With five straight nights and some days of meaningful college football season openers, it became apparent that money does not necessarily translate into successful outcomes.
Case in point was Texas quarterback Arch Manning, who has an unrivaled NIL value of $6.8 million. Manning did not rise to the occasion as the then-No. 1 Longhorns played at No. 3 Ohio State on Saturday,
Hyped with the expectation that he would perform on the level of his heralded uncles, Peyton and Eli, the grandson of Arch Manning, laid a Texas-sized egg as the Horns squandered several possessions in the red zone. Manning finally had a touchdown pass after the Buckeyes had taken a 14-0 lead.
One scoring pass and one interception is not a good return on investment.
Then there is the developing money pit in Chapel Hill.
Bill Belichick feathered his nest with a $50 million contract over five years to coach North Carolina. That was after a $2.8 million buyout to Mack Brown. Belichick had extensive resources in procuring staff and players.
With that purchasing power at his discretion and the availability of personnel in the transfer portal, supporters don’t think in terms of building a program. Annual roster rebuilds these days come with the expectation of immediate results.
The Tar Heels were all set to emerge on the national scene Monday night. Kenan Stadium was sold out. ESPN was there with its No. 1 team, Rece Davis and Kirk Herbstreit. Special guests included Michael Jordan, Mia Hamm and Lawrence Taylor.
The curtain lifted on UNC’s ascension to the national football stage with an 83-yard scoring drive directed by South Alabama transfer Gio Lopez,
But then the Horned Frogs made adjustments and kept scoring. The stands were virtually empty when TCU coach Sonny Sykes commented on his team’s motivation. The Belichick ballyhoo had backfired.
“There was a lot of talk about this game and none of it was about us,” Dykes said.
Despite going 9-4 with a 34-3 win over Louisiana in the New Mexico Bowl, the Frogs were indeed slighted in the walk-up to Belichick’s debut. Josh Hoover is a talented quarterback, who passed for 3,949 yards in 2024. TCU went 6-2 in the Big 12.
Not the ideal foe.
What ensured was a 48-14 embarrassment for the host Heels and the biggest letdown at a projected Triangle victory party since UNC spoiled Mike Krzyzewski’s final home game in 2022.
East Carolina is not beset by expectations from investments to the same degree. Pirate partisans have to weigh their financial support for the indoor football practice facility versus NIL contributions.
The Pirates took on a high dollar quarterback on Thursday in Raleigh in a 24-17 loss at N.C. State.
“He makes more than our whole team,” said ECU coach Blake Harrell of C, J. Bailey.
On3 reports Bailey’s NIL value at $2.3 million.
Still, ECU kept Bailey and the Wolfpack scoreless over the last 18 minutes while trimming a 17-point deficit to the final margin.
Camels coming in
Football Championship Subdivision program Campbell (0-1) provides the opposition for the Pirates at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium on Saturday at 6 p.m.
The Camels aren’t burdened by big revenue sharing payments or NIL contracts.
But there are financial considerations as this trip will be accompanied by a guaranteed sum in reimbursement. Campbell will take on N.C. State on Oct. 4 in a similar arrangement.
Respect for Pirates
Camels coach Braxton Harris was watching both future Football Bowl Subdivision opponents.
“They go toe to toe last week with the ACC school whom we have on our schedule in a couple of weeks,” Harris said. “Watching that game, I’m kind of watching that game and I get lost to who am I watching, which one should I be watching in this spot?
“ECU is a really well coached football team. Coach Harell does a really good job. You turn on the film. Those guys play fast. I mean you just look at the velocity and the speed in which offensively and defensively they attack.”
Campbell on the road
Campbell doesn’t play at home until Sept. 13 against Furman at 3:30 p.m. Harris likes where ECU is on the CU schedule.
“That’s going to be a big deal,” Harris said. “I think it’s a perfect game for us coming off this week because you look at the things that we made mistakes on, it was technique. It was us not doing the right things.”
Campbell had a 17-7 lead at Rhode Island on Friday in their Coastal Athletic Association opener before the Rams rallied for a 31-20 win.
An opportunity for Camels
Every player is motivated by the opportunity to get something on tape that might enhance his future.
“I don’t know any kid that doesn’t walk into that environment and go, this is fun,” Harris said. “This is what you want to play football in. And they get the opportunity to be able to do it. The game has changed drastically. We got a lot of guys that either played at that level and they want opportunities to be able to show that they can match up at that spot.
“They’re in state. Half our rosters is from the Carolinas. These are guys that they went to high school with. They’ve been able to play against them before and so they get a chance to be able to play with them again and put their skillset to the test. That’s why they play the game. Those are fun games.
“Those are recruiting tools for us. You get to go to those places. You get the opportunity to put yourself against the best. We’ve got guys that want to play at the next level. You’re going to get a great opportunity to show how you match up in that spot.
“Our guys welcome that challenge and that’s fun. It’s fun for us as coaches to be able to schematically — how can you be able to compete — and then our players, how can they physically go compete.”
First home game
Harrell talked about bringing out the support of Pirate fans with a quality effort.
“The players are obviously excited about being at home, being in front of Pirate Nation and being in front of our crowd,” Harrell said. “They want to make sure they put a product out there that they can pull that energy out of the crowd.
“If we go make the same mistakes we did last week, there’s not a whole lot of energy out there for that and not a whole lot of patience for that from all of us. They want to make sure they’re playing the way we’re supposed to play.
“We’ve talked about it before. Dowdy-Ficklen is a special place, but what makes it extra special is the way we play in there. That’s playing the Pirate way with great effort, great energy and clean.
“We’ve got to focus on that and doing those things. As great an opportunity as that is on Saturday, we’ve got to focus every single day of the week to get ready for that day.”
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