The college basketball season is still a few months away, but rivalries are already filled with tension and expectations. Of course, just like every year, the distaste between the UNC Tar Heels and the Duke Blue Devils is at the top of the list.
Ahead of the Tar Heels' Week 2 football game, an interviewer walked up to UNC true freshman Caleb Wilson and asked how he felt about his team's rivals.
"I don't like Duke, I don't like NC State, I don't like Wake Forest," Wilson said. "This year we're putting belt on everybody, I'm talking real belt, sparkle, and bedazzle."
All of this coming from an athlete who has yet to ever step foot into Cameron Indoor, much less play a game against the Blue Devils. In fact, he hasn't even suited up for the Tar Heels at this point, and he's already talking an insane amount of trash.
Then the interviewer summed it up in a way that will have Blue Devil fans ready to run through a brick wall for their team: "They gonna smack Duke this year."
UNC’s freshman Caleb Wilson has some words for Duke, NC State and Wake Forest! 😂 pic.twitter.com/0IgVRtB4i3
— Donté J Harvey (@dontejharvey) September 5, 2025
Wilson was a five-star prospect who committed to the Tar Heels over teams like the Kentucky Wildcats, Ohio State Buckeyes, and Tennessee Volunteers. While he showed a lot of promise in high school, he has a long way to go before he can talk smack about the Blue Devils.
Over the last three seasons, since Jon Scheyer took over the Duke basketball program and Hubert Davis has been the UNC head coach, the Blue Devils have gone 5-2 against the Tar Heels, including three wins over North Carolina last year.
Simply put, Scheyer and the Blue Devils have found out how to control the Tar Heels, whether at home, on the road, or in the postseason.
This year, both Duke and UNC brought in top-tier talent, but the Blue Devils were the team to recruit the No. 1 class of prospects in the nation, headlined by five-star athletes Cameron and Cayden Boozer, Dame Sarr, and Nikolas Khamenia.
Meanwhile, the Tar Heels only brought in three recruits other than Wilson, and he was the only five-star prospect to commit to North Carolina.