Bill Belichick Circling NCAA Loophole to Poach NFL Cuts for North Carolina
Bill Belichick did not go to North Carolina to run a normal college program. He went there to build the 33rd NFL team. And now he has spotted a loophole big enough to drive a bus through.
A Louisiana court recently granted 16 players a fifth year of eligibility through a temporary restraining order tied to the ongoing NCAA rules battle. Several of those players are currently in NFL training camps, fighting for the last spots on 53-man rosters. If they are cut by September 1, they can turn around and play college football again.
Belichick is not just aware of the loophole. He is already shopping.
“We’ve looked at a number of them,” Belichick said on Friday, per Noah Weiskopf of 247 Sports. “Each case is a little bit different. If it works, it works. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t. I don’t think there’s anything we’re counting on, but we’re always open to anything that will help the team.”
Translated from Belichick-speak, that means his staff has a spreadsheet, has ranked the targets, and is ready to move the second cutdown weekend arrives.
This is exactly the kind of edge Belichick promised when he took the North Carolina job. He is not interested in playing by the traditional college rulebook. He wants NFL-caliber film, NFL-caliber processes, and NFL-caliber talent whenever he can get his hands on it. A wave of released NFL rookies who just spent an entire summer inside pro locker rooms is a gift.
Think about it from the player side. A running back who signed as an undrafted free agent, spent August at an NFL facility, and then gets cut has almost no route back to the league until next spring. If he can go back to college, get free coaching, put on new film, and rebuild his stock, that is a no-brainer.
North Carolina, meanwhile, needs the help. The Tar Heels went 4-8 last season in Belichick’s first year on the sideline. His debut roster was cobbled together on the fly, and it showed. Any veteran presence he can steal from NFL training camps is a net win against Clemson, Miami, and the rest of the ACC.
Not everyone loves the loophole. Other coaches around the country are quietly furious that a court order effectively created a new transfer window in mid-August. Roster spots at other schools have been closed for months, and now suddenly there are 16 extra players floating around with a full year of eligibility.
The NCAA will fight the ruling on appeal. But that appeal is going to take time, and Belichick is not going to wait around while lawyers argue. If the loophole exists this week, he is going to use it this week.
The Tar Heels open the season in less than two weeks. Do not be surprised if a name or two from an NFL cutdown list ends up on the North Carolina roster before Labor Day. That would be very on-brand for the coach.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
