When Bill Belichick joined the North Carolina Tar Heels in December last year, he had confidently said, “I have always wanted to coach in college and now I look forward to building the football program in Chapel Hill.” Uh, hard stop. It’s not as easy as it looks, and the greatest coach of all time might be realizing this with every passing second. In this very first season in the echelons of college football, the former Patriots coach seems to be missing, or at least struggling with a key member in his roster. But before we tell you about that…

For the unversed: As unbelievable as it sounds, Belichick’s decision to join the CFB realm wasn’t just seeped in nostalgia, but a dash of controversy, too. In what was a “big f— you” from the veteran coach to the NFL as per a confidant, the departure was also the result of Belichick becoming all too knowing within the Patriots’ headquarters, and owner Robert Kraft needing more “checks and balances” in his life. Moreover, as a coach who reportedly had control over every hiring, money, and draft decisions over 24 seasons with Tom Brady at the center, the latter’s departure intensified cracks that no one knew existed. 7-9, 10-7, 8-9, 4-13—is how the Patriots concluded their next four seasons after Brady’s departure, and before Belichick’s.

So, there it was. The end of a legacy and a partnership that would certainly make a place in history. However, now, Belichick is set to make history elsewhere. His arrival in Chapel Hill has meant UNC has been able to recruit better, as well as find greater success through the transfer portal. The roster does project to be oozing more quality than it was this time last year. But the quarterback position still remains a bit of a mystery. As much as having the greatest defensive mind in the history of the sport helps that side of the football, teams can only go as far as their quarterback takes them. A national CFB analyst has echoed concern around UNC, stemming from the uncertainty under center. It’s even more resounding since he’s a former QB himself.

Over at ESPN’s Always College Football podcast, former New York Jets quarterback Greg McElroy said on March 19, “North Carolina Tar Heels…maybe one of the biggest stories of the entire off-season. When you go out and you finish the season 6-7 [overall and] 3-5 in the ACC, not a lot of people are going to pay attention to what you do this off-season…but North Carolina said, ‘Enough of that. We want to be the center of attention. We’re gonna go out and we’re gonna hire a six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach to take over the program’. Bill Belichick…is by far one of the biggest coaching hires in college football in recent memory…it is crazy to think about. But either way, it’s gonna be a lot of fun to watch. The big key is the quarterback spot.”

“Tom Brady is probably the greatest quarterback in the history of the game if you think. Tom Brady and Bill Belichick…worked in tandem and to six Super Bowl championships. Okay, well, there is not [a] Brady to go with here on North Carolina’s roster. We know that this is a group that does have some talent and some experience. Max Johnson [is] probably the best example of that. He’s been playing football for quite a while. He did suffer a bad leg injury in the opener, so probably not going to be at 100% at any point until fall camp. So, that’s when we’ll get a good assessment of what he’s going to be.”

Notably, Johnson suffered a broken femur in the team’s 19-17 win season opener win against Minnesota and surgery, concluding his season.

Somewhat morbidly, Johnson’s rehab extending until fall has given Browne the opportunity to swoop in. McElroy also acknowledged that “Bryce Baker is the guy that many are saying is going to be the piece that can help elevate this program to the next level…figuring out the quarterback spot is the first order of business [for Bill Belichick].” The Tar Heels are a storied school in the sports paradigm. But that comes from the hardwood, not the gridiron. For a coach looking to revolutionize his program on all fronts., Belichick sure could’ve done with a straightforward solution at QB. Adding to that, the program will also have to solve some defense woes. 

“For quite a while, the defense has been a huge challenge. They have tried under multiple head coaches, multiple different defensive coordinators. They have tried to bring out the best of this defense for as long as I can remember. I can think back to when Larry Fedora was there and the challenges that they had on defense. I can think back to what happened with Gene Chizik and then Geoff Collins. They’ve tried a million different ways to make this group cohesive defensively, and it just hasn’t materialized for whatever reason,” McElroy added.

“Now, Belichick’s son, Steve, is going to be the defensive coordinator and that I think will be beneficial, because, if you look at what Steve did at Washington last year…he did a pretty good job and Washington won some games or were competitive in some games that many people didn’t think they’d be competitive in, because of how they performed on the defensive side. He also brought with him a couple of guys…Thaddeus Dixon at corner, and Peyton Waters at safety, to help kind of ease the transition into what should be a new defensive scheme. So, North Carolina, one of the more fascinating teams of the off-season and one that will have lots of attention being paid to them with how they perform in the spring,” he further said. Looks like a revolution is impending…

Speaking of revolution, his GM, Michael Lombardi, isn’t too pleased with one quirky coaching technique Belichick has brought over to UNC from the NFL.

Bill Belichick’s culture-setting methods don’t have a fan in Michael Lombardi

Everyone wishes to know how Bill Belichick builds a college program from scratch. Witnessing the makings of a potential Patriots 2.0. The first glimpse of this has come courtesy of spring camp. Bill Belichick took his troops out on the field, and everyone noticed something peculiar. UNC is practicing with jerseys that have no names or numbers on them. Veiled behind anonymity. Something Belichick also implemented when he began with the Patriots. Now, athletes are often synonymous with their jersey numbers. But being synonymous with the number on your back isn’t a great thing on the practice field. Especially with a new coaching staff that probably doesn’t even know your name yet! 

Sure, you can get away without knowing everyone’s name on a nearly 100-man roster. But that’s not how you build connections with people you’re going to war with on Saturdays, is it? Plus, playing without numbers or names means every player gets a clean slate. Whether you were a star under the previous regime or a benchwarmer. Everybody gets an equal chance to leave an impression on Bill Belichick.

Michael Lombardi guested on The Pat McAfee Show, where he was asked the reason behind practicing with name and number-less jerseys. He said “One of the things we have to work on here at North Carolina is our communication, right? We’ve got to know everybody on the team. We’ve got to be able to not just call out, ‘Hey, 79! You’ve got that A gap. [Or] you’ve got to slide down.’” As great as the idea behind this is, Lombardi is concerned with its big drawback.

Pat McAfee floated that “When you’re watching film…Ah! That has to be a nightmare.” Lombardi, shaking his head side to side, replied, “I would like the numbers on them.” He implied it’s not him but just Bill Belichick pulling for this quirky coaching method. “[When] you go out there, you have to mark the players on your sheet,” continued Lombardi. He hinted at doing so by noting down unique items like gear, accessories, arm-sleeves and just about anything that can help him identify players.

It doesn’t seem that far-fetched to suggest this hampers UNC’s ability to break down the film. One certain thing is that the takeaways can’t be 100% perfect every time. There’s a third-string linebacker somewhere in there who Belichick has mistaken for a star D-lineman or something. Alas, the Tar Heels fans and brass won’t be worried about such nitpicks as long as they show up in their performances and win/loss columns come fall. At the crux of which will be the QB they land on as the starter. Johnson, Browne, or the wildcard in Baker- who’ll finally fill that Drake Maye-shaped void?