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A breakup between North Carolina and Bill Belichick got cheaper on Sunday—even if it remains unlikely.
On June 1, the Hall of Fame coach’s buyout with the Tar Heels dropped from $10 million to $1 million, making a divorce less expensive for both parties, even though Belichick has given no indication he plans on leaving UNC.
When the Tar Heels hired the longtime Patriots coach and six-time Super Bowl champion in January, the June 1 date to drop his buyout by $9 million was perceived as a clause that could pave the way for Belichick to return to the NFL before the 2025 season. Belichick is just 15 wins shy of Don Shaula’s all-time record for an NFL coach and was approached by Tom Brady about the Raiders before signing his deal with UNC.
But since Belichick became coach of the Tar Heels he has become known more for his 24-year-old girlfriend Jordon Hudson than anything he’s done on the recruiting trail. Hudson is reportedly copied on all of Belichick’s Carolina emails and recently competed in the Ms. Maine pageant.
Belichick, 73, has expressed no desire to return to the NFL or leave Carolina in his first five months on the job, but the buyout is interesting because it will remain $1 million for the remainder of his five-year contract.
College coaches’ buyouts traditionally reduce over time, as it becomes cheaper to fire a coach without cause as they get deeper into their current contract. They also come with clauses that allow them to leave for nothing. South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley can leave the school at no cost if it’s for an NBA or WNBA job despite expressing no interest in doing so.
But it goes both ways.
Belichick’s contract requires him to pay the school $10 million in liquidated damages if he left before Sunday, a figure that now only costs $1 million, which he would have to pay within 180 days. That remains true for the remainder of Belichick’s UNC contract, which expires in 2029.
Ohio State coach Ryan Day would owe the Buckeyes $6 million if he left the job in 2025. That figure drops to $4 million on Feb.1, 2026, and decreases each year.
The Tar Heels are paying Belichick $10 million per year, which is split between $1 million in base pay and $9 million in supplemental pay. The first three years of his contract are fully guaranteed if the school fires him without cause before Dec. 31, 2027. Belichick’s buyout isn’t specified for the final two years of his contract.
Belichick’s first game coaching the Tar Heels will come against TCU on Sept. 1.
