Internal turmoil at the North Carolina football program brought down G.M. Michael Lombardi and defensive coordinator Steve Belichick. Head coach Bill Belichick remains.
Earlier this week UNC chancellor Lee Roberts addressed the investigation that prompted the resignation of Bill Belichick’s consigliere and his son.
“Coach Belichick continues to have our support, the support of the administration and of the board [of trustees],” Roberts said Thursday, via Brad Crawford of CBS Sports. “He understands that that support comes with expectations around conduct and behavior. Nobody understands that better than coach Belichick.”
As to Lombardi and Steve Belichick, the conduct and behavior apparently fell short of the standard. Given their proximity to the head coach, that’s problematic.
“We’re continuing to put in place policies and training and monitoring to make sure that the standards we expect of the football program are being adhered to,” Roberts said.
The message is clear. The powers-that-be have their eyes on Bill Belichick. And if they can pin something/anything to him, they can escape the Belichick experiment without owing him a buyout.
North Carolina is off this weekend. The 2-1 Tar Heels host Notre Dame next weekend.
The investigation into the North Carolina football program has concluded. And there will be nothing provided beyond the statement issued on Thursday.
Via The Athletic, the attorney who conducted the investigation said that no written report will be generated.
Nathan Huff said that 60 persons were interviewed, including coach Bill Belichick.
“I had full run of the facility and the people that I needed to do my work, and I was able to do that thoroughly, and I made my recommendations and findings available to my client,” Huff said.
That work resulted in a finding that “certain actions demonstrated a disregard for Carolina’s values and standards of conduct.” However, the violations, according to the investigation, were “isolated” and “not a systematic failure.”
There’s no way for anyone on the outside to assess that conclusion without access to the nuts and bolts of the investigation. And while I haven’t researched the relevant requirements of North Carolina law (that’s a lawyerly way of saying, “I don’t know”), it seems that public institutions would be subject to a greater degree of transparency.
All that’s known is something happened — and that it caused or contributed to the resignations of G.M. Michael Lombardi and defensive coordinator Steve Belichick. So, basically, it was bad enough to force out two key employees, but not bad enough to trigger a finding that there were widespread problems.
The outcome shouldn’t be a surprise. Per The Athletic, an unnamed former staff member told UNC leadership in January 2025 that “this new regime is doing things any way but ‘the Carolina Way’ and there is a need to be very concerned about future investigations, sanctions, and being stripped of wins and/or privileges.”
Still, it would be nice to know what specifically happened to trigger the departures of Michael Lombardi and Steve Belichick, but that apparently sparked no other terminations or resignations. And it remains to be seen whether the experience makes Bill Belichick more likely to move on after the 2026 season.
On Thursday, North Carolina announced that defensive coordinator Steve Belichick will resign from his position, upon the October 27 expiration of his medical leave. His wife, Jen, has issued a statement to ESPN.
“We are grateful for our time and our opportunity in Chapel Hill, and we are very proud of our influence on the positive direction of the program,” Jen Belichick said.
“Our priority will always be to show up with a healthy and strong mind for ourselves and our 5 children. We are humbled by the relationships that have been fostered here in North Carolina and would like to thank each and every person that has positively impacted our experience.
“Unfortunately there is misinformation and speculation about our own situation, but we believe prioritizing health [is] the most important thing you can do in this life and is invaluable compared to anything else. We strongly encourage anyone in need of support to utilize their resources in order to achieve the best version of themselves.
“We will always be Uncle Brian and Pop’s biggest supporters and have no doubt that the UNC defense is prepared to ball out. GO HEELS.”
Steve Belichick’s medical leave began in August 2026. No specific reason for the medical leave was disclosed or reported.
Two weeks ago, a report from WRAL indicated that witnesses questioned during an internal UNC football investigation were being questioned regarding whether Steve Belichick “used drugs on the job or provided drugs to at least one player.”
Steve’s brother, Brian, has taken over the defensive playcalling duties for their dad, Bill, the second-year head coach at UNC.
The University of North Carolina has completed its investigation of the football program. The school hasn’t said much about it during the probe, and the final statement doesn’t say much, either.
Here’s the full statement, as posted by Amanda Christovich of Front Office Sports:
“The University has concluded a thorough and independent investigation into allegations related to culture and climate within the Carolina football program.
“The investigation determined that certain actions demonstrated a disregard for Carolina’s values and standards of conduct. The investigation also found that these actions were isolated in scope and not a systemic failure.
“As the University previously announced, General Manager Michael Lombardi resigned from the program effective September 3. Steve Belichick has resigned from his position of defensive coordinator, effective October 27, 2026, following the conclusion of his current medical leave.
