Steve Belichick, defensive coordinator for North Carolina and son of head coach Bill Belichick, has tendered his resignation from that post as the university brings to a close its investigation into the football program.

The school issued a statement Thursday morning announcing that Steve Belichick’s resignation would take effect in late October, upon the conclusion of a medical leave that had been announced early in preseason camp.

This rendered him the second high-profile resignation amid the probe, the other being general manager Michael Lombardi earlier this month.

UNC’s statement comes on the heels of the school’s investigation, which “determined that certain actions demonstrated a disregard for Carolina’s values and standards of conduct,” according to the statement.

The school refrained from divulging the specifics of those actions identified by the review, nor had it discussed details of the investigation launched in late July.

"The investigation further ascertained that these actions were circumscribed in scope and did not amount to a systemic failure," the school said.

In an interview conducted on Thursday with Reporters, The Assembly and WRAL of Raleigh, lead investigator and attorney Nate Huff, alongside UNC general counsel Paul Newton, declined to discuss detailed findings or the conduct of specific individuals.

Huff did, however, confirm that his team, in the course of conducting roughly 60 interviews, probed allegations tied to potential drug use, inappropriate relationships and NCAA rule violations within the program.

“At no juncture did I perceive the university counsel’s office, the university leadership, or the athletics leadership as constraining or manipulating me,” Huff said.

“I regarded them as the very parties to whom I would turn in order to secure the access requisite to unearthing the truth of this entire affair.

And such was my experience.

Thus did my team and I find ourselves wholly immersed in Carolina football—its compliance, its culture—and in these allegations.

The roster of interviewees encompassed Bill Belichick, who had garnered six Super Bowl titles with the New England Patriots prior to effecting his NFL-to-college transition in December 2024.

The probe persisted throughout preseason camp, subsequently continuing as the Tar Heels bested TCU and East Tennessee State to inaugurate Belichick's second season.

This website is safeguarded by reCAPTCHA, and Google's Privacy Policy and Terms of Service are applicable.

"He rendered both his entire staff and himself at my disposal throughout football season," Huff said.

"And these coaches with whom I conversed, individuals with whom I spoke within that building, the sole thing they were asking of me was, 'When do you need me?' and 'Where do you need me to be?'

Thus was I afforded the opportunity to conduct a thorough investigation of football at the very height of the football season.

Moreover, I enjoyed access to individuals — even such figures as Coach Bill Belichick.

At Bill Belichick’s inaugural news conference following Lombardi’s resignation on Sept. 3, the questions he confronted bore, by and large, no relation whatsoever to football.

Belichick asserted his conviction that his program “totally” possessed an atmosphere of compliance with the rules, remarking: “Obviously everybody’s responsible, including me, for doing things properly. And we intend to do that.”

On that selfsame day, Dean Stoyer, UNC’s vice chancellor for communications — the individual who had issued Thursday’s statement — averred that the institution “continues to support Bill Belichick and the Carolina football program.”

The school had announced its probe in late July, in the days following its placement of Lombardi on paid administrative leave.

On the very day Lombardi resigned, WRAL of Raleigh, citing anonymous sources, reported on the nature of the questions posed to certain interviewees, some of which centered on Steve Belichick.

Furthermore, Tom Mars, an attorney representing Lombardi, disclosed to The Athletic that the institution’s investigation had expanded to encompass inquiries into potentially “inappropriate” relationships unconnected to his client.

At that juncture, Mars did not respond to a call or email from reporters concerning that remark.

On Thursday, the school declined to comment on the individuals implicated in the probe, invoking its university policy governing personnel matters.

UNC stated that “all necessary corrective actions are now underway” and that it regards the investigation as “resolved.”

Enrol for Top 25 poll notifications herein.

Access the Top 25 herein and peruse AP’s comprehensive collegiate gridiron reportage herein