Bill Belichick’s future is with UNC football. The NFL seems done with him.
Belichick’s tenure with Tar Heels off to rocky start, and no quick solutions apparent at quarterback.
Belichick eventually will earn Hall of Fame selection. Will he head to Canton with UNC buyout check in hand?
Amid the hysteria surrounding the snub heard ‘round the world, let’s remember Bill Belichick will get another crack at the Hall of Fame. This will iron out, and Belichick eventually will gain enshrinement in Canton.
In the meantime, Belichick can cast his sights on another Hall of Fame. The one in Atlanta. That’s the College Football Hall of Fame.
You might be thinking, “Isn’t Belichick 73 years old? How’s he going to build a College Hall of Fame resume?”
Age is just a number, folks. Curt Cignetti’s number is 64, and he’s college football’s new overlord.
Anyway, what else does Belichick have to occupy his time but college football? How many queen pageants can one man stomach?
It’s not like he’s a threat to head back to the NFL. The Shield is finished with him. If we needed convincing Belichick’s NFL days are but a memory, we got evidence this offseason.
Several NFL jobs opened. None of those organizations hired Belichick.
North Carolina football is Bill Belichick’s present and future
Beli belongs to the college game now and into the future. His march toward college enshrinement began with a 4-8 season for Chapel Bill.
OK, so that’s a rough start, right? Well, no worse than Belichick’s 6-10 debut with the Cleveland Browns in 1991.
Consider 2025 a launch point — both for Jordon Hudson’s career as a Svengali, and for Belichick’s pursuit of induction into the hallowed halls in Atlanta.
Michigan would consider deflating a few footballs child’s play.
And if you want to steal somebody’s quarterback, no problem. Just make sure to stage the plunder with a wad of cash in hand.
As for Belichick’s dating choices, well, he’s never wrecked a motorcycle with a staff member who doubled as a mistress along for the ride.
Belichick dating a 24-year-old seems quite trivial when you consider Michigan’s former coach faces a felony charge and allegations that he terrorized his ex-mistress, and Ohio fired its coach while citing his romantic relationship with a student.
Belichick is but a saint in this hotbed of sin we call college football.
He even dipped off to Nantucket for a hand-holding adventure with his girlfriend, while in the heat of college football season. How’s that for a good boyfriend?
Now, Belichick just needs to win some games, because we tolerate a lot in college football, but there’s no stomach for losing.
Belichick’s UNC rebuild must include a quarterback
We’ve seen just how easily Belichick can ignite. All he needs is 20 seasons with one quarterback named Brady, plus a few spy cams, and he can turn an otherwise unremarkable coaching career into GOAT status.
Now, if only he could find another quarterback like the chin-dimpled glory boy.
That shouldn’t be hard, right? It’s not as if he must develop a quarterback. Buy one from the transfer market. That’s the beauty of the college game.
Only, Belichick isn’t having much luck practicing the plundering arts. His first attempt at a transfer quarterback went splat. Gio Lopez, fresh from South Alabama, withered at UNC. The Tar Heels’ latest round of portal shopping includes a pair of unheralded former backup quarterbacks.
C’mon, Beli. This isn’t that hard. Find a rich booster. Smile, shake his hand, have a meal with him, award him a spot on your speed dial, and get access to his checkbook. Then, make a purchase.
Belichick, perhaps wanting to show he’s not an NFL flight risk, seems intent on playing the long game. Entering the second year of a five-year deal at UNC, his staff has asked for patience as Belichick hatches his plan.
You can’t rush greatness. Well, Curt Cignetti can, but Cig didn’t have to worry about protecting GOAT status, did he?
Belichick is taking the scenic route to success. While UNC’s peers fueled up on proven transfers, Belichick signed a modestly rated portal haul.
Instead of buying plug-and-play problem solvers, Belichick signed 38 high school prospects. The majority were three-star recruits.
What better way for Belichick to prove he can develop talent?
It’s only a matter time before it crystalizes that Belichick is charting a course for enshrinement in Atlanta.
Or, maybe not. Better chance he’ll one day head to Canton, with a UNC buyout check in hand.
Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s senior national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.