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North Carolina football scored a brand new recruiting win over the Southeastern Conference Sunday. That four-star recruit immediately detailed why LSU, Tennessee and others weren't a fit compared to what Bill Belichick is building.
O'Mari Johnson of Jackson Academy in Wesson, Mississippi is UNC's newest verbal commit. The four-star then dove into why he chose the Tar Heels to Don Callahan of 247Sports. The wide receiver and cornerback began by delivering a succinct answer.
“I didn't see any better possible choice. Why not North Carolina?” Johnson began.
But then he elaborated further on why UNC is the prime destination for him.
“I like the way they plan to come in and develop players and the way Coach [Bill] Belichick brought his NFL system to college. And, I like the coaching experience,” Johnson said regarding the program and coaching staff.
He's trekking toward the defensive side of the ball in Chapel Hill. And he watched Belichick and UNC roll out a plan for how they want to use him.
“I just got to see more of what they plan to use me for [and] what they do on the inside, like when they install stuff — just really the way they plan and what they think about developing me as a player and as a man,” Johnson said.
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North Carolina defeated 1 other SEC school on trail before LSU, Tennessee
North Carolina has delivered mixed recruiting results in the Belichick era. The Tar Heels lost longtime quarterback commit Zaid Lott to a decommitment. Belichick and UNC even didn't land on the final short list of in-state twin edge rushers Aidan and Andrew Harris.
But the eight-time Super Bowl winner and UNC did beat one other SEC school on the college football recruiting trail. North Carolina flipped Texas A&M four-star defensive line commit Trashawn Ruffin on St. Patrick's Day.
Ruffin is Belichick's and North Carolina's top rated recruit. Johnson, however, is now the second-highest ranked addition per multiple recruiting outlets.
The 6-foot-1, 170-pounder reeled in nearly 20 scholarship offers. Mississippi State, Missouri, Ole Miss and Arkansas represented four other SEC offers for him. But he'll head to the Atlantic Coast Conference and spearhead the ‘Heels future with Belichick.
