Bill Belichick has added another familiar piece to his formidable North Carolina football staff for 2025.
In what has been a busy, but productive offseason for the Tar Heels' newly-hired head coach, he continues to push the program in a winning direction, bringing in one of his former New England Patriots players in All-Pro linebacker Jamie Collins, according to TMZ Sports.
“I'm trying to step into another lane that I think I'd be great at man, and that's coaching,” Collins said. “Blessed for the opportunity, you know my guy, I don't know man.. I love that dude, he loves me and obviously he can't get rid of me. So we'll see how that works out. I'm grateful, man. Shocked, but I'm grateful and ready.”
Retired All-Pro LB Jamie Collins, who won Super Bowl XLIX with the Patriots, is joining his former head coach Bill Belichick's coaching staff at the University of North Carolina.
Collins will serve as a defensive assistant for @UNCFootball. @UNC @JamieLee601 pic.twitter.com/k5rkTZ73J1— TMZ Sports (@TMZ_Sports) February 7, 2025
Collins was a key member of the Patriots' defense that helped cap off a Super Bowl 49 victory run in 2015. North Carolina and Belichick will open up the 2025-26 campaign against TCU on September 1.
Jamie Collins' role on the North Carolina football staff
The Tar Heels are putting all of the right pieces in place, and making good use of their time over this offseason. Collins will likely meet more with Belichick as they inch closer to spring camp, but he's bringing a ton of valuable experience and enthusiasm into the role.
“Just working with the defense right now,” Collins said. “Mainly linebackers. Not really sure as of right now the specifics of it. But I'm all over the place right now with just the whole defense. But I would mainly like to just work with just the LBs, obviously because that's where I played. I just feel like I can do more and give more at the linebacker position. But whatever. If he needs me to coach the D-line, linebackers, or the secondary I'd do that too. I'm cool with it.”