Patriots Country

Former Patriots Star Lands UNC Coaching Job With Bill Belichick

A former New England Patriots star has landed a coaching job at North Carolina alongside of Bill Belichick.

Matthew Schmidt

Feb 1, 2015; Glendale, AZ, USA; New England Patriots outside linebacker Jamie Collins (91) reacts after a play during the first quarter against the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images
Feb 1, 2015; Glendale, AZ, USA; New England Patriots outside linebacker Jamie Collins (91) reacts after a play during the first quarter against the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX at University of Phoenix Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images / Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images
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Former New England Patriots linebacker Jamie Collins has landed a coaching job with the University of North Carolina and will be serving as a defensive assistant for Bill Belichick.

Collins spoke about making the jump to the collegiate ranks during an exclusive interview with TMZ Sports on Friday.

"I'm trying to step into another lane that I think I'll be great at, and that's coaching," Collins said. "Blessed for the opportunity, you know, my guy (Belichick). I don't know, man. I love that dude and he love me, obviously. You know, he can't get rid of me, so we'll see how that will work out."

Collins played a decade on the NFL and had three separate stints with the Patriots. He began his career in New England in 2013, playing three-and-a-half years with the Pats and helping them win a Super Bowl championship during his second season.

The Southern Mississippi product made a Pro Bowl appearance in his third NFL campaign while also earning a Second-Team All-Pro selection after racking up 89 tackles, 5.5 sacks and five forced fumbles.

Collins also played for the Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions throughout his professional tenure and finished his career with 708 tackles and 26.5 sacks.

Belichick shocked the world when he accepted the head-coaching job at North Carolina back in December, marking the NFL legend's first foray onto the NCAA level.

The 72-year-old is most famous for his 24-year run as Patriots head coach, in which he led New England to six Super Bowl titles, nine Super Bowl appearances and 17 AFC East division titles.

It will certainly be interesting to see how Belichick handles the dynamics of the college game, and Collins himself called it "different."

We'll see how things go in Chapel Hill next season.

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Matthew Schmidt
MATTHEW SCHMIDT

Matthew Schmidt is a sportswriter who covers NFL, MLB, NBA and college football and basketball. He has been writing professionally since 2011 and has also worked for Bleacher Report, FanRag Sports, ClutchPoints, NFLAnalysis.net and NBAAnalysis.net. He was born and raised in New Jersey and has a rather eclectic group of favorite teams: the Boston Celtics, New York Giants and Miami Marlins.

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