Bill Belichick doesn't think outside distractions will be an issue at UNC: 'We've always dealt with that'
While most of the questions focused on UNC's team, Belichick was asked about girlfriend Jordon Hudson, and how much attention their relationship has received. In typical Belichick fashion, he downplayed the issue and focused on football.
"Is there noise out there? We've always dealt with that. Really, our job is to build the football team ... help build the team and also build their individual careers. That's really where we are at."
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Belichick was also asked whether he would have returned to coaching if he knew his personal life was going to be a big story. Again, he downplayed the issue, saying a lot of the "noise" is a result of his book, which he worked on while he was away from coaching. He quipped that he hopes the book will be a "big purchase on Father's Day."
When asked whether Hudson will appear on the sideline during North Carolina games, Belichick said that would not be the case before turning the answer to football.
"She doesn't have any role in the UNC football program, but again there's been noise out there about a lot of different things. Again, our focus is day-to-day getting better, stacking good days together."
Those types of answers should sound pretty familiar to anyone who followed Belichick's NFL career. Belichick was famous for focusing solely on football and not allowing outside noise to affect his team. The Patriots and Belichick handled a handful of scandals during his tenure as head coach, including Deflategate and Spygate. The team never missed a beat despite those scandals.
With the Patriots, Belichick was rarely the reason for those outside distractions. That isn't the case this time around, where Belichick's relationship with Hudson has led to both questions and confusion.
In the end, it might not matter. Belichick has a knack for shutting down outside noise. If he can do that and turn in a successful season at UNC, it won't be long before the things change and he's gruffly telling reporters "we're on to Georgia Tech" after he gets asked a football question he doesn't want to answer.
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