North Carolina

North Carolina fans should embrace the Bill Belichick experience and not worry how long it lasts

Published

1 year ago

January 17, 2025

Press Room

North Carolina fans should embrace the Bill Belichick experience and not worry how long it lasts

Bill Belichick’s longevity at UNC doesn’t matter. He was hired to get the Tar Heels really good, really fast, and he might pull it off.

By any measure, Bill Belichick’s first five weeks as North Carolina’s football coach have been unusual.

The way he got the job practically out of nowhere was weird.

The justification for taking the job — largely because he believed NFL teams were no longer interested in him — was weird.

Seeing him on the road recruiting, meeting with kids in high schools and embracing social media has been kinda weird.

Watching him every week on the Pat McAfee Show, where he’s still asked about everything going on in the NFL, is also pretty weird.

And even as he hires assistant coaches and insists North Carolina is where he’s going to be next season, the speculation that he might bail if the right NFL offer comes along — spurred on by his murky contract status — is extremely weird.

You know it has been frustrating for North Carolina and Belichick’s new staff that every day during the NFL’s silly season seems to come with a new report that one team or the other might gauge his interest. Michael Lombardi, Belichick’s right-hand man and general manager, has twice this week gone on social media to shoot down the chatter, going so far as to say, “The NFL isn’t a option so please stop making it one.” And Belichick’s girlfriend posted an Instagram picture of the two of them Thursday with the caption: “Two people who are overtly committed to @uncfootball.”

For better or worse, this is going to be the Belichick experience as long as he stays at North Carolina. Every month, maybe even every week, is going to bring a new rumor. Every chatty agent or NFL general manager is going to whisper his name to reporters who know that his potential return to the league would be a massive story. And every mention of his contract, which apparently isn’t signed yet, is going to emphasize how easy it would be for him to abandon college football should he be tempted by one last shot in the NFL.

For better or worse, that’s what North Carolina signed up for. It’s what Belichick signed up for, too. The narrative that he’s only doing this until something better comes along is mostly the product of his own history and the strangeness of taking on a college program for the first time at age 72.

Belichick almost certainly understood that better than anyone going into this, and it’s not going to change as long as he’s wearing that Carolina baby blue.

At this point, we have to take Belichick’s people at their word that his entire focus right now is building a roster and getting the Tar Heels ready for the 2025 season. Despite the reports and rumors, the odds of him bailing on North Carolina before he even gets started seem remarkably low.

But because of how unconventional all of this is, you have to at least allow for the possibility that North Carolina’s administration will wake up one day and feel used by a coach who never really unpacked his suitcase. Maybe in a year, maybe in a month. Who knows.

Rather than worry about how long Belichick will stay, though, or the potentially devastating circumstances under which he might leave, North Carolina and its fan base should lean into the experimental nature of this pairing. Embrace the uncertainty of how long it might last.

Every athletics director hopes the football coach they hire stays 10 years. But Belichick’s tenure has to be judged by a different standard.

His longevity just doesn’t matter. He was hired to get North Carolina really good, really fast — and when you consider how weak the ACC has been, there’s a chance he might just pull it off.

If SMU and 41-year-old coach Rhett Lashlee can come directly from the American Athletic Conference to the ACC and make the College Football Playoff right away, a similar leap is not outside the capability of a six-time Super Bowl champion.

Maybe Belichick is exactly where he needs to be. Sure, the idea of Belichick working for Jerry Jones or coaching the Raiders is media catnip. The narrative that he longs for 15 more coaching wins to overtake Don Shula as the NFL’s all-time leader is easy and obvious.

But think of it this way. What would actually enhance Belichick’s coaching legacy more: Doing something he’s already done a whole bunch of times or coming into a situation where he has no history or experience and elevating a college program to a place it’s never been before?

The answer is easy. For all Belichick has accomplished in the game of football, even getting North Carolina to the CFP just once would add more to his legend than another Super Bowl ever could.

So why do so many people think he isn’t serious about North Carolina? Why is the NFL rumor mill working overtime to pull him back after rejecting him completely as a coaching candidate last year?

Belichick may not have envisioned himself on a college sideline a few months ago, but he’s there now. And his tenure will be judged by quality, not quantity.

North Carolina had nothing to lose here. It was an underachieving program stuck in the middle of the ACC without the kind of financial backing it needed to compete at the highest level. Even if Belichick bounces back to the NFL next year, the entire mentality of North Carolina has changed. It’s gone all-in on football in a way it never did before.

Sure, every time an NFL job opens, Tar Heel fans are going to be nervous because Belichick’s name is going to get thrown in the mix. Get used to it. It’s better than the comfortable alternative North Carolina had under Mack Brown and most of its previous coaches: Irrelevant and ignored.

As long as Belichick is there, that’s not going to be the case. And even if it doesn’t last a long time, this is still an experiment without a downside — NFL rumors and all.

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North Carolina

NC Lottery Powerball, Pick 3 Day results for July 8, 2026

Published

2 hours ago

July 9, 2026

Press Room

The NC Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big.

