Although many football fans expected eight-time Super Bowl champion Bill Belichick to get back into the coaching game this year, few expected him to do it by taking a step down, so to speak, to college football. Even more surprising is the fact that he went down to a relatively unheralded program, compared to the sport’s truest blue bloods, the North Carolina Tar Heels.

If you were surprised by that announcement, you weren’t the only one- Tom Brady himself said that hearing the news “kind of blew [him] away,” as he certainly did not expect that his former coach was looking into college programs. However, the quarterback can certainly see the appeal, as he has become more involved with his own alma mater’s team in recent years, helping Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy with his offseason workouts in 2023 and assisting the program’s recruitment of five-star passer Bryce Underwood.

Check out Brady’s thoughts on the matter, which he shared on the Fox broadcast of the game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Brady on Belichick: “Kind of blew me away when I heard the news. I didn’t think that was an opportunity he was looking at … It’s a great benefit for all those players that are going to that program, because they’re getting the best coach that this pro NFL has ever seen.” pic.twitter.com/nvawR9UQjy

— Trevor Hass (@TrevorHass) December 16, 2024

Above all else, Brady believes that the players in North Carolina’s program will be the beneficiaries of Belichick’s decision. In his words, they’ll be playing for “the best coach that this…NFL has ever seen,” and will be coached very well but have to play very hard. This, in Brady’s eyes, is great preparation for the NFL, which is certainly a priority for some of North Carolina’s players, if not all.

Notably, Brady had some questions about how exactly Belichick will operate on the recruiting trail, as he’s not naturally the most “warm and fuzzy” person. However, he does view the partnership as a beneficial one for both parties.

Interestingly enough, there’s a bit of a connection between North Carolina’s program and the Patriots, as UNC passer Drake Maye was a heralded prospect en route to being selected third overall by the Patriots. It was one of the first major moves made by New England after moving on from Belichick at the end of last season, and it’s one that the former coach and general manager reportedly would not have made were he still in his old roles.

Now, he’s running Maye’s college program, while Maye is at the helm for the team Belichick coached for over two decades. We’ll see who finds more success in the other’s former home- Maye has put together some pretty impressive tape as a rookie, but the team hasn’t won too many games. The much bigger variable is how Belichick will fare in his first attempt at coaching college athletes, but rest assured that we’ll be able to get Brady’s take next season as things unfold.