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#UNC coach Bill Belichick press conference
Jun 10, 2025
#UNC coach Bill Belichick press conference
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0:02
Yeah. Who's got the uh who's got the
0:05
balloon concession here? Got it going
0:07
there. Um uh thanks. It's um you know,
0:11
been a really an exciting uh time here
0:13
at on the um Chapel Hill campus over the
0:16
last few uh last couple weeks. U you
0:19
know, we had the super regionals. Um you
0:21
know, a great year by a baseball team
0:23
and um you know, we've had camps. We've
0:26
had over a thousand kids here at camp.
0:28
Uh and we've got several more coming up
0:30
in the coming weeks. Uh a lot of have a
0:32
lot of official visits in you know our
0:34
players are working out uh as well. So
0:37
um you know big soccer match here
0:39
tonight. So really a lot of lot of
0:40
activity on campus is you know exciting
0:42
an exciting place to be and you know
0:44
looking forward to the next you know
0:46
couple weeks here especially as we move
0:47
forward you know on the football end of
0:48
it. Um a lot of new faces um you know
0:52
since the end of last season. uh it's
0:54
been a lot of lot of turnover almost
0:56
twothirds of the roster uh from where it
0:59
was uh in January you know after those
1:02
players who was eligibility expired or
1:05
uh like Mari went in the draft uh when
1:07
those guys left. So a lot of new faces
1:09
but definitely coming together and um
1:12
you know training's been good. We made a
1:13
lot of improvement um you know it's good
1:16
good team chemistry uh a lot of
1:17
individual improvement and um you know
1:20
obviously we got a long way to go but
1:21
we're we're working hard. we're making
1:23
progress and so, you know, we're excited
1:24
about that. So, uh, looking forward to,
1:27
you know, rounding out the the summer
1:29
training, uh, time and then, uh, you
1:32
know, of course when camp starts in
1:33
August and obviously that'll be a big
1:35
big month for us, too. But just wanted
1:37
to connect with everybody here before we
1:39
we rolled into the, you know, the
1:41
summer, you know, July, July 4th, all
1:43
that. And so, uh, give give everybody a
1:46
chance to catch up on, um, you know,
1:48
UNCC football.
1:52
Uh, coach, last time we talked to you a
1:55
little bit before the spring again about
1:57
quarterback and I had asked you about
1:59
Max Johnson. Uh, Max recently put out a
2:02
video on social media looking like he's
2:03
doing a lot more stuff. You have four
2:05
quarterbacks. He's one of them. How
2:07
close is he and do you anticipate he
2:10
will be available once full 100% once
2:12
you guys roll?
2:14
Uh, yeah. So, Max is doing uh doing very
2:17
well. um you know his his rehab it's
2:20
been been long and I have a lot of
2:22
admiration for him. I mean it was a you
2:23
know a tough injury but he's nobody's
2:25
worked harder than he has and um he
2:28
certainly is able to do a lot more than
2:29
he was last spring. So um we'll see
2:32
exactly where he is when when things
2:34
start but it's a whole lot closer and um
2:36
you know we certainly expect to see him
2:38
out there. So it's been very
2:39
encouraging. Just a reminder, we can we
2:41
can use your name and drop whatever we
2:43
ask questions. Andrew, sorry. A quick
2:45
follow about uh the quarterback room.
2:47
What did you guys like in Gio Lopez?
2:50
Yeah. Uh was really productive at South
2:52
Alabama. Um you know, he's a a dual
2:55
threat quarterback. He's had plenty of,
2:57
you know, production yardage, both the
2:58
running game and the passing game
2:59
experience. Um you know, tough kid.
3:02
Played well against some, you know, good
3:03
competition teams like LSU. Uh so um
3:06
looks like he's he's definitely ready
3:08
for you know for for this level and you
3:11
know we're excited to work with him uh
3:12
as we are with everybody else. So you
3:14
know we've got some freshman, we got Max
3:16
got some experience and and Gio. So you
3:18
know we'll see how it all plays out.
