Bill Belichick is expected to be one of the more intriguing names available in the next NFL coaching cycle. That is, if he doesn't take a college job first.
Belichick has interviewed for the vacant job at the University of North Carolina, NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport confirmed on Thursday. That position opened when UNC legend Mack Brown was fired on Nov. 26.
The news of Belichick's interview was first reported by .
The 72-year-old Belichick is only eight months younger than Brown and has never coached college football before. Could it really happen?
A from The News and Observer's Andrew Carter said that Belichick's interest in the post was "high and genuine" and that Belichick "blew away" school officials in the interview. Still, as Carter noted, Belichick's age and lack of college experience would make hiring him "extremely unlikely."
Belichick has been busy on the media circuit this season on various platforms, giving rare access into one of the game's greatest minds. But this career shift has never felt permanent since he and the New England Patriots mutually parted ways after the conclusion of the 2023 season, ending a brilliant run that included six Super Bowl titles for the franchise.
Many have speculated Belichick would want an NFL coaching job, which has been all he's known since the turn of the millennium. He interviewed twice for the Falcons' job opening last cycle.
There have already been three head coaches fired this season -- the New York Jets' Robert Saleh, the New Orleans Saints' Dennis Allen and the Chicago Bears' Matt Eberflus. Belichick could be a candidate with any of those teams, although the Jets feel like a long shot given his past public comments about the franchise and that he was previously their head coach and never coached a game prior to resigning.
Other jobs across the league also could open up. It would be hard to match the credentials and credibility Belichick offers, even with some complicating factors hiring him -- namely age and organizational power.
If Belichick has surveyed the landscape around the NFL -- he's always a step ahead, after all -- and determined there might not be a great fit for him in the league this offseason, why not consider college football? It would be as big a story as Deion Sanders going to Colorado was last year.
Perhaps Belichick still has a few old tricks up his sleeves. His offseason promises to be a fascinating story to track.
