Bill Belichick and the North Carolina Tar Heels are being very aggressive in their pursuit of this top defensive recruit.
Bill Belichick definitely has his work cut out for him after going 4-8 in his debut campaign with the North Carolina Tar Heels, but patience should be exercised.
It was Belichick's first season on the collegiate level, after all, and he didn't really get the chance to put together a proper team for 2025.
But now, Belichick has had the opportunity to get knee deep into recruiting. He landed a top-20 recruiting class for 2026, and he has also already gotten a head start on 2027, securing commitments from three different players.
He also could be on his way to a fourth.
Earlier this week, Belichick and North Carolina general manager Michael Lombardi made the trip to Connecticut to visit four-star edge rusher Mekai Brown, who received an offer from the Tar Heels back on Jan. 14.
Brown revealed the meeting in a social media post thanking Belichick and Lombardi.
The 6-foot-7 defender is the sixth-ranked edge rusher and the 57th-ranked player overall in the class of 2027, via 247 Sports' composite rankings. He is also the top-ranked player in the state of Connecticut.
Mekai Brown. Credit: Lori Schmidt / Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images.Brown racked up 68 tackles, 11 tackles for loss and 10 sacks during his junior campaign at Greenwich Country Day. He has received 27 offers in total, including big-name schools like Florida State, Georgia, Indiana, Ohio State and Penn State.
North Carolina definitely made its mark on the recruiting trail this year by establishing a rather impressive class heading into next season, but Belichick still needs to prove he can regularly beat out those upper echelon teams.
It will certainly be difficult for the Tar Heels to land a player like Brown while facing such stiff competition, but it's clear that Brown is certainly interested in UNC.
North Carolina suffered a handful of embarrassing blowout losses this past year, failing to qualify for a bowl game for the first time since 2018.
The Tar Heels then lost 30 players to the transfer portal, although they were able to add 19, including former Wisconsin Badgers quarterback Billy Edwards.
We'll see if Belichick experiences more success next fall and if he and UNC are able to sway Brown to bring his talents to Chapel Hill.
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