The New England Patriots have hired former Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema, according to ESPN’s Mike Reiss.

Reiss reported that Bielema’s title is “consultant to the head coach.” He had been working with New England in some capacity since spring practice, and now, it appears he has an official role. Per Reiss, Bielema’s title is one that Bill Belichick has never had on his staff. At least Belichick gave him a title as opposed to Nick Saban labeling Butch Jones as an “intern.”

Arkansas fired Bielema after five seasons. He finished 29-34 overall and 11-29 in the SEC.

Bielema recently spoke to CBS Sports about his role in the NFL, and he’s loving it.

“The thing I love about football in the NFL is you go to work at 6 a.m. and you leave at 9 [p.m.] and it’s nothing but football,” Bielema told CBS Sports. “It’s just purely football.

“It’s a whole different way to coach [in the NFL],” Bielema said. “I understand once they go to that level, coaches don’t ever go back. One of the most ‘a-ha’ moments was one of the first drills I did during OTAs. I had 11 [defensive] guys go through the drills. ‘Holy cow, these guys are good.’ These are the elite of your elite.”

Joining Belichick’s staff is like joining Saban’s staff. There’s certainly a resume boost, and it’s incredible experience for Bielema.

It’ll be interesting to see where Bielema’s career goes from here. Will he stay in the NFL long term, or will he return to college?