UNC Tar Heels celebrate as Bill Belichick and former player Julius Peppers get nod for major honor together

North Carolina coach Bill Belichick and former linebacker Julius Peppers were named to ESPN’s NFL All Quarter Century Team, a special list recognizing the best in the league from the past 25 years.

Belichick, who is starting his first season with the Tar Heels, was picked to lead the program due to his unprecedented success in the NFL. He’s best known for his time with the New England Patriots, where he coached for nearly 30 years and won six Super Bowls.

Joining Belichick is Julius Peppers, a strong part of the defensive line throughout his NFL career, earning six All-Pro selections while recording 159.5 sacks and 51 forced fumbles.

UNC Football acknowledged the dual honors on social media on Friday.

"Congratulations to @Belichick_B on being selected as Head Coach of the @espn NFL All Quarter Century Team!" the team wrote on X.

They also gave a shout-out to their former athlete.

“Congratulations to @juliuspeppers_ for being named to the @espn NFL All Quarter Century Team!”

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Why was Bill Belichick picked for the honor?

ESPN’s Aaron Schatz noted the debate was between Bill Belichick and Kansas City Chiefs coach Andy Reid for the honor, but cited Belichick’s postseason play as the deciding factor.

“Reid has the advantage of sustained success with multiple quarterbacks and multiple franchises, but we went with Belichick because of his superior success in the postseason: nine Super Bowl appearances and six Super Bowl championships," Schatz wrote.

Belichick’s adaptability also played a big role in the selection. Early in his Patriots tenure, his defenses led the way, most notably in the game plan that shut down the high-powered 2001 Rams offense in the Super Bowl.

Later, he saw incredible offenses with players like Tom Brady and Randy Moss, before reverting to defense-first strategies that capped his time in New England, including a 13-3 Super Bowl win.

Six of Bill Belichick’s former Patriots players were also selected to the All Quarter Century Team: Brady, Moss, Rob Gronkowski, Vince Wilfork, Darrell Revis and Matthew Slater. ESPN also named Kyle Shanahan as offensive coordinator and Wade Phillips as defensive coordinator under Belichick for the honorary team.

Edited by Dipayan Moitra