3:20
Honestly you know none of them with the
3:21
exception of Matt Max for a handful of
3:24
plays last year none of them really
3:25
taken any snaps here. Uh, so it'll be
3:28
um, you know, be good to see how all
3:31
that plays out.
3:33
Broadbacks will observe. Bill, what do
3:36
you like about how you guys have built
3:37
out this roster over the last few months
3:39
going into the summer and fall camp?
3:42
Yeah. Well, I think, you know, Mike
3:43
Lombardi and and the scouting staff have
3:45
done a, you know, done a great job. Um,
3:47
you know, we came in late and so, uh,
3:49
that was, you know, a little bit of a
3:51
challenge on the recruiting end because
3:52
it was after signing day. uh we were
3:54
active in the portal but kind of late on
3:56
that too because a lot of those
3:57
established uh relationships have been
4:00
previously established with uh some of
4:02
those portal players. Um but that being
4:04
said, I thought we still were able to
4:06
improve the roster and then uh you know
4:08
we've had a you know addition of some
4:10
players this spring who I think will be
4:11
a factor and and the 26 recruiting
4:13
classes uh you know it's gotten off to a
4:15
good start. We have a long way to go on
4:16
that but uh we've seen a lot of good
4:18
players and and there's a lot of
4:20
interest u from those kids in in coming
4:22
year. you know, we have some commits,
4:24
but again, those commits don't don't
4:25
really count until till signing day.
4:27
But, you know, u still I think that's a
4:30
sign that, you know, we we're on the
4:32
right track and, you know, from the
4:33
quarterback position to the skill
4:36
positions, the offensive line and and a
4:38
lot of defensive front seven players and
4:40
some players in the secondary, you know,
4:41
as well as a play kicker. I mean, we've
4:44
got, you know, a pretty we're off to a
4:46
good start. I'll see how it goes. Thank
4:48
you. Yeah. Chip Alexander using Raleigh.
4:51
Just, you know, you haven't seen your
4:53
your team in a game yet, but after
4:56
spring ball, what do you feel like the
4:57
strengths of your first team? Yeah,
5:00
that's a good question. Uh, I think
5:02
we're just going to have to evaluate
5:04
that that as we go. We'll have a lot
5:05
better idea in training camp. Again,
5:07
there were several players that um uh
5:10
you know, left the team uh after spring
5:12
ball and then we have a lot of of new
5:14
ones, a lot of new faces, both incoming
5:16
freshman and and players who came from
5:19
transfers. Um and so we'll just have to
5:22
see how all that plays out. I think
5:23
where we were then and and honestly
5:25
where we are even today is is we're at a
5:28
different spot. So, um you know, it'll
5:30
be interesting to see how it how it all
5:32
comes together. We got a lot of work to
5:33
do, but it it's certainly trending in
5:35
the right direction. Um we've had good
5:37
leadership from uh again some of the
5:39
guys that have come in here, some of the
5:40
people that you'll hear from later on.
5:42
Uh those guys have done a great job of
5:44
of um you know setting the pace um and
5:47
you know and encourages the guys to come
5:48
along and you know and you know put in
5:50
the work and uh we've had really good
5:53
you know results from our physical
5:54
training and and the team building as
5:56
well. So long way to go but you know
5:58
feel like we're on the right track.
6:01
Bill Adam Smith with inside Carolina.
6:04
Yeah. Um, just want to ask what how did
6:07
spring practice shape your impressions
6:09
of this team since you hadn't coached
6:12
any of these guys before? And how did it
6:14
spring practice maybe influence what you
6:16
felt like needed to be done with the
6:18
roster going into the next portal?
6:23
Uh, yeah, these look these are great
6:25
kids to work with. They really are.
6:27
We've had great buy in. Um, there there
6:30
have been really no problems at all.
6:31
These guys are on time. They're early.
