Bill Belichick's UNC transition sees massive $20 million investment to upgrade Tar Heels football

The North Carolina Tar Heels confirmed legendary coach Bill Belichick as their replacement for Mack Brown on Wednesday after days of negotiations between the two parties. The appointment is one of the biggest power moves in college football in the past few years with Belichick a household name after his dynasty with the New England Patriots.

On Thursday, USA TODAY's Matt Hayes reported that Belichick's appointment as UNC coach was met with increased NIL funding to bolster the legendary coach's war chest.

"Source tells me UNC will increase NIL package for football from $4 million to $20 million in effort to land Belichick," Hayes tweeted.

Bill Belichick promises NFL pipeline at UNC

Over the years, Bill Belichick has built up several connections in the NFL and during Monday's "Pat McAfee Show," he made a subtle promise to potential recruits.

"Let me put this in capital letters, if, 'I.F.' I was in a college program, that college program would be a pipeline to the NFL for players that had ability to play in the NFL," Belichick said. "It would be a professional program: training, nutrition, scheme, coaching, techniques, that would transfer to the NFL. It will be an NFL program at a college level.

"I feel very confident that I have the contacts in the NFL to pave the way for those players that would have the opportunity to compete in the National Football League."

One criticism that has been leveled at Bill Belichick is his relative lack of experience at the college level. This is despite his success at the NFL level where he won six Super Bowl titles with the New England Patriots in perhaps the greatest dynasty the professional game has ever seen.

He acknowledged those concerns during his interview on the "Pat McAfee Show" and addressed the methods he has utilized to correct any possible shortcomings on his end.

"I did grow up around [college football]," Bill Belichick said. "My dad was a college coach who was at North Carolina for three years, Vanderbilt for a year and then Navy for 50. It seems college football is more like pro football. I've talked to a lot of college coaches about things like salary cap and putting value on players and negotiating. ... I think there are similarities. I haven't experienced it firsthand."

When Mack Brown was fired by North Carolina, he was 73 years old and by the time next season rolls around, Bill Belichick will also be 73. It will be interesting to see if he can actualize the Tar Heels' lofty expectations during his reign in Chapel Hill.