Pablo Torre believes there’s a world in which Bill Belichick never coaches on the sideline for North Carolina’s football team.
Speaking Monday on “The Domonique Foxworth Show,” Torre — who dropped an explosive episode of his “Pablo Torre Finds Out” program Friday that centered on Belichick’s highly publicized romance with 24-year-old Jordon Hudson — suggested there’s “an absolutely real chance that he doesn’t” reach the season opener on Sept. 1, calling attention to the media firestorm that has engulfed the couple in recent weeks.
“The reason I say that is because even before the Jordon Hudson thing became as public, even before it went from messy backstage to now, obviously messy everywhere, the date that matters the most is June 1,” the former ESPN personality said, via Awful Announcing, referencing the date when Belichick’s buyout clause at UNC plummets from $10 million to $1 million.
“… The question everybody is asking is, are things so dysfunctional behind the scenes when it comes to the power struggle, when it comes to what they are telling Bill to do: don’t have Jordon around anymore. Stop behaving in the way that you have. Basically telling him, for the first time really, that you’re an employee and not the boss of this building in the way that he may have been assuming he would be, then there is the ability for him to get out of it.
“And that’s before you even consider the fact that stuff is so crazy when it comes to how his family feels, how the people around the school feel, that there’s this larger, ‘Hey, so coach met this woman when she was 19 years old on an airplane and now she’s kind of running his public image as his girlfriend. Is this something that’s sustainable? Is that fireable? What does he have to do to get fired? These are all active questions.”
Belichick, 73, signed his five-year, $50 million pact with UNC in January — weeks after being announced as the head coach.
At the time, rumors swirled that the signing delay was due to the possibility of Belichick mulling a U-turn to the NFL, where he coached the Patriots for 24 seasons until January 2024.
Belichick and Hudson, a former college cheerleader, remained steadfast in their commitment to the Tar Heels, saying as much in a loved-up Instagram post from January of this year.
Fast forward to April, when Belichick’s appearance on “CBS Sunday Morning” stoked controversy after Hudson punted a question by Tony Dokoupil about how the couple met.
“We’re not talking about this,” said Hudson, who met Belichick on a flight in 2021 before going public with the relationship three years later.
In the wake of the disastrous Q&A, the spotlight on Hudson’s romance with Belichick has intensified, specifically her roles in the coach’s personal and professional endeavors.
Torre, who said he spoke with 11 sources who have dealt with Hudson, claimed on his show Friday that UNC barred the beauty queen from its facilities — an allegation the institution denied.
“While Jordon Hudson is not an employee at the University or Carolina Athletics, she is welcome to the Carolina Football facilities. Jordon will continue to manage all activities related to Coach Belichick’s personal brand outside of his responsibilities for Carolina Football and the University,” Carolina Athletics told The Post in a statement.
Torre has stood by his reporting, with a Belichick family insider telling him, “There is deep worry for how detrimental Jordon can be for not just North Carolina but Bill’s legacy, reputation — everything he has built and worked for over decades.”
Belichick was by Hudson’s side this weekend as he supported her in the Miss Maine USA pageant. She placed third.
The Tar Heels host TCU in their home opener this year.