North Carolina hires Bill Belichick; NBA Cup semifinals set; Garrett Crochet switches Sox

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🏈 Good morning to all, but especially to ...

BILL BELICHICK AND THE NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS

The most decorated coach in NFL history is heading to college. North Carolina hired Bill Belichick as head coach, a stunning development across the sport at both levels.

Belichick, 72, is a six-time Super Bowl champion, and his 333 wins (including playoffs) are 14 behind Don Shula for the most in NFL history. Belichick was AP Coach of the Year in 2003, 2007 and 2010.
Belichick and the Patriots mutually agreed to part ways Jan. 11, 2024 -- exactly 11 months before he took the North Carolina job. Belichick interviewed with the Falcons on Jan. 15, but Raheem Morris got the job instead.
This season, Belichick has worked as an analyst on a bevy of ESPN shows, including the "Manningcast" version of "Monday Night Football."
Belichick replaces Mack Brown, who was fired in late November. Brown had been the only FBS coach older than 70; now that distinction belongs to Belichick.
Belichick's deal is for five years and a reported $10 million annually, doubling Brown's salary.

Wow. I mean WOW. It seemed like a publicity stunt just days ago when Belichick even took an interview, so much so that Will Brinson said he'd literally eat his words if the Tar Heels hired Belichick. (Will, I hope you're hungry!) But Belichick indicated he was serious at every step, Jonathan Jones reported, and the legendary coach not only confirmed talks were happening in his last public comments but said he'd create "a pipeline to the NFL."

College football is a whole lot different than the NFL, and ever-adapting. North Carolina is reportedly adapting with it, the Tar Heels quintupling their NIL budget from $4 million to $20 million, per Dennis Dodd, and expanding their staff, per Jonathan, who has the inside story on how this came to fruition, a fascinating must-read for UNC fans.

Of course, there are plenty of questions, which is why our opinions on the hire vary so differently. Our college football experts gave their initial thoughts on where Belichick ranks among all FBS coaches, and the answers ranged from "top 10" to "bottom half."

Long story short, North Carolina made a massive hire, but results have to follow, Chip Patterson writes.

Patterson: "North Carolina has not won an ACC championship in football since 1980 and has lost 11 of its last 14 bowl games. When outsiders look at North Carolina football and talk about the 'sleeping giant,' it's because they see a strong flagship university failing to replicate the football success of other schools with a similar profile. ... North Carolina has committed to investing in football like a championship contender, and in the expanded playoff, it's become easier to quickly get a program into contender status. That's why anything short of leading North Carolina to the top of the ACC and into the mix of contenders for the College Football Playoff will be a disappointment."

Finally, here are reactions from around the NFL and from our reporters' sources.

👍 Honorable mentions

West Virginia is expected to hire Rich Rodriguez, bringing him back to the program he coached (with much success) from 2001-07.
We have SEC and Big Ten 2025 football schedules.
Garrett Nussmeier is returning to LSU.
How did BYU land A.J. Dybantsa? Matt Norlander has that answer and more in his Court Report. The Dybantsa vs. Cooper Flagg debate is a good one.
This team actually makes sense in a Jimmy Butler trade, Sam Quinn says. Butler, meanwhile, offered a non-answer on his future with the Heat, and another potential destination emerged.
The NFL will have its first Berlin game in 2025.
Iowa State extended Matt Campbell through 2032.
Here's how Preston Stone balances preparing for the College Football Playoff, taking finals and navigating the transfer portal.
The HEARTS Act, supported by Damar Hamlin, unanimously passed in the U.S. Senate.
Isaac Trotter's 10 Trends will make you a smarter college basketball fan.
The WNBA and WNBPA had "preliminary conversations" about a new CBA.

🏈 And not such a good morning for ...

BILL BELICHICK AND THE NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS

Remember when I said our experts ranged from "top 10" to "bottom half" regarding Belichick's rank among FBS coaches? Here's why Richard Johnson said the latter:

Johnson: "Can you create the right infrastructure to win in this version of the sport? It's not like Belichick parted ways with New England when the Pats were still in Super Bowl contention. At the end, his GM chops were failing, so either he's going to turn that responsibility over to someone else or continue to do it in a version of the sport he's never worked in. ... North Carolina has a deeply fractured administrative dynamic and it's not conducive to success in football. The dysfunction throughout this process shows why the program has been unserious for as long as it has. Into that environment, you're turning over the keys to a guy who has not coached in college ever."

That's why it's a good morning and not such a good morning for Belichick and his new team. The coming days, weeks, months and (maybe) years will be fascinating, however they go.

👎 Not so honorable mentions

LeBron James is away from the Lakers for personal reasons.
Browns owner Jimmy Haslam was non-committal on Deshaun Watson's future.
Scottie Barnes (ankle sprain) will miss several weeks.
Saudi Arabia was awarded the 2034 World Cup, a controversial selection given a litany of human rights issues. Spain, Portugal and Morocco landed the 2030 competition.
Matt Snyder says Dustin Pedroia and Ian Kinsler have very similar Hall of Fame cases ... and both probably come up a bit short.
The Rangers keep falling in Austin Nivison's NHL Power Rankings.
Kenzie Hare (hip) is out for the season.
An Ohio state representative introduced a bill that would make flag-planting at the center of Ohio Stadium's field a felony. (You've gotta be kidding me.)

