After landing a couple of early commitments from the spring college football transfer portal, North Carolina is back at it again. This time, Bill Belichick recruited former Maryland defensive lineman Lavon Johnson to Chapel Hill.

Johnson, a former three-star recruit, committed to North Carolina from the transfer portal, per On3 Sports' Pete Nakos. He chose Belichick and the Tar Heels one day after visiting Texas, according to Longhorns football reporter Anwar Richardson.

Johnson will have up to three years of eligibility after playing two seasons at Maryland. In his career with the Terrapins, Johnson tallied 19 tackles and one sack in nine total games.

Although his college football career has yet to fully pan out, Johnson will add depth to North Carolina's defensive line. The Tar Heels just lost 2024 sacks leader Beau Atkinson, who entered the spring transfer portal on Thursday. Belichick will also have to replace former starters Kaimon Rucker, Kevin Hester Jr., Desmond Evans and Jahvaree Ritzie, who will all graduate after exhausting their eligibility.

North Carolina's college football transfer portal activity

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Landing Johnson is the latest move in a series of activity from North Carolina in the college football transfer portal. In the spring window alone, the Tar Heels added former South Alabama quarterback Gio Lopez and indecisive freshman Adrian Wilson. However, they also lost quarterback Ryan Browne and Atkinson to the same portal.

Lopez, Wilson and Johnson join North Carolina's incoming transfer class, which was already impressive before their inclusions. Belichick already earned the commitments of Mikai Gbayor, Jason Robinson Jr., Thaddeus Dixon and others in the winter edition of the transfer portal.

With the flurry of roster moves, Belichick's inaugural North Carolina team is still evidently a work in progress. After going just 6-7 in 2024, the upcoming squad's expectations are already high despite the constant personnel changes.