CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WNCN) — Tar Heel football fans faced disappointment Saturday after losing to rival N.C. State, and fans are also coping with the loss coming as head coach Mack Brown’s final home game, after news of his firing just before Thanksgiving.
It would have been a big game for Carolina fans any way, as the Tar Heels hosted the Wolfpack at Kenan Memorial Stadium. UNC has lost the last three matchups between the two Triangle teams.
“It’s been three years since we beat them. And I’d love to win today, you know, win every year in the future,” said lifetime UNC fan Zach Currin.
Unfortunately, the Tar Heels lost, but Saturday’s game was bigger than a rivalry. It was head coach Mack Brown’s last home game — possibly his last ever — after UNC fired Brown this week.
“I was upset about it just because what Mack Brown’s done for Carolina since he’s been back,” lifetime fan Troy Hill said. “You know, six straight seasons with bowl games, you know, he’s brought up, poured in a lot of money into the program. He’s been recruiting at a high level.”
Brown has coached the Tar Heels for nearly half of the last four decades, from 1988-97 and came back for his second stint in 2018.
“Carolina means a lot to me. Carolina football means a lot to me as a fan too, so it’s good to have that energy reciprocated from our head coach,” Hill said.
Many fans said they were disappointed to see Brown go, one pointing out the talent the head coach brought to UNC.
“Mack was a good recruiter. That’s something that is definitely going to be missed here,” UNC fan Lane Saenz said.
Ansley Devine grew up rooting for the Tar Heels, and even though she is now a freshman at N.C. State, she said it is still sad to see the end of Brown’s career at UNC.
“It’s definitely a big thing for Carolina fans, growing up [as] one. You know, he was iconic. He used to be here, then he moved, now he’s back. So it’s definitely a little bit of a hurtful thing for Carolina fans, even as a past Carolina fan,” she said.
Still, fans expressed excitement for the future of Tar Heel football under a new head coach.
“You know, you hate to see a legend go, but at the same time, it’s exciting to see some new blood coming to the program to see what can happen. It’s a new era of college football,” Currin said.
UNC Athletics reported that Director of Athletics Bubba Cunningham and Chancellor Lee H. Roberts will start the search for a new head coach.
“I want to see them hire somebody young, somebody, you know, maybe a little defensive-minded with what we’ve seen the last few years,” Currin said.
Hill said he hopes the Tar Heels can compete for and win ACC championships under a new coach.
“Whoever comes in is going to be, you know, taking the reins for what Mack’s already built,” he said.
Saturday’s game was a disappointing end to Brown’s final season, marking Carolina’s fourth straight loss to N.C. State.
A spokeswoman Saturday night said UNC athletics director Bubba Cunningham would soon meet with the coaching staff to name an interim coach for the bowl.