North Carolina OL Austin Blaske announces withdrawal from NCAA transfer portal

North Carolina starting center Austin Blaske announced he would withdraw from the transfer portal Wednesday, via his Twitter/X account.

This comes in light of the news that Bill Belichick is closing in on a deal to become UNC’s new head coach. While Blaske did not confirm that was the reason, it was interesting timing.

Prior to his time in Chapel Hill, Blaske played four seasons at Georgia where he was previously a reserve lineman for the Bulldogs. He was on the roster for the 2021 and 2022 national championship victories and played in 18 total games while with UGA.

The 6-foot-5, 310-pounder played more than 700 snaps in his lone year with the Tar Heels while starting in 11 games for Mack Brown and Co.

As a member of the Class of 2020, Blaske was a three-star recruit out of Guyton (Ga.) South Effingham, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was the No. 61 overall prospect in the state, the No. 52 offensive tackle in the class and the No. 542 overall prospect in the class.

To keep up with the latest players on the move, check out On3’s Transfer Portal wire.

Austin Blaske withdrawing from portal, Bill Belichick close to signing

Blaske coming back could be huge should Belichick sign on with the program. That seems to be the message the offensive lineman is sending.

While we can all assume, nothing’s official yet. But Belichick to Chapel Hill would be quite the landscape altering move in college football.

As the head coach of the Patriots from 2000-23, Belichick won six Super Bowls, the most ever for an NFL head coach. Belichick also has the most playoff wins (31) of any head coach in NFL history and the third-most regular season wins of all time (302).

For his excellence, he has been named the NFL Coach of the Year three times and is a member of the NFL’s 2000s and 2010s All-Decade teams. Now, Belichick will look to bring his experience to North Carolina.

Belichick has history with the Tar Heels. His father, Steve Belichick, coached the team’s backfield from 1953-55. He then took a job at Navy, where he coached for 33 years. Nonetheless, Bill Belichick hasn’t forgotten his family’s connection to Chapel Hill.