Bill Belichick’s Tar Heels continue to rack up more controversies than victories.
On the heels of Saturday’s blowout 38-10 loss to Clemson, a parent of a current UNC football player accused the eight-time Super Bowl winner of fostering a “toxic environment,” according to a damning report published Monday by local outlet WRAL News.
“It all starts at the top, and the boys are affected,” the parent told WRAL sports anchor Pat Welter.
“I don’t blame the players; I blame the management who created this toxic environment. There is an individualistic mindset. The boys are young and they feed off that.”
Welter detailed his conversations with sources close to the program, who said the team’s poor 2-3 start was the “product of a divided locker room, a disorganized coaching staff and a lack of communication.”
A split in the locker room “formed organically” between the transfers and those recruited by the previous regime led by Mack Brown, whom Belichick took over in December 2024.
“It started with recruits coming in on an interim basis and being entitled to certain things,” a source told the outlet. “It was about them individually, not the team. It was about me and what I was going to do.”
Cracks forged elsewhere due to the alleged lack of communication between parents and players.
“There was no communication with the coaches and parents, period,” said one parent of a UNC player. “None, zero, nothing. Not an email from a coach, a text message, a phone call, nothing.”
Although Belichick, 73, has an NFL pedigree, some parents and players found other staff members to be inadequate, with one source saying, “The lack of coaching experience is ridiculous.” »
Belichick’s sons, Brian and Steve, are on staff as defensive backs/safeties coach and defensive coordinator, respectively. Steve, who held the same position in Washington, did not deserve great praise.
“He hasn’t spoken or had conversations with most of the guys on defense,” a source said.
It’s been a season to forget for Belichick, whose personal life with his 24-year-old girlfriend, Jordon Hudson, continues to dominate headlines around UNC play.
North Carolina suffered its third loss by more than 25 points on Saturday, tied for the most of any FBS program.
The “33rd team in the NFL,” as Belichick describes it, was crushed on its home field, with fans rushing toward the Kenan Stadium exits at halftime.
UNC returns to action on October 17 with a road trip to Cal.