“Throughout the investigation, the University has been guided by the legal advice of outside counsel. All necessary corrective actions are now underway and will be overseen by Carolina Athletics and the Office of University Counsel. With these actions, the University considers the investigation to be resolved.
“Consistent with University policy regarding personnel matters, there will be no further comment on individuals. As always, should credible new information arise, the University will evaluate it and take appropriate action consistent with its policies and responsibilities.
“Separately, Carolina Football has suspended Keeyun Chapman from the team indefinitely in connection with an incident Tuesday night.
“Chapman’s suspension, like the actions resulting from the investigation, reflect the University’s commitment to accountability and the well-being of its student athletes. We believe the steps announced today will help make Carolina Football a stronger program and one that continues to earn the pride of the entire Carolina community.”
The statement seems to imply that coach Bill Belichick won’t be facing any discipline or consequences regarding the findings of the investigation. Still, as “corrective actions” are implemented, the process could create friction between the coach and the school.
As to Chapman, his suspension arises from a misdemeanor gun charge, via WRAL. Chapman was a passenger in a car being driven by C.J. Sadler, who also will miss Saturday’s game against Clemson.
Sadler was cited for driving at least 60 miles per hour in a 35-mph zone. He has been cited three times for speeding since August, a continuation of a troubling trend among UNC players.
Authorities also seized 15.1 grams of marijuana from the car. The police report doesn’t specify whether anyone was cited for illegal possession.
Two weeks after North Carolina G.M. Michael Lombardi abruptly resigned during an investigation regarding his conduct while working for the Tar Heels, North Carolina defensive coordinator Steve Belichick has done the same.
Via Pete Thamel of ESPN, Steve Belichick has resigned.
The son of head coach Bill Belichick, Steve has been on medical leave since August 6. No details regarding the medical condition were ever disclosed or reported.
On the day Lombardi resigned, WRAL issued a report that indicated the investigation has broadened to include Steve Belichick. Per the report, witnesses were being questioned regarding whether Steve Belichick “used drugs on the job or provided drugs to at least one player.”
There was talk when Bill Belichick took the North Carolina job that he hoped to create a succession plan that would result in Steve Belichick taking over following Bill’s retirement. The contracts did not contemplate the eventual shift, and the team’s performance in 2025 seemingly mooted the possibility.
Now, it definitely won’t happen. The only question is whether, and when, Bill Belichick will step down.
Through it all, UNC is 2-0. It nevertheless seems as if someone (or more than one someones) at UNC are looking for an exit strategy as to the relationship with Bill Belichick, possibly through a for-cause termination that cuts off his buyout.
The nearly 10-month wait for Lane Kiffin’s return to Oxford almost is over.
No. 7 LSU at No. 8 Mississippi would be the nation’s game of the week under normal circumstances, this being the first top-10 matchup between the teams since 1962.
There has been nothing normal about the build-up for the game. It started last Nov. 30 when college football’s bad boy left the Rebels to take the LSU job just as the team he had coached six years was days away from its first appearance in the College Football Playoff.
Mississippi fans still are mad about being spurned, the narrative goes, and are lying in wait. Reports of beefed-up security at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium morphed into hyperbole when Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry joked that the National Guard might be needed to protect Kiffin.
Kiffin paid obligatory lip service to this game being about the players, not him and his Mississippi successor, Pete Golding. He’s right when he says it’s not about Golding. But Kiffin is a familiar spectacle, most recently by trying to bring in players who had been in NFL training camps this summer. The ensuing legal battle put LSU on the cusp of being voted out of the Southeastern Conference before the school stood down.
Yes, Mississippi fans are eager to give Kiffin the comeuppance they believe he deserves.
Not to be forgotten are two other Top 25 matchups: No. 22 Houston at No. 13 Texas Tech and No. 16 SMU at No. 23 Louisville.
Best game
No. 7 LSU (2-0) at No. 8 Mississippi (2-0), Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET
For all the hoopla surrounding this game, what happens on the field is what matters — maybe a lot when playoff selections and seedings come out in December.
The Tigers had no answer for Trinidad Chambliss last year. He accounted for 385 total yards without getting sacked in the Rebels’ 24-19 win. Blake Baker, retained as LSU defensive coordinator, will have a plan to turn up the pressure on Chambliss. Princewill Umanmielen, who followed Kiffin from Mississippi, leads the nation with five of the Tigers’ FBS-high 12 sacks.
LSU needs Sam Leavitt to be sharper. Leavitt has thrown four interceptions, tied for most in the country, and got picked off three times in the first half by Louisiana Tech. As for Mississippi’s defense, forget about the performance against woeful Charlotte. The Rebels can’t afford to have the defense that missed 19 tackles and got shredded in the secondary by Louisville show up against the Tigers.
