What seemed like a joke at first, is apparently quite serious. Bill Belichick, the six-time Super Bowl champion, and greatest coach of all time, is entertaining the idea of coaching college football in 2025. North Carolina head coach Mack Brown has resigned, and the University has interviewed the former Patriots and Browns legend to potentially fill the spot. Reports are coming out today that part of the negotiation will be for Bill’s son Steve, who will be his defensive coordinator, to be named in the contract as coach in waiting.
If Bill does take the job, he will have a lot of work in front of him to make the Tar Heels competitive. Unlike the NFL, which is ripe with parity, to win in the NCAA, a team needs to be loaded with talent. Having Belichick on the sideline would no doubt give a boost to recruiting, but no true freshman is going to help the team. They need to hit the transfer portal harder than any coach ever has, to put together a group of experienced top performers who will thrive under Belichick (and possibly Josh McDaniels).
At first glance, it would seem logical that Belichick would target a pocket passer like his former Patriots passer, Tom Brady. Miller Moss from USC would be the logical choice if that’s the direction he chooses to go. Bill had success with that style of quarterback, but he favors mobile, dual-threat passers. He drafted Michael Bishop, loved Cam Newton, and allegedly favored Justin Fields in the 2021 NFL Draft.
Bill is unlikely to roll with returning Tar Heel quarterback Connor Harrell. He is talented, but expect UNC’s top target to be Liberty quarterback Kaoidon Salter. His performance in 2024 was a step down from the previous year, but it’s Salter’s 2023 performance that will have Belichick in love. He completed 61% of his passes that season for 2,876 yards and 32 touchdowns with just 6 interceptions. He also ran for 1,089 yards and 12 touchdowns. It’s incredible to imagine what he could do if directed by Josh McDaniels.
Omarion Hampton is 90% headed to the NFL. Bill could try and talk him into playing one more year, and going into the 2026 NFL Draft as the top running back, rather than the number two guy. It’s a tough sell though, even with NIL money to throw at him. Every carry in college is like putting 1,000 miles on a car. If he gets to the league with too much mileage, he runs the risk of breaking down before he’s 27. It makes sense for him to jump, even if he’s a day two selection.
Belichick could look to bring in a player of his own that has low miles. Louisiana-Monroe tailback Ahmad Hardy has just one year under his belt, but what a year it was. He carried the ball 237 times for 1,351 yards and 13 touchdowns. He only caught 8 passes for 72 yards, but in an NFL-style offense, he would see quite a few screens and dump off passes. He could legitimately rack up 2,000 all-purpose yards in a season before the end of his career.
Bill was never good at drafting wide receivers, but maybe he would have better luck recruiting players from the transfer portal. His top returning pass catcher will be junior Kobe Paysour, who caught just 19 passes in 2024. At 5’10 and 205 pounds, Paysour may thrive as a slot receiver in a Patriots-style offense, but Belichick is going to try and find a couple of outside receivers to open up space and keep the defense honest.
First on the list is LSU wideout CJ Daniels. He is 6’1 “and 195 pounds and will be a sixth-year senior thanks to a redshirt year and COVID-19. Last season, he had 42 catches for 480 yards and no touchdowns for the Tigers. His allure will be how he performed the previous year at Liberty, catching passes from Kaidon Salter. In 2023, he had 55 grabs for 1,067 yards and 10 touchdowns.
On the other side of the line, Belichick could target Kentucky split-end Dane Key. He’s 6’3 and 209 pounds and had a productive year for the Wildcats in 2024. He had 47 catches for 715 yards and 2 touchdowns. Between him and Daniels, with Paysour in the slot, and Hardy out of the backfield, the offense could put up points in bunches. They will just need some help along the line.
Carolina has their left and right tackles returning, and they are massive. Howard Sampson is 6’8 and 325 pounds, and his counterpart Treyvon Green is 6’7 and 340 pounds. Their issue won’t be on the edges in 2025 but on the interior. Belichick loves his players in the trenches, and they are where the offense begins and ends. There are quite a few names to choose from in the transfer portal currently, but Bill will target two of them.
He will again look to Liberty, and scoop up their guard Jordan White. He’s 6’2 and 300 pounds and could be a first-round pick after getting some coaching from the greatest of all time. Pro Football Focus gave him a grade so far this season of 82.2, top five for any interior lineman this season. He has a pass-blocking grade of 66.4 and a run-blocking grade of 87.4. Having a mobile quarterback and lightning-quick running back will play to his strengths.
Hunter Zambrano from Illinois State would be target number two. He is big for a guard, standing 6’5 and 300 pounds. He would fit right in with the rest of the massive players blocking for North Carolina. He was a three-star prospect in high school and has developed into a great run blocker.
North Carolina’s front seven is returning just one player, and that’s sophomore linebacker Amare Campbell. They are losing over 100 tackles, 21 for a loss, and 15 sacks from their defensive line. The trophy of the transfer portal so far would be Nebraska’s Princewill Umanmielen. The 6’5 and 245-pound sophomore has 13 total tackles this season. He has 0.5 sacks and has been a bit of a disappointment at Nebraska since going there as a four-star prospect in 2023. Being coached by a defensive genius could bring out his best.
Next is Dashawn Womack from LSU. Another long sophomore, he stands 6’5 and weighs 260 pounds. Another edge rusher who has not lived up to his potential, he has just 8 tackles on the season and one sack. If Bill could unlock his and Umanmielen’s potential, it might be impossible for any opposing quarterback to get a pass off in 2025.
Kaleb Cost will return for Carolina, but Bill should add more playmakers to his secondary if he wants to win games in the ACC. First should be Dillon Thieneman from Purdue. Safety has always been crucial for New England defenses, and he could be a great fit. The 6’0, 207-pound sophomore has 70 tackles this season for the Purdue Boilermakers. He is a ball hawk, and teams have shied away from throwing to his side this year. In 2023 he had 6 interceptions.
With safety settled, Belichick will look to secure an outside lockdown player. That would be Ja’Keem Jackson, from the Florida Gators. He is 6’1 and 189 pounds. He has four passes defended in two years in the SEC. He could use some coaching from Steve Belichick, who was able to make the Patriots corners and safeties among the NFL’s best.
There is no better football mind at any level than Bill Belichick. He will not be outgameplanned or outcoached by anyone in college football. He won’t be able to win without good players though. Should he land these or some of these players in the transfer portal, and if he brings Josh McDaniels with him to Chapel Hill, a 9-2 or 10-1 season would not be out of the realm of possibility. No matter who is across the field from him on Saturday, it’s a safe bet that every opposing coach will be intimidated.
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