Brown fired by Tar Heels, to coach vs. Wolfpack
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Andrea Adelson, ESPