North Carolina defeated No. 25 Pittsburgh 21-17 at Acrisure Stadium on Saturday, giving head coach Bill Belichick a significant victory and ending the Panthers’ 5-0 start to the 2026 college football season.

The Tar Heels entered the matchup at 2-2 after a 37-26 loss to No. 3 Notre Dame the previous week. Pittsburgh, meanwhile, had won its first five games and was celebrating the 50th anniversary of its 1976 national championship team in front of its home crowd.

Pittsburgh struck first in the opening quarter, with running back Lincoln Wright scoring on a short touchdown run to give the Panthers a 7-0 lead. The Panthers added a 41-yard field goal in the second quarter to extend their advantage to 10-0.

North Carolina responded with a touchdown pass from quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. to tight end Jelani Thurman, cutting the deficit to 10-7. The Tar Heels then took control in the third quarter when running back Davion June scored on a one-yard touchdown run, putting North Carolina ahead 14-10.

The fourth quarter brought more drama as Pittsburgh fought back with another touchdown run by Wright, reclaiming the lead at 17-14. North Carolina answered with a decisive scoring strike from Edwards to tight end Shamar Easter, a 75-yard touchdown pass that put the Tar Heels ahead 21-17.

Edwards finished with 243 passing yards and two touchdown passes, while Easter's long scoring reception provided the difference in a tightly contested game. Thurman also contributed a touchdown reception, and June supplied North Carolina's other touchdown on the ground.

The Tar Heels held on to their four-point advantage to secure the upset on the road. The victory gives Belichick a ranked win at North Carolina and marks the program's first ranked road victory since defeating Miami in 2020.

For Pittsburgh, the loss ends its unbeaten run and delivers a setback in its Atlantic Coast Conference campaign. The Panthers had entered the game among the conference's remaining undefeated teams, but North Carolina's second-half performance spoiled the milestone celebration.

Belichick, the longtime NFL coach who joined North Carolina ahead of the 2025 season, now has a notable victory to build on as the Tar Heels continue their schedule. North Carolina will look to carry the momentum into next week's road matchup against Duke, while Pittsburgh will try to rebound from its first defeat of the year.