Here’s a look at Wednesday, July 8, 2026 results for each game:

Winning Powerball numbers from July 8 drawing

12-29-37-43-55, Powerball: 18, Power Play: 4

Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 3 numbers from July 8 drawing

Day: 2-9-0, Fireball: 5

Evening: 7-9-6, Fireball: 6

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Pick 4 numbers from July 8 drawing

Day: 8-9-6-6, Fireball: 6

Evening: 3-4-8-5, Fireball: 4

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Cash 5 numbers from July 8 drawing

07-13-19-23-33

Check Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Winning Double Play numbers from July 8 drawing

01-03-14-18-32

Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from July 8 drawing

16-18-43-48-50, Bonus: 01

Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

Are you a winner? Here’s how to claim your lottery prize

All North Carolina Lottery retailers will redeem prizes up to $599.

For prizes over $599, winners can submit winning tickets through the mail or in person at North Carolina Lottery Offices. By mail, send a prize claim form, your signed lottery ticket, copies of a government-issued photo ID and social security card to: North Carolina Education Lottery, P.O. Box 41606, Raleigh, NC 27629. Prize claims less than $600 do not require copies of photo ID or a social security card.

To submit in person, sign the back of your ticket, fill out a prize claim form and deliver the form, along with your signed lottery ticket and government-issued photo ID and social security card to any of these locations:

Asheville Regional Office & Claim Center: 16-G Regent Park Blvd., Asheville, NC 28806, 877-625-6886 press #1. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
Greensboro Regional Office & Claim Center: 20A Oak Branch Drive, Greensboro, NC 27407, 877-625-6886 press #2. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
Charlotte Regional Office & Claim Center: 5029-A West W. T. Harris Blvd., Charlotte, NC 28269-1861, 877-625-6886 press #3. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
NC Lottery Headquarters: Raleigh Claim Center & Regional Office, 2728 Capital Blvd., Suite 144, Raleigh, NC 27604, 877-625-6886 press #4. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes of any amount.
Greenville Regional Office & Claim Center: 2790 Dickinson Avenue, Suite A, Greenville, NC 27834, 877-625-6886 press #5. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.
Wilmington Regional Office & Claim Center: 123 North Cardinal Drive Extension, Suite 140, Wilmington, NC 28405, 877-625-6886 press #6. Hours: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. This office can cash prizes up to $99,999.

Check previous winning numbers and payouts at https://nclottery.com/.

When are the North Carolina Lottery drawings held?

Powerball: 10:59 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
Mega Millions: 11 p.m. Tuesday and Friday.
Lucky for Life: 10:38 p.m. daily.
Pick 3, 4: 3:00 p.m. and 11:22 p.m. daily.
Cash 5: 11:22 p.m. daily.
Millionaire for Life: 11:15 p.m. daily.

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Carolina Connect editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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North Carolina

Damaged Flock camera in North Carolina town sparks online debate over surveillance tech

Published

13 hours ago

July 8, 2026

Press Room

Damaged Flock camera in North Carolina town sparks online debate over surveillance tech

RUTHERFORDTON, N.C. (WLOS) — A damaged Flock Safety camera in Rutherfordton has reignited debate over the use of license plate reader technology, with thousands weighing in online after police shared a photo of the vandalized device.

The Rutherfordton Police Department posted an image of the damaged camera on social media, where the post quickly gained more than 20,000 comments. While some users condemned the vandalism, others praised the person responsible, with comments including “Not all heroes wear capes” and “Give them a medal.”

Local law enforcement officials said there is too much misinformation online about the cameras.

FLOCK CAMERA DAMAGED IN NORTH CAROLINA TOWN, PROMPTING POLICE STATEMENT

“We’re seeing a lot of misconceptions that these cameras collect more data than they actually do,” said Capt. Ryan Bailey with the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office. “The camera itself is only capturing the vehicle traveling down the road.”

Bailey said Flock cameras do not record video. Instead, they take still images of passing vehicles and capture license plate information. According to the sheriff’s office, those images are automatically deleted after 30 days.

The department also says safeguards are in place to prevent misuse of the system. Deputies are required to enter a case number before searching the database, allowing administrators to audit searches and ensure the technology is being used appropriately.

JULY 8, 2026 – A Flock camera in Rutherford County, North Carolina. (Photo: WLOS Staff)

Despite those protections, opinions among residents remain divided.

“I don’t like that idea at all because of the over-abundance of electronics and interference in our privacy,” Rutherfordton resident Rachel Alexander said.

Others believe the cameras are a valuable investigative tool.

“I have no really negative opinion with them. I think they’re really helpful, especially with criminals and children abductions,” said local homeowner Phyllis Irvine.

POLL: WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT FLOCK CAMERAS?

The Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office says the cameras have also proven useful in locating vulnerable people, including those with Alzheimer’s disease, dementia or other cognitive disabilities who may have gone missing while driving.

Officials say the technology has become an important resource for investigations and emergency response across the county.

Flock cameras cost about $3,500 each. Law enforcement officials say anyone caught intentionally damaging one could face charges.

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North Carolina

North Carolina Republican operative shaping the state’s early voting plans is reassigned

Published

23 hours ago

July 8, 2026

Press Room

North Carolina Republican operative shaping the state’s early voting plans is reassigned

North Carolina state Auditor Dave Boliek has reassigned a staffer working on state election preparations following reporting illustrating how the longtime Republican operative was using his position to shape county’s early voting plans.

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