​The North Carolina Tar Heels suffered a very tough loss on Saturday to Clemson in a game postponed for multiple hours. North Carolina entered the game as the underdog but had a real chance to win, at one point leading 17-3. It’s unfortunate that it resulted in a loss, but there were some promising things for North Carolina to take away from it. I know everybody’s reaction is going to be that Clemson is not the team it used to be, and I don’t think anybody would disagree with that. However, after some very disappointing showings last season, anything is a step in the right direction.The question for North Carolina now is how much it is going to let this loss affect the rest of its season. Looking ahead, North Carolina has some very difficult games, including one against Notre Dame in two weeks after a bye. Notre Dame comes in as the No. 3-ranked team in the country. North Carolina will then take on Pittsburgh, Duke, Syracuse, No. 6-ranked Miami, and Louisville two weeks later. There’s a lot to consider. Instead of starting 3-0 with a chance to make a bowl game, some are now questioning the Tar Heels’ chances.“The ceiling for Belichick’s team seems low, but there are interesting home games against No. 5 Miami and No. 23 Louisville in the second half of the season. Interesting or the Heels’ undoing. Getting to a bowl game could still be difficult. A 3-0 start and a victory against Clemson was a chance to settle things down in Chapel Hill and let Tar Heels fans regain some hope for the Belichick era that quickly vanished on a Monday night against TCU in 2025.“Now, with a week off and No. 3 Notre Dame coming to town on Oct.3, it will still be difficult to keep the focus on the field at UNC and not on Belichick’s future,” Ralph Russo of The Athletic wrote.Once again, we have to look at North Carolina in a few different ways. For one, with how much money it decided to pay Bill Belichick, any season that doesn’t result in at least a bowl game is going to be viewed as a disappointment. At the same time, with how bad things were last year, there was a step in the right direction in this game. I still think the loss was disappointing, but there are many ways to look at it.