Bill Belichick is taking major steps to overcome last season’s disaster. Despite holding six Super Bowl rings on his resume, Belichick’s team underperformed against competition. But now he is taking a major step towards strengthening the team’s future as Belichick extends an offer to this offensive tackle from the class of 2027. There might be an aspect of desperation involved in this decision.

Neff Giwa, whose parents are from Nigeria, lives in Ireland. He boasts a 6 feet 8 inches tall frame and weighs 300 pounds. His physique combined with his long arms and a wingspan of over seven feet make him a rare athlete. But as always, there is a catch. He has never played organized football. Instead, he grew up playing soccer and basketball and later became a rugby star. As he got bigger, he started training at a PPI Recruits facility in Ireland and everyone started noticing the rising star in the building.

That eventually helped Giwa’s football recruitment take off. In the past few days, he has received five offers from top college football programs. These offers come from North Carolina, Tennessee, South Carolina, SMU, and Miami. Because of his size, Giwa is expected to play as an offensive tackle. His experience in soccer, basketball, and rugby helps him move very well for someone as large as him.

His long arms can give him a great advantage during pass protection. For now, Giwa is making visits to the schools that have shown interest in him. So far, he has seen South Carolina, Michigan State, Clemson, Michigan, Kentucky, and Tennessee. He plans to visit Miami next week. Now that he has also received an offer from Bill Belichick’s team, he will probably visit them too.

Now, adding a player of Giwa’s size can be a massive boost for Bill Belichick’s team, which struggled badly on offense last year. In their game against Stanford, UNC’s offense showed clear problems. They gained just 253 total yards, with only 53 yards in the first half, against a weak Stanford defense that allowed over 400 yards per game.

The main reason behind this fall was their offensive line. Even PFF gave them a low grade of 41.4 for their run-blocking. Three players struggled the most: Daniel King scored 49.6 overall and 46.2 for run blocking, Jakai Moore scored 45.0 overall and 35.5 for run blocking, and Will O’Steen scored 47.7 overall and 46.2 for run blocking. So, now you know why they need someone of Giwa’s size and strength in the team.

Giwa is not the only case of a player coming over from rugby. The most positive outcome for such a situation can be seen in the story of Jordan Mailata. He was a professional rugby league player in Australia and weighed 346 pounds. But he had never played or even watched a full game of American football.

He was discovered through the NFL’s International Player Pathway Program. The Philadelphia Eagles took him in the 7th round of the 2018 draft. After three years of learning the rules and the technique, he became one of the highest-paid and most dominant left tackles in the NFL, helping the Eagles win a Superbowl.

Rugby isn’t the only sport to help usher in football talent. It can come from basketball too. Antonio Gates is the perfect example. He didn’t play a single down of college football. Instead, he was a star power forward at Kent State, leading them to the Elite Eight in 2002. But he also showed that his “box-out” skills translated perfectly to catching passes in traffic. He signed as an undrafted free agent with the San Diego Chargers and went on to become an 8-time Pro Bowler. He currently holds the NFL record for most touchdowns by a tight end.

Coming to UNC, Giwa will get NFL-level development under Bill Belichick, and their offensive line coach, Will Friend, who can develop him into a starter. He has experience coaching top teams like Auburn and Tennessee and started his career at Alabama. But UNC is not alone in the race.

Bill Belichick faces tough competition against ACC rival

Mario Cristobal thinks differently when he recruits players for the Miami Hurricanes. He usually looks at players from South Florida, but he also tries new players who are really capable and have potential, and that is how Neff Giwa came into the picture. Now, their last year’s championship run can give them an edge above Bill Belichick’s team.

Moreover, Miami has a history of turning athletes from other sports into great football players. For example, Lou Hedley came from Australian football and did very well in American football. Giwa’s rugby experience could make him the next athlete to succeed in college football and bring a new style of play from the rugby scrum.

On top of that, Miami’s offensive line has helped the team’s offense play very well in both the 2024 and 2025 seasons. One of their top players, right tackle Francis Mauigoa, was seen as one of the best offensive linemen in college football before the season started, and now he is among the first-round pick projections for the 2026 NFL Draft.

Cristobal’s team has also produced talented NFL offensive linemen. For example, Jalen Rivers, who played both guard and tackle for the Hurricanes, was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals in the 2025 NFL Draft. So, looking at it that way, Miami does hold a strong background as compared to Bill Belichick. So, now let’s wait and see if Bill can grab this future offensive line player’s commitment, despite the stiff competition.