🏀 NBA Cup: Rockets, Hawks into NBA Cup semifinals

The NBA Cup has officially reached new levels of madness, and the semifinals are set. The Rockets and Hawks are heading to Las Vegas to take on the Thunder and Bucks, respectively.

We'll start in Houston, where the Rockets' 91-90 win over the Warriors was equal parts astonishing, controversial and gritty.

The Warriors led 90-84 with under 90 seconds left, and it looked like the veteran Warriors had put away the upstart Rockets. The Fred VanVleet nailed a 3-pointer and Alperen Sungun made a layup to make it 90-89, Golden State.
Madness ensued. Stephen Curry missed a stepback 3 attempted unnecessarily early, and in a wild scramble for the loose ball, Jonathan Kuminga fouled Jalen Green as both went to the floor, a foul you almost never see. Steve Kerr absolutely ripped the refs postgame.
Green made two free throws, and Jabari Smith Jr. -- who was excellent all night -- blocked Brandin Podziemski at the buzzer.

Sengun had 26 points and 11 rebounds, and Smith added 15 for Houston, which had lost 15 straight to Golden State going back to February 2020.

The Hawks rallied past the Knicks in New York, 108-100, with DeAndre Hunter (24 points), Trae Young (22 points, 11 assists) Jalen Johnson (21 points, 15 rebounds) leading the way. With both teams struggling from the field, Atlanta's 22 offensive rebounds loomed large. On the other end, Karl-Anthony Towns had 19 points and 19 rebounds but also fouled out, a long-standing issue in big games.

⚾ Red Sox acquire Garrett Crochet from White Sox

Sometimes, all you need is a change of Sox.

Garrett Crochet is heading from the White Sox to the Red Sox in a blockbuster deal that gives Boston a certified ace. Here are the details:

Red Sox receive: LHP Garrett Crochet
White Sox receive: C Kyle Teel, OF Braden Montgomery, INF Chase Meidroth, RHP Wikelman Gonzalez

Crochet, 25, pitched to the tune of a 3.58 ERA/115 ERA+ with a sterling 2.69 FIP in 2024. He struck out 209 batters, and his 35.1% strikeout rate was best among regular starters. His overpowering fastball averaged 97.2 mph, and he threw it more than half the time. Though there are durability and workload questions, he had been viewed as the top trade candidate this offseason considering the long-term rebuild on the South Side of Chicago.

The Red Sox needed to be aggressive, and after whiffing on Juan Soto and Max Fried, they got a guy who generates a ton of whiffs and is under team control through 2026. As such, Boston earns an "A" in R.J. Anderson's trade grades.

Anderson: "Crochet has a nasty arsenal that he continues to refine. One of the revelations for him was the addition of a cutter that served as a bridge between his high-octane fastball and trademark sweeper. Crochet then fashioned a sinker late in the year to good returns, suggesting he could have four above-average (or better) offerings to employ heading forward. Combine that repertoire with above-average control (he walked two batters per nine) and an apparent capacity and yearning for improvement, and you have the makings of a front-of-the-rotation force -- for now and 2026."

There's a long way to go for the White Sox, but this return is solid in R.J.'s estimation. Teel "profiles as a most-days catcher," Montgomery could be an eventual middle-of-the-order bat, and Meidroth provides "high-quality on-base skills."

Developing the youngsters -- which the White Sox have struggled with -- will be key.

Here's more from Winter Meetings:

Brian Cashman has "no regrets" about his stance in a key piece of the Juan Soto negotiations.
Where could Corbin Burnes land?
Mike Axisa ranked all 30 potential Kyle Tucker landing spots.
Here are the 15 picks from the major-league portion of the Rule 5 Draft.

⚽ UEFA Champions League Matchday 6 recap: Americans do something unprecedented

Soccer has been around a long, long time. Wednesday, Weston McKennie and Tim Weah did something never seen before. The two USMNT standouts linked up for a massive goal in Juventus' 2-0 win over Manchester City, the first time in UEFA Champions League history one American man assisted another. McKennie, who thumped Weah's cross home in the 75th minute, says he likes being doubted, and this huge goal on a huge stage supports that.

That was one of many storylines across the second day of Matchday 6. Among others ...

City has just one win in its last 10 games and dropped to 22nd in the standings. The top eight teams from the league phase go straight to the round of 16, while teams 9-24 must advance there via playoff.
Arsenal beat Monaco, 3-0, but Gabriel Jesus' struggles continued.
Here are Jonathan Johnson's Team of the Week, Chuck Booth's Power Rankings, Pardeep Cattry's Panic Meter and updates on who's clinched what.

📺 What we're watching Thursday

🏀 No. 2 UConn at No. 8 Notre Dame (W), 7 p.m. on ESPN
🏀 Pistons at Celtics, 7:30 p.m. on NBA TV
🏀 No. 3 Iowa State at Iowa (M), 7:30 p.m. on FS1
🏈 Rams at 49ers, 8:15 p.m. on Prime Video