North Carolina, Bill Belichick's Big NIL Deal for Transfer QB Revealed 

There's an unbelievable amount of excitement surrounding the North Carolina Tar Heels entering the 2025 season, with much of the reason being head coach Bill Belichick entering his first year with the program.

They will also be sporting a completely revamped roster after putting a tremendous amount of effort into the transfer portal, bringing in a total of 42 players for a group that ranks No. 2 in the ACC and No. 8 in the nation.

That includes some big names, such as four-star cornerback Thaddeus Dixon (Washington), four-star offensive tackle Daniel King (Troy), four-star linebacker Andrew Simpson (Boise State) and three-star quarterback Gio Lopez (South Alabama).

North Carolina Shelling Out Large NIL Package for Lopez

In today's age of college football, NIL plays a huge part in the transfer portal, and to land Lopez, who is expected to be the team's starter, the Tar Heels had to offer quite the package, according to a report from On3's Pete Nakos.

"South Alabama transfer Gio Lopez transferred to North Carolina this spring," Nakos wrote. "Sources have told On3 that his deal could touch up to $1 million this fall."

It's a big investment, but could pay off if the quarterback can build off his solid 2024 season, when he completed 206 of 312 passes for 2,559 yards, 18 touchdowns, five interceptions and a 150.8 passing efficiency rating.

Even a repeat of those numbers would be noticeably better than North Carolina's starter last year, Jacolby Criswell, who completed 186 of 320 passes for 2,459 yards, 15 touchdowns, six interceptions and a 134.4 passing efficiency rating.