Bill Belichick, UNC’s ‘Culture of Arrogance’ Described in Report Outlining Struggles

Amid a chaotic start to his first season coaching college football, Bill Belichick’s handling of things at North Carolina is already being called out by people within the program.

A new report from The Athletic’s Bruce Feldman, Brendan Marks and Stewart Mandel details the “culture of arrogance” that has been created by Belichick and Tar Heels general manager Michael Lombardi since they were hired in December 2024.

One North Carolina source said in the story there is an “arrogance” to the way that Belichick operates because of his past success in the NFL.

“It’s the arrogance of it all,” the university source told The Athletic. “Because they had success in the NFL— and by they, I mean Belichick only—they (thought) they could come in and replicate that without knowing how college football works.”

Despite the belief Belichick and Lombardi had in themselves as a result of their NFL resumes, the report pointed out that neither of them had much of a grasp on how the salary structure with name, image and likeness works at the college level, nor did they have any relationships with players in the transfer portal.

“Three people said they overspent on some positions while hunting for bargains at others,” per the report.

Even though the Tar Heels added 41 players via the transfer portal—the third-most among all FBS programs—the talent level left a lot to be desired. It was led by seven 4-star prospects, but only one member from that group played a skill position (cornerback Thaddeus Dixon).

One person inside the program noted they “don’t have one pro player on the whole roster.”

This article will be updated soon to provide more information and analysis.

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