The hire of a six-time Super Bowl champion and future Pro Football Hall of Famer brought national attention to the University of North Carolina football program. But on-field struggles and concerns about the culture of the team under Bill Belichick have turned that attention from a positive to a negative just five games into the season. 

Belichick is signed for five years, at $10 million per year, and it would be costly for either side to get out of that deal early. 

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WRAL has followed the "Chapel Bill" story from early hype to concerns from parents, players and campus leadership.

From Chapel Bill thrill to turmoil on the Tar Heels

December 2024: UNC hires Bill Belichick

After a 6-6 season, Mack Brown is let go.

A whirlwind courtship yields a surprising head coach for the Tar Heels. Bill Belichick, winner of six Super Bowls with the New England Patriots but with no college coaching experience, is named the next head coach and given a $50 million, five-year contract.

In his introductory press conference, Belichick says all the right things about Tar Heel tradition -- he mentions following his father -- a UNC assistant in the 1950s -- in-state recruiting and building an NFL-style program.

February 2025: Belichick sons, GM join his staff

In a nod to the changing game, UNC hires a football general manager. Michael Lombardi  -- who brings NFL front office experience -- will earn $1.5 million in 2025, more than the Tar Heels paid any assistant coach the season before.

In an era where schools are expected to share revenue with players, part of Lombardi's job is as the money man. 

Lombardi says the team will have a grade on every player. "If you're a starter on the team, there's going to be a certain value in place on what level of a starter you are," he says.

Belichick fills out his staff with two of his sons. Steve Belichick, who spent the 2024 season as Washington’s defensive coordinator, takes the same role on his father's staff. Brian Belichick will coach defensive backs and safeties for the Tar Heels.  

Spring 2025: Building the Tar Heels into a Belichick team

Within weeks of his hire, Bill Belichick takes advantage of the transfer portal to remake the Tar Heels roster. Players leave and others are recruited. 

By the start of the season, 70 members of the 103-man roster are Belichick players.

April 2025: 'Not talking about this:' Jordon Hudson and Bill Belichick

During an interview with CBS News Sunday Morning to promote his book, Bill Belichick, 73, is asked how he met much-younger, influencer girlfriend Jordon Hudson. Before  the coach can answer, Hudson says, from off camera, “We’re not talking about this.” 

The lack of an answer only serves to raise more questions about the relationship -- business and professional -- between the two who are decades apart in age.

Belichick says Hudson was "simply doing her job to ensure the interview stayed on track," and that CBS strayed from an agreed-upon line of questioning. CBS denies there were any pre-conditions for the interview.

Summer 2025: Football tickets sell out, game day hype builds 

The excitement surrounding the Belichick era pays off immediately for UNC. 

By mid-July, every football ticket for the season has sold, and the university announces a concert series and "Well Walk" to build game-day excitement on the Chapel Hill campus. 

The season opener, at home under the lights against TCU, will be broadcast on national television, in primetime on Labor Day.

Sept. 1: Belichick debut a bust, UNC loses to TCU 48-14

In front of a  national television audience and a packed house that included UNC legends like Lawrence Taylor and Michael Jordan, the Tar Heels make history in Bill Belichick's debut game.

They give up:

  • The most points ever by a Belichick-coached team
    • The most points ever by UNC in a season opener

      “We need to do a better job all the way around, coaching, playing, all three phases of the game," Belichick says after the loss.

      Belichick's bad blood with his former employer is evident in Chapel Hill, where scouts from the New England Patriots are banned from observing practices. “It’s clear that I’m not welcome there around their facility, so they’re not welcome in ours," Belichick says.

      Oct 4: Tar Heels embarrassed again, at home against Clemson 

      At 2-2, the Tar Heels host the struggling Clemson Tigers, looking to get right as conference play begins.

      But things go from bad to worse. The team gives up 28 points in the first quarter and loses 38-10. 

      Meanwhile, the fans are getting restless and observers note a decided lack of energy on the sideline. 

