Report: Bill Belichick, North Carolina targeting Kentucky assistant head coach Vince Marrow for coaching staff

Kentucky might be losing another key contributor this offseason. This time, on its coaching staff.

According to FootballScoop, North Carolina head coach Bill Belichick has offered Kentucky tight ends coach and recruiting ace Vince Marrow to join his staff in Chapel Hill.

Marrow is also the associate head coach of the Wildcats and has been Mark Stoops’ right-hand man since joining the program 12 seasons ago.

According to Marrow’s contract at Kentucky, his buyout would be $400,000 ($200k for each year left in his contract) if he chose to join Belichick’s inaugural staff. He signed an extension earlier this fall through the 2026 season.

Marrow is one of the highest-paid non-coordinator assistant coaches in the country and one of the highest-paid tight ends coaches around. He currently earns $1.3 million annually on his amended deal.

Many teams have tried to lure Marrow away from Lexington over the years. Most recently, it was rumored that in-state rival Louisville was pursuing him for a job across the state. That ended up not happening but was the latest in a long line of suitors who looked for his services on their coaching staff.

If Marrow accepts the reported offer from UNC, it will arguably be a bigger blow to Mark Stoops and his program than any of their key contributors lost in the NCAA transfer portal or to the NFL Draft this offseason.

A continued recruiting success in the SEC, Marrow appears to be exactly what Belichick is looking for in an assistant coach for in first-ever staff. Whether the two parties come together and finish off the deal remains to be seen as of this report.

However, with Kentucky coming off its worst season in a decade under head coach Mark Stoops and after missing a bowl game for the first time in eight years — losing someone with the recruiting capabilities of Marrow would only intensify the dark shadow that’s already cast over the football program in Lexington.