UNC football general manager has resigned from his position effective immediately, the school said Thursday. The move comes after the school placed Lombardi on paid administrative leave July 27 and began an investigation into his conduct. In the wake of Lombardi’s resignation, a school spokesman said UNC “will continue its ongoing investigation and will consider all appropriate corrective actions responsive to the information it learns.”
Soon after the leave was announced, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported the move was related to a human resources complaint filed by a former UNC employee. The school itself sent out another statement for clarification July 30, saying it was “in the process of investigating” allegations against Lombardi and that it would not comment on the nature of those allegations.
The same day as that second statement, UNC Chancellor Lee Roberts addressed the media at a meeting of the university’s Board of Trustees.
“If something has gone wrong, we want to know about it,” Roberts said. “If something needs to be fixed, we will be sure to fix it. There’s a standard of excellence here that all of us are entrusted with adhering to.”
Roberts expressed frustration at having to discuss the investigation, calling it “distressing to me and everyone else in the administration.”
Lombardi arrived at UNC in December 2024, at the same time as head coach Bill Belichick. Lombardi and Belichick have worked together numerous times in the past, including for three seasons when Belichick was head coach of the New England Patriots. The UNC job was the first for Lombardi at a college program since he served as recruiting coordinator with UNLV from 1981-84.
UNC did not appoint an interim general manager in Lombardi’s absence.
“We’re working through some things,” Belichick said when asked how he was delegating the GM’s responsibilities. “We’re taking it day to day and working through the things that are on the table now… we’ve made a few adjustments, but we’re working through the process.”
Featured image via Associated Press/Chris Seward
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