      Oct. 5: Former QB: Changes need to be made

      Bryn Renner, the voice of Tar Heel football on radio and a quarterback who played at UNC from 2010 through 2013, tells WRAL's Brian Murphy, "We're getting outcoached. We're getting outplayed. There's no physicality from the offensive side or the defensive side ... and the average fan can see that there's something going on that we're missing."

      Oct. 6: WRAL breaks story of divided team, disorganized coaches, communication failures

      Since the spring, parents of UNC football players have been in touch with WRAL's Pat Welter, concerned about their sons' experience on Bill Belichick's team.

      After the team falls to 2-3, multiple sources with knowledge of the inner workings of Belichick's program say the results on the field are a product of a divided locker room, a disorganized coaching staff and a failure to communicate.

      Oct. 7: WRAL reporting goes national; planned documentary canceled

      WRAL's reporting spreads on message boards and social media, with national outlets like The Atlantic and the Dan Patrick show echoing reports about a toxic culture within the locker room at UNC.

      WRAL learns that a planned documentary about Bill Belichick's return to the sidelines has been canceled.

      Inside the locker room, sources tell WRAL that an "individualistic culture" has players divided into pre-Belichick and post-Belichick factions, with some coming to blows while others search for the leak who aired their dirty laundry to the media.

      Oct. 8: Assistant coach suspended; Senior RB tells Belichick he's leaving the team 

      On Wednesday, UNC cornerbacks coach Armond Hawkins is not a practice. Players are told he is dealing with personal issues, but the university later announces he's suspended for violating NCAA rules.

       At least one player -- redshirt senior Caleb Hood -- has left the team. On X, UNC football said Hood shared that decision with Belichick on Wednesday. Hood has dealt with injuries for much of his career. He's played in just 53.4% of games since his true freshman year in 2021 at UNC.  

      Oct. 9: UNC sources deny discussions about Belichick exit strategy

      UNC sources deny a TarHeel247 report that the university is looking into easing Belichick out. 

      On X, UNC Athletics Director Bubba Cunningham and Bill Belichick post a paired statement of mutual admiration. 

      “I’m fully committed to UNC Football and the program we’re building here,” Belichick says.

      “Coach Belichick has the full support of the Department of Athletics and University,” Cunningham says.

      Any buyout would be costly to both parties. Belichick's deal lets him walk away for just $1 million. Should the university move to fire him, it could cost up to $30 million, the guaranteed three years of Belichick's five-year contract.

      Most of Belichick's assistant coaches are on two-year deals with buyout clauses as well.

      On campus Thursday, Belichick is seen walking with a handful of players. While several UNC players post their support for the coach and his culture online,  none of the 15 UNC Board of Trustees members responds to WRAL News' request for comment.

      Oct. 10: High school coaches warn Belichick's style won't work for young players; student body president calls for review

      Bill Belichick spends Friday night on a high school sideline, scouting players outside Washington, D.C.

      In North Carolina, high school coaches tell WRAL they worry he won't be around long enough to coach the players he may recruit, and that his communication style has them feeling disconnected from the program.

      “The way they came into this was somewhat arrogant and unprepared,” one coach says.

      "I couldn’t tell you who recruits my area," another says. "I don't know any of them besides the running backs coach (Natrone Means). They jacked it up from the beginning.”

      On the same day, UNC Student Body President Adolfo Alvarez says he'd like to see an independent review of the football program so that players can speak for themselves with no fear of retaliation. "It would be also great to hear firsthand from players about how that environment is playing," he says.

      Oct. 13: Belichick: 'Zero truth' to reports he wants out at UNC

      Belichick began his weekly press conference with two sentences to address a week of reports of problems within the program. 

      "Some of the reports out last week about my looking for a buyout and trying to leave here and all that is just categorically false," he said. "There is zero truth to any of that."

      Asked about reports about a divide in his locker room, Belichick said the work his team is putting in is beginning to pay off.

      Tune in to WRAL on your phone, tablet and TV for the latest on the turmoil surrounding the team.