University of North Carolina Athletics

Fully embracing the evolving state of college athletics, the University of North Carolina introduced Bill Belichick as its new head football coach on Thursday. Belichick, the second-winningest head coach in NFL history with 333 wins, has signed a five-year contract approved by the university's Board of Trustees and Board of Governors.

Belichick met with the media Thursday afternoon during an introductory press conference at Kenan Stadium. ESPN and the ACC Network broadcast the events live, and members of the national media not necessarily accustomed to visiting Chapel Hill were in attendance. The glare of the national spotlight has been warm since news of Belichick's hiring broke on Wednesday.

“In the immortal words of Yogi Berra, 'The future ain't what it used to be,'” said athletics director Bubba Cunningham. “The future of college athletics is changing, and we want to be at the forefront of it. Coach Belichick has demonstrated his passion for teaching, for coaching, and for lifelong learning, and he is an absolute perfect fit for us at this time in the college's history and the history of college sports.”

Cunningham and UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts presented Belichick with a sleeveless Carolina hoodie, a nod to the coach's penchant for that style of sidewear, before Cunningham jokingly donned a sport coat with the sleeves cut off for the rest of the press conference. .

Belichick responded with a surprise of his own, unveiling his father's UNC sweatshirt from his time as a Tar Heel assistant coach in the 1950s, an item the younger Belichick had kept for decades.

“I always wanted to coach in college football,” Belichick said before joking, “but it never really worked out. I had some pretty good years in the NFL, so that was OK. This is really a dream come true. I've grown I was in college football with my dad for 50 years as a coach in Navy, so as a kid all I knew was college football. It's great to come back to Carolina and be back in an environment where I'm real grew up.

“Of course, when you're little, you don't remember everything. I was too young to remember many of the things from Carolina, but as I got older, you hear the same story over and over again. And so, a The story I always heard was, 'Billy's first words were defeated by Duke.'”

Before accepting the job, Belichick had conversations about the UNC program with Tar Heels legendary Lawrence Taylor, who played for Belichick with the New York Giants, Julius Peppers, who sat in the front row for Thursday's press conference, and Michael Jordan .

“He's the greatest of all time,” Peppers said of Belichick. “I'm excited to have him here. I know his presence and his knowledge of the game will take our program to the next level. I'm here today in support of this hire and I'm excited and looking forward to the future.” “

Belichick led the New England Patriots to six Super Bowl titles, the most by a head coach in NFL history. He also won two more as a defensive coordinator with the New York Giants while on Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells' staff. He is a three-time NFL Coach of the Year and earned a coaching spot on the NFL's All-Decade Teams for the 2000s and 2010s, and he was named to the league's 100th Anniversary All-Time Team in 2019.

“I'm here to teach, develop and build a program the way I believe in,” he said.

“I have often said that we want to be the best public university in the United States, and that means excellence in everything we do,” Roberts said. “We are going to have an excellent college football program, we want to compete with the best and we have hired the best coach.”

Although he has no college coaching experience, Belichick owns a record of 333-178 (.652) as an NFL head coach, a coaching career that dates back to 1975 and includes a record 31 playoff wins. In his 24 seasons as head coach of the Patriots, New England won 17 AFC East championships, advanced to 13 AFC Championship games and made nine Super Bowl trips.

So, compared to the typical college coaching candidate, Belichick represents a new day and a new path forward for the Tar Heels. His vision to lead a college program through a professional lens reflects the reality of NIL and revenue sharing that now dominate college athletics, and Carolina has increased its football budget and commitment to pursue Belichick and provide him with the resources to succeed in Chapel Hill.

“We will hire the best coaches we can hire,” Belichick said of his future staff. “I want to do everything I can to help this program and make it as strong as possible, so we'll hire the best we can get. There will definitely be a strong presence of NFL people on the staff, I think that is a good thing.” Security, not only in terms of staff, but also in terms of training. At the same time, I'm looking for the best fit for Carolina, and that fit, I think, is a little bit different than what an NFL team would have.”

When asked about his outside impressions of the Tar Heel program as an NFL coach, Belichick explained one of his main goals upon entering the college ranks at Carolina.

“Great place to go to school, great program, but it's been a while,” he said. “[The] 1980 [season]those were the heyday, and we got [Lawrence] Taylor immediately afterwards to the Giants. He talked so much about the Tar Heels and their great program. It hasn't really been that far since then. There is a lot of pride in this program and I want to do everything I can to help it reach the highest level.”

The appointment has already made a strong impression on Tar Heel football alumni.

“Bill has the experience to take every aspect of our football program to the next level,” said former tight end Alge Crumper (UNC, 1996-2000), who also served as team captain for the Patriots under Belichick in 2010. I doubt football is a priority in Chapel Hill.”

The first addition to Belichick's staff is former NFL executive Michael Lombardi as general manager. Belichick also indicated Freddie Kitchenswho was UNC's run game coordinator and tight ends coach under Mack Brown and has served as interim head coach since Brown's departure, would be his first coaching hire.

“Michael and I have been working together for over 30 years,” Belichick said. “He has a great knowledge of the general manager role, if you will, in these types of positions, in terms of scouting two types of players (high school players and college portal players), and also dealing with a kind of salary cap, which is now part of college football.”

To conclude the press conference, a reporter asked Belichick to explain why he chose UNC for his first foray into the college coaching ranks.

He responded: “All the things the University of North Carolina stands for… the academics, the culture, the research, everything it stands for, on the field, off the field and the destination that Carolina is for so many student-athletes .There is so much I am honored to have this opportunity and excited to be a part of.”