Steve Belichick Resigns as North Carolina Defensive Coordinator as Program Investigation Concludes

Steve Belichick, the son of North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick, has resigned from his post as the Tar Heels’ defensive coordinator, bringing his tenure to a close weeks after he first stepped away from the program.

The 39-year-old coach had been on medical leave since Aug. 6. His resignation, announced Thursday, Sept. 17, came at the conclusion of a university investigation into the football program and will take effect Oct. 27, when the medical leave formally ends.

The inquiry drew significant attention in part because of its subject matter. According to WRAL-TV, investigators were examining suspicions that Belichick used drugs on the job and whether he supplied drugs to at least one player. In its statement Thursday, the university said only that “certain actions demonstrated a disregard for Carolina’s values and standards of conduct,” while characterizing them as “isolated” and “not a systematic failure.” The school did not address the drug allegations or disclose specific findings, saying that “corrective actions” are being led by the athletic department and the Office of University Counsel.

The departure adds to a period of significant turnover in the Tar Heels’ football operation. Two weeks before Belichick’s resignation, the program’s general manager, Michael Lombardi, also stepped down after being placed on leave.

A team source told The Athletic that Brian Belichick, Bill Belichick’s other son and the team’s safeties coach, is expected to take over defensive coordinator duties.

The off-field turbulence arrives even as the team has performed well on the field, opening the season undefeated with wins over TCU and East Tennessee State. But the program’s troubles continued this week: on Tuesday, Sept. 15, freshman wide receiver Keeyun Chapman was arrested on a misdemeanor weapons charge during a traffic stop involving a teammate, fellow freshman receiver C.J. Sadler.

The story has drawn substantial coverage across the sports media landscape, including from outlets owned by major media companies. Local coverage from WRAL, an NBC affiliate, circulated widely, while NBC Sports — part of Comcast (NASDAQ: CMCSA) — is among the national outlets following the Tar Heels’ season. Comcast’s stock traded at $23.15 in recent action, down 2.61% from its previous close of $23.77, valuing the media and telecom company at roughly $92.5 billion. NBC holds Big Ten media rights and carries a slate of college football broadcasts each fall, keeping programs like North Carolina within the orbit of its coverage plans.

Bill Belichick, the longtime NFL head coach, is in his first season leading the Chapel Hill program, and the early-season coaching shake-ups represent one of the more closely watched situations in college football.

What to watch

• Whether the university releases further detail on the investigation’s findings or the “corrective actions” underway.
• How the defense performs under Brian Belichick’s expanded role in upcoming games.
• Any additional personnel changes within the football program or athletic department.
• North Carolina’s next scheduled games, as the team looks to stay undefeated amid the distractions.

Source: original release