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Donnan, Walker Take Names Out of Hat

By Staff Editor | Nov. 22, 2000

North Carolina Director of Athletics Dick Baddour is convinced he has an attractive football program to sell. But Baddour's task of finding a new coach might just be a little tougher than planned. One day after Carl Torbush was fired as UNC's coach, Northwestern coach Randy Walker and Georgia coach Jim Donnan said they weren't interested in the job. Walker, who was an assistant coach at UNC from 1978-87, released a statement that said he would remain the Wildcats' coach. "I am not interested in the coaching job at North Carolina or any other coaching position," Walker said in th

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Cross Country Takes 12th Place at NCAAs

By Staff Editor | Nov. 21, 2000

A fourth-place finish by freshman Shalane Flanagan in 20 minutes, 42 seconds led North Carolina's women's cross country team to a 12th-place team finish at the NCAA Championships in Iowa. The finish placed the Tar Heels above all its preseason predictions. UNC placed sixth last year, but lost several seniors from that squad. The season began with more than 300 teams in the running for a chance to participate in the NCAA Championships, a number that dwindled to 31 after the Southeast Regionals on Nov. 11.

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Peppers Leaps Atop UNC Record Book

By Staff Editor | Nov. 21, 2000

DURHAM - Julius Peppers might be North Carolina's best defensive player, but the sophomore end is still learning from his teammates. Take Saturday's 59-21 win against Duke for example. Peppers sacked Blue Devil quarterback D. Bryant on the last play of the first quarter, jarring the ball loose. UNC's Joey Evans scooped it up on the 26-yard line and took off for the end zone. Evans shook one tackle but was finally brought down on the 1. "I was just trying to score," Evans said. "I should have dove.

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Schwoy Returns to Scoring Form

By Staff Editor | Nov. 21, 2000

For Laurie Schwoy, the resurgence could not have come at a more opportune time. The North Carolina women's soccer team trailed Virginia late in the second half of Saturday's third-round NCAA matchup.

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Smart Play Leads Tar Heels to ACC Title

By Staff Editor | Nov. 21, 2000

WINSTON SALEM - Good teams play well when they need to. During much of the season, the North Carolina volleyball team played like it was fighting itself. While the Tar Heels usually outplayed their opponents, UNC couldn't always finish them off. Mental mistakes and a lack of focus made some of North Carolina's regular-season matches closer than they should have been. But that wasn't the case this past weekend. The Tar Heels entered the ACC tournament seeded No. 2 and left as conference champions.

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Coach Declines Baddour's Offer To Step Down

By Staff Editor | Nov. 21, 2000

On Nov. 22, 1999, UNC Director of Athletics Dick Baddour sat in the Bowles Room at Koury Natatorium and announced his support for Carl Torbush as the school's head football coach. On Monday, 364 days later, Baddour found himself in the same place. This time, however, he was there to announce that Torbush had been fired. "I have completed a review of the football program, and the decision has been made not to retain Carl Torbush as the head football coach at the University of North Carolina," said Baddour, who sat beside Chancellor James Moeser at a press conference.

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Decision Shocks Tar Heel Players

By Staff Editor | Nov. 21, 2000

The team meeting on the second floor of the Frank H. Kenan Football Center started at 2:15 p.m. like it does every Monday. Members of the North Carolina football team watched highlight film from their victory against Duke on Saturday. The players later voted on offensive and defensive MVPs for the season. UNC coach Carl Torbush went in front of the team to tell his players he was lobbying for a bowl berth.

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Tar Heels Become Eligible for Bowl

By Staff Editor | Nov. 20, 2000

Players and coaches had said all along that they could do it. But somehow, some way, it just never got done. Until Saturday. In what might have been its final contest of the season, the North Carolina football team put together a complete game. The Tar Heels scored on offense, defense and special teams as they pounded Duke 59-21 in front of 24,673 spectators at Wallace Wade Stadium. The win, UNC's third in a row, made the team bowl eligible.

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A Dream Deferred: Tar Heels Fall Short of NCAA Title

By Staff Editor | Nov. 20, 2000

NORFOLK, Va. -- For Marina DiGiacomo, it was a storybook ending. In the last game on her home field, DiGiacomo scored the first goal on a penalty corner to help Old Dominion defeat North Carolina 3-1 in the NCAA title game at Foreman Field. DiGiacomo also picked up her second national championship at ODU. For North Carolina, DiGiacomo's storybook ending was more like a nightmare. The Tar Heels were bolstered by the outstanding play of goalkeeper Amy Tran and managed to mount a rally with five minutes left in the game to try to upset the top-ranked Lady Monarchs.

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Men's Soccer Uses Heads to Advance in NCAAs

By Staff Editor | Nov. 20, 2000

The first-round game of the NCAA tournament that pitted North Carolina against William & Mary turned out to be not much of a real soccer game at all. A snow storm blanketed Fetzer Field and made the game a battle of which team could stay on its feet and make solid contact with the ball. The Tar Heels didn't even use their feet to score. They headed in three goals to erase a 2-0 second-half deficit and earn an overtime victory Sunday.

