For 23 years, Bill Belichick immersed himself in his head coaching job for New England. From his on-field antics to interactions with the media, the Patriots head coach dominated the sports discourse in Boston. Super Bowl rings followed. So did the controversies. Amid all that, New England persevered. All thanks to the culture that Belichick built. The 73-year-old head coach is looking to repeat the same. This time, for the Tar Heels, a reputed program that is mostly known for producing basketball legends. A part of developing the UNC football program includes supporting the university as a whole. That’s what the legendary football coach did on a free Sunday afternoon.

Belichick spent his last Sunday at Boshamer Stadium, basking in the sunshine and cheering the UNC baseball team on in a do-or-die Super Regional game vs. Arizona. It was a high-stakes game: the winner would gain their ticket to Omaha for the College World Series. He wasn’t the sole UNC coaching royalty at the ballpark, however. Three-time NCAA basketball champion Roy Williams had appeared at Game 1 with his wife, watching an 18-2 blowout win for the Heels. Belichick’s appearance, though, didn’t go unnoticed.

A bright afternoon at Boshamer Stadium took an unplanned shock when observers spotted Bill Belichick in the stands, setting off a stir among UNC fans vying for a College World Series bid. That’s when the magic began. A spectator, never one to shy away, ambles over with a ball and a pen. The crowd is on tenterhooks. Will the football genius comply? Also, the commentary is on point in the ESPNCFB channel, “Does he write down all the Super Bowl championship years? I think that’s a play call.”

Belichick, whose play-calling has become legendary, might approach signing a baseball with the same intensity as planning another Super Bowl victory. But in actuality, if you glance over at these viral videos, he’s signing his name, perhaps with a little flourish. But that he would write something more, such as the years 2001, 2003, 2004, 2014, 2016, and 2018, just kills everyone. Those are his six Super Bowl victories as Patriots head coach, by the way, and if he did enumerate them, it’d be the ultimate flex!

Following that viral moment in the UNC baseball game, where fans went haywire just to have his autograph on a ball, Belichick’s legend in Chapel Hill is already building, even before that first football snap, as he learns the college ball ropes these days—recruiting, the portal, NIL contracts, and all that pandemonium. It’s a new universe, but he’s embracing it. He’s having himself a “rookie” in the ACC and soaking up wisdom from other college head coaches. The buzz isn’t confined to the field, either.

The day UNC’s $10M safety net shrunk

Belichick, the hoodie-clad legend, is the hottest story in Chapel Hill these days, packing baseball stadiums and taking HBO cameras onto UNC football. And lurking behind all the hype is a contract surprise that has Tar Heel Nation gasping. When Bill Belichick signed his five-year, $10 million-a-year contract with UNC in December 2024, the buyout clause was a whopping $10 million. That’s the kind of number that says, “We’re in this for the long haul.” It was basically UNC’s insurance policy, making sure their shiny new coach wouldn’t just up and leave for the next NFL job that came calling.

But then June 1st hit, and that buyout dropped to just $1 million. That’s not a typo. The same dude who might be able to walk out the door with a $10 million fine a few months ago can now exit for the cost of a backup kicker’s contract. Suddenly, UNC’s safety net feels less like a safety net and more like a paper napkin. Now, let’s get real; if a pro club wants him, $1 million is chump change for a six-time Super Bowl champion. Some even believe that this provision was a warning sign from the beginning—a backdoor exit strategy in case it got ugly.

The logic is fairly straightforward: Belichick, who worked his entire NFL career with the Patriots, wanted to maintain his flexibility in case an NFL door opened. By offering a steep front-end buyout that drops after a particular date, he provided himself with room to maneuver, and UNC had to accept if they wanted to sign one of football’s all-time greats. So, where does this leave UNC? In a bad place, quite frankly. If Belichick were to jump ship, they’d be scrambling for a new coach just when the season is heating up.