6:33
They work hard. They put in the work on
6:35
the weight room in a weight room out on
6:37
the field. Uh they spend time on their
6:39
own, whether it's doing extra training
6:40
or coming over and watching film and
6:42
that type of thing. Um they've made a
6:44
ton of improvement and these guys are a
6:45
lot better than they were uh when we
6:47
started in January on on every level. Um
6:50
and so it's exciting to see where that's
6:52
going to take us. I don't know, maybe
6:54
we're close to the peak or maybe we're,
6:56
you know, only a quarter of the way up
6:57
the hill. I don't know. But we'll we'll
6:59
see. But the improvement's been um been
7:01
very good and and I think the players
7:03
based on the improvement that we made
7:05
from you know January to April um I'll
7:08
let them speak for it. I don't want to
7:10
speak for them but I would say that
7:11
based on the improvement that we made
7:12
during that time frame uh that that's
7:14
kind of generated some momentum to if we
7:17
keep working like this we're going to
7:19
we're going to continue to get better
7:20
and and you know these guys have um
7:22
dreams and aspirations um you know
7:24
beyond North Carolina and I think that's
7:27
realistic for a lot of players. Um, and
7:29
so they're they're working really hard
7:30
to not only get the most out of out of
7:33
themselves individually, but they're
7:34
great teammates and um, so that's, you
7:37
know, that that's where we're trending
7:39
back
7:41
middle the associated press. You just
7:44
talk about building out the roster. I'm
7:45
curious, what have you found to be the
7:47
biggest challenges of navigating the
7:48
transfer considering so many people in
7:51
college athletics describe it as kind of
7:52
chaos at all times? I'm curious Bill
7:56
thought.
7:59
Um, well, again, it
8:01
it's it's an area that Mike and I have
8:04
been very familiar with. We spent a lot
8:06
of time in that free agency space over
8:08
the course of our careers in the NFL.
8:10
Say the biggest difference in college is
8:12
just the volume. There are just so many
8:15
players. you know, the college portal
8:17
is, you know, we're in the thousands and
8:19
then you're looking at a 26 recruiting
8:21
class and then a 27 recruiting class
8:24
that we're starting to build
8:25
relationships with and even some 28. And
8:28
so the volume of players between, you
8:30
know, a recruiting class of again
8:32
several thousand kids, a portal class,
8:35
similar number, and then another class,
8:37
and you know, it's just it's a lot of
8:39
names. It's it's a lot of names to keep
8:41
track of. And it's not just the player,
8:43
you're also dealing with again the
8:45
recruiting part of it, right? So you
8:46
have families and coaches and agents and
8:50
people like that. And so in a lot of
8:51
cases, you're, you know, you're looking
8:53
at um, you know, four, five, six, seven
8:56
people, whatever it is that are
8:58
connected with that player in addition
8:59
to, you know, actually recruiting him.
9:01
You're you're kind of recruiting a
9:02
family. And so I just say the volume of
9:04
people is a little bit more than what
9:06
we've had. But, um, you know, we're
9:07
adjusting to it and and we have, again,
9:09
a great staff. Our scouting staff's done
9:11
a really good job of of sorting those
9:13
things out and you know and putting us
9:15
in Mike and I and our respective staffs
9:17
in position to you know to be
9:19
competitive in in terms of making sure
9:21
that those players understand what we
9:22
have to offer. You know what we're
9:24
selling is you know to be a pro to to be
9:27
a pro on the field to be a pro uh off
9:29
the field in terms of life learning and
9:31
and of course the academics here are you
9:32
know outstanding. So, um, you know,
9:35
we'll get ready, players ready to to go
9:37
to the next level. Uh, whether that's
9:39
training, scheme, fundamentals,
9:42
preparation, film, situation, football,
9:44
all those things. That's what we do and
9:46
and that's what we're selling. A lot of
9:47
most kids are interested in that. They
9:49
really are. So, we've had great buying.
9:51
Thank you. Yeah. Uh, Jeremiah Hollow
9:54
with Inside Carolina. One player that
9:56
we're going to talk to later is of
9:57
course Dixon who Steve coached at
10:00
Washington throughout the spring.
