In the end, Roy Williams knew it was time to return to his roots, to the storied program in powder blue where he learned his craft as an assistant at his beloved alma mater.

The coach who grew up in the North Carolina mountains went home Monday, rejoining the Tar Heels to try to win the national title that eluded him for 15 seasons at Kansas.

He resigned as Jayhawks coach exactly one week after losing in the NCAA championship game -- and almost three years after turning down the North Carolina job the first time he had a chance to take it.

"I was a Tar Heel born. When I die, I'll be a Tar Heel dead. But in the middle, I have been Tar Heel and Jayhawk bred, and I am so, so happy and proud of that," Williams said during a news conference inside a practice gym at the Smith Center, before a crowd of cheering boosters.

Former coaches Dean Smith and Bill Guthridge stood nearby, and the Tar Heels' players wore suits and sport jackets. Outside, a crowd of students gathered, and they could be heard cheering before the announcement.

 

Williams met with his Kansas players in Lawrence earlier in the day to tell them his decision. He left Allen Fieldhouse nearly in tears, and later flew by jet to Chapel Hill.

"Other than serious injury or death to my family, I've never had anything more difficult than what I've been through this afternoon with my team, and telling those 13 young men that I was leaving them," he said at the news conference.

When Matt Doherty resigned April 1, there was immediate speculation that Williams would be the front-runner, but he angrily refused to answer questions about the job after the Jayhawks lost to Syracuse in the title game.

Williams took the Kansas job only a few months after Larry Brown coached the team to the 1988 national title. After going 19-12 in his first season, Williams guided the Jayhawks to the NCAA tournament 14 straight times.

The fourth-fastest coach in Division I history to reach 400 victories, Williams (418-101) won nine conference championships and took the Jayhawks to four Final Fours, including two appearances in the title game.

"It's sad for the program and the players who are here," said Jeff Boschee, who was a senior at Kansas last year and attended Monday's half-hour meeting. "It's tough for them."

Other players had different reactions. Wayne Simien, who dislocated his shoulder in January and later had season-ending surgery, appeared angry after the meeting.

"I gave my right arm for him, literally," said Simien, wearing a sling.

At North Carolina, meanwhile, there was elation. A school that saw Williams leave as a highly regarded assistant now welcomes him back as one of the most respected coaches in the country. 