North Carolina and head coach Bill Belichick picked up a second straight ACC win on Saturday, gritting to a 20-15 victory over Stanford in Chapel Hill. It wasn’t pretty for much of the game, but after five straight losses to start the season against power-conference opponents — featuring multiple goal-line fumbles and endless off-field ordeals — Belichick and the Tar Heels have back-to-back wins (4-5, 2-3 ACC) and can reach bowl eligibility by taking two of their last three to end the regular season.

“We’ve improved significantly over the course of the season,” Belichick told reporters after the game. “It’s not just one guy or one thing. A collective effort.”

Considering how drama-filled and disaster-stained Belichick’s first season as a college coach began, it seemed unlikely that North Carolina would be in position to earn its way into the postseason. That effort starts with a road trip next Saturday to Wake Forest, followed by a home showdown against Duke and another road game at NC State — all in-state opponents.

With Duke the only of those teams still in the ACC race, there’s at least a path for the Tar Heels to punctuate an unexpected turnaround with a bowl bid.

It took a while to get things moving in that direction on Saturday. A week after a 27-10 road win at Syracuse, North Carolina turned in a dreadful first half against Stanford (3-7, 2-5 ACC), gaining only 47 total yards on its way to a 3-3 halftime tie. Defense was the saving grace for both teams through the first two quarters, with the Tar Heels sacking Stanford quarterback Elijah Brown six times while holding the Cardinal to just 100 yards.

The entertainment value picked up after the break, starting with a 12-play, 75-yard touchdown drive for North Carolina, capped by a 20-yard wheel route from quarterback Gio Lopez to running back Davion Gause.

“We had a tough start offensively and kind of got things going in the second half. Defensively, played well really for three quarters,” said Belichick. “Like a lot of these games, they’re close, they’re tight. Fortunately we made enough plays to come out on top today.”

Lopez was electric in the second half. Despite completing just 5 of 8 passes for 28 yards through the opening two quarters, the lefty and South Alabama transfer finished 18-for-25 for 203 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions, including a 55-yard touchdown strike off his back foot to Jordan Shipp in the fourth quarter, with the Stanford defender slipping to the turf and leaving Shipp a clear path to the end zone.

“I saw a blitz zero and I saw Jordan one-on-one,” Lopez said afterward. “I just trusted him because he’s been getting open all week (in practice). Practice goes to game-day reality.”

That’s two straight encouraging performances from Lopez, who went 15-for-19 for 216 yards and two touchdowns against Syracuse. After struggling and battling injuries the first two months, the improvement is another reason for bowl-optimism down this final stretch.

The Tar Heels defense, which has been the team’s least disappointing aspect this season, was stout when it needed to be, finishing with a season-high nine sacks, winning the turnover battle two to one, and limiting Stanford to just 30 yards in a critical third quarter that swung the game. It was enough to hold off a late surge by the Cardinal, who reached the end zone with less than two minutes remaining to cut the deficit to one score.

“The score has a lot to do with it,” Belichick said of the nine sacks. “It’s hard to rush the passer against Clemson when you’re down by four touchdowns. It’s good team defense. Good coverage, better coverage, better rush, it all works together.”

For a UNC roster that added 70 new players this offseason, some familiarity is finally kicking in and translating to the field, Belichick said.

“I don’t think everybody necessarily knew the name of the person to the left or right of them several weeks ago. We’ve gotten to spend more time with each other,” Belichick said. “Trusting the person that’s next to you, trusting the play … that has really helped us to be more cohesive. … We weren’t anywhere close to that several weeks ago.”