Bill Belichick’s grip over the North Carolina football program is getting really loose. For a coach who came in with ‘UNC’s the 33rd NFL team’ aspirations, being outscored 120-33 already spelt chaos. But reportedly, the HC also chose to carry his beef against the Patriots over to his new stint.

Earlier last week, CBS Sports’ Ross Martin reported that the program had received a directive from staff not to tweet anything ‘Patriots’-related. The social media team complied for a while, until its former star Drake Maye’s heroics proved way too good to ignore.

“@DrakeMaye2 starting off STRONG!” The Tar Heels’ X account posted a clip of Maye’s play against the Saints on Sunday. It showed the young QB, who spent three years in Chapel Hill, landing a stunning 53-yard bomb to DeMario Douglas. That’s the second time Belichick’s orders were defied by his own program. The first one had come merely 12 hours after the directive.

During the Patriots’ 23-20 win over the Buffalo Bills last week, Maye found wide receiver Stefon Diggs on a 12-yard pass in the fourth quarter, even as DaQuan Jones had brought him down. New England cheered. The Highmark Stadium was stunned. Even former Tar Heels coach Mack Brown openly congratulated Maye on social media. How could UNC pass on the iconic moment? 

“@DrakeMaye pulling off some magic,” the social media team posted. Sure, Belichick is the head coach there, and his restrictions should be ironclad, but ignoring one of their best NFL alumni and marketing assets, Maye, was a tough pill to swallow for UNC. The reason behind the directive hasn’t been disclosed as of yet, but the HC’s feud with franchise owner Robert Kraft is no hush-hush.

Just weeks ago, he admitted that he wasn’t allowing any Patriots scouts to attend UNC practice sessions. “It’s clear I’m not welcome there around their facility. And so they’re not welcome at ours,” he shared. But the rough patches between the coach and the program didn’t really start with the Patriots drama.

The Tar Heels sit at a disappointing 2-3, with some ugly blowout losses, including a 38-10 drubbing by Clemson that left fans leaving the stands early. Then the internal drama is still fresh. There are reports of a dysfunctional program struggling with communication gaps between coaches, players, and families.

“It’s an unstructured mess,” a parent said, speaking to WRAL News under the condition of anonymity. “There’s no culture, no organization. It’s a complete disaster. I don’t fault the players; I fault the leadership that created this toxic environment.”

Then there’s the favoritism aspect that is facing major backlash, which saw assistant coach Armond Hawkins being suspended. Belichick-recruited players like Khmori House and Thaddeus Dixon are getting a different treatment altogether. Their parents are getting extra sideline tickets, and some guardians are even taking parking spots that aren’t actually allowed for them.

Under Belichick, the Tar Heels currently rank among the worst teams in college football history stat-wise. Their adjusted offensive EPA is a staggering -31.3, with the defensive side faring even worse at -32.7.

In their recent 38-10 beating by Clemson, UNC’s offense mustered a mere 270 yards, mostly during garbage time against backups. The defense allowed a whopping 488 yards and gave up over 30 points for the second straight game. All these things require much more attention than setting up ground rules for a $572M program. On top of that, Belichick’s beef would only ultimately harming his own squad. If the pro teams don’t come in for scouting and evaluation, how will the current UNC squad find its way into the NFL?

Bill Belichick’s dishonesty

Bill Belichick is making his time at Chapel Hill worse by being dishonest to his own squad. It happened when Armond Hawkins’ suspension for favoritism raised serious questions from the squad. But Belichick took the help of a lie to save himself from the truth. When Hawkins was first announced as missing practice, the team was told in a meeting on Tuesday that his absence was due to “personal business.”

The truth didn’t surface until later through media reports. This wasn’t just a case of a coach dealing with family issues but a serious NCAA matter leading to a suspension. This lie hurt trust, which was already tenuous in Belichick’s locker room environment. Parents are unable to get a hold of what is actually going on inside that University. Some players didn’t even greet Belichick when he first arrived.

On top of that, parents had no access to meet him until months into the “Practice Like a Pro” spring drills. Drama has been brewing off the field as the leadership hides key details and stays disconnected instead of promoting transparency. Because of all this chaos, UNC and Hulu abruptly canceled their planned docuseries.

The creators designed the series to give fans a behind-the-scenes look at the Tar Heels’ journey. It would have shown the players’ hard work and Belichick’s coaching transition. With all this happening, it’s pretty easy to make out why UNC wants to be happy to share about their past glory, making waves in the NFL.