Despite a highly publicized and scrutinized 49-year age gap, UNC head coach Bill Belichick has appeared at his 24-year-old girlfriend Jordon Hudson’s competitive cheer events to support her from the sidelines. However, after her team’s victory in the International Open Coed Non-Tumbling division, the legendary coach earned an ironic title that stuck.

“Roses 🆙 for Bill the WAG 💍🌹🌹🌹👌🏻,” Hudson cheekily captioned a picture of her with the legendary coach, who was decked out in Code Black gear.

This playful flip of sports culture followed Hudson and her elite cheerleading team, Cheer Extreme Code Black, securing a championship at the Cheerleading Worlds in Florida. Hudson joined the co-ed elite cheer squad in late 2025, just as Bill Belichick finished his first season coaching the Tar Heels.

However, long before this recent headline calling him a “WAG,” the UNC coach made several appearances to support Hudson at her cheer events. In March 2024, before the couple went public and became a major media story, the New York Post spotted Belichick attending the Coastal at the Capitol cheer and dance event. At the time, media outlets did not realize he was there to support Hudson specifically.

Then, in November 2025, Belichick made a highly publicized appearance at the Dorton Arena for the Cheer Extreme All Stars X Evolution exhibition to watch Hudson’s debut with her new team. Social media went viral with photos of the coach in a grey hoodie, standing in the corner, intently watching the mat.

Belichick’s consistent support was on display throughout the season, from a relaxed appearance in Atlanta last December to watching Hudson’s team, Code Black, punch their ticket to the prestigious World Championships with a win at the Cheer for Charity Grand Nationals on March 15.

Following the victory, Jordon Hudson posted a celebratory photo of herself on a floor covered in confetti and faux dollar bills. She captioned the post “#GOLDDIGGER GOT #PAID,” directly poking fun at critics of her relationship with Bill Belichick while celebrating the hard-earned “paid bid” for her team. But that didn’t save the 74-year-old coach from facing criticism over the Tar Heels’ condition at the 2026 NFL Draft.

UNC didn’t have a good draft

The vision was to turn UNC into a “33rd NFL team,” but reality hit like a blindside sack. After a disastrous 2025 season, the 2026 NFL Draft delivered a brutal verdict: not a single Tar Heel heard his name called. But that wasn’t the plan.

“If I were in a college program, the college program would be a pipeline to the NFL for the players that had the ability,” said Belichick in 2024. “It would be a professional program, training, nutrition, a scheme, coaching, and techniques that would transfer to the NFL. It would be an NFL program at a college level and an education that would get the players ready for their careers after football.”

However, the Tar Heels’ current situation summed it up with a sharp jab. “Not a single Tar Heel was drafted this weekend,” wrote analyst Brian Murphy. Then, he raised the looming question, asking, “Have Tar Heels significantly upgraded talent for 2026?”

There’s hope with high-upside additions like QB Travis Burgess and playmakers across the 2026 roster. But talent on paper doesn’t win games or produce draft picks. However, the comparison to former head coach Mack Brown only deepened the sting. Brown’s tenure may not have delivered playoff glory, but it consistently sent talent to the league, including stars like Drake Maye.

With his reputation for building NFL-ready programs on the line, the 2027 draft will serve as a crucial referendum on Belichick’s UNC tenure.