Patriots reportedly told team staffer to not wear UNC shirt in team’s weight room

The petty wars between the Patriots and Invoice Belichick are nonetheless ongoing.

Amid reports that UNC has banned Patriots scouts from its facilities, somebody near Belichick was instructed {that a} New England staffer was instructed to take off a Tar Heels t-shirt whereas they have been within the group’s weight room, The Athletic‘s Diana Russini reported.

An unidentified member of the Patriots denied that occurred, although, stating to Russini that Drake Maye has worn UNC gear across the group amenities with none issues. In fact, Maye attended UNC, whereas large receiver Mack Hollins can be a former Tar Heel himself.

The alleged t-shirt drama is simply the newest chapter of drama between Belichick and his former employer. It was reported earlier this week that Patriots scouts weren’t capable of attend Belichick’s UNC squad’s practices.

An unnamed member of UNC’s athletic division confirmed that was the case in an announcement to a number of media shops.

“Why would we allow them to in our dwelling after how he’s been handled since he left? We are going to assist our gamers, however being handled pretty is a two-way road,” the unidentified member of UNC’s athletic division told The Boston Herald‘s Doug Kyed and Andrew Callahan.

In fact, lots of the feuding between Belichick and the Patriots stems again to his departure from the group in January 2024 after 24 seasons with the group. On the time, the group stated it had mutually parted methods with Belichick. Nevertheless, proprietor Robert Kraft later stated that Belichick was fired.

There have been various different feedback from Kraft that have been perceived to be digs taken at Belichick. Some felt that the Apple TV+ docuseries, “The Dynasty,” took unfair pictures at Belichick, whereas Kraft stated in June that he took a danger hiring his former head coach.

Belichick fired again on the declare Kraft made. He additionally snubbed the Patriots’ proprietor in his memoir, “The Artwork of Successful: Classes from My Life in Soccer,” failing to say his former boss as soon as within the e book. He took one other perceived dig on the Kraft household in August, mentioning that there’s no “proprietor” or “proprietor’s son” as a optimistic distinction between teaching within the NFL and faculty soccer in an interview with The Boston Globe‘s Ben Volin.

The continued drama between Belichick and the Patriots comes as Mike Vrabel is about to educate his first recreation with the franchise he received three Tremendous Bowls with. Belichick doesn’t have a problem with Vrabel or govt vp of participant personnel Eliot Wolf, in keeping with Russini.

Nonetheless, Vrabel stated that it isn’t excellent that the Patriots’ scouts aren’t allowed to visit UNC.

“Oh, no, that’s a person alternative and we’ll cross that bridge once we begin gamers,” Vrabel instructed reporters on Friday. “I wish to deal with our soccer group, and that’s their prerogative to make the selections they really feel like are finest for them. After which we’ll have to seek out different methods to get the data for any gamers that we wish to have a look at at North Carolina.”

As for Kraft, he appeared to try to mend fences with Belichick earlier this week. He instructed WBZ’s Dan Roche that he’d like to have a statue of Belichick made outside of Gillette Stadium.

“When that nice 20-year period ended, it was at all times my intention to fee a statue for each Tommy and Invoice when their respective careers have been over, taking part in and training,” Kraft stated. “When Invoice’s teaching profession ends, we stay up for sitting down with him and having a statue made to be proper subsequent to Tommy.”