Belichick, a six-time Super Bowl winner, said he became further intrigued with college football this year while spending considerable time inside a major program. He worked with coach Jedd Fisch at Washington, where his 37-year-old son Steve Belichick, a former Patriots assistant coach, is also the defensive coordinator.

At his introductory press conference on Thursday, the new Tar Heels coach gave the reasons why he decided to make the jump to college football.