Bill Belichick outlines similarities between NFL and new coaching role
It's been less than a week since Bill Belichick became the 35th head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels. Belichick agreed to a three-year, $30 million deal with the school to become its next coach.
After taking last season off, Belichick returns to coaching and will begin his career as a college football coach.
On Monday's episode of "The Pat McAfee Show," Pat McAfee asked Bill Belichick about his first week coaching college football.
In a time when the college football landscape has changed drastically in recent years (playoffs expansion, looser transfer rules for the transfer portal, players being able to sign NIL deals, etc.), Belichick spoke about the similarities and differences between coaching in the NFL and college.
"I feel like it's a combination of the hours after the draft, when you're trying to sign the players who weren't drafted, and the two days before the start of free agency and the first day of free agency when free agency hasn't started. The transfer portal hasn't started. Some guys are in it. They're going in it.
"They're not going in it. You know, it's, it's a lot of dealing with the player, the agent and and maybe another person, because not all players have agents. So it's been an interesting process, but it's very similar. Mike Lombardi and I were just talking about, it's very similar to what we went through with the post draft process and the and right at the beginning of free agent process, all combined into one with the transfer portal."
Belichick has assembled many talented rosters in the past before with the New England Patriots. It will be interesting to see how he does so with UNC.
Tom Brady said he was "blown away" by Bill Belichick's decision to coach college football
It was no surprise that Bill Belichick still wanted to coach after he and the New England Patriots mutually agreed to part ways. He met with the Atlanta Falcons last offseason, but they decided to hire Raheem Morris.
Belichick took this season off from coaching but has been a part of the media, making many guest appearances for draft coverage, being on "The Pat McAfee Show" and having other roles.
When the news broke that he agreed to become UNC's next coach, many were surprised, including his former seven-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback, Tom Brady.
“It kind of blew me away when I heard the news,” Brady told his Fox play-by-play partner, Kevin Burkhardt on Sunday. “I didn’t think that was an opportunity he was looking at, but they’re getting, obviously, a tremendous coach, and being in that locker room with him for as many years.
"Those guys are going to play very hard, he’s going to coach them well, it’s a great benefit for all those players who are going to that program cause they’re getting the best coach that the NFL has ever seen, and now he’s at a college level.”
Belichick will begin his next coaching stint in the Fall of 2025. With all of his experience and success coaching, Belichick should be fine in his transition but could face many new challenges with the role.
How do you think Bill Belichick will do as a college football coach?