Mack Brown’s new coaching staff at North Carolina will have a familiar feel, as he is hiring at least one former assistant and possibly others.
Tim Brewster, a standout recruiter who worked with Brown at both North Carolina and then Texas, will come from Texas A&M, where he coached tight ends.
Greg Robinson, who twice served as a defensive assistant on Brown’s staffs at Texas, interviewed with North Carolina on Thursday, according to sources. Initially, sources indicated to ESPN that Robinson would be hired as UNC’s defensive coordinator and play-caller, but another source told ESPN that no final decision has been made about the role and Brown could look elsewhere to fill the position.
Robinson, 67, worked under Brown at Texas in 2004 and 2013. He was the head coach at Syracuse from 2005 to 2008 before becoming Michigan’s defensive coordinator under Rich Rodriguez in 2009. He last coached at San Jose State in 2015.
Brown also is expected to retain UNC linebackers coach Tommy Thigpen, possibly in a co-defensive coordinator role. Thigpen played for Brown with the Tar Heels and was an All-ACC linebacker and team captain. He joined the UNC staff before the 2018 season after five years at Tennessee.
Brown also is expected to hire Dre Bly — another of his former Tar Heels stars — as cornerbacks coach, according to a source. Bly played 11 seasons in the NFL and was set to coach defensive backs for the San Diego Fleet of the Alliance of American Football, but instead will reunite with Brown in Chapel Hill.