Will Bill Belichick at UNC work? Plus, Oregon's College Football Playoff seeding

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Yesterday’s big news made up for a fairly quiet coaching carousel thus far. But was UNC hiring Bill Belichick a good move?

Belichick To UNC

Will this work?

Belichick will return to the football sideline at North Carolina next season, and if you’re already marking your calendar, the Tar Heels host TCU on Aug. 30 in their 2025 season opener. The six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach with the New England Patriots agreed to a five-year deal yesterday after weeks of speculation. The 72-year-old Belichick is only one year younger than former Tar Heels coach Mack Brown and has never coached in the college ranks — although he spent some time this past season around Washington, where his son Steve Belichick is the defensive coordinator.

Bill Belichick in an argyle tie.

Chancellor Roberts: “We want to be the best public university in the United States, and that means excellence in everything we do.” pic.twitter.com/eR0eGnGaxy

— Brendan Marks (@BrendanRMarks) December 12, 2024

The reaction to the hire is mixed … to say the least. I polled a variety of writers at The Athletic to answer the following question: Is this going to work? And tell me in around 25 words, please.

Here’s what they told me.

Depends on what you mean by “work.” Does UNC make the CFP? Eh. But does UNC sell a metric ton of tickets? Absolutely. — Brendan Marks, UNC writer

No, it’s not going to work. He’s never spent a day of his life recruiting or motivating 18-year-olds or anything else that the best college coaches do so well. — Stewart Mandel, college football editor-in-chief (Read more on why Stewart expects UNC will regret this.)

Yes — to a degree. Belichick’s scheme can get the most out of his roster. There are plenty of fair questions. But he’ll get eight wins. So is that a success? — Chad Graff, Patriots writer

Define work. I don’t doubt Belichick has the ability to be a winning coach at a program that generally wins at a modest level. I’m skeptical Belichick at 72 can transform UNC football into the giant many have always believed it should be. — Ralph Russo, college football writer

Yes, it’ll come down to teaching a sport he loves in its purest form. You can win plenty of games in college just by being fundamentally responsible. — Jeff Howe, NFL insider

Bill Belichick has many flaws — Heaven knows I’ve pointed them out more than most — but he’s an incredible coach who should thrive in the (by comparison) schematically simple college game. — Mike Silver, NFL writer

Depends on what “work” means. Bowl games? Sure. A top-five team? No. The CFP? Well, the CFP may be further expanding soon. — Chris Vannini, college football writer

Mandel’s Mailbag

Unfair route for the top-ranked Ducks?

Did the Ducks get an absolutely brutal route to the final, or is that just me? It seems like a clear flaw that they have such a brutal path but are the No. 1 seed. — Asher S.

No question, No. 1 seed Oregon got the tougher side of the bracket. And for that you can blame what I believe to be the only notable flaw in the format: Manipulating the seedings to reward conference champs with byes.

Oregon drew the winner of an 8 vs. 9 matchup of Ohio State–Tennessee, but those teams are ranked No. 6 and No. 7 by the committee. If the seedings matched the rankings, the Ducks would get the winner of Indiana–Boise State, which I’m sure they’d prefer. Then it would be the winner of No. 4 Penn State and No. 5 Notre Dame in the semifinal. Whereas currently, they could get No. 3 Texas

Meanwhile, No. 2 Georgia’s three possible semifinal opponents are the No. 6 (Penn State), No. 9 (Boise State) and No. 11 (SMU) teams in the country. That’s bizarre. In the basketball tournament, the No. 2 seed would play either the No. 3 (in this case Texas), No. 6 and No. 11 teams.

So not only does this format allow teams ranked well below No. 4, like Boise and Arizona State, to earn a bye, but also the ripple effect messes with the integrity of the bracket.

I don’t think they should run out and change anything after one season of data, but my guess is the current format doesn’t make it to Year 3, when the new CFP contract begins. But of course, the Big Ten and SEC will try to strong-arm their way to something much worse. Like a 14-team tournament where each of their leagues gets four automatic berths and their champs get the only two byes. This, of course, would be far more destructive to the CFP’s credibility than whether Boise State is the No. 3 or No. 4 seed.

Read the rest of Stewart Mandel’s mailbag here.

Quick Snaps

Before Belichick’s UNC hire, the most fascinating coaching move happened in the Sun Belt where 24 hours after Charles Huff led Marshall to a conference title, his hire was announced by 1-11 Southern Miss. Ralph Russo has the inside story.

Could the latest college football super-league postseason concept end “all the squabbling?” Here’s what it entails.

Arkansas, UCF and Purdue were hit the hardest with departures in the first 72 hours of the transfer portal window. Other updates about the biggest names on the move are here.

Tulane transfer Darien Mensah, the top QB in the portal, will play for Duke next season. As for the other top Group of 5 and FCS players in the portal, North Texas QB Chandler Morris and Liberty QB Kaidon Salter remain available.

What’s Georgia quarterback Carson Beck’s injury status ahead of the College Football Playoff?

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(Top photo: Jared C. Tilton / Getty Images)