North Carolina has made the hiring of Bill Belichick’s right-hand man, Michael Lombardi, official.According to an appointment letter obtained by WRAL, Lombardi signed a three-year contract worth $1.5 million annually that began Dec. 14, 2024, and runs through Jan. 15, 2028. His deal covers the first four years of Belichick’s five-year, $50 million contract, lining up with a natural checkpoint for the two longtime NFL partners to potentially exit together.Not only is the length of their contracts intriguing, but also Belichick's buyout. His buyout dropped from $10 million to just $1 million back on June 1. That gives the duo plenty of leeway to make their exit and/or return back to the NFL should things go sideways or offered a better deal.Belichick didn’t hesitate to bring in someone he trusted to help execute his first college rebuild. Lombardi, a former Browns general manager and longtime NFL front-office executive, was Belichick’s first hire in December. The two worked together in Cleveland and later in New England, where they built multiple Super Bowl rosters."Michael knows how to build a champion and brings a great deal of quality experience to the UNC program," Belichick said. "I am excited to be reunited with Michael, and we will rely on his expertise in evaluating and acquiring talent for the Tar Heel program."So far, Belichick and Lombardi have reshaped the Tar Heels’ roster through the transfer portal, landing the nation’s No. 9 portal class, according to 247Sports.“We have a lot of new players, a little over 40 from the spring and 70 guys that weren’t on last year’s team,” Belichick said at the ACC Kickoff. “The first portal, we’re just trying to find guys to fill the team. Second portal, we’re looking for good football players.”