North Carolina football and head coach Bill Belichick boosted their future offensive weaponry Wednesday. By landing a 6-foot-5 wide receiver talent once courted by Arizona State.
The Tar Heels secured a commitment from Carnell Warren, who's the state of South Carolina's No. 8 overall talent by 247Sports. The four-star becomes the 31st verbal commitment on the college football recruiting trail for Belichick and UNC.
The Bluffton High star held one of his biggest offers from the College Football Playoff team of 2024 ASU. Virginia Tech rose as a contending school to land him too, before UNC delivered a late push.
Belichick wins over an intriguing towering weapon at Chapel Hill. Warren joins quarterback commit Travis Burgess as incoming 6-foot-5 offensive talents. North Carolina also added 6-foot-4 EDGE Ashton Blatt over Penn State.
So how did the eight-time Super Bowl winning coach and the ‘Heels manage to beat others for their latest prized commitment?
North Carolina, Bill Belichick lands ‘fired up' recruit

It wasn't solely Belichick who won over Warren, according to 247Sports recruiting insider Tom Loy. The WR cited the position coach who helped win him over.
“UNC is the best for me because I will have a shot to get developed by the best, and become an early impact guy. Coach [Garrick] McGee, the receivers coach, and coach Lance Thompson played the biggest role,” Warren revealed to Loy.
Warren is “fired up” to head over to Chapel Hill, Loy adds. He then dropped a message for the UNC fan base that'll fire up Tar Heel fans.
“As a player, UNC is going to get a top talent who is ready and willing to work as soon as I am there. Off the field, they are getting a serious, but loving guy who is always here to help,” Warren said.
Director of Scouting for 247Sports Andrew Ivins called Warren a “hulking wide receiver with plus athleticism” in his prospect evaluation. Warren scored 14 touchdowns through 11 games during his junior season.
He's also got a basketball background and can bring those hops over to the gridiron. Belichick will have a 50-50 WR option in the end zone to lob to on Saturdays for 2026 and beyond. But the WR even executed lateral cuts in the open field and can beat defenses off screens and in-breaking routes.