North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick has seen some trouble since taking the job, but what can he do to remain with the Tar Heels?
The North Carolina Tar Heels are off to a 2-0 start to the new college football season, showing a much stronger performance on the field than a year ago.
In head coach Bill Belichick's debut season in 2025, the Tar Heels struggled heavily, finishing the year 4-8 on the season. This has led to all sorts of speculation that Belichick could be out as the head coach fairly soon, but at least so far, the veteran coach looks like the part this year.
North Carolina is currently under investigation following some allegations surrounding the football program that led general manager Michael Lombardi to step down from his position. But the football team has been able to block out the noise so far, with the biggest challenge coming this week against the Clemson Tigers.
But for Belichick, what does success look like? How can he keep himself off the hot seat with the Tar Heels?
And the answer is as simple as it gets: keep winning games.
The schedule for the Tar Heels isn't going to do Belichick or this team any favors. After the game against Clemson, North Carolina will be hosting No. 3 Notre Dame, followed by a game on the road against Pittsburgh.
If the Tar Heels can go at least 2-1 over these next three games, it could be huge for the program. But losing two of three or, in a worst-case scenario, all three, could really put Belichick on the hot seat.
Then the Tar Heels get Duke on the road, in what could be a big game for Belichick. While the North Carolina and Duke rivalry has mainly been in basketball, the two schools don't like one another, and the veteran coach could earn brownie points with a win.
The Tar Heels then host Syracuse and No. 5 Miami, and the team will need to split these two games at bare minimum. North Carolina then faces off against UConn, giving them a more favorable game after some tough matchups.
The team then finishes the year with Louisville and North Carolina State at home. North Carlind will be playing on the road against Virginia as well.
This isn't the easiest schedule for the Tar Heels, but this team is capable of winning at least eight games. If Belichick can make that type of improvement this year, it could make his job status much safer.
Only time will tell how this all plays out for the coach, but his time with North Carolina is hopefully only getting started, if he has any say.
