Mack Brown, while praising Bill Belichick's setup, says North Carolina has lowered academic standards to help him
It sounds like Mack Brown took an accidental shot at his former school and its new head football coach this week.
Brown, who had two runs as North Carolina's head coach before he was replaced by longtime New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick after last season ended, spoke out on SiriusXM on Tuesday about the changes that the university has made to accommodate Belichick and turn the football program around.
Mack Brown opens up on leaving UNC and shares with @DustyDvoracek & @dannykanell why UNC has a chance to be successful quickly with Bill Belichick. pic.twitter.com/Mj9yE3poOk
— College Sports on SiriusXM (@SXMCollege) May 20, 2025
'As far as North Carolina and Bill Belichick now, he's arguably the best coach ever," Brown said. 'They've committed money to it, they've helped him with academics. They've lowered those standards some.
'So there's absolutely no reason they shouldn't be successful. And anymore, they've changed the roster … So you've got a chance to succeed at the highest level, and I expect him to do that and I'm proud for him.'
While Brown sounds sincere in his praise and hopes for Belichick, he made it very clear that Belichick is getting a tremendous amount of resources that weren't offered to him.
For example, North Carolina has reportedly boosted its NIL package from $4 million to $20 million upon Belichick's arrival. As Brown noted, he had to recruit kids without money available and he even once encouraged a player to leave his program for a $1 million payday because he simply couldn't come close to matching it.
North Carolina hired Belichick in December, and he's set to make $10 million per season. That makes him among the top-10 highest-paid coaches in college football. By comparison, Brown was paid just half of what Belichick makes.
And, while specifics on this front aren't known, Brown's comments about North Carolina lowering its academic standards were notable too — especially after the school was caught offering athletes a fake 'shadow curriculum' to keep them eligible for nearly 20 years nearly a decade ago. Though North Carolina surely isn't going that far with things this time around, it's easy to make the comparison.
Brown had two coaching runs at North Carolina, first from 1988-97 and again starting in 2019. He spent the last six seasons with the Tar Heels, but he parted with the school after last season ended. They went just 6-6 under his watch in his final season, and he said he just felt the time was right for him to go.
'North Carolina didn't have NIL money [for me],' Brown said. 'I said we were kind of a slow bleed. We weren't able to recruit the top kids like we were when we first got there. So it was time for them and it was time for me. It was kind of like a divorce. Everybody was ready … It was best for me to get out.'
The Belichick era will officially begin Sept. 1 when the Tar Heels host TCU.
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