A lot of things are being said and written about the North Carolina football program and head coach Bill Belichick's place within it.
Despite promoting the Tar Heels as the 33rd NFL franchise before the beginning of the season, all hopes and expectations for UNC under Belichick have been crushed through the first six weeks of the college football season. And it's left a lot of speculation that the 73-year-old coach and the university are both taking increasingly more frequent glances at the exit.
In response to reports that they were doing just that and even potentially discussing a buyout for an amicable parting of ways, Belichick and UNC athletic director Bubba Cunningham issued brief statements that said everyone is committed to each other for the time being.
On ‘College Gameday' earlier this morning, ESPN college football insider Pete Thamel gave insight into what is “real” in all the talk around North Carolina.
“What's real, Rece [Davis], is that those statements signaled short-term commitment from both sides, from UNC and from Bill Belichick,” Thamel said. “Talking to sources around the industry, the fact that they needed to make statements five games into the Belichick era is a signal flare that this is an inflection point for Bill Belichick and North Carolina.
“Nothing is imminent with Bill Belichick and North Carolina, from talking to sources, but appears at the end of this season, there's going to be a crossroads: either there's significant changes at North Carolina, on the roster, on the staff, in the front office — they brought in 70 new players, and it simply hasn't worked out — or there's some type of exit for Bill Belichick at the end of the year.”
.@PeteThamel weighs in on Bill Belichick's future at UNC ✍️ pic.twitter.com/31pcZTivXR
— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) October 11, 2025
Thamel said Belichick, whose team is on a bye, was spotted at a Maryland high school football game last night, which could be a sign he plans to keep going past just this year. Whether that actually happens or not, though, will almost certainly depend on how the rest of the season goes.
North Carolina (2-3, 0-2 in ACC) plays at Cal next Friday before returning home for a meeting with currently ranked Virginia.
