“Carolina can make a great college football hire or become the biggest embarrassment in the history of the university.”
That is a statement I made to a New Yorker reporter when she came to Chapel Hill to do a feature story on Bill Belichick before he ever coached a game for the Tar Heels. UNC has a chance to rectify what would be the second biggest mistake in its athletic history: allowing Belichick to be the head coach here for one more New York minute. If Belichick takes the podium at the scheduled press conference on Labor Day Monday, that error could haunt the university for the foreseeable future.
After not being able to secure another NFL job, the six-time Super Bowl champion coach waltzed through a regrettable vetting when no one in the various meeting rooms qualified as someone who truly understood differences between the ever-changing college football and NFL.
Granted, the timing of their hires meant Belichick and Mike Lombardi got a late start in recruiting the transfer portal and the current freshman class. But that is not what likely costs Belichick his job just as it did Lombardi.
Likely they both either didn’t know about or ignored the new NCAA rules that stipulate head coaches are responsible for any violations assistants make whether they knew they were making them or not. In this case, the mistakes appear to be so serious that the investigations may go on for another year.
Attorneys hired by the university are collecting evidence from former players, current players and their families, staffers and administrators. UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts said in July, “If something needs to be fixed, we will be sure to fix it.” From WRAL’s reporting on the investigation, there clearly seems to be enough material to warrant fixing — but it is unclear whether Belichick has violated NCAA compliance rules enough to warrant his ouster. That may result in a negotiation that could last for years.
What happens to Carolina football in the meantime is more important.
If another coach doesn’t take over for the last 11 games of this season and future seasons, what a circus it would continue to be. It’d be far worse than when coaching a team like New England in the NFL, where the entire fanbase is on your side or ignoring you and none of them have anything to do with your future. That is solely in the hands of the owner, whereas the college alumni, donors, student body and fan base have a lot more to say about what goes on.
Empty stands at the end of UNC football’s blowout loss to Clemson in 2025 signified the fanbase’s unhappiness with how the team looked under head coach Bill Belichick’s first year. Coming off a season-opening win in 2026, but learning of an off-field investigation into scandalous behavior, what will the fanbase do moving forward if Belichick remains in charge? (Photo via AP Photo/Chris Seward.)
A UNC termination is not about whether Belichick needed to learn how to coach college football. This is about reports seeping out about possible drug abuse and sexual behavior that would get any coach fired. And now the NCAA has made perfectly clear that the head coach is culpable whether he allowed it to go on or ignored it. Either way, reputational damage has already been done.
In one way, this would be a big break for Carolina: the athletic department would have an entire season to craft its message to the public and constituency of how to rebuild the program, pledging to never make the same mistake again. It might take the rest of the season for people to buy into a vision for the future, but those who were willing to give Carolina another chance and consider what a great university it has otherwise might need that time.
And this doesn’t have to be a wasted season.
Lessons can be learned, and this team is better than last season despite the rigorous schedule over the 10 games following Saturday’s game vs. ETSU. But the survival of Carolina football is paramount for former players, current players, recruits and all fans who love to follow the Tar Heels in all sports. It all starts if Carolina can make the right decision this week, begin the healing process, and fix the problems that have made UNC a laughingstock in football.
Featured photo via AP Photo/Phelan M. Ebenhack.
Art Chansky is a veteran journalist who has written ten books, including best-sellers “Game Changers,” “Blue Bloods,” and “The Dean’s List.” He has contributed to WCHL for decades, having made his first appearance as a student in 1971. His “Sports Notebook” commentary airs on 97.9 The Hill WCHL and his “Art’s Angle” opinion column runs weekly on Chapelboro during football and basketball seasons.Chapelboro.com does not charge subscription fees, and you can directly support our efforts in local journalism here. Want more of what you see on Chapelboro? Let us bring free local news and community information to you by signing up for our newsletter.
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