Dave Portnoy, the outspoken founder of Barstool Sports, has revealed the succinct and pointed response he received from Jordon Hudson after he publicly declared that her boyfriend, NFL legend Bill Belichick, should retire from coaching.
The Social Media Blast
The controversy ignited after Belichick's University of North Carolina (UNC) Tar Heels suffered a 28-12 loss on the road at Wake Forest last Saturday, dropping their season record to a disappointing 4-6. Taking to social media platform X, Portnoy did not hold back his frustration with the team's performance.
He posted, 'Watching UNC is so frustrating. It's like an alien stole Belichick's brain. Just horribly coached. Horrible decisions.' In a subsequent post, he escalated his criticism, adding, 'Belichick needs to retire. This is disgusting. I'm not even sure he knows the score or where he is.'
A Thumbs Down in the DMs
Jordon Hudson, Belichick's 24-year-old girlfriend, is known for confronting the coach's detractors, and she swiftly responded to Portnoy's online tirade. During an appearance on the Barstool Pick Em podcast this past Thursday, Portnoy disclosed the nature of their interaction.
'I got a thumbs down from her,' Portnoy stated. 'I got a DM, just a thumbs down.' When co-host Dan Katz probed further, asking what Portnoy had sent in return, the Barstool boss clarified, 'I didn’t send her nothing… She DM’d me a thumbs down.'
Mounting Pressure and Off-Field Troubles
Portnoy's comments arrive as Belichick faces increasing scrutiny, a situation compounded by a recent bombshell report from WRAL in Raleigh. The investigation revealed that approximately a fifth of UNC's 101-player roster had been cited for speeding or reckless driving, with a significant number of the offenders being players recruited by Belichick himself.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, the 73-year-old coach addressed the issue directly. Belichick insisted he had spoken to the team about their conduct away from the game, stating, 'Our conduct outside of the building, outside of the program, is important to us, and we stress that.'
He elaborated, 'We’ve addressed multiple things, not just that. There are other things that go on, besides driving, that we’ve talked about absolutely. Multiple other people have talked about it as well to the team that aren’t members of the team.'
However, some supporters remain sceptical. One fan voiced a common concern online, writing, 'No culture or controls over there. He’s too busy watching Jordan's dance competition,' alluding to images of a seemingly unhappy Belichick attending Hudson's cheerleading events.
The timing of the report is far from ideal for Belichick, whose struggling team now faces a crucial showdown with rivals Duke this Saturday afternoon, with pressure mounting from all sides.
