UNC fires coach Mack Brown after six seasons of second stint with program

Mack Brown’s tenure at North Carolina is set to come to an end.

UNC will let go of Brown at the end of the 2024 season, the school announced Tuesday. He’ll coach in Saturday’s regular-season finale against North Carolina State. A decision has yet to be made on whether Brown will coach in the team’s bowl game.

“Mack Brown has won more games than any football coach in UNC history, and we deeply appreciate all that he has done for Carolina football and our University,” UNC athletics director Bubba Cunningham said in a statement. “Over the last six seasons — his second campaign in Chapel Hill — he has coached our team to six bowl berths, including an Orange Bowl, while mentoring 18 NFL draft picks.

“He and his wife Sally have done an outstanding job supporting the Carolina community, including raising funds for UNC Children’s Hospital while hosting other popular events such as the Ladies Day Clinic. Both also have been terrific in leading our program during some incredibly tough stretches, including the tragic passing of wide receiver Tylee Craft this season.”

The move could mark the end of Brown’s legendary coaching career. Brown, 73, was mostly known for his tenure at Texas, where he led the Longhorns to a national championship victory in the 2005 season before making it back to the title game in 2009. He went 158-48 over his 16 seasons in Austin, leaving as the school’s second-winningest coach after the 2013 season.

Brown was also a successful coach over his two tenures at North Carolina. He won 10 games in back-to-back seasons at the end of his first stint with the program (1988-97) before taking the Texas job in 1998. He returned to Chapel Hill ahead of the 2019 season, helping the Tar Heels become bowl-eligible in each of the six seasons after his return. He led North Carolina to the Orange Bowl in 2020 and won nine games in 2022.

Brown is in the midst of one of the weaker seasons of his decorated career. North Carolina is bowl-eligible at 6-5, but has suffered multiple painful losses this season. The losses led some to question if this would be his final season with the program.

As Brown prepares to put a bow on his second run at North Carolina, the school thanked him for helping revive the program after multiple dormant seasons.

“Coach Brown has led the Carolina football program back into the national conversation as we improved the program’s facilities, significantly increased the size of the staff, invested in salaries and bolstered our nutrition and strength and conditioning programs,” Cunningham said. “He also has been a dedicated fundraiser, strengthening the football endowment while also supporting our other sports programs.

“We thank Coach Brown for his dedication to Carolina, and wish him, Sally and their family all the best.”

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