Which UNC football players will join Bill Belichick at ACC media days in Charlotte?

[ASFN Admin]

Talkin' season ramps up for UNC football on Friday, July 17, at ACC Kickoff, the league's annual preseason media event in Charlotte.

Second-year coach Bill Belichick and three Tar Heels will join players and coaches from all 17 programs spread across three days at the Hilton Charlotte Uptown. In just over two months, UNC kicks off the 2026 season against TCU on Saturday, Aug. 29 (Noon, ESPN), in Dublin, Ireland, as part of the Aer Lingus College Football Classic at Aviva Stadium.

ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips will kick things off in Charlotte with his annual address on Wednesday, July 15, before Florida State, Miami, N.C. State, Stanford and Virginia take the stage.

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Six teams — Boston College, Clemson, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Syracuse and Virginia Tech — will speak with media members on Thursday, July 16, before California, Duke, UNC, Pitt, SMU and Wake Forest wrap things up on Friday, July 17. ACC Network will be providing coverage, starting at 9 a.m. each day.

The Blue Devils are the reigning league champions and the Hurricanes are coming off a run to the College Football Playoff National Championship game. Ahead of the 2025 season, Belichick brought quarterback Gio Lopez to Charlotte. Lopez will be back this year with Wake Forest, but the Tar Heels won’t be bringing a quarterback.

Wisconsin transfer Billy Edwards Jr., Texas A&M transfer Miles O’Neill, redshirt freshman Au’Tori Newkirk and true freshman Travis Burgess are the notable names in UNC’s QB room.

Here's a breakdown of the players UNC is bringing to ACC media days.

Jordan Shipp, WR, UNC football​

For the second year in a row, Shipp will head to Charlotte as a representative for the Tar Heels. He embraced that role throughout a tumultuous 2025 season as one of the key voices in the locker room and in front of media members. Expected to be a junior captain, Shipp started all 12 games as a sophomore, logging 60 catches for 671 yards and six touchdowns as one of the best wide receivers in the ACC.

Christo Kelly, OL, UNC football​

Another expected captain for the Tar Heels, Kelly is a graduate student and offensive lineman. The starting center in UNC’s 2025 opener against TCU, Kelly played in two games but missed the rest of the season with an injury. Despite his absence on the field, Kelly remained a vital voice off of it and remains in that role as a player who should be able to contribute between the lines in 2026.

Melkart Abou Jaoude, DL, UNC football​

Abou Jaoude enters his redshirt senior season expected to be one of the top pass rushers in the ACC. The 6-foot-5, 260-pound defensive lineman was one of UNC’s breakout players last season, earning an All-ACC selection as the league’s leader with 10 ½ sacks. A starter in 11 of 12 games in 2025, Abou Jaoude led all defensive lineman in the ACC with 646 snaps and was fifth nationally in sacks. He figures to be a force once again for the Heels in 2026.

Rodd Baxley covers North Carolina Tar Heels athletics for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his ACC coverage on X/Twitter or Bluesky: @RoddBaxley. Got questions regarding UNC? Send them to [email protected].

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Bill Belichick bringing Jordan Shipp, other Tar Heels to ACC Kickoff

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