Jordon Hudson has made yet another stir in the world of athletics at the University of North Carolina.
The Tar Heels were on the verge of enrolling one of the NCAA’s best wrestlers, A.J. Ferrari, before Hudson, Bill Belichick’s 24-year-old girlfriend, allegedly stepped in.
Now, Ferrari is heading to wrestle at Nebraska instead.
“Rob Koll … the North Carolina coach who I’ve known for 35 years, and [is a] great friend of mine, called me up when they didn’t let A.J. into … North Carolina,” Nebraska wrestling coach Mark Manning told Hurrdat Sports last week. “A.J. was already there training some, and they didn’t let him in admissions-wise for various reasons, and Bill Belichick’s girlfriend had something to do with that.”
Ferrari started his collegiate career at Oklahoma State — winning a national title as a true freshman — but he was dismissed by the program amid a sexual assault investigation.
Ferrari was charged with sexual battery in August 2022. The charges were dropped in October 2023, and Ferrari transferred to Cal State Bakersfield to continue his career.
It’s unclear how exactly Hudson impacted UNC’s decision not to enroll Ferrari, but Manning was adamant that she was involved.
“[I’m] very serious,” Manning said. “[Hudson was] one of the elements along with the men’s basketball player that had [an alleged] sexual assault the week before, and just a lot of drama, I think, for that chancellor.
“Rob was super disappointed. He spent a lot of time getting A.J. there, but they weren’t going to let him into school. So he called me up and said, ‘Hey, Mark, you’ve got a great team and you should get A.J. Ferrari.’ And I would have never thought about that. … He convinced me and then off we went.”
Belichick is set to begin his first season as North Carolina football coach after winning six Super Bowls in 24 years with the Patriots.
Hudson was reportedly banned from UNC’s football facilities in the aftermath of an awkward “CBS Sunday Morning” interview with Belichick in April, when she shut down questions about how the couple met from behind the camera.
UNC denied those reports in a statement, which said: “While Jordon Hudson is not an employee at the University or Carolina Athletics, she is welcome to the Carolina Football facilities.”
The two began dating in 2023 and made their relationship public in June 24.