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When Bill Belichick became the head coach at the University of North Carolina, he adamantly said he did not go there "to leave."
However, one of his former players, Rob Gronkowski, disagrees.
Belichick, after being off an NFL sideline for the first time in nearly 50 years, agreed last month to become the next head coach at UNC, saying it was a dream fulfilled to get into the college ranks.
However, Belichick has obviously found his success with the National Football League, and Gronk believes Belichick still has his eyes on returning home.
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Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski celebrates his 16-yard touchdown reception with head coach Bill Belichick during the AFC divisional playoff game against the Kansas City Chiefs in Foxborough, Massachusetts, Jan. 16, 2016. (Matthew J. Lee/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
When asked during a recent interview with Fox News Digital whether he believed Belichick would retire as a Tar Heel, he said he did not think so.
"I think if Bill has success, he's gonna eventually hand that program off to his son, whose son is just developing to be a future head coach," Gronkowski said. "Love his son, and he's doing a great job in the defensive ranks of college… So I believe that Coach Belichick will have some good success at UNC, but I believe that his heart truly belongs in the NFL ranks, and he's eventually gonna go back to the NFL if it's in three years or four years. But I think he ends his career coaching as a head coach for an NFL team."
Belichick coached the New England Patriots for 24 seasons, winning six Super Bowls during his tenure – three of those came with Gronkowski as his star tight end. After the 2023 season, the coach and team mutually agreed to part ways.
Without Belichick, the Pats had one of their worst seasons in recent memory, going 4-13, although Drake Maye gave fans something to be excited about. Entering Sunday, they owned the first overall pick, but with their victory, they will now pick fourth. Gronkowski, who recently partnered with Bounty, says the paper towel brand may just be enough to clean up the current mess in Foxboro.
"I'm about a couple minutes away right now. If I just walk over, grab my Bounty paper towel, it's messy over there right now, and I just use the Bounty paper towels with a couple of wipes, man, I'll probably be head coach right after that," he joked.
Gronkowski joined fellow future Hall of Famer Drew Brees as his Bounty Wingman ahead of the playoffs, because as Buffalo native Gronk says, "You can't have football without wings, and you can't have wings without Bounty."
New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski and head coach Bill Belichick before their game against the Houston Texans at Gillette Stadium on Sept. 22, 2016. (Winslow Townson-USA Today Sports)
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"That's why I'm the full package here. I'm all three of those: I love football ball, I love wings, and I love Bounty. And Drew Brees and I are going down to New Orleans, we're gonna dominate the city and we're gonna clean up our mess with the Bounty paper towels," Gronk, who, surprisingly, has never been out around the town, said of his partnership with the Saints legend.
In moving on from Belichick, the Patriots went to Jerod Mayo, a handpicked selection by Belichick himself years ago. But, after just one season, he was axed, and Gronk was not pleased.
"I was surprised to hear about Jerod getting fired. I mean, I felt like it was kind of unfair to him, because he took a team over where it was gonna need some time to build and develop to get back to the winning ways." he said. "I mean, the roster was depleted, Jerod was a rookie head coach, and I felt like he needed another year to be able to really judge him based on how he would develop and grow after that first season. But obviously, just after the first season, it was apparent that [Robert] Kraft felt like he was just not the guy to build a culture around back to its winning ways. So therefore, Kraft was just wasting no time and let go of Jerod's duties.
New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo speaks with the media, Oct. 18, 2024, in Harrow, England. (AP Photo/Steve Luciano)
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"Now I feel like Kraft will be doing all he can in the process of hiring a new head coach that he believes will turn around this program and get them back into the playoffs as soon as possible. It's kind of an ugly situation, but I feel for both sides. You gotta win, but also, I just feel like it wasn't enough time to evaluate Jerod Mayo."
The overwhelming speculation is that Mike Vrabel will man the Pats – he played for New England and became the coach of the Tennessee Titans after his playing days ended.
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