What UNC’s Bill Belichick said about building his program, and ‘noise’ around it
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Belichick emphasized team building and avoiding off-field media distractions.
- UNC players described Belichick as professional but more approachable than expected.
- Belichick’s college team adopts NFL-style culture and training methods.
Bill Belichick came striding into the Hall of Honor at the Kenan Football Center for a media session Tuesday, saying, “Who has the balloon concession here?”
It was a joke. A Bill Belichick joke, said quickly and in a low monotone. It was about an abundance of blue-and-white balloons that adorn the lobby at North Carolina’s football center like the setting for a wedding reception or graduation party.
It also was just the kind of joke, some of the UNC football players say, that they have come to expect from their new head football coach, the one with all the Super Bowl rings and a reputation of being a crusty, stern, no-nonsense type.
“Coach has a narrative of being serious all the time, but Coach jokes with us, laughs with us,” wide receiver Jordan Shipp said Tuesday. “He has a humorous side to him, as well. Like the first meeting. You’re expecting him to be serious, a hundred percent locked in, and he comes in and introduces himself and then he busts a joke.”
Belichick, who can be a hundred percent locked in, said again Tuesday that his focus strictly was on the building of his first college football team. and that he will continue to do it, strenuously, while ignoring what he called “the noise out there.”
In a 20-minute question-and-answer briefing, Belichick touched on putting together his roster, on quarterbacks Gio Lopez and Max Johnson, on revenue sharing in college sports, on the “culture” — always a buzz word in team sports — in his program and the players’ three-word mantra: “Be a pro.”
“We’ll get players ready to go to the next level. That’s what we’re selling and most kids are interested in that, so we have great buy-in,” Belichick said.
Addressing the Hudson ‘noise’
And, yes, the 73-year-old Belichick touched on the subject of his 24-year-old girlfriend, Jordon Hudson, the source of many media stories and headlines and social media scuttlebutt and fodder since the two arrived at UNC.
There has been constant attention on Hudson, and none more than after Belichick’s recent “CBS Sunday Morning” interview, when she was seen sitting off to the side and objected to a question posed about their relationship. Belichick, for his part, sat still and silently stared ahead after Hudson interjected herself into the questioning.
Belichick was asked Tuesday how much of a presence Hudson would have during the football season, if she would be seen on the UNC sideline during games.
Belichick chuckled.
“No, she doesn’t have any role in the UNC football program,” he said. “Again, there’s been noise out there about a lot of different things. Again, our focus is day to day, getting better, stacking good days together.
“How do we help the team get better? That’s my job, that’s our staff’s job, is to put a good plan in place so if they do the work they see improvement. That’s what our job is.”
Belichick, considered by many the best coach in NFL history, took over at UNC after a year’s sabbatical from coaching. Mack Brown, the winningest coach in UNC history, was fired after the 2024 season and Belichick brought in amid much fanfare and given a $10 million a year salary.
Belichick’s first spring at UNC included such changes as having the players wearing uniforms without numbers at practice. Nor did they wear numbered jerseys during an open practice for Carolina fans at Kenan Stadium, leaving many to guess as to who they were seeing catch passes or make tackles.
‘Long way to go’
Four players were at Tuesday’s press conference, the first media interviews by UNC players since the Tar Heels’ Fenway Bowl appearance in late December. Two were at UNC last season — Shipp and safety Will Hardy. Two have come to UNC and the Belichick program through the portal — offensive lineman Christo Kelly and defensive back Thad Dixon.
Shipp, a sophomore from Charlotte, recalled first getting the word that Belichick would be the new coach — that Bill Belichick, the one who coached the New England Patriots to all those Super Bowl titles.
“It was like, ‘That’s the greatest coach of all time and he’s about to be coaching us,’” Shipp said.
The players had to wonder how much would change. Shipp said the program, self-professed as the NFL’s ”33rd team,” is being run differently.
“It’s more like an NFL style program with the training, the recovery stuff, the strength and conditioning,” he said.
Belichick’s first UNC team will take the field for the first time Sept. 1 against Texas Christian. Kenan Stadium should be full, the anticipation high.. ESPN will show it. Many in the nation will be watching, wondering how Belichick’s venture into college coaching will unfold.
Until then, much work still needs to be done, Belichick said.
“We don’t think we’re there yet,” he said. “We’re definitely not there. We know we have a long way to go.
“But I think these guys have a really good future in front of them individually and collectively and it’s exciting to see the progress they’ve made.”
This story was originally published June 10, 2025 at 3:08 PM.
