UNC football coach Bill Belichick in his element as Tar Heels crank up spring practice
Bill Belichick stood on a North Carolina practice field Wednesday, arms crossed and with a stern gaze as a drill progressed.
Belichick had to quickly duck away as a player seemed to be on a collision course with his coach. Belichick came away with a hint of a smile, as if enjoying something he has missed.
It was the second practice of Belichick’s first spring drills as UNC’s new head football coach. For the first time since his days with the New England Patriots, he has a team to coach and a lot of work to be done, and will be well compensated for it.
“That’s the great thing about being a head coach. I can coach anybody I want,” Belichick said in a press conference before the practice. “I can coach the line, I can yell at the tight end, I can yell at the DBs, I can yell at the kickers or any group I want.
“And coach them. Honestly, that’s the fun part. You see something you want to address and talk to a player about, you can go talk to them. If I can help a player, I’m here to help him. That’s my job.”
Belichick’s job, like every other coach, is to win games. He has all those Super Bowl rings and has established a football legacy few will ever match, but he’s new to the college way of doing things and has yet to win a game with the Tar Heels.
One of Belichick’s top priorities in the spring will be in evaluating the quarterbacks. Jacolby Criswell, the starter much of last season, and Conner Harrell have transferred. Max Johnson, injured in the opening game at Minnesota last season, continues to recover from a broken leg.
Johnson, who transferred to UNC from Texas A&M a year ago, was at the practice Wednesday — a good, positive sign for the son of former NFL quarterback Brad Johnson.
“Max has worked hard and Max has made a lot of progress,” Belichick said. “He’s still limited, but he’s definitely getting better. We’ll take it day by day, but nobody has put in more work than he has, and we’ll see where that takes him.”
As was his wont several years as an NFL coach, Belichick prefers the players not wear their jersey numbers in practice. He’ll continue to do that at UNC.
“That’s what we do. We go out there and we earn it,” he said. “The numbers and what color gloves we wear and all that stuff isn’t as important as doing your job and being responsible and accountable to your teammates.
“We’’re just all out there working and practicing and trying to get better, coaches, players, all of us. It’s not about individual notoriety now. It’s about putting together a team.”
One difference from the NFL, Belichick said, was the ability to put on the pads in the spring and do some hitting.
Belichick’s oldest son, Steve, was defensive coordinator at the University of Washington last season and will head up the UNC defense for his father. Belichick said in visiting his son and spending time observing the UW practices, the contact work, he gained a better understanding of the development that’s possible in the spring.
“We could never do that in the National Football League, especially with the big guys,” he said. “Route running and things like that, skill players can do skill stuff, but the offensive and defensive linemen, pass rushers, pass protectors, some of the contact positions, is very limited in the NFL in the spring.
“You can work on the running game (in college). It’s really hard to work on the running game in the National Football League when you’re in shorts.”
If anything, Belichick did appear to be in his element Wednesday, in a UNC pullover, cap and shorts. Before heading to the practice field, he gave his whistle a playful toot, as if making sure it worked.
““It’s a long journey,” he said. “There’s a lot of work to be done. We have a long way to go. We haven’t accomplished anything.”
This story was originally published March 5, 2025 at 6:46 PM.
