A little role reversal can be a good thing from time to time.

And that’s exactly what North Carolina is facing when the Tar Heels head to South Bend to face No. 11 Notre Dame on Saturday night.

UNC has been favored through each of its first seven games of this disappointing season, but has only come out on the winning side four times. And entering each of those first seven contests, the Heels had a heap of pressure hanging over them, perhaps even weighing them down some.

It began by venturing into raucous Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, where Virginia Tech was laying in wait and knocked Carolina from its fragile perch. With that, the fans melting down and increasing uncertainty around the program caused a great deal of pressure moving forward.