Report: UNC working on hiring Petrino as Belichick's OC
North Carolina is working toward hiring Bobby Petrino as Bill Belichick's offensive coordinator, sources told ESPN's Pete Thamel.
Petrino will replace Freddie Kitchens, who was dismissed earlier in December.
The Tar Heels' offense struggled massively in Belichick's debut collegiate season, averaging 19.3 points and 288.8 yards per game.
Petrino finished the 2025 campaign as Arkansas' interim coach after the program fired Sam Pittman. The Razorbacks went 0-7 down the stretch under Petrino.
The 64-year-old owns a 119-63 FBS record as a head coach with stops at Louisville, Arkansas, and Western Kentucky. During his first stint at Louisville from 2003-06, the offense ranked inside the top five in the nation in scoring in three different seasons.
Petrino has been on the Razorbacks' staff as the offensive coordinator and interim coach for the past two seasons. His units averaged 30.9 points per game in 2024 and 32.9 in 2025.
North Carolina went 4-8 under Belichick.