Heisman Trophy watch
Ohio State WR Jeremiah Smith strengthened his Heisman candidacy despite his team’s 24-23 loss at Texas.
Smith, who had been all but shut down in two previous meetings with the Longhorns, finished with eight catches for 164 yards and a touchdown. He caught six balls for 110 yards in the first two quarters, and his 19-yard TD with 10 seconds left in the half put the Buckeyes up 20-3.
Julian Sayin found it more difficult to get the ball to Smith in the second half, and Smith’s single drop on 15 targets came in the fourth quarter while Ohio State was trying to hold off Texas.
Smith is out to a strong start with 16 catches for 315 yards and three TDs in two games, and he is 26 yards away from breaking Michael Jenkins’ school career record of 2,898 yards from 2000-03.
Numbers to know
4 — Interceptions by California’s Kingston Lopa, most in the nation, after he picked off three passes against Syracuse.
5-8 — Florida State’s record since it beat Alabama last year. The teams meet in Tuscaloosa.
8 — No. 5 Miami’s consecutive wins against Wake Forest since a 1944 loss entering the game in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
28.9 — Nation-leading yards per play by Oregon State freshman WR Jesse Legree, who has 13 catches for 376 yards.
39 — Texas’ win streak in nonconference games against in-state opponents since a 20-20 tie with Houston in 1968. The No. 1 Longhorns host UTSA.
Under the radar
Florida (2-0) at Auburn (2-0), Saturday, 7 p.m. ET
This is a good measuring-stick game for a couple programs in the middle class of the SEC that haven’t squared off since 2019 or met at Jordan-Hare Stadium since 2011. Both have first-year coaches who know each other well.
Jon Sumrall’s Gators have blown out two overmatched opponents by a combined 94 points. Alex Golesh’s Tigers escaped Atlanta with a one-point win over Baylor in the opener and put up over 600 yards in a rout of Southern Mississippi.
In 2024, Sumrall’s Tulane team beat Golesh’s South Florida team 45-10. Last year, Golesh’s Bulls knocked off the Gators 18-16 in Gainesville in the first of three straight losses that hastened Billy Napier’s firing.
Gators QB Aaron Philo, who will make his first road start, has completed 76% of his passes with five TDs. Byrum Brown, who has been Golesh’s starting QB for all or part of four seasons, was a 1,000-yard rusher last year and will strain a Florida defense that’s been stout against the run so far.
Hot seat
Dabo Swinney’s future at Clemson will become even more grim if the Tigers don’t beat North Carolina at home.
Clemson is beginning a difficult stretch to open ACC play, with a road game at California and a visit from No. 5 Miami on Oct. 3. The Tigers are a 3.5-point favorite against Carolina, which is 2-0 and trying to gain traction under Bill Belichick.
A 22-7 win over Georgia Southern didn’t instill much confidence in the Clemson faithful following the 51-10 drubbing at LSU. The offense has been so shaky that Swinney is making a move at quarterback, giving freshman Tait Reynolds the start.
Swinney is 8-7 since taking the Tigers to the College Football Playoff in 2024. The sport is in a much different place than it was when he won two national titles and was in two other championship games from 2015-19. He has faced constant questions about his ability and willingness to adjust, especially when it comes to the transfer portal. His buyout is $57 million if he’s fired before Dec. 31.
Earlier this week, while being peppered with questions about the ongoing investigation at the North Carolina football program, Tar Heels coach Bill Belichick pointed to “our high standard here of our code of conduct and doing things the right way.”
They had a lapse in that standard last year, which will keep the program from hosting any recruits at their regular-season home opener.
Via Noah Weiskopf of 247sports.com, the situation traces to the 2025 suspension of defensive backs coach Armond Hawkins for violating NCAA rules regarding extra benefits.
“Last season we self-reported a violation through our normal university compliance measures,” the school said in a statement. “As a result, we are unable to host unofficial visits this weekend versus ETSU. We are still permitted to host official visits this weekend but have decided as a program to concentrate our official visits on the remaining five home games. The situation has been properly resolved through the NCAA process, and we have worked with the NCAA and University compliance on appropriate and corrective action.”
The bigger concern relates to the probe that triggered the resignation of G.M. Mike Lombardi, following more than a month on paid leave. Defensive coordinator Steve Belichick, who is currently on medical leave, is also reportedly being investigated, along with others who have not yet been named.
Despite the team’s 1-0 record, a storm has been blowing through the North Carolina football program, with most of it playing out privately.