10:02
watching him in the spring, what did you
10:04
like about some of the things that he
10:05
was doing and what do you identify as
10:07
some of the strengths of this game? Um,
10:10
yeah, like a lot of what dad did, you
10:11
know, let's start with just that the
10:13
person. Um, great leadership, you know,
10:16
first one on the field, works hard, very
10:18
good in preparation. Um, had some
10:20
individual meetings with that, really,
10:21
you know, got to spend some, you know,
10:23
quality time with him. Um he's been
10:25
great with our recruits. Probably, you
10:27
know, one one of the best that we have
10:29
in terms of um you know, helping the the
10:32
kids that we recruit come in here and
10:33
understand what the program's about and
10:35
uh how to you know, how it can be
10:37
beneficial to them. Um but he's got good
10:40
skills, probably could play any position
10:41
in the secondary. Uh we'll see how all
10:43
that goes, but um you know, he's got a
10:46
great skill set, a good work work ethic,
10:48
and uh yeah, he had an excellent spring.
10:50
So, um, you know, excited to to see it
10:52
come together for him in the fall. In
10:54
the back on the
10:55
left, Pat Walter from
10:58
um there's been so much interest since
11:01
you got hired in you as a coach and also
11:04
in your personal life. Lots of reporting
11:06
out there. What do you think is the
11:07
biggest misconception about you in your
11:10
time here at Carolina?
11:13
Um, yeah, I don't know. Look, I'm really
11:15
focused on, you know, doing my job here
11:17
at Carolina to help our football team
11:19
and and that's u, you know, just to get
11:21
better every day, you know, to stack
11:23
those days together, training days,
11:24
preparation days, uh, days out on the
11:27
field and and we've done that and, you
11:29
know, our staff's again done a great job
11:31
of working hard to do that. So, um, you
11:33
know, that's my big focus. I mean, is
11:36
there noise out there? That's we've
11:37
always dealt with that. Um really, you
11:39
know, our job is to is to build the
11:41
football team and and for the team to,
11:43
you know, help build the team and also
11:45
build their individual careers. So, uh
11:47
that's that's really where we're at.
11:50
Yeah. Bill Ryder from WL. One quick
11:53
follow on a different line. um if you
11:56
knew there were this much interest in
11:58
your personal you come back to to
12:00
coaching or like has that taken away
12:02
from the experience of you coming back
12:03
to coaching and then totally unrelated
12:06
how with the roster limits and
12:08
everything you've had to deal with how
12:09
have you sort of had to make decisions
12:11
based on the cap and based on the the
12:14
number of scholarships and the number of
12:15
roster
12:17
yeah well again on some of the noises
12:18
out there and you know the book and
12:20
stuff like that I mean it is what it is
12:21
those are you know that's a personal
12:23
venture that that I uh entered into when
12:25
I wasn't in coaching last year and um
12:29
hopefully that'll be a big purchase on
12:30
Father's Day. But uh in any case, uh the
12:34
house settlement, uh you know, something
12:36
that we've all kind of been waiting for
12:38
and now that that's been handed down, um
12:41
it's quite lengthy and and technical and
12:43
so, you know, we have people on our
12:45
staff and lawyers and so forth that are
12:47
looking at it. So, we have a full
12:48
understanding exactly what we're doing.
12:49
We did that over the weekend and and uh
12:52
Michael Lombardi and I will be meeting
12:53
with with those people that are advising
12:55
us on uh what exactly it means, what we
12:58
can do, what you know, how we need to
13:00
cons uh configure things a little bit
13:02
differently than maybe we've done in the
13:04
past couple months. Again, a lot of this
13:06
was anticipated, but now that it's uh
13:09
more formalized, um you know, we'll have
13:11
to, you know, make sure that we're
13:12
compliant with every every part of it.
