubs gave central Dublin the required dose of college football pageantry.

Yet the contrast inside Aviva Stadium was difficult to miss. The cathedral of Irish soccer and rugby was pockmarked with empty pews. Even more ironic, a game televised nationally across the United States had been largely ignored by the Irish Times and Irish Independent by Sunday morning. The Americans came across the Atlantic to see it. Much of the local sporting establishment apparently could not be bothered to cross the street.

That should not diminish what the Classic has become, but it does raise the question of whether it is truly establishing college football in Ireland or staging an extremely successful American destination event on Irish soil. For now it may be enough that it is doing the latter exceptionally well.

Belichick arrives with plenty at stake

Belichick arrived in Dublin with plenty of baggage. North Carolina went 4-8 in his debut campaign, his attempts to turn the Tar Heels into the so-called NFL’s 33rd team had fallen flat, and the offseason brought continued questions about the culture and structure of the program. TCU had its own unwanted distractions after projected starting safety Jacob Fields was dismissed following an alleged locker-room assault and the school then revoked the credentials of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram over its reporting of the incident.

TCU strikes before North Carolina answers

Once the ball was kicked off, TCU appeared ready to repeat last year’s demolition. Kyle Lemmermann answered Aeron Burrell’s opening field goal and Jon Denman scored from two yards out after Ed Small’s 33-yard punt return gave the Horned Frogs a short field. TCU led 10-3 with four minutes remaining in the first quarter.

North Carolina responded immediately. Billy Edwards Jr. completed passes of 21 and 19 yards on a 70-yard drive, converted fourth-and-seven with an 18-yard completion to Jordan Shipp and Jaylen McGill finished it with a nine-yard touchdown run. The game was tied 10-10 after one quarter. Nobody knew it at the time, but TCU had scored its final point.

Special teams swing the game

The decisive play came with 1:49 left in the half. A fourth-down snap sailed over punter John Hoyet Chance’s head and he kicked the loose ball through the back of the end zone, giving North Carolina a safety and a 12-10 lead.

TCU quarterback Jaden Craig then lost a fumble early in the third quarter and Burrell converted the short field into a 28-yard field goal. That completed the scoring, although the outcome remained in doubt until the final minute.

Tar Heels slam the door

The Horned Frogs twice reached the North Carolina red zone in the second half and twice came away empty. Jeremy Payne was stopped on fourth-and-one at the six late in the third quarter. Craig’s fourth-down pass from the ten fell incomplete with 4:10 remaining. TCU got one last chance to force a punt, but Markis Deal jumped offside on fourth-and-one with less than a minute left and handed North Carolina the first down it needed to close the game.

Edwards finished 16 of 28 for 232 yards, with Jelani Thurman catching four passes for 94. Payne was TCU’s most productive player with 142 rushing yards, but the Horned Frogs undermined themselves with 11 penalties for 89 yards and converted only one of five fourth downs.

Belichick gets a badly needed win

Belichick called it a “great team win” and said this North Carolina team had come with a different attitude and was prepared to “fight for 60 minutes.” After everything that followed last year’s loss to TCU, his most telling comment may have been that the result gives the players “a little bit more belief.”

One victory in Dublin will not erase a 4-8 season or all the noise surrounding Belichick’s North Carolina experiment. It did, however, provide proof of life. For one Saturday at least, the old coach, the Tar Heels and Dublin’s enduring American football adventure all had something worth celebrating.

Scoring summary

First quarter

UNC – Aeron Burrell 20-yard field goal, 10:07 (UNC 3-0)

TCU – Kyle Lemmermann 31-yard field goal, 7:20 (3-3)

TCU – Jon Denman 2-yard run, Lemmermann kick, 4:00 (TCU 10-3)

UNC – Jaylen McGill 9-yard run, Burrell kick, 1:04 (10-10)

Second quarter

UNC – Safety, punt snap through end zone, 1:49 (UNC 12-10)

Third quarter

UNC – Burrell 28-yard field goal, 10:04 (UNC 15-10)

Fourth quarter

No scoring