North Carolina coach Bill Belichick has found his quarterback.

North Carolina returned injured quarterback Max Johnson, brought in four-star prep recruit Bryce Baker of Kernersville (N.C.) East Forsyth and landed former Purdue quarterback Ryan Browne. However, after spring practices, the Tar Heels still wanted an upgrade.

Enter South Alabama redshirt freshman quarterback Gio Lopez. The 6-foot, 220-pounder threw for 2,559 yards, 18 touchdowns and five interceptions last fall. He went 206-of-312 passing for a completion percentage of 66.0 in 11 of 13 games played. He earned honorable mention All-Sun Belt.

Lopez also played in five games in 2023, throwing for 475 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions. He threw for 192 yard and three touchdowns, and added seven carries for 88 yards and a score in a 59-10 win over Eastern Michigan in the 68 Ventures Bowl on Dec. 23, 2023.

Lopez used that game as momentum for 2024 and the lefty lit up North Texas in the season opener. He went 26-of-49 passing for a season-best 432 yards and three touchdowns, plus 13 carries for 62 yards and a score in a 52-38 loss Aug. 31. Lopez threw for over 200 yards in five contests last year.

The Madison (Ala.) James Clemens High earned offers from South Alabama, Charlotte, Jacksonville State, Northern Iowa and Tennessee-Martin. He picked the Jaguars on April 15, 2022. James Clemens went 10-1 his senior year.

Stay locked in on the Rivals Transfer Tracker to keep up with the latest transfer news, portal entries, commitments, and rankings. For a deep-dive into the transfer portal, make sure you visit the Rivals Transfer Search page.

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The spring college football transfer portal window is scheduled to open on April 16th, 2025 for 10 days. It is the second transfer window of the 2025 recruiting cycle. The winter college football transfer portal window opened on December 9th, 2024 for 20 days. There was also a five-day window for players to transfer after their team finished postseason play. Additionally, players get a 30-day window to transfer when their head coach leaves.