One of the big question marks about Bill Belichick when he took the head-coaching job at North Carolina was how would he do on the recruiting trail.
Some speculated that Belichick might not be motivated to recruit high school players. However, that hasn’t been the case at all. So far, the Tar Heels have been extremely active in high school recruiting.
North Carolina has landed commitments from 33 prospects in the 2026 class, with the most recent being a flip of four-star safety Jakob Weatherspoon, who is ranked No. 178 overall via the 247 Sports composite rankings, away from Ohio State.
Weatherspoon is from the Buckeye State, which makes the flip even more impressive. Ohio State wanted him, but Belichick pulled it off.
The man considered by some to be the greatest football coach of all time has also landed a four-star quarterback Travis Burgess, a 6-foot-5 passer, as well as six other blue-chip recruits for a total of eight, according to 247 Sports, giving North Carolina the No. 17th-ranked recruiting class.
Six of those blue chips have committed this month. The Tar Heels are getting hot and just beat out Nebraska for four-star EDGE Calvin Thomas.
What’s interesting is the volume of recruits. Most programs are shying away from high school recruiting. North Carolina is leaning into it, getting pledges from 11 players ranked outside the top 1,000 of the 2026 recruiting rankings.
Why would Belichick take so many recruits ranked so low, especially when the transfer portal is an option?
It’s easy. Development.
Belichick believes in his coaching ability. You can bet he believes he can get more out of the average three-star recruit than most college football head coaches.
If he’s right and turns even a few of those 11 into starting-caliber players, North Carolina could save money in the portal by having to spend less on proven players to fill needs, which could allow for those resources to be invested elsewhere (5-stars or major impact transfers).
North Carolina doesn’t have a ton of assets, at least compared to the blue bloods of college football. But it has one of the best football coaches of all time.
And contrary to the belief of some, Belichick hasn’t had any problems adapting to college football recruiting.