13:14
And uh from roster size to, you know,
13:16
payments and uh fair market value or
13:19
reasonable market value, terms like
13:21
that, the the um you know, the deote
13:25
part of it. I mean, there's there's a
13:26
number of things that that are kind of
13:28
interconnected. and we just want to make
13:29
sure that we understand everything
13:31
before we, you know, march too far
13:34
forward. But, um, I'm glad that it's
13:37
out. I'm glad that it's that we have a,
13:39
you know,
13:41
a rules and policies and so forth that
13:44
we can work with. I think now it's just
13:45
understanding exactly how the mechanics
13:47
of some of those will work. And again,
13:49
what we what we can do and what we can't
13:50
do. And, you know, as we identify that
13:53
and as it becomes clear, that'll that'll
13:55
just help us going forward. I I would
13:57
just say I would expect that over the
13:58
next year there'll be a lot of uh things
14:01
that will come up and probably a year
14:02
from now some modifications will be
14:04
made. I mean, who knows what they are,
14:06
but I think that, you know, as you get
14:08
all these schools, all these athletes,
14:09
student athletes, um, and and so many
14:12
different, you know, outside NIL type,
14:15
let's call them deals, uh, we'll see how
14:17
all that plays out and what, you know,
14:19
what what the, um, boundaries are or
14:23
aren't going forward.
14:26
Uh, Bill, Michael, wchro.com.
14:29
You're bringing in a lot of talent, a
14:32
lot of experienced talent on the
14:33
offensive line through the portal in
14:35
addition to returning three guys who
14:37
started last year on the line. How do
14:39
you juggle all of that experience when
14:42
there are only five starting spots?
14:45
Right. Well, I would say in my
14:47
experience, you know, in the NFL and and
14:49
certainly looking from the NFL at the
14:51
college landscape, um it's really hard
14:54
to go through a season with the same
14:56
five offensive linemen for the entire
14:58
year. um that that almost you know I
15:01
almost say never happens. It it's
15:02
unusual for that to happen and uh
15:05
certainly you know we've been in
15:06
situations and and you've seen many
15:08
teams you know lose multiple players at
15:10
the same position you know for you know
15:12
a game or two or a period. So depth is
15:14
important at every position. You just
15:15
never know when you're going to need it
15:17
right and so uh and again it's good
15:19
competition you know and competition
15:21
will bring out the best to everybody and
15:22
I think that you know we have a very
15:23
competitive group. Those guys embrace
15:25
competition and and it makes all of us
15:27
better. So I know for me, you know,
15:30
coaching against guys like Andy Reid and
15:31
Kyle Shanahan, Shawn McVey, Shawn
15:34
Payeyton, guys like that, that's that's
15:36
what made me better. I mean, it was
15:37
really hard to coach against those guys.
15:38
So, um, that's what sharpens your game.
15:41
And I think as an athlete, student
15:42
athlete that, you know, good competition
15:44
both on your side of the ball and on the
15:46
other side of the ball, um, are are
15:48
important. But to your point on the, you
15:51
know, the uh amount of veteran players
15:53
we have, competition will be great. I
15:55
think their experience will be very
15:56
helpful. Uh but I think that's also very
15:59
important that that Michael and I have
16:01
talked about is the 26 class. Um you
16:04
know that we need to be you know ready
16:05
to to have some players in there for for
16:08
the guys that you know won't be
16:09
returning next year. So you know there's
16:11
some real team building that we need to
16:13
address um in the future, but again for
16:16
right now we'll let the competition play
16:17
out. But I think it's it's very good,
16:19
very healthy. Uh it's a lot more than
16:21
what I think we had back in the spring.
16:24
And um you know, the look the best
16:26
players will play. That's what I think I
16:28
could pay.
16:30
Second news, given the focus on your
16:33
personal life, how do you keep your
16:34
players from getting distracted and do
16:37
you expect your girlfriend to be on the
16:39
sidelines going forward? No, she doesn't
16:42
have any role in the UNCC football
16:43
program. Um but uh again there's been
16:48
you know noise out there about a lot of
16:49
different things. Again our focus is you
16:51
know dayto-day getting better stacking
16:53
good days together um you know having
16:55
good rest recovery you know and training
16:57
moving forward the next day and from the
16:59
coaching staff to uh focus on you know
17:02
how do we help our team get better?
17:03
That's my job. That's our staff's job is
17:05
to is to put a good plan in place so
17:07
that they can if they do the work that
17:09
they see the improvement and so you know
17:11
that's what our job is. Second row left.
17:13
Uh Brian Brown. Um obviously still very
17:17
early, but do you have any early
17:19
impressions on like you guys kind of
17:20
offensive loss will be and how does that
17:22
multiple options at quarterback kind of
17:24
change that?
