The welcoming for Bill Belichick into college football hasn’t been as smooth as some might have thought. The six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach has gotten North Carolina off to a dismal 2-2 start, with the only wins coming against Charlotte and Richmond. And now with a reeling Clemson up next, it may not get much better.
But maybe this rough start should have been more apparent.
According to a recent story by The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman, who spoke with a Group of Five head coach granted anonymity, the Tar Heels did a poor job of evaluating their roster.
“What I think they miscalculated is with the way they were taking (players) in the portal and paying dudes,” the anonymous coach said. “It made me wonder, did they actually understand the landscape they were in? Did they understand that they’re in the ACC, not like Conference USA or the Sun Belt? Like, we got beat by North Carolina on a bunch of kids. I was like, why the f— is North Carolina beating us on kids? When I keep running up against the same P4s over and over again in recruiting, I’m like, all right, they’re gonna suck.”
Maybe it’s not purely coaching, but if this is true — and all signs from on-field performances point that way — it still falls on Belichick and his staff, who are clearly trying to figure out the college landscape in Year 1 in Chapel Hill.
Bill Belichick, UNC Went Heavy In Transfer Portal
Belichick and his staff completely overhauled the roster heading into the season. That’s not surprising, considering that is the new way of life in college football, especially for an incoming coach. UNC came away with the No. 9 ranked portal class with 41 commits, according to 247Sports.
That haul included South Alabama quarterback Gio Lopez and Washington transfers who followed Belichick’s son, Steve: linebacker Kimori House and cornerback Thaddeus Dixon.
Lopez, who has been dealing with injuries since Week 1 against TCU, is likely out against Clemson in favor of Max Johnson, according to CBS Sports. House is second on the team in tackles, while Dixon is tied for the team lead in pass breakups.
In all, between the transfer portal and high school recruits, North Carolina brought in 70 new commitments to construct the 2025 roster.
USA Today’s Matt Hayes put it bluntly: “Belichick built the roster, he’s the reason UNC has 70 new players. It wasn’t forced on him, nor was it his only option.”
Can North Carolina Even Stay Close With Clemson?
Not that it was expected North Carolina would pose as a serious upset threat to Clemson entering the season, but there was at least intrigue in seeing one of college football’s best in Dabo Swinney take on the NFL’s best. Now, much of the Week 6 game’s luster has been wiped away — although not all of that is on Belichick.
It looks bleak across the board for UNC. Defensively, they’re allowing 22.7 points per game, while on offense they’re scoring just 21. Neither of their wins came against Power Four opponents. Taking that into account, their losses to TCU and UCF saw them outscored 62-23.
The one benefit for Belichick and UNC is that they’ll be back home in Kenan Stadium on October 4 when they host the Tigers. But that’s really where it ends.
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The post Coach’s Prediction Coming True for UNC, Bill Belichick Ahead of Clemson: ‘They’re Gonna Suck’ appeared first on Heavy Sports.