For the first time in his illustrious career, Bill Belichick will be the head coach of a college football team. Thus far, most of his work has been at the NFL level, and he was the head coach of the New England Patriots for over two decades. Now, he's heading down to college to run the North Carolina Tar Heels, a first for him.
Even though his experience isn't necessarily tailored to the collegiate game, one of his former assistants thinks he'll be just fine. Bill O'Brien, now a rival coach with Boston College, spent years on the NFL sidelines with Belichick, and he predicts that the former NFL coach is going to be just fine.
Via the Fayetteville Observer, he said, “Bill was in the NFL for as many years as he was, he studied a lot of college football. He got to know a lot of college football coaches, so I don’t think he’s a true rookie in college football. He knows what’s going on.”
Belichick knows football, and that will help him most. “I’ve been around Bill for many, many years. He has a great way of connecting with all kinds of people. He can connect with the coaching staff, he connects with the players. Whether it’s a 35-year-old quarterback or a 21-year-old rookie, he has his way of connecting. I’m sure he’ll connect with the players at North Carolina in the same way,” O’Brien said.
O'Brien said he is a fantastic coach that will bring untold knowledge to the program. He expects that those around him will be "blown away" by his schematics, situational acumen, and just general knowledge of the sport. The other aspects might be difficult for Belichick to adapt to, though.
"Relative to how he handles NIL and all that, I have no idea. … I’m so fortunate to have worked for him and Nick Saban. Those guys are phenomenal coaches and North Carolina guys will learn a lot from Bill," O'Brien concluded. Either way, he feels like the Tar Heels are in very good hands.