Bill Belichick Absent from UNC Pro Day As HC Prepares for Debut CFB Season

Bill Belichick didn't let a pro day getting in the way of his responsibilities as North Carolina's head football coach.

The Athletic's Joseph Person noted Belichick wasn't present for the Tar Heels' pro day for NFL teams on Monday because he was busy in pre-planned meetings with his coaching staff as the event was going on.

Josh Washburn, a scouting consultant for The 33rd Team and former North Carolina receiver, told Person he thinks Belichick also wanted to let the players who were on the team under former head coach Mack Brown stand on their own.

"I think Bill’s just letting Mack’s guys be Mack’s guys, then he wants his guys to be his guys," Wasburn said. "None of us really expected to see Bill or (general manager Mike) Lombardi."

Belichick signed a five-year deal with North Carolina in December to get back into coaching after sitting out the 2024 season. This marks his first stint as a coach at the college level.

Person noted that Washburn described the vibe as "different" since Belichick replaced Brown, with "longer and more intense" practices that are generally closed off to outside visitors.

Former Tar Heels cornerback Alijah Huzzie, who is a prospect in the 2025 NFL draft, told Evan Rogers of Inside Carolina that Belichick requires players to schedule an appointment if they want to speak with him rather than just being able to walk into his office:

"They can't walk up to his door and be like, 'all right, Coach, I've got something going on.' You've got to set an appointment time (with Belichick). If you're a player, I feel like you should have that right to go up to your head coach that's basically like a mentor to you, or damn near like a father figure in your life. You should be able to go up and access him and talk about anything, or just have access to him at all times. Coming from a player, I think just the security, the Belichick era, all that is just a little much coming to a college program like this that's had a total flip and a rebuild. But it also can go a good way. It can be a positive, so I'm just sitting back and seeing how it plays out."

According to Person, there weren't any NFL head coaches or general manager at Monday's pro day since the Tar Heels' lone potential first-round pick is running back Omarion Hampton.

By comparison, their 2024 pro day featuring Drake Maye had coaches and general managers from the New England Patriots, Washington Commanders and Denver Broncos in attendance.

Belichick is still getting acclimated to his new job at a level he's never coached at before, so his absence from the event doesn't mean anything. It wouldn't be a surprise if he attends next year when he's more familiar with how to run things.

North Carolina is hoping Belichick can lead a quick turnaround for the program. The Tar Heels went 44-33 under Brown dating back to 2019. They have just one season with at least 10 wins since 1998 (11-3 in 2015).

Belichick won at least 10 games in 19 of his 24 seasons with the Patriots from 2000 to '23.