Bill Belichick adamant that no starting spots at North Carolina are a given: 'That's not the way it's gonna work'

As a professional head coach, Bill Belichick won six Super Bowls. So, it’s not a surprise that, now in the college game, expectations are high for what Belichick can do with the North Carolina Tar Heels.

Now, Fall Camp is underway ahead of the 2025 season. However, with a new roster full of transfers, Belichick is still getting adjusted to his new team. Amid these practices ahead of the season, Belichick did want to make one thing clear. Nobody is being given their jobs in Chapel Hill.

“I think you got it right,” Bill Belichick said. “The first portal, we’re just trying to find guys to fill the team. The second portal, we’re looking for good football players. And we felt like any position, if the player wanted to come in and compete, and we thought it was a good player, then this is the right spot for him. We’ll give everybody an opportunity to compete. You know, through the course of my career, we’ve had many, many free agents, low round draft choices, who not only competed and earned playing time, but some became some of our best players. So, players who have come in and want to compete and have shown enough skill, we’ll take those guys, and we’ve taken plenty of them. We’ll see how they do, but those are kind of the things we’re looking for.”

As is often the case when teams go through a coaching change, North Carolina was very active in the Transfer Portal. The Tar Heels finished with the eighth-ranked transfer class in the 2025 cycle, according to the On3 College Football Team Transfer Portal Rankings. That includes 42 transfers into the program. Including incoming freshmen, the Tar Heels have an almost entirely new roster for next season.

“Anybody who’s walking in here feeling like, ‘Well, I’m going to be just starting this, or that I’m entitled to this.’ That’s not really the way it’s going to work. They’re going to have to earn it. If they want to come in and earn playing time and earn a roster spot and play at Carolina and play in the ACC, and get that kind of profile,” Belichick said. “Then we’ll give it to them and we’ll see what they can do. Whatever they’re going to get, they’re going to earn. Nobody’s handing out anything. Just like nobody’s handing out wins in this conference. You have to go earn them. They’re going to have to earn their spots on the field.”

As of now, there’s plenty of time for Bill Belichick to decide who gets to start in Week 1 for the Tar Heels. There’s no easing into the season, either, with North Carolina hosting TCU to open the season. So, Belichick will need his team at its best early.