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The most shocking news in football this week came when longtime NFL head coach and current North Carolina Tar Heels coach Bill Belichick was not named a first-ballot Hall of Famer.
Belichick reportedly received 39 of 50 votes, falling just short of the 40 needed for induction in his first year of eligibility. While the voters remain anonymous, 11 deciding votes against Belichick — who has won six Super Bowls as a head coach, two more as a defensive coordinator, and holds the record for most playoff wins in NFL history — came as a surprise to nearly everyone following the vote.
Although Belichick will not be in Canton for the Class of 2026 induction ceremony on Aug. 8, his girlfriend, Jordon Hudson, reportedly has planned a “huge bash” in his honor on the same day, according to PEOPLE.
"Jordon is planning to throw Bill a huge bash on the same day as the Pro Football Hall of Fame ceremony," the insider via PEOPLE says.
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Hudson is expected to invite many of Belichick’s major supporters from recent days, including his former quarterback, Tom Brady and coaching colleagues Jimmy Johnson and Bill Parcells, along with other outspoken figures who have publicly defended him since the Hall of Fame snub.
Many of those invited had originally planned to attend the Hall of Fame ceremony to honor Belichick’s induction, as it was widely considered a no-brainer that he would make it.
Players and competitors such as Patrick Mahomes, LeBron James, J.J. Watt, and Deion Sanders, among others, came to Belichick’s defense after the announcement. While he will likely be inducted during his next eligibility in 2027, making it on the first ballot is a rare honor, and Belichick will not be among those few who achieve it.
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