Bill Belichick’s roller coaster first season at North Carolina ended in disappointing fashion Saturday night.
The UNC head coach, 73, didn’t have much to say after the Tar Heels endured a 42–19 blowout road loss in their season finale against rival NC State — capping his first year at the helm with three consecutive losses and a brutal 4–8 record.
“Look, the season’s just ended a few minutes ago, OK?” Belichick told reporters after the game. “So now we’re going to move into the offseason. That’s what we’re going to do.”
Belichick’s postmortem media scrum lasted all of four minutes, with the eight-time Super Bowl winner largely deferring to his players.
“I’m sorry I don’t have a season recap for you,” he added. “I don’t have one, we haven’t done it.”
If he had, perhaps Belichick would have characterized a season that began with tremendous optimism before things dissolved quickly, due in part to miserable play and off-field controversies.
“It’s hard to put it in one word,” receiver Jordan Shipp said when asked how he’d describe the season. “We didn’t expect the season to go like this of course.”
The Tar Heels, once lauded by general manager Mike Lombardi as the “33rd NFL Team,” had attracted ESPN’s “College GameDay” to Chapel Hill for their season opener — only for them to get squashed by 34 points against TCU.
UNC’s season continued to spiral, with the Tar Heels suffering more double-digit losses (5) than they had total wins on the season.
Bleachers emptied at Kenan Stadium by halftime during a humiliating performance against a historically bad Clemson squad in October, which became symbolic of what the season had become.
Belichick and his stumbling squad were trolled by fans, media, and opposing teams alike — who seemingly never ran out of ammunition from the endless cycle of off-the-field headlines emanating from Chapel Hill.
In October, a local WRAL TV report highlighted the “toxic environment” at UNC, alleging that Belichick and his “disorganized coaching staff” had divided the locker room and frustrated parents.
Days later, the program suspended an assistant coach for violating NCAA rules, though he rejoined the team after a few weeks.
Overshadowing the whole operation was Belichick’s high-profile relationship with 24-year-old girlfriend Jordon Hudson, whose game-day appearances fueled headlines, not to mention her recent threat of a lawsuit against former ESPN personality Pablo Torre, known for his investigations into the couple.
In early October, following the brutal Clemson loss and amid swirling scandals, the program issued a statement in support of Belichick.
Belichick, who signed a five-year, $50 million deal with UNC ahead of this season, has frequently reiterated his commitment to the program for next year.
A recent report suggested Belichick is drawing interest from “at least two NFL teams” as the coaching cycle looms, per NFL insider Josina Anderson.
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