It's the most spectacularly failed sports experiment since the Cleveland Browns let go of Baker Mayfield. Bill Belichick and North Carolina are discussing exit strategies, five games into a miserable 2-3 season in which they been clubbed by Central Florida and Clemson in their last two starts.
Amid reports of staff discord, player disillusionment, widespread disorganization, recruiting allegations and the charge that 24-year-old girlfriend Jordon Hudson is running things, it's the worst start against Power Four competition since the Tarheels started playing football in 1888.
A UNC assistant told Ollie Connelly of the Guardian, "What we've done to these kids is (expletive) up."
Belichick can't survive the mess he's made, and it's beyond turning around. The Heels lost to TCU 45-14 on Labor Day Weekend, to UCF 34-9, at home to Clemson 38-10. Fans are leaving in the first half. It's Bishop Sycamore bad, and it's made the 73-year-old coach look like an aging, disinterested fraud who'd been propped up by Tom Brady.
Hulu cancelled a planned documentary series. It's a flat as a deflated football. All the scouting reports are hopeless.
It's so bad that Belichick is actively looking for an exit strategy and may trigger his own $1 million buyout, something that would save UNC money while preserving some of his dignity. He's hoping for a coaching job, a spot on a TV desk.
North Carolina will be looking for a young, energetic coach with an entertaining offense and recruiting energy, an opportunity to get as far away from this debacle as possible.
Anybody know anyone like that? North Carolina was paying the six-time Super Bowl winner (won another two as defensive coordinator of the Giants) $10.1 million a season.
If they can jettison him, they could pick up a smart, dynamic OC with an age-appropriate wife and a well-deserved reputation for developing quarterbacks for around $6 million, tripling his salary and bringing new life to a miserable situation.
This is a NASTY Design!
— Coach Dan Casey (@CoachDanCasey) September 6, 2025
“Dash” + Bench Pump Double Move from Will Stein pic.twitter.com/y5SjkWNfFr
Stein is exactly what North Carolina needs. He's organized and dynamic, the first lieutenant on one of the most well-run programs in college football. For him it's an opportunity to start his head coaching career at a terrific school with low expectations where he's bound to look good, in a beautiful state and setting.
It might not happen, and Duck fans have to be hoping it won't. But with Dabo Swinney losing his touch and Miami clamoring for bigger and better things, Will Stein could own the ACC. It might be a perfect situation for him, after he guides the Oregon offense through the playoffs.