Belichick and UMass coach Joe Harasymiak were among three coaches who received “D” grades. No one got an “F.”
Bill Belichick AP Photo/Chris Seward
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USA Today gave out letter grades for each of the first year college football coaches at the FBS level, and Bill Belichick’s marks were less than favorable.
The six-time Super Bowl championship coach earned a “D” for his first season as head coach at North Carolina.
The Tar Heels, who finished 4-8 overall and 2-6 in Atlantic Coast Conference play, are not eligible for postseason bowls. It was a step back for the Tar Heels, who brought in Belichick to replace Mack Brown during the offseason.
UNC went 6-7 during the 2024 season, which ended with a loss to UConn in the Fenway Bowl. Belichick, who signed a five-year $50 million deal with UNC, has overseen a backsliding program to date.
“Belichick inherited a program fresh off six bowl appearances in a row but showed an inept grasp of player management in building one of the weakest rosters in the ACC,” USA Today’s Phil Myerburg wrote. “The Tar Heels won just two league games and ended the year with three losses in a row to their biggest rivals.”
No coaches received an “F” grade in the USA Today post. Belichick’s “D” was the lowest mark, tied with Sam Houston State’s Phil Luongo and Massachusetts’s Joe Harasymiak. Sam Houston State went 2-10 and UMass went 0-12.
Inside Carolina’s Greg Barnes reported that UNC is committed to Belichick for at least one more season.
Belichick and school athletic director Bubba Cunningham put out joint statements in October. Belichick said he was “fully committed” to the UNC football program he is building. Cunningham said Belichick has the “full support” of the athletic department and university.
Belichick and the Patriots parted ways after he coached the team to a 4-13 finish during the 2023 season. Team owner Robert Kraft later said that he fired Belichick.
Two years later, New England has an NFL-best 11-2 record under coach Mike Vrabel.
Belichick spent a year pursuing media opportunities before taking the UNC job.
UMass has just seven wins over the past six seasons. They went 0-4 during the COVID-shortened 2020 season. Back-to-back 1-11 seasons followed in 2021 and 2022. They had three wins in 2023 before sliding back down to two wins in 2024 before finishing winless again this year.
“Winning just three games might’ve earned Harasymiak a parade through downtown Amherst,” Myerberg wrote. “But the Minutemen lost just two games by single digits, gave up at least 38 points nine times and ended the year as the only winless team in the FBS.”
That’s not the kind of company UNC envisioned Belichick would be in when they hired him to take over their football program.
Khari A. ThompsonSports Reporter
Khari Thompson covers professional sports for Boston.com. Before joining the team in 2022, Khari covered college football for The Clarion Ledger in Jackson, Miss.
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