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The North Carolina offense hasn't thrown for a TD in UNC Aims to Get Off Ground at Duke

By Staff Editor | Nov. 17, 2000

Game and time: North Carolina at Duke. Kickoff is at noon. Site: Wallace Wade Stadium. TV/radio: The game will be televised regionally on JP Sports. The Tar Heel Sports Network will provide live radio coverage; its flagship station is WCHL 1360-AM. Records: UNC is 5-5, 2-5 in the ACC. Duke is 0-10, 0-7. Series: UNC leads 48-34-4. Personnel update: UNC - LB Merceda Perry (ankle), RB Rufus Brown (shoulder) and CB Anthony Anderson (shoulder) are out.

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Tar Heels Race to Lead On 1st Day of Nike Cup

By Staff Editor | Nov. 17, 2000

The North Carolina men's and women's swimming and diving teams took the lead after the first day of the Nike Cup at Koury Natatorium. The No. 9 UNC women won all five events Thursday night to jump out with 335 points. Virginia Tech is second (123 points), and 12 teams have scored overall. The No. 23 UNC men's team leads the field with 284 points. Pittsburgh is second (207), and LSU is third (136). Junior Kevin Erndl led the charge. He tied the school record in the 50-yard freestyle when he won in 20.06 seconds. UNC's women won both relays Thursday.

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UNC's Trip to Appalachian State Marks Many Firsts

By Staff Editor | Nov. 17, 2000

Matt Doherty, a relatively young man by coaching standards, is part of a new breed. Doherty has joined the likes of Michigan State's Tom Izzo and Florida's Billy Donovan in a youth movement that has made distinguishing a coach from his players increasingly difficult. This movement has also trickled down to some of the most successful mid-major programs in the country. Winthrop's Gregg Marshall and Tulsa's Buzz Peterson, who have already faced North Carolina, are both younger than the 38-year-old Doherty.

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Absence of Robinson Won't Go Unnoticed

By Staff Editor | Nov. 16, 2000

For someone who plays right in the middle of the field, Eddie Robinson hardly ever gets noticed. North Carolina's defensive midfielder is there, though. But with a potent offense and a stingy defense on either side of him, fans tend to lose sight of Robinson. One minute, he's battling for a head ball, using his 6-foot-1, 180-pound frame to gain leverage against opposing players. The next moment, he is marking the other team's best offensive midfielder. It's hard to focus on Robinson.

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Seniors Aim to Recapture NCAA Title

By Staff Editor | Nov. 16, 2000

Kristen McCann laughed at the memory of being one of five freshmen on the North Carolina field hockey team. "We were just a bunch of scrubs," said McCann, now a senior forward. No one would call them "scrubs" now. McCann was named the ACC Player of the Year and has a shot at national honors. Back Jana Toepel has earned All-America honors for two consecutive years and looks to make it three at the end of this reason.

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UNC Enters Tourney Seeking Revenge

By Staff Editor | Nov. 16, 2000

Winston-Salem. The name doesn't merely appear on the North Carolina volleyball team's schedule - it flashes brightly. No, the team isn't comprised of smokers. But the Tar Heels were swept by Wake Forest this season. What better time and place to avenge a pair of loses than the ACC tournament, in the Demon Deacons' home gym? "I would feel very confident and look forward to that opportunity to play Wake Forest in their gym in the ACC tournament," UNC coach Joe Sagula said.

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UNC Gives Opposing Coach Rare Chance

By Staff Editor | Nov. 15, 2000

Houston Fancher isn't shocked. Not after building up such an immunity to the rumors and speculation. The fact that he - not Buzz Peterson - is the head basketball coach at Appalachian State heading into Friday's game against North Carolina really comes as no surprise. Fancher watched his former boss entertain all the offers. Peterson's name came up for the Georgia job in 1999. He actually agreed to coach at Southwest Missouri State that same summer before deciding to return to Boone. The possibilities didn't end there. After last season, Georgia Tech became an option.

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Scoreboard Watching Not in Torbush's Plans

By Staff Editor | Nov. 15, 2000

The North Carolina football team is still alive in the bowl chase. That much, everyone knows. But not all of the Tar Heels want to get caught up in what has to happen for the team to advance to the postseason. UNC plays Duke on Saturday at noon, and N.C.

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Tar Heels Still in Hunt for Postseason Game

By Staff Editor | Nov. 14, 2000

North Carolina football fans will have to take timeout from their hatred of N.C. State this Saturday. If they want the Tar Heels to go bowling, a Wolfpack victory at Virginia would help the cause tremendously. Although UNC (5-5, 2-5 in the ACC) can't catch the Cavaliers (5-4, 4-3) in the conference standings, UVa. will not be bowl eligible if it doesn't pick up another win. After N.C. State, the Cavaliers head to Virginia Tech, a likely loss. Maryland (5-5, 3-4) is also teetering on the edge of bowl dreams.

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Norkus Leads UNC Despite Injury

By Staff Editor | Nov. 14, 2000

WINSTON-SALEM - It couldn't have happened at a worse time for Caleb Norkus. Just three days before his North Carolina soccer team would begin play in the ACC tournament, Norkus sprained his left ankle while vying for a head ball in practice. "I just went up for a head ball, and I came down and my ankle rolled," Norkus said.

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