Bill Belichick will bring decades of NFL experience to the college level, and he doesn’t plan to stray far from what worked for so long in the pros — particularly the New England Patriots.

Bill Belichick made up for lost time. The new North Carolina head coach earned ESPN’s “ biggest riser ” honors for his first recruiting class, which includes 17 prep recruits and two transfers. The Tar Heels’ class ranked 45th and included one top-300 recruit, per ESPN, and is 10th-best among ACC schools.

Former Patriots coach said former players watched the UNC team work out and marveled at how similar it was to what New England used to do