This is an opinion column.

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Imagine my surprise when I learned that over the course of a few hours that (A) Bill Belichick has a 24-year-old girlfriend, and (B) Belichick and his sweetheart are headed to Chapel Hill.

Belichick is 72 years old, but the man apparently still has serious ambition.

UNC made it official on Wednesday. In a stunning move, the school is hiring Belichick to coach football. It makes sense, though. In a year of crazy headlines for the game, the grand finale of them all is here with only a few weeks left in December.

Tis’ the season.

Belichick has a reputation for being a prickly pear during news conferences, but apparently there’s a lot more to his curious personality. And let me be completely clear about what I mean by that. Belichick is 48 years older than his girlfriend.

People of Planet Earth apparently knew all about this unconventional relationship before this week. Not me. Belichick’s love life wasn’t really on my radar until I learned the legendary NFL coach was serious about coaching at UNC.

Now I’m finding it difficult to think about anything else.

Like, how’s that conversation going to go on recruiting visits?

BILL: “Hi, I’m Bill Belichick. I coach football here. We’d love for your son to come play for UNC.”

MOM: “Great. We can’t wait for a tour of Chapel Hill. It’s so beautiful this time of year. Is this the student who’ll be showing us around campus?”

BILL: “No, that’s my girlfriend.”

Everyone knows that a college coach’s wife is a major part of the team. Miss Terry, for example, was the power behind the throne for coach Nick Saban. She did it all.

Since Saban and Belichick are friends, does that mean that Miss Terry is going to be friends with Belichick’s girlfriend? Will they talk shop? Will Miss Terry be a mentor? I have so many questions.

I know football fans will be excited to see what UNC can do on the field with a coach who won six Super Bowls, but I have to admit that I’m suddenly more interested in the other stuff. Will girlfriend Jordon Hudson, a former cheerleader, move to UNC with her boyfriend? She intimated as much when she posted on social media that “we’re onto Chapel Hill.”

The coaching life is tough on relationships, as everyone knows. Will it work out? Duke’s student section can only hope. No doubt they’ll enjoy enriching this new chapter of the Tobacco Road rivalry.

Belichick has never coached in college, but he says he loves the college game after growing up around it. Belichick’s father coached at the Naval Academy when Bill was young. But enough about the boring stuff. I can’t wait for Bill’s interview on ESPN with Saban. And what I mean by that is this. Will Saban ask buddy Bill if people confuse the girlfriend as a student at UNC?

People are already saying that Belichick is going to fail as a college coach. Are these people not paying attention? Belichick can clearly relate to young people just fine. He’s 72 and his girlfriend is 24 years old!

UNC football went from boring to bonkers in a day.

But, seriously, is Belichick going to turn UNC into a national championship contender? I’m not going to bet against him.

Major college football is just another form of pro football these days. It’s all about money and putting players into the NFL. Belichick will land the recruits. Of that I have no doubt. UNC went 6-6 this season, but Belichick can turn things around almost overnight.

The transfer portal opened on Monday. We’ll know by next week or sooner if Belichick can build a college team.

People ridiculed Deion Sanders when he flipped Colorado’s roster, but Belichick will be celebrated for cleaning house and changing the culture at UNC. Remember earlier this season when Paul Finebaum called Coach Prime irrelevant? Finebaum reversed his rhetoric on Coach Prime almost immediately. The college game is a brave new world and Belichick will be praised from the beginning.

But maybe there’s something else going on here than just Belichick wanting a crack at the college game for the first time in his career.

We’ve been speculating for a couple years that UNC would be a target of the SEC if another round of conference realignment hits college football. Will Belichick save the ACC or destroy it?

Is Belichick being hired in Chapel Hill to bring UNC into the SEC?

We can only hope.

Just one piece of advice, Bill. Don’t bring the girlfriend around Joey Freshwater.

BE HEARD

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Joseph Goodman is the lead sports columnist for the Alabama Media Group, and author of the book “We Want Bama: A Season of Hope and the Making of Nick Saban’s Ultimate Team.”