{"id":3395,"date":"2026-07-17T22:33:47","date_gmt":"2026-07-17T22:33:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395"},"modified":"2026-07-17T22:33:47","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T22:33:47","slug":"wake-forest-aims-to-find-best-version-of-gio-lopez-after-disappointing-unc-stint","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395","title":{"rendered":"Wake Forest aims to find \u2018best version\u2019 of Gio Lopez after disappointing UNC stint"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"summary\">AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.charlotteobserver.com\/news\/nation-world\/national\/article280707640.html\">Read our AI Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Gio Lopez remembers his first time meeting his Wake Forest teammates.<\/p>\n<p>It was a chilly January morning in Winston-Salem. The sun was hours from cresting over the horizon, but head coach Jake Dickert was already blasting music from the McCreary Football Complex.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3393\">Bill Belichick is back for Year 2. But will UNC football actually be any better?<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Players were passing the time before the 6 a.m. meeting by playing one-on-one basketball in the team room.<\/p>\n<p>Dickert was lacing up his sneakers right along with them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt just brings you in, it makes you want to be comfortable fast,\u201d Lopez said during Wake Forest\u2019s ACC Kickoff availability. \u201cIt feels like family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In his first season at Wake Forest, Lopez is embracing a familiar offensive scheme and a fresh start for a team he believes is on the doorstep of an ACC title.<\/p>\n<p>Lopez arrived in Winston-Salem in January, joining a Demon Deacons squad fresh off a nine-win campaign, their best year since a record 11-win season in 2021.<\/p>\n<p>Dickert said he recruited Lopez because he\u2019s comfortable operating Wake Forest\u2019s offense.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been impressed with Gio\u2019s ability, not just on the field, but his willingness to come onto our football field and lead from the front,\u201d Dickert said.<\/p>\n<p>Having a previous bond with Wake Forest offensive coordinator Rob Ezell, the team\u2019s playcaller, helps, too.<\/p>\n<p>Ezell was Lopez\u2019s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at South Alabama, where he played for two seasons in 2023 and 2024. Ezell was integral in recruiting him out of James Clemens High School in Madison, Alabama.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI just think (Ezell) knows me, he\u2019s bought into me, learned me,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cHe does a great job getting the best out of everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Dickert called Lopez one of the most experienced quarterbacks in the nation. The signal caller\u2019s success at South Alabama was one of the primary reasons Dickert picked Ezell to be his offensive coordinator.<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019s confident he can unlock Lopez\u2019s full potential.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI believe in the best version of Gio Lopez, period,\u201d Dickert said. \u201cAnd we can recreate that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lopez\u2019s career started in strong fashion at South Alabama.<\/p>\n<p>He was named the 68 Ventures Bowl MVP in his first career start at South Alabama, the first bowl victory in program history.<\/p>\n<p>Lopez went on to start every game for the Jaguars in 2024, finishing with 2,557 yards and 18 touchdowns.<\/p>\n<p>Then Bill Belichick came calling. Lopez had the chance to start for a revamped Tar Heels squad led by one of the greatest football minds to grace the sport.<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3391\">NC cyclosporiasis cases do not appear to be linked to Taco Bell, says DHHS<\/a><\/p>\n<p>It was a season mired by on-field disappointment and off-field drama. UNC\u2019s offense ranked 120th in the nation and barely eclipsed 19 points per game.<\/p>\n<p>His time with the Tar Heels seemed to be doomed from the start.<\/p>\n<p>Lopez was pulled during the third quarter of the Tar Heels\u2019 season opener against TCU because of a back injury he suffered in a car accident a few days earlier.<\/p>\n<p>A knee injury forced a couple other early exits. Despite making 10 starts, his production was nearly cut in half.<\/p>\n<p>After one season at UNC, he hopped in the transfer portal for the second time in a year. Lopez has expressed his qualms with Belichick\u2019s militant locker room culture.<\/p>\n<p>But he wouldn\u2019t change a thing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI learned a lot from them,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cEbbs and flows happened, and I didn\u2019t get to perform how I wanted, but the opportunity to play there was awesome.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lopez said there\u2019s no bad blood between him and UNC. When he saw Belichick during ACC Kickoff week, he said he gave him a \u201cbig old hug.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf I was back in spring 2025 I would\u2019ve done it again,\u201d Lopez said. \u201cPlaying for coach Belichick was an opportunity that not a lot of people would have passed up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But there are parts of his game he couldn\u2019t utilize in Chapel Hill.<\/p>\n<p>Lopez was a dual-threat quarterback at South Alabama, running for 435 yards and seven touchdowns during his 2024 starting season.<\/p>\n<p>His rushing production plunged to just 133 yards at North Carolina.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know coach Ezell is going to put me in more running situations and let me be an athlete, so I\u2019m looking forward to it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>Dickert is hoping Lopez can help push Wake Forest to compete in a crowded ACC Championship field.<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019ll be bolstered by a defense returning eight starters and returning wide receivers Carlos Hernandez and Jack Foley.