In 1998, Bill Belichick and Scott Frost were part of a New York Jets team that snapped a six-year postseason drought by making a run to the AFC championship game against the Denver Broncos.
Fast forward 27 years and the six-time Super Bowl winning coach will be on the gridiron with his former player, but on different sidelines and in a completely new atmosphere: college football.
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That reunion is set for Saturday, Sept. 20 when Belichick’s UNC Tar Heels travel down to FBC Mortgage Stadium in Orlando, Florida, for a Week 4 non-conference matchup against Frost’s UCF Knights at 3:30 p.m. ET.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick stares from the sideline after his Tar Heels’ debut ended in a 48-14 defeat to the TCU Horned Frogs.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick stares from the sideline after his Tar Heels’ debut ended in a 48-14 defeat to the TCU Horned Frogs.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick reacts during the first half of the Week 1 game against the TCU Horned Frogs at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina on Sept. 1, 2025.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
TCU head coach Sonny Dykes approaches North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick following TCU’s 48-14 win over the Tar Heels.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
The North Carolina Tar Heels got smoked by the TCU Horned Frogs in Bill Belichick’s debut as head coach.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick looks over the plays during the fourth quarter of the game against TCU.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick walks the sideline during the game against TCU in his collegiate coaching debut.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina football coach Bill Belichick stands on the sidelines during his team’s game against TCU at Kenan Stadium in North Carolina.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick, right, embraces TCU head coach Sonny Dykes after TCU defeated UNC, 48-14 on Sept. 1, 2025.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
Tar Heels head coach Bill Belichick on the field before the game at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
UNC football head coach Bill Belichick on the field before his collegiate coaching debut against the TCU Horned Frogs at Kenan Stadium. TCU defeated UNC, 48-14.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina Tar Heels head coach Bill Belichick was all smiles with a recruit the game against the TCU Horned Frogs at Kenan Stadium.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick meets with a recruit before the Tar Heels hosted the TCU Horned Frogs on Sept. 1, 2025.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
Bill Belichick walks the field at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina before his Tar Heels took on the TCU Horned Frogs on Sept. 1, 2025.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick looks on before his Tar Heels faced the TCU Horned Frogs in Belichick’s collegiate coaching debut.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick appeared on the field at Kenan Stadium before making his college coaching debut against the TCU Horned Frogs.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
Bill Belichick, right, shakes hands with TCU Horned Frogs head coach Sonny Dykes following TCU’s 48-14 win over the North Carolina Tar Heels on Sept. 1, 2025.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
Bill Belichick reacts as his North Carolina Tar Heels faced off against the TCU Horned Frogs at Kenan Stadium on Sept. 1, 2025.
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The many faces of Bill Belichick during his rough North Carolina coaching debut
North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick looks on during the second half of the game between the Tar Heels and the the TCU Horned Frogs on Sept. 1, 2025. TCU spoiled Belichick’s UNC debut with a 48-14 win.
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Belichick, who is coaching college football for the first time in his illustrious career, is out to a 2-1 start in Chapel Hill with the Tar Heels, which included a humbling 48-14 Week 1 loss to TCU at home that ended with the Big 12 conference trolling the Super Bowl winning coach’s “33rd (NFL) Team” mantra at UNC on social media.
For Frost’s part, the veteran college football coach is back for his second stint at UCF after leaving the Knights following an undefeated season in 2017 for Nebraska. He’d coach five seasons at his alma mater before being let go. He returned to UCF this past offseason following a year in the NFL with the Los Angeles Rams as an analyst and has the Knights sitting at 2-0 on the season.
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Here’s more on the relationship between Belichick and Frost:
Did Scott Frost play for Bill Belichick in the NFL?
Yes, Frost played for Belichick from 1998-99 in the NFL with the New York Jets when the now-UNC football head coach served as the Jets’ assistant head coach and defensive coordinator.
Scott Frost-Bill Belichick relationship, explained
A quarterback-turned-safety out of Nebraska in the 1998 NFL Draft, Frost began his NFL playing career with the Jets when Belichick was coaching there.
At Big 12 media days back in July, Frost was asked about facing his former NFL assistant coach in Week 4 when the Knights welcome the Tar Heels to Orlando.
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“I played for Bill for my first two years in the NFL. (I) got drafted to the Jets and he was the defensive coordinator and (defensive back) coach,” Frost said. “Part of my number one memory (of him) was how smart he is. We have a different game plan every week for people and he did a really good (job) of taking away another team’s strength and make people beat us left handed.
Bill Belichick coaching history
Before he took the head coaching position with the New England Patriots and turned the Robert Kraft-owned franchise into one of the NFL’s greatest dynasty with Tom Brady, Belichick spent three seasons with the Jets as their assistant head coach and defensive coordinator.
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Here’s a breakdown of Belichick’s entire coaching career, per his North Carolina profile:
Head coach unless otherwise specified. Assistant role listed in parentheses
1975:Â Baltimore Colts (Special Assistant)
1976-1977: Detroit Lions (1976 — Wide Receivers/Tight Ends Coach); (1977 — Wide Receivers/Tight Ends Coach)
1978:Â Denver Broncos (Assistant Special Teams Coach/Defensive Assistant Coach)
1979-1990: New York Giants (1979 — Special Teams Coach/Defensive Assistant Coach); (1980-1984 —Special Teams/Linebackers Coach); and (1985-1990 — Defensive Coordinator)
1991-1995:Â Cleveland Browns
1996:Â New England Patriots (Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Backs Coach)
1997-1999:Â New York Jets (Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Coordinator)
2000-2023:Â New England Patriots
2025-Present:Â North Carolina
Scott Frost NFL stats with Jets
Frost was selected by the Jets in the third round of the 1998 NFL Draft out of Nebraska. He played for the Jets for three seasons from 1998-2000 before he ended his career with the Cleveland Browns in 2001 and then the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2003.
Here’s a breakdown of Frost’s stats with the Jets:
1998: Six total tackles and a fumble *
1999: Seven total tackles *
2000: 44 total tackles (two for a loss) with a broken up pass, an interception and a sack
* Denotes season playing for Bill Belichick
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Bill Belichick-Scott Frost relationship, explained: What to know