Pat McAfee Endorses TCU Making Mockery of Bill Belichick, Despite Million-Dollar Ties to ESPN Show

TCU did make a mockery of UNC and Bill Belichick’s college football debut, and it happened in front of the greatest hooper of all time, Michael Jordan, who rarely makes it to North Carolina Tar Heels football games these days. Sure, he thrived in Carolina Blue decades ago before becoming the legend he is, but Saturday reminded fans just how unforgiving this sport can be. The spectacle only grew louder when ESPN analyst Pat McAfee poured fuel on the fire.

On Pat McAfee’s namesake show, he endorsed the way TCU’s X account mocked Bill Belichick after the 14-48 blowout. He didn’t just acknowledge it—he applauded it. “Congrats to TCU. Huge win. They’re Twitter/X account. They’re ready.” With a sarcastic clap Pat said, “Hey, social media folks. Good work.” McAfee even tied it back to personal roots, shouting out TCU’s GM Ryan Dorchester.

“Their [TCU’s] general manager, Ryan Dorchester, used to be equipment manager at WVU whenever I was there. Great dude… He worked his way up into the coaching ranks and everything like that and through uh football ops. He was with Dana for a little bit and then I think he was somewhere else and then now he’s the GM there. And, boy, it really felt like they they were excited for the opportunity.” That enthusiasm, coupled with the mocking tone online, put Belichick’s first college outing in an even harsher light.

And that’s where the conversation tilts. Because Bill Belichick didn’t just step into this for the love of the grind. As Dan Le Batard noted on his show last month, “Belichick was making $10 million dollars a year in his media career I’m guessing. He was doing so many jobs.” Belichick almost bagged another million just by showing up on McAfee’s show alone. His media plate was overflowing: ESPN’s Manningcast appearances, a co-host gig on Sirius XM’s ‘Let’s Go!’, CW’s ‘Inside the NFL’, and even a multi-platform project with Peyton Manning called ‘The Breakdown’. So why walk away from that?

Why trade in packed studio schedules and seven-figure media checks for a sideline filled with 19-year-olds, 70 new roster pieces, and the unrelenting microscope of college? It’s a fair question, especially after a Week 1 unraveling against TCU where everything felt raw. Bill Belichick, now 73, could sit back, cash checks, and bask in his six-ring legacy. Instead, he’s chosen a rebuild in a game that doesn’t wait for patience.

That reality is starting to feel heavier. No one expected UNC to look polished right away, not with oddsmakers pegging them as a small home underdog and not with the churn of an entirely new staff. But the optics matter, and losing badly in front of Jordan while your opponent’s social media clowns you isn’t the launchpad anyone envisioned.

And so the looming question becomes the heartbeat of this experiment: how long? How long will the most decorated football coach of our lifetimes stomach losing to unranked teams by bundles of touchdowns? How long can a man whose legacy is tied to precision and dominance endure chaotic Saturdays with freshmen mistakes? Maybe Belichick’s chasing something bigger—validation that his brilliance isn’t confined to Tom Brady or the NFL.

Why Bill Belichick chose this Chapel Hill to climb

Why? Why is Belichick doing this? That’s the question everyone asked the moment the man with six rings decided to take a middle-of-the-road job in the ACC. No offense to UNC football, but let’s be honest—that’s the reality of the program. This isn’t Alabama or Georgia. It’s Chapel Hill, where basketball is king and football is often fighting for oxygen.

And yet, here comes Bill Belichick, cashing in on a cool $10 million a year to do so. Not only that, he brought family with him, hiring his son, Stephen Belichick, to coach the defense. It’s a move that makes sense if you know Bill’s history—football has always been a family business. And for a man who once defined NFL dynasties, creating his own pipeline on a new stage feels almost inevitable.

Of course, there’s also the elephant in the room: his failed return bid to the NFL. Belichick sniffed around openings after New England, but the league wasn’t biting. He still wanted to coach, though—even if the NFL didn’t want him. Given how his Patriots run ended, it’s not shocking he sought a fresh start somewhere else. But while only Belichick knows why he chose himself to be Mack Brown‘s successor, the bigger question now takes center stage: how long can he live with losing?