Just before the start of the 2026 season, UNC General Manager Michael Lombardi has been placed on paid administrative leave. The announcement came on Monday, July 27, and was to take effect immediately. While few details of the situation are available to the public, ESPN football analyst and former NFL quarterback Dan Orlovsky has insisted that the UNC head coach needs an improved performance this year. 

“I agree it’s obviously been a disaster,” Orlovsky said on Get Up ESPN. “Whether this situation happens or not, Coach Belichick’s got to win this year. And they’ve got to win early for things to start to feel like we kind of expected them to leave.”

Per ESPN, the decision on Lombardi came as a result of a human resources complaint filed by a former front office employee of the North Carolina Tar Heels. Investigations are still ongoing as Lombardi embarks on his paid administrative leave.

According to the North Carolina handbook, administrative leave is usually within 30 days. The handbook also notes that employees “may be placed on administrative leave by their supervisor for the duration of an investigation into unsatisfactory job performance or unacceptable personal conduct.”  The program’s comment on the situation was more of an order to the staff and players to say nothing about the situation.

“As is standard procedure with personnel matters, leadership, staff, and student-athletes are prohibited from addressing this topic further, and has no reflection on the merits,” the school said in a statement.

Lombardi was Belichick’s hire immediately after he became the head coach of the Tar Heels. The pair had worked together at the Cleveland Browns, where Belichick hired him on the personnel staff in 1991. They then reunited with the New England Patriots, where they worked together from 2014 to 2016. Lombardi’s contract with UNC in December 2024 was worth $1.5 million annually, making him the most expensive general manager in college football.

Unfortunately, their stint with the Tar Heels has not been good so far. Despite calling North Carolina the 33rd NFL team, the program fell to a 4-8 regular season record. Furthermore, the program did not have a single player selected in the 2026 NFL Draft.

These results and actions betrayed every expectation college football fans had regarding Belichick’s hire at UNC. It came with massive visibility for the program that brought about an increase in viewership and a rise in expectations. However, after underwhelming performances in their next few games, disappointed fans used those results to justify their belief that college football presented a more difficult challenge than the NFL, since Belichick, the NFL’s most successful coach, could not cope with its demands.

However, Belichick is preparing for an improved 2026 season. The program has also shown its no-nonsense stance with its decision on Lombardi as they get ready for their August 29 game against the TCU Horned Frogs in Dublin, Ireland.