Well, North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Bill Belichick always has his spot reserved for the headlines. Whether he is taking a bombastic move from swapping wagons from the NFL to college, or holding eight Super Bowl titles. Now, is it always about the good things that Belichick becomes viral? Absolutely not. The Spygate controversy, dating 24-year-old Jordon Hudson earned him side-eyes. Even though doubts prevailed on Belichick trying his hand in college, he has got enough support from the Tar Heels fam. But looks like the North Carolina–NC State football rivalry is alive and well. Fanning the heat, NC State running back Hollywood Smothers took a shot (oops, read dart shots) at Tar Heels head coach Belichick. And the fans are left in stitches.
The rivalry between the North Carolina Tar Heels and the NC State Wolfpack is one of the oldest American college football rivalries, which has been in existence since the 1890s. The first time they met against each other was on October 12, 1894. And guess who won that game? The Tar Heels with a 44-0 heroic feat. Famously known as the Battle for the Barrel, the face-off takes place during the Thanksgiving week after every season. The two teams have met each other 113 times so far. The head-to-head record is led by the University of North Carolina with a score of 68-40-6. So, one can guess the amount of heat the two programs feel for each other.
NC State RB Hollywood Smothers is taking shots at #UNC head coach Bill Belichick.
Smothers took an unofficial visit to UNC as a recruit out of West Charlotte. The Tar Heels never offered. pic.twitter.com/2FHfpW2ej8
— Grant Hughes (@GrantHughesNC) May 15, 2025
Right now, the Tar Heels are in a questionable spot. Thanks to Belichick. After all, the NFL veteran is yet to prove himself in the college landscape. On top of that, his own staffers must be upset with him because of his sweetheart, Hudson’s over-interference. Plus, Belichick’s seat gets 100x hotter from their latest loss against NC State. The two programs faced off on November 30, 2024, at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill. The Wolfpacks emerged victorious with a 35–30 win over North Carolina. Now, Smothers has enough reasons to stir Belichick’s pot. After all, in their heroic victory against Belichick’s boys, the running back recorded a team-high 83 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries. He also reeled in three receptions for 34 total yards. So, he might have thought of messing up with Belichick and made use of the head coach’s picture.
He posted a story on Instagram. It showed a photo from one of Belichick’s introductory press conferences at North Carolina holding their merchandise. One could spot multiple holes in the picture. While out of the two darts spotted in the picture, one had hit Belichick’s hand and the other had directly pricked his nose. For the caption, Smothers went more creative. He wrote, “Target practice.” After this, the college football fans could no longer keep their calm.
Fans share their take on Bill Belichick being Hollywood Smothers’ aim
Now, here goes a wild theory. While college football fans must be surprised seeing Belichick falling prey to Smothers’ childish act, fans are wondering what made him do it. Maybe he’s just mad that North Carolina (during the Mack Brown era) didn’t even think he was good enough to earn an offer from them. In that way, he is carrying the pain of not receiving a call from the Tar Heels, even being an instate product. Now that Brown is gone, he is sending the heat towards Belichick. A fan thus commented, “Creepy obsession.”
Well, the Tar Heels fans might be living under the hope of a big glow-up. After all, they went downhill with 6-7 in 2024 and lost to the UConn Huskies in the Fenway Bowl. Already, Belichick is gathering enough hate. Now that he has become the main character of such a silly act, he left another fan in splits. “.” Smothers is coming off his best year at the collegiate level. The running back appeared in 11 games and racked up 571 rushing yards and six touchdowns. So, it was expected of him to prep himself against the Tar Heels, who will now be coached by an NFL veteran for the first time. The fact that he is all into time passes made another fan comment, “Just weird man.”
Well, Belichick’s Tar Heels currently hold the all-time lead, going 68-40-6. However, the Wolfpacks won despite entering the game as 2.5-point underdogs. Instead of working on boosting their potential, Smothers is busy doing something that’s not his business. A fan thus commented, “The obsession is crazy.” Every few years, NC State convinces itself it’s ready to take over the ACC. Then they end up losing a random game to Wake Forest, and reality sets in. So, a fan doesn’t have many expectations from them. “Kinda weird but okay NC State is the most delusional classless school in America.” With Hollywood Smothers tossing darts, don’t be surprised if Bill Belichick throws something sharper, like a perfectly timed blitz.
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