North Carolina defensive coordinator Steve Belichick is not expected to be with the Tar Heels in Dublin for Saturday’s season opener against TCU as he remains on medical leave.
North Carolina will begin the 2026 football season without defensive coordinator Steve Belichick on the sideline.
According to a report Thursday from On3’s Pete Nakos, Belichick is not expected to be with the Tar Heels when they face TCU on Saturday in Dublin, Ireland. Belichick, the son of UNC head coach Bill Belichick, has been away from the program on an indefinite medical leave since August 6.
No additional details have been publicly provided regarding the nature of Steve Belichick’s medical leave or a potential timetable for his return.
His absence means North Carolina will have to adjust its defensive operation for one of the most unique games on the Tar Heels’ schedule. UNC and TCU will meet Saturday, August 29 at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, with kickoff scheduled for noon ET on ESPN.
According to On3, Bill Belichick and defensive line coach Bob Diaco have worked together on the defensive game plan during Steve Belichick’s absence, with the elder Belichick expected to handle defensive play-calling duties against the Horned Frogs. When asked previously about the situation, Bill Belichick emphasized the collaborative nature of Carolina’s defensive coaching staff.
“We coach defense collectively as staff and we will continue to do that,” Belichick said.
Steve Belichick is entering his second season as North Carolina’s defensive coordinator. During his first year in Chapel Hill, the Tar Heels showed improvement in several areas, including red-zone defense. UNC finished 24th nationally in that category, allowing opponents to score on 77.3 percent of their trips inside the 20. The Tar Heels also held opponents to 21 points or fewer in four consecutive games, something the program had not accomplished since 2000.
Before joining his father at North Carolina, Steve Belichick spent the 2024 season as defensive coordinator at Washington. Prior to that, he worked for several years on the New England Patriots’ coaching staff and served as the team’s defensive play-caller from 2020 through 2023.
While Bill Belichick’s extensive defensive background gives North Carolina an unusually experienced option to step into the play-calling role, Steve Belichick’s continued absence is nevertheless significant. He has been responsible for coordinating the Tar Heel defense throughout the Belichick era and has now missed much of August as UNC prepared for its season opener.
For now, the larger concern remains Steve Belichick’s health, and there has been no indication of when he might rejoin the team.
On the football side, however, North Carolina cannot wait. The Tar Heels are headed to Dublin looking to open their second season under Bill Belichick with a victory, and they will apparently do so with their head coach assuming an even larger role in directing the defense against TCU.
