The North Carolina football program has new faces at the two most important positions.
Bill Belichick is entering his first season with the Tar Heels, as the legendary Patriots coach joins the college ranks for the first time. In his first major decision, Belichick named transfer quarterback Gio Lopez as the team's starter over Max Johnson, who is coming off a major injury last year.
After the announcement, Lopez expressed his gratitude towards his coach.
"(Belichick) told me I've looked good in fall camp and told me I'm gonna get the reins of the offense," Lopez said, via 247 Sports. "I'm just thankful for the opportunity. And talking to my dad, like, man, I'm going to be Coach Belichick's first starting quarterback in college. It's a great opportunity."
Lopez is a relatively unknown player who has a chance to rise in popularity this year. Here's what you need to know about the Tar Heels' new starter.
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Who is Gio Lopez?
Gio Lopez is a redshirt sophomore quarterback who transferred to North Carolina in the offseason after two years at South Alabama.
Lopez grew up in Madison, Ala., and was a three-star recruit in the class of 2023, according to 247 Sports. He also had offers from Charlotte, Fordham, Jacksonville State, and Northern Iowa, but chose to stay in-state by attending South Alabama.
After two seasons with the Jaguars, Lopez transferred to Chapel Hill and is now Bill Belichick's starting quarterback.
"Gio has made a ton of progress," Belichick said about his quarterback before the season, via on3.com. "We've evaluated things through training camp. And now as we get ready for TCU, he'll be our starting quarterback. So we'll give him the majority of reps in practice and make sure that we get him as much preparation as possible. But everybody needs to be ready to go. I feel very comfortable with him and what he’s doing, but he’ll get better as we go forward, because we just will."
MORE: How Gio Lopez beat out Max Johnson as Bill Belichick's starting quarterback
Where is Gio Lopez from?
Lopez grew up in Madison, Ala., where he attended James Clemens High School. Madison is located in northern Alabama, right outside of Huntsville and less than an hour south of the Alabama-Tennessee border.
Coming out of high school, Lopez was the 60th-ranked player from the state of Alabama and 69th-ranked quarterback, according to 247 Sports.
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Gio Lopez NIL deal
As part of his agreement to transfer to North Carolina, Lopez signed a two-year, $4 million NIL deal with the program, according to ESPN. Lopez has three years of college eligibility remaining after redshirting his freshman year with South Alabama.
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Gio Lopez stats
| Year | Team | Games | Completion percentage | Passing yards | Passing touchdowns | Interceptions | Rushing attempts | Rushing yards | Rushing touchdowns |
| 2023 | South Alabama | 5 | 67.2% | 475 | 4 | 2 | 18 | 154 | 2 |
| 2024 | South Alabama | 11 | 66.0% | 2,559 | 18 | 5 | 83 | 463 | 7 |
Lopez is a dual-threat quarterback who combined for 25 touchdowns in his lone season as a starter at South Alabama. He was the only player to record at least 18 passing touchdowns and seven rushing touchdowns in the Sun Belt Conference last season.
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