17:27
Right. Well, again um at the quarterback
17:29
position um we have really of uh you
17:33
know of our the call it five players
17:35
there at quarterback. Um including you
17:38
know the two freshman who are coming in.
17:40
Um Bryce is the only one that was here
17:42
in the spring. Max was here but you know
17:44
wasn't able to participate much and of
17:46
course Gio is new. So I think you know
17:48
as we see the offensive all uh some of
17:50
it'll you know obviously be in part um
17:54
reflective of how how those quarterbacks
17:56
do and and how that position shapes up.
17:58
So I think we have good competition
18:00
there and and our offense is our offense
18:02
and we'll be able to adapt to whoever it
18:04
is. We've, you know, certainly had a lot
18:06
of quarterbacks through the years with
18:07
different skill sets and, you know,
18:09
we're able to to work with all of them.
18:11
Um, but we'll see how it, you know,
18:13
we'll see how it all plays out. So,
18:14
right now, that position is, um, you
18:17
know, one that we just don't have a lot
18:18
of onfield experience with. And again,
18:21
even though Max was here, he just wasn't
18:22
able to participate in in a lot of the
18:24
team drill or in any of the team drills.
18:26
Um, so, you know, that kind of also
18:28
includes him even though he's a very
18:29
experienced player. Last one back middle
18:34
JF coach. Thanks for your time. Sure.
18:37
Wanted to know you spoke on it earlier
18:39
the fast improvements that you your team
18:41
has made so far this spring. What were
18:43
those some of those areas that you were
18:44
looking to see your team get better and
18:47
how it goes into where you guys want to
18:49
be?
18:51
Well, again, always working to continue
18:53
to improve and and again, as we, you
18:55
know, hit our our, you know, targets,
18:57
then we just keep raising the bar on
18:58
those targets and uh see where it goes.
19:00
But I think the improvement really was
19:02
across the board. So, better
19:03
communication, better fundamentals,
19:05
better understanding of what we're
19:06
trying to do. Uh certainly the
19:08
conditioning was was, you know, much
19:10
better. We practiced at a very uh high
19:13
level uh similar to what we you know
19:15
have done in the past with you know
19:16
Moses Cabrera our strength coach and uh
19:19
our offensive and defensive systems and
19:21
so forth and and the players were able
19:23
to respond to that and you know and
19:24
maintain u not only good health but a
19:27
high quality performance. So we didn't
19:28
run out of gas. We were able to uh
19:30
sustain the workload of those practices
19:32
from our offseason training that started
19:34
back in January. So you know all those
19:36
were were great signs of growth. Um,
19:39
again, how far can we go? How far much
19:41
can we improve? And how will it all come
19:43
together collectively? Um, you know,
19:46
we'll just have to see, but we're not
19:47
going to stop. You know, improvement be
19:48
made. We're not we're not we don't think
19:50
we're there yet. Uh, we're definitely
19:52
not there. We know we got a long way to
19:53
go, but I mean, I think these guys have
19:55
a a really good future in front of them
19:57
individually and collectively. And it's
19:59
exciting to see the progress they've
20:00
made. So, um, I just look forward to
20:03
working with them every day. It's really
20:04
a, you know, a great group to work with
20:05
and, you know, a great opportunity for
20:07
me and our staff to, you know, to to see
20:10
the the satisfaction and and the growth
20:12
that that they've had, like I said,
20:13
individually and and collectively as a
20:15
group. And we have some new players
20:17
coming in and, you know, it's exciting
20:18
to work with them. We'll see how that
20:19
all how that all works out, too. So,
20:22
thanks so much for coming. Appreciate
20:23
it. And we'll turn it over here to uh
20:25
some of our student athletes here.
20:27
They've done a great job for all four of
20:28
these guys. Given us great great
20:30
leadership throughout the uh time
20:31
they've been here. uh in some cases um
20:34
you know with uh with Hardy and Ship
20:36
they've been here you know their whole
20:37
career but also dad and um Christo
20:40
coming in you know those guys did give
20:42
us great leadership all the way through.
20:44
All right. Thank you.