As much as these leagues post statements on social media, have players wear Black Lives Matter T-shirts on the bench or have coaches wear pins on their shirts, it has always been up to the individuals on the team to transcend the title of “athlete” and make sacrifices on their own. The owners and coaches sometimes support the players publicly, but historically, it has always been the players who speak out on their own.
Despite UNC's decision last week to move classes online, Mack Brown and the Tar Heels remain hopeful and firm as they continue to prepare for the upcoming season.
"For us, they’re a national household brand,” Beale said. “They value UNC because of our large national fan base. They have partnered with multiple NBA and college teams by showcasing their products in game with the Libman 'Mop Crew' we have here.”
“For me, marching band is about Carolina pride,” Brown said. “Without marching band, I kind of lose some of that pride. Playing the fight song, playing the alma mater and getting to play at the football games ups that sense of morale for Carolina, and so without that, it kind of takes away some of the feelings I have.”
While he was honored as a hall of fame inductee in a public match last October, Joe Sagula first found out he was to be inducted during a volleyball practice before the match. Surrounded by friends, faculty and players, it was a small but touching moment for Sagula's volleyball family.
UNC women's basketball head coach Courtney Banghart has put together a 2021 recruiting class featuring multiple five-star recruits and the best recruiting class in program history.
In late March, the NCAA granted an extra year of eligibility to spring sports athletes, citing cancellations brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, with the fate of college sports for the remainder of 2020 looking murkier by the day, the NCAA hopes to remove some level of uncertainty for its fall sports athletes.
Two of UNC's finest college athletes have been honored with the Patterson Medal for outstanding athletic achievement, sportsmanship and leadership.
Three UNC athletes dreamed about their shot at making it to the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, and they dreamed of what their performance at the Trials would have to be like to make it there. Now, in the wake of COVID-19, these athletes are staying positive despite the postponement of the trials.
“The student-athletes don’t have to agree with the athletic department every time they make a statement," Steve Kirschner, senior associate athletic director for communications at UNC, said.
“It hurts, but it’s all about doing what’s best for me. I felt that by staying I could risk getting hurt,” Nash said. “In football, one play can be the end of your career, so I just thought of that. Basically doing what’s best for me. I want to get to the NFL as quick as I can, and I felt like early enrolling could help me do that.”
As some players echo the sentiment of wanting to play in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, some of them believe the season needs to happen to prepare for the next level. Although Kenan Stadium will likely be at reduced capacity this fall, a number of players know this might be their final opportunity to create game film for NFL scouts.
"After consulting with our health experts and University leadership, we are taking this action to protect our students, coaches and staff,'' Director of Athletics Bubba Cunningham said in a statement.
Despite UNC’s decision to move all undergraduate classes to an online-only format, the North Carolina football team is still gearing up to play this fall, head coach Mack Brown said in a press conference on Tuesday.
In the lead-up to the fall football season, locally elected officials have voiced concerns about the potential public health risk of hosting large events.
“It's just the nature of my sport,” senior Ryan Gerard said. “We don't generate TV revenue, except for maybe one tournament in the spring, where we make a little bit. But it's not like actually generating money; we’re still losing money. Like a lot of college sports, it’s just the way it is. People don't want to watch them as much as they'd rather watch the professional one.”
Despite the announcement that UNC-Chapel Hill would be transitioning to all online classes, the UNC Athletics Department announced its intention to continue the fall athletics season, including football, as had been previously planned.
At the quarterback position, UNC football head coach Mack Brown's search for a list of proven signal callers hit a couple of speed bumps in the last two weeks.
With a quarter of Major League Baseball's shortest season since 1878 already in the books, here's how some former Tar Heels have been playing.
Ryan Wilcox asks: Has Anson Dorrance done enough?
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