The Old Man and the Heels

A Hall of Fame coach, once revered, is struggling. He is 73 years old, trying to adapt to modern football amidst whispers that the game has passed him by. Finally, once it has become clear that the situation has reached its nadir, the coach and the team part ways.

That's what happened to Mack Brown at North Carolina. But that story is eerily similar to how Bill Belichick left New England. So when rumors started flying that Belichick was interested in taking over the head coaching job at North Carolina, I was immediately skeptical. After all, what sense did that make? Swap one over-the-hill coach for another? 

Yet here we are: Bill Belichick, with zero head-coaching experience at the college level, has signed on to lead North Carolina. Serving as head coach of a power conference program in the NIL-Transfer Portal Era is hard work. Just ask Nick Saban, the GOAT himself, how he felt about doing that job in his 70s. The job is so complex these days, that two head coaches - Chip Kelly and Gus Malzahn - both left their head-coaching jobs to become assistants instead.

There are some coaches who have found success at both the NCAA and NFL levels. Notable examples are Pete Carroll and Jim Harbaugh. But both had extensive experience in the college and pro ranks before becoming champions. (It's also worth noting that upon winning a National Championship last year at Michigan, Harbaugh bolted right back to the NFL.)

But back to Belichick. What, exactly, does he offer North Carolina RIGHT NOW? Belichick's Patriots went 29-38 over his last 4 seasons, losing in their only playoff appearance. Clearly, the NFL was no longer enamored with him. Next year's top high school recruits would have been 11 years old the last time Belichick won a Super Bowl. How much pull do you think a man not known for his charisma will have in those living rooms? Many coaches complain that with the portal, recruiting has become a year-round job, on top of all the other responsibilities a head coach shoulders. How much appetite do you think a 72-year-old man will have for that recruiting trail? 

One saving grace might be that North Carolina is not Alabama. A new coach who wins 9 games and flirts with a playoff appearance is a lost season in Tuscaloosa. In Chapel Hill, that's considered winning. But North Carolina administrators, fans and boosters are expecting a lot from their $50 million investment. What happens when the Tar Heels don't immediately succeed? Belichick's prickly personality and adversarial relationship with the media are well known. In his Super Bowl days, that could have been considered charming. Winning covers a multitude of sins. Terse answers and a curmudgeonly vibe don't go over as well when you're 6-6.

I don't have high hopes for the Belichick Experiment at North Carolina. Upon being introduced, Belichick spoke about how he wants to create a "pro program" at Carolina. "I would say through my experience, what we did in terms of training, developing players, running pro systems, pro techniques." Except the Tar Heel players are not pros. They are 19- and 20-year old kids, prone to head-scratching decisions and behavior. There are just too many ways for a coach to fail, even before he ever takes the field. Recruiting players, both in high school and via the portal, then constructing a coaching staff around those players. In a world of infinite possibilities, the genius of Bill Belichick just might translate into a college football powerhouse. My guess is that the number-crunchers at North Carolina will eventually need to figure out how much of Belichick's contract they're willing to eat before starting over, yet again.

Feeling Fever-ish

Caitlin Clark is the biggest star in women's athletics, and some would say, among the biggest stars in all of sports. Her games with the Iowa Hawkeyes became appointment television. With much fanfare, and deservedly so, Clark was the #1 pick taken in the WNBA Draft. And now her new team, the Indiana Fever, has started the season 0-4, while Clark has looked at times frustrated and floundering. It doesn't have to be this way.

To be fair, the Fever are not a very good team. You don't get the #1 pick in back-to-back drafts by winning a lot of games. But as a reward for their mediocrity, the Fever were able to select Clark and Aliyah Boston, last year's top draft pick. Clark, an electric shooting guard, and Boston, a back-to-the-basket type center, should be a dynamic combination. But that hasn't been the case so far.

First and foremost, Head Coach Christie Sides needs to do a better job setting up the Fever's offense. Let Boston set high picks for Clark, over and over. Since it's Clark who always draws the other teams' best defenders, she needs help getting open. A Boston screen either gets Clark a good look from deep, or gives Boston a free lane to the basket. Clark, who also led the country in assists at Iowa, is as good a passer as she is a shooter. I know there hasn't been much practice time since the season started, but creating the two-player game with Clark and Boston is essential for Indiana's success.

Sides, though, doesn't shoulder all the blame. I've seen time and again Fever players fail to even look for Clark, then drive to the basket or hoist up a tough shot. Last year's leading scorers -- Kelsey Mitchell and Nalyssa Smith -- have not only seen their scoring dip this season, but their shooting percentages have fallen, too. With Clark and Boston drawing so much attention, that shouldn't happen. Also, GET CLARK THE BALL. Yes, that would require the rest of the team to quash their egos, but as the saying goes, there's no I in Team.

It's still early. The WNBA season is only a couple of weeks old, as is Caitlin Clarks' professional career. She'll need time to adapt. And it's not easy, game after game, having to face the best defenders in the league (any one of whom is probably light year's better than the college players tasked to guard Clark at Iowa). But you don't set all-time NCAA records by not being really good, either. Clark is going to shine. I just hope the Fever figure out how to make it happen, soon.