CBS Sports’ Aaron Taylor calls Bill Belichick hiring ‘a mistake’

Bill Belichick’s North Carolina disaster has college football analysts questioning whether he should even be there.

Aaron Taylor called Belichick’s hiring “a mistake” on CBS Sports’ College Football Today after watching UNC allow 28 first-quarter points in a 38-10 loss to Clemson. It marked the first time a Belichick-coached team has ever surrendered that many points in a single quarter.

Saturday’s loss was UNC’s third straight blowout against Power Four opponents. The Tar Heels opened with a 48-14 loss to TCU, followed by a 34-9 loss to UCF. Against Clemson, fans were heading for the exits in the second quarter with the Tigers leading 35-3 at halftime. Clemson scored touchdowns on each of its first four drives, something that had never happened to a Belichick-coached team at any level.

Taylor, a former Notre Dame offensive lineman who played six seasons in the NFL and now works as an analyst on College Football Today, didn’t sugarcoat what he saw.

“Ludacris performed for the students around 10 o’clock this morning,” Taylor said. “That’s a perfect word to describe whatever the heck is going on in Chapel Hill. It is ludicrous that that’s the product. Bill Belichick is not the right guy for this job. We’ve seen a bunch of NFL coaches come down and think that they’re going to create the ’33rd NFL team.’ Do we all remember that?

“This product, on both sides of the football, is a reflection of what’s going on in that office. And it’s just not good. They’ve got to figure something out, but Bill Belichick was a mistake. It’s not the answer. And they need to move on.”

“Bill Belichick is NOT the right guy for this job… It was a mistake, it’s not the answer, and it’s time to move on.”@AaronTaylorCFB on Bill Belichick’s first five games at North Carolina pic.twitter.com/epfIGNWvKl

— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) October 4, 2025

Belichick arrived at North Carolina with significant fanfare after the school hired him away from the NFL following six Super Bowl championships with the New England Patriots. UNC is paying him at least $10 million guaranteed over three years, making him the highest-paid public employee in the state.

But the Belichick era has been defined more by off-field distractions than on-field success. His girlfriend, Jordon Hudson, was reportedly banned from the football facility after interrupting his CBS Sunday Morning interview. A planned HBO Hard Knocks series fell through, only to be replaced by a Hulu docuseries where Hudson appeared to take a victory lap on social media before the announcement. The program didn’t have a sports information director when Belichick arrived, forcing him to ask that Hudson be copied on media-related emails.

Pablo Torre reported in May that there was an “absolutely real chance” Belichick might not even make it to his season opener, though he ultimately did. A UNC official told The Washington Post, “We just don’t know what’s coming” when discussing Belichick and Hudson.

The on-field results have been just as bad, if not worse. UNC has scored just four touchdowns on 29 drives against Power Four opponents this season, excluding drives stopped by halftime or the end of games. Clemson averaged 15.8 yards per play in the first quarter alone.

Taylor’s point about NFL coaches trying to build the “33rd NFL team” in college resonates with the broader struggles Belichick has faced. He presented UNC officials with a 400-page “organizational bible” that included salary minimums for every position and a request to hire two separate staffs during initial negotiations. The approach hasn’t translated to wins.

If UNC were to fire Belichick before December 2027, the buyout would be north of $20 million, making it one of the five highest in college football history. Taylor said the school should eat that cost and move on anyway.