Bill Belichick wasted no time gathering new players for his UNC Tar Heels team ahead of their inaugural season.
In fact, the biggest question about Belichick’s surprising jump to college football has been his adjustment to recruiting in this NIL era.
Well, he’s already delivered a four-star recruit to Chapel Hill: quarterback Bryce Baker, who was introduced at a Tar Heels basketball game Saturday alongside Belichick.
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New North Carolina football coach Bill Belichick speaks to the crowd at the Dean Smith Center during halftime of an NCAA college basketball game between La Salle and North Carolina in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, on Saturday December 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Ben McKeown)
During his weekly appearance on “The Pat McAfee Show,” Belichick talked about the draft and how he’s adjusted, what he called an “interesting process” but something he’s seen before.
“[UNC GM] “Mike Lombardi and I were talking about it; it’s very similar to what we went through with the post-draft process, and right at the beginning of the free agency process, everything was combined into one with the transfer portal,” Belichick explained.
“It’s exciting to be a team.”
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Belichick added that “several players” will pass through Chapel Hill this week as the open transfer portal creates a whirlwind of moves for programs across the country. Therefore, he, Lombardi and the rest of the program are moving quickly to make sure they take advantage of this time to prepare for the right time for 2025.
But when McAfee asked if Belichick is selling this new program to these players, the legendary coach said it’s a little of both.
Head coach Bill Belichick of the North Carolina Tar Heels poses with athletic director Bubba Cunningham during a press conference on December 12, 2024 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. (Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
“We’re selling the program, but honestly, Pat, a lot of players and agents come to us and say, ‘We want to be a part of the program. Is there a place for us? Would you take this player, that player?’ and so on,” Belichick explained. “A lot of the agents also represent players in the transfer portal that we’ve dealt with in the National Football League. So a lot of those relationships carry over to college football.”
Belichick is still building his coaching staff and evaluating his current roster. It’s certainly a process that needs to be learned as you go, especially considering other programs with their coaches in place have a bit of an advantage over UNC with Belichick’s arrival.
But the 72-year-old already has a top quarterback prospect and more potential key roster pieces on the way.
Bill Belichick, new head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels, at the Loudermilk Center for Excellence. (Images by Jim Dedmon-Imagn)
UNC has seven three-star recruits as commitments for the 2025 season, according to Rivals, with Baker being a verbal commitment.
