Bill Belichick addresses his relationship with Clemson coach Dabo Swinney: 'We're all learning from Dabo'

The North Carolina Tar Heels made a splash this offseason, landing legendary head coach Bill Belichick. It’s his first opportunity to coach in college, but despite that fact, he’s already developed a strong relationship with Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney.

At the 2025 ACC Football Kickoff, Swinney praised Belichick as someone to learn from. Belichick was asked about that during his own press conference, and the six-time Super Bowl champion smiled and quickly returned the compliment, praising Swinney and the Clemson program.

“We’re all learning from Dabo,” Belichick said. “That’s very nice of him to say that. Very complementary. Dabo’s been a friend for a long time. We’ve scouted his players from the NFL down. Some of the players that are here today, you know, I actually thought, ‘Well, maybe we’ll be drafting one of these guys.’ Now, here we are gonna be playing against them.”

Belichick has spent the entirety of his career, prior to 2025, in the NFL. That’s a career that goes back to 1975. During that time, he won eight Super Bowls. That includes six Super Bowls as a head coach. His track record of success at that level is undeniable. Of course, with two national championships in a college career that dates back to 1993, it’s hard to find much wrong with how he’s led the Clemson program. Certainly, Belichick had only praise for Swinney.

“But Dabo’s been great. I have so much respect for him and the Clemson program. What he’s done, the way he runs it. It’s high quality. The kids are high-quality. He came up to New England, got probably the top player out of New England for probably the past decade. You know, Christian Wilkins out of Springfield. Suffield Academy. I think that says a lot for the program that he runs and what he’s done for not only college football,” Belichick said. “But all the student-athletes that he’s coached there have gone on to represent him and the school very well.”

Heading into the 2025 season, Swinney’s Tigers are expected to compete for a berth in the College Football Playoff. Belichick’s Tar Heels have a lot more questions surrounding them. After all, it’s a completely new-looking roster and a new coaching staff.

“Again, I have a ton of respect for Dabo and what he’s done. I had a great opportunity to spend some time with him at the ACC Coaches Meeting. So, he’s been a really enjoyable guy to be around,” Belichick said. “I don’t know if that’ll be true on Saturday afternoons, probably not. At least in these meetings it is.”

Belichick and Swinney are going to have the opportunity to face off later in the 2025 season. On October 4th, the Tar Heels are going to be playing host to the Tigers.