Nick Saban defends Bill Belichick's start at UNC, but do the former Alabama coach's words hold merit?

North Carolina pledged its "full support" for coach Bill Belichick despite reports of widespread dysfunction within the program amid a disastrous start on the field. Nick Saban alluded to the perils of the situation being overblown Saturday on "College GameDay" and stressed the need to give Belichick time, predicting he'll learn from early recruiting mistakes made with the Tar Heels.

Belichick's last few weeks have been an embarrassment for the program, which includes a 38-10 loss to Clemson, the suspension of an assistant coach for a violation of NCAA rules, reported social media directives against the New England Patriots and a not-so-private getaway to Nantucket during UNC's pre-Clemson bye weekend.

North Carolina backs Bill Belichick, pledges 'full support' as rumors swirl about coach's job status

Austin Nivison

Saban, Belichick's friend dating back to their time with the Cleveland Browns in the early 1990s, compared Belichick's struggles to his underwhelming first season coaching Alabama.  

"Every coach needs to have the opportunity to establish his culture and also to recruit his kind of players," Saban said. "First year at Alabama, we lost to ULM. Remember that? Alabama beat them 73-0 this year. We lost to them on a Thursday, most humiliating loss of my whole career. You know, I get in my car to go home, and I got to stop and get gas. I got no gas. I used to wear then my LSU national championship ring, I pay for the gas, the guy says, 'Hey, what is that?' I said, 'it's a national championship ring. We're going to do the same thing here.' He said, 'we'll never do it as long as Nick Saban's the coach.'

"There was an acclimation for Bill. You know, I know how organized he is, probably misjudged a little bit of the timing of the first portal window. So they probably didn't get an opportunity. You know, when you change coaches, you're going to lose players, so you got to replace those players. And I think they missed the window, which is probably affecting this year, but they won't miss it next year, and they're doing a great job of recruiting."

The acclimation period is one thing, as Saban notes, but a complete, all-systems failures on the field is another. What's the excuse for giving up 35 first-half points against the worst Clemson team in a decade or failing to show up -- and looking unprepared -- in the opener against TCU? 

Heading into next weekend's game against Cal, the Tar Heels -- who have been outscored 120-33 in losses to TCU, UCF and Clemson -- rank last in the ACC in total offense, scoring offense, passing offense, third down conversion rate and sacks. Execution has lacked across all areas, which points to a coaching staff-wide developmental issue for a group low on experience at the collegiate level.

The swing-and-miss in recruiting is the most glaring trouble spot for Belichick. He signed 29 high school players during the 2025 recruiting cycle and 41 from the portal, few of which have been difference-making, impactful starters on either side of the football. 

And of the 49 outgoing transfers who left prior to Belichick's first game, several are key players elsewhere including defensive end Beau Atkinson (Ohio State), defensive tackle Travis Shaw (Texas) and linebacker Amare Campbell (Penn State).  

Can Bill Belichick get things turned around at UNC?

Before the Clemson debacle and in response to blowout losses to Power Four competition, Tar Heels general manager Michael Lombardi sent a long-winded email to top boosters amid mounting struggles this season, explaining the challenges Belichick and staff face in Year 1. 

Saban's remarks on "College GameDay" highlight some of these deficiencies, pointing at personnel specifically. Belichick believes that part of the equation will be rectified next season, but his plan is heavy on high school recruiting, which offers quite the risk when others in the ACC will be spending heavy on proven talent from the transfer portal.

UNC GM Mike Lombardi writes long message to boosters explaining Tar Heels' current roster shortcomings

Richard Johnson

Saban won six national championships at Alabama, many of which were backed by top-ranked recruiting classes and expert-level knowledge of his "Process," a program model many others within his coaching tree have taken elsewhere and enjoyed success. Belichick's not going to be able to accumulate the sheer amount of talent Saban established annually in Tuscaloosa and will have to hit evaluation home runs for high-end finishes with the Tar Heels -- something he's never had to do before as a coach.

In the NFL, Belichick was provided a roster annually and told to go win with hit. Outside of a few free agent signings and plug-and-play talents within his system, Belichick won with Tom Brady, the greatest quarterback of all-time, and players who understood and carried out their respective roles as professionals.

Can he actually build a winning two-deep of his own in Chapel Hill and more importantly, does he have the runway to do so at 73 years old? Saban's backing of Belichick, a long-time friend, shouldn't come as a surprise. He once called his time in the NFL in Cleveland under Belichick the "worst four years of my life" but has always acknowledged how much he learned alongside the eight-time Super Bowl champion with the Browns. 

The two shared a comical moment earlier this month on College GameDay when Belichick ribbed Saban for being "full of s---" after the former Alabama coach said he learned a great deal from his colleague. 

Looking at the other side of that equation, whatever Belichick gleamed from Saban about coaching in the college ranks and the intricacies that entails hasn't shown up yet this season.