The situation became much more public last Thursday, with the abrupt resignation of G.M. Mike Lombardi followed by a report from WRAL indicating that the investigation that started with Lombardi has expanded to include defensive coordinator Steve Belichick and others.
Head coach Bill Belichick met with reporters on Monday, for the first time since the situation hit the fan. To no surprise, Belichick didn’t have much to say in response to multiple questions about Lombardi, Steve Belichick, and the overall program.
The questions were posed despite an opening comment from a team spokesperson before Belichick took the podium, via WRAL: “Coach Belichick, student athletes, and other university employees will not discuss the situation in any manner. That is necessary to protect the integrity of the process and the rights of everyone involved.”
In his own introductory remarks, Bill Belichick mentioned “the importance of the work that’s being done by the investigative team and, obviously, our high standard here of our code of conduct and doing things the right way and making sure that our student-athletes are given the utmost, the best treatment, the very best care, and the very best coaching that we can possibly give them.”
He was then peppered with inquiries about the investigation, despite the effort to avoid talking about it.
The mere existence of an investigation that is exploring the behavior of multiple football employees shows that there’s at least a question about whether the “high standard here of our code of conduct” has been met — including the question of whether the head coach knew about any of the potential irregularities and failed to report them.
Bill Belichick’s potential failure to report issues of which he was aware becomes a potential recipe for a termination “for cause,” which would cut off his buyout.
Frankly, the entire situation feels like an effort to find something that would give UNC an escape hatch from a hiring it already regrets, the upset win over TCU notwithstanding. And it creates an overriding vibe that his departure is inevitable. Possibly with no further financial obligation from the school to its second-year head coach.
North Carolina G.M. Michael Lombardi resigned on Thursday, not long before a sweeping report from WRAL painted an ugly picture of the Tar Heels program. Defensive coordinator Steve Belichick, based on that report, could be next.
The eventual target could be coach Bill Belichick, also in a for-cause, you’ll-get-nothing-and-like-it outcome that would wipe out the remainder of his buyout.
Here’s the key portion of the WRAL report, as it relates to accounts from individuals who have been questioned by an external law firm: "[T]he people said they were asked whether they had reported any potentially questionable behavior to Bill Belichick.”
That’s an important potential finding, as it relates to Article 11 of Bill Belichick’s five-year, $50 million deal. The provision sets forth the various ways in which Belichick can be fired for cause.
The key language appears in Article 11(c): “Any action that is (i) taken by Coach or someone supervised by Coach, or (ii) taken at the direction of Coach or someone supervised by Coach, or (iii) known by Coach or someone supervised by Coach and not reported by Coach as required by this Agreement to the Department of Athletics Compliance office by the person supervised by coach, and that results in any material form of disciplinary finding, material action against, or material sanction for the Coach or the Program by the University’s athletics association (e.g. NCAA), athletics conference (e.g. ACC), University, or other regulatory body that exceeds an institutional letter of admonishment or reprimand.” (Emphasis added.)
Given the potentially serious subjects currently under investigation (reportedly including whether Steve Belichick “used drugs on the job or provided drugs to at least one player,” whether an unnamed member of the North Carolina recruiting staff had a sexual relationship with a player, and whether assistant coaches and the recruiting staff engaged in sexual relationships), a finding that Bill Belichick knew about one or more of those matters and failed to report them could provide the basis to fire him for cause, and in turn to cut off his buyout.
The mere existence of the investigation suggests that someone within the UNC power structure may be looking for a reason to fire Belichick for cause. At plenty of schools where the program is winning, the inclination will be to look the other way when evidence of potential violations emerges. Only when management is looking for a way out do the chapters and verses of the contract’s termination provision become a priority.
The investigation that resulted in the resignation of North Carolina G.M. Michael Lombardi seems to be expanding.
Via WRAL, lawyers hired to conduct the probe have now focused on Tar Heels defensive coordinator Steve Belichick, who is currently on medical leave.
Steve Belichick previously served as the Patriots’ defensive coordinator, when his father, Bill, was the head coach.
Per the report, investigators are questioning witnesses regarding whether Steve Belichick “used drugs on the job or provided drugs to at least one player.”
The investigation separately is exploring whether an unnamed member of the North Carolina recruiting staff had a sexual relationship with a player, according to the report. Lawyers also have inquired about possible sexual relationships between assistant coaches and the recruiting staff.
Subjects of the interviews include current and former Tar Heels players, parents, and staff members. The investigation also targets documents and screenshots of text conversations.
Although head coach Bill Belichick has not been identified as a focal point of the investigation, he’s the captain of the ship. And the ship, from a cultural standpoint, seems to be sinking.