<\/p>\n<p>After a disappointing 2025 campaign, Lopez said he\u2019s happy to be in a position he\u2019s comfortable in \u2013 and most importantly \u2013 having fun again.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s been awesome to be in that building,\u201d he said, \u201cto work out with all the guys that just love football.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3389\">UCPS says viral video about Marvin Ridge American flag denial is a misunderstanding<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>After a tough stint at North Carolina, Gio Lopez is settling into Wake Forest&#39;s offense in Winston-Salem, embracing a chance to showcase his running skills.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3394,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3395","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-read-todays-edition"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Wake Forest aims to find \u2018best version\u2019 of Gio Lopez after disappointing UNC stint - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Wake Forest aims to find \u2018best version\u2019 of Gio Lopez after disappointing UNC stint - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"After a tough stint at North Carolina, Gio Lopez is settling into Wake Forest&#039;s offense in Winston-Salem, embracing a chance to showcase his running skills.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"\u0421harlotte Relocation Guide\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-07-17T22:33:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93\"},\"headline\":\"Wake Forest aims to find \u2018best version\u2019 of Gio Lopez after disappointing UNC stint\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-17T22:33:47+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395\"},\"wordCount\":847,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/8714ec53dd24dd98060caaaa34ad7ced.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Read today's Edition\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395\",\"name\":\"Wake Forest aims to find \u2018best version\u2019 of Gio Lopez after disappointing UNC stint - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/8714ec53dd24dd98060caaaa34ad7ced.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-07-17T22:33:47+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/8714ec53dd24dd98060caaaa34ad7ced.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/8714ec53dd24dd98060caaaa34ad7ced.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":674,\"caption\":\"North Carolina quarterback Gio Lopez (7) grabs his ankle after being injured on a sack by N.C. State defensive tackle Brandon Cleveland (44) in the third quarter on Saturday, November 29, 2025 at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, N.C.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?p=3395#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Wake Forest aims to find \u2018best version\u2019 of Gio Lopez after disappointing UNC stint\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"\u0421harlotte Relocation Guide\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/charlotterelocationguide.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Wake Forest aims to find \u2018best version\u2019 of Gio Lopez after disappointing UNC stint - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Wake Forest aims to find \u2018best version\u2019 of Gio Lopez after disappointing UNC stint - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide","og_description":"After a tough stint at North Carolina, Gio Lopez is settling into Wake Forest&#39;s offense in Winston-Salem, embracing a chance to showcase his running skills.","og_url":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395","og_site_name":"\u0421harlotte Relocation Guide","article_published_time":"2026-07-17T22:33:47+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/#\/schema\/person\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93"},"headline":"Wake Forest aims to find \u2018best version\u2019 of Gio Lopez after disappointing UNC stint","datePublished":"2026-07-17T22:33:47+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395"},"wordCount":847,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/8714ec53dd24dd98060caaaa34ad7ced.jpg","articleSection":["Read today's Edition"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395","url":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395","name":"Wake Forest aims to find \u2018best version\u2019 of Gio Lopez after disappointing UNC stint - \u0421harlotte Relocation Guide","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/8714ec53dd24dd98060caaaa34ad7ced.jpg","datePublished":"2026-07-17T22:33:47+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/#\/schema\/person\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/8714ec53dd24dd98060caaaa34ad7ced.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/8714ec53dd24dd98060caaaa34ad7ced.jpg","width":1200,"height":674,"caption":"North Carolina quarterback Gio Lopez (7) grabs his ankle after being injured on a sack by N.C. State defensive tackle Brandon Cleveland (44) in the third quarter on Saturday, November 29, 2025 at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, N.C."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?p=3395#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Wake Forest aims to find \u2018best version\u2019 of Gio Lopez after disappointing UNC stint"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/","name":"\u0421harlotte Relocation Guide","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/#\/schema\/person\/8dbe691609d05fbc6dbaa5c440b54a93","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com"],"url":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3395","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3395"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3395\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3394"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3395"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3395"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/charlotterelocationguide.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3395"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}