UNC head football coach Larry Fedora meets with Greek houses to raise attendance at games

Head football coach Larry Fedora is going Greek.

In an effort to increase enthusiasm for the football program, Fedora has been spending time with a number of student groups — most recently via dinners at different houses in the Greek community.

Fedora, who was announced as the next head coach in December, said the meals are part of a larger effort to increase attendance at the football games.

“We’re talking about seven Saturdays out of the entire year,” Fedora said.

“Seven opportunities to come out and watch Tar Heel football in Kenan Stadium — and to get there early, and be loud, and have fun, and stay late and make an entire day of it.

“There are only seven opportunities, and we need to take advantage of it. It should not be hard to fill that stadium seven times.”

John Childress — president of Chi Phi fraternity, which hosted one of Fedora’s dinners last week — said Fedora talked about raising enthusiasm for the program.

“The first thing he asked us was to name some of the big-time college stadiums that we’d been to and had enjoyed watching games at,” Childress said.

“And then he said, ‘That’s what I want the game day spirit to be like in Chapel Hill for the next couple years, and I’m going to need your help. I’m going to need help from every student to make that happen.’”

Fedora first began to reach out to the Greek organizations at a meeting with leaders about a month ago, said Jack Partain, president of the Interfraternity Council.

“He really wanted to know what would get the Greek population more involved in the game day experience,” Partain said. “We got a lot of good ideas out on the table.”

Some of those ideas included having night games and allowing fraternities to reserve block seating, Partain said.

Childress said he thinks the tailgating atmosphere makes it difficult for Greek members to get to games on time.

“Everyone really enjoys tailgating and hanging out with friends on a nice, warm Saturday afternoon,” Childress said.

“Obviously when girls trickle into the house on their way to the game, the guys are going to sit on the couch and talk to them for awhile, because the girls are not as interested in getting to the game on time,” Childress said.

Fedora said he has met with 70 to 75 student groups to talk about what students want to see at football games — and he’s not done.

“It’s very obvious every time I go and talk to these people, from the questions they ask and just the positive vibes that come out of the meeting, that there’s a great sense of excitement,” he said.

“Because that’s part of the college experience: going to football games and having a great time and creating some unbelievable memories you’ll have for the rest of your life.”

Contact the University Editor ?at university@dailytarheel.com.