CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – North Carolina has reached an agreement with Mack Brown to once again coach the Tar Heels, multiple sources have confirmed.

A press conference is expected Tuesday. Brown has already begun efforts to assemble his coaching staff, according to sources.

UNC was intent on completing the coaching search quickly despite making the decision to dismiss Larry Fedora in the final days of the regular season, according to a source. The Tar Heels concluded their 2018 season with a loss to N.C. State on Saturday to fall to 2-9 (1-7 ACC). Fedora was 45-43 in his seven seasons in Chapel Hill.

Brown, 67, has spent the past five years as a college football analyst for ESPN after an illustrious coaching career. The Cookeville, Tenn. native amassed a 244-122 record in 30 years as a head coach. After stints at Appalachian State (1983) and Tulane (1985-87), he first took the UNC job in 1988 and rebounded from back-to-back 1-10 records to deliver winning seasons in each of the next eight years, highlighted by top-10 national rankings in the final AP Poll in 1996-97.

Brown, known for his southern gentleman charm and shrewd recruiting ability, placed an emphasis on in-state rivalries by awarding his Tar Heel teams with plaques for successfully beating N.C. State, Duke and Wake Forest in a season. UNC was 21-3 against its in-state opponents from 1990-97 and was a perfect 15-0 in Brown’s final five seasons in Chapel Hill.

Following the 1997 season, Brown left UNC to accept the head coaching position at Texas and compiled a 158-48 record in Austin over the next 16 seasons. The Longhorns won the 2005 national championship and played in the title game again in 2009. Texas also won the Big 12 Championship twice and Big 12 South Division six times. Brown has won national coach of the year honors twice, Big 12 Coach of the Year twice and ACC Coach of the Year once.

His teams have won double-digit games in a season 12 times in his last 21 years of coaching.

Despite living in Austin and working for ESPN, Brown has been a frequent visitor to Chapel Hill. He served as a mentor to Fedora, who thanked Brown during his introductory press conference at UNC, and was honored at Kenan Stadium in August for his induction into the College Football Hall of Fame. Brown has been open about his desire to return to the sideline. He expressed interest in the Arizona State job in November 2017, telling Arizona Sports 98.7 FM, “I’ve got one more good run in me.”

Brown discussed the requirements of a potential return to coaching in an interview with Austin TV station KVUE ABC in April.

“I talked to Dick Vermeil when I first quit and he waited 17 years before he went back,” Brown said. “I've interviewed a couple of places. Sally and I have talked about it. I won't go back unless it's somewhere that they really need us, it's somewhere we want to live.”

Brown’s 244 career wins rank 10th all-time at the FBS level of college football. His 69 wins at UNC are tied for second-most all-time. He needs four wins to become the school’s all-time winningest football coach, surpassing Dick Crum (72).