UNC introduces 8-time Super Bowl champion Bill Belichick as head football coach | LIVE
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WTVD) -- A new era of North Carolina football is officially underway. UNC-Chapel Hill officially introduced new head coach Bill Belichick on Thursday.
The press conference featured Belichick, UNC Chancellor Lee H. Roberts, Athletics Director Bubba Cunningham and a room filled with players and coaches.
"It's always a great day to be a tar heel, but today is an especially great day," Roberts said to kick off the press conference.
Thursday morning, the UNC Board of Trustees met and formally approved Belichick's contract. That meeting marked the end of a three-week process that started when former head coach Mack Brown was let go before losing his fourth straight game against rival NC State.
Belichick was initially seen by many as either an unattainable target or a publicity stunt. But as the days passed, conversations between him and the university escalated into serious negotiations.
Belichick is an eight-time Super Bowl champion -- winning six as the head coach of the New England Patriots. He has 302 wins in the National Football League, placing him just 16 shy of the record held by the late Don Shula.
"I am excited for the opportunity at UNC-Chapel Hill. I grew up around college football with my Dad and treasured those times. I have always wanted to coach in college and now I look forward to building the football program in Chapel Hill," Belichick said.
Interestingly, he does have a small tie to UNC. His father was an assistant coach for the Tar Heels from 1953-55. However, Belichick himself has no college coaching experience.
UNC leaders hope hiring Belichick is the next step to making the traditional basketball school a football powerhouse as well.
"Bill has the experience to elevate every aspect of our football program. This bold hire leaves no doubt that football is a priority in Chapel Hill," former UNC tight end Alge Crumpler said. Crumpler was a team captain in 2010 on Belichick's Patriots team.
Belichick has said that any college job he ran would be a pipeline to the NFL and be organized like an NFL operation.
"It would be a professional program: training, nutrition, scheme, coaching, techniques that would transfer to the NFL," Belichick said.
His first known hire is for a General Manager of the football program. He has tabbed Michael Lombardi for that job. Lombardi spent decades as an NFL GM, with stints at the Patriots, 49ers, Raiders and Browns.
Hiring Belichick is unquestionably a big swing from UNC. His hire reportedly comes with a significantly increased budget for the football program, which will be utilized to modernize the organization to better compete in the era of Name, Image and Likeness.
"We know that college athletics is changing, and those changes require new and innovative thinking. Bill Belichick is a football legend, and hiring him to lead our program represents a new approach that will ensure Carolina football can evolve, compete and win -- today and in the future," UNC Chancellor Lee H. Roberts said.
"That's what we need, somebody that can come in and take us from good to great. How do we compete for championships - ACC and national championships?" UNC Athletic Director Bubba Cunningham said on a UNC-produced podcast at the beginning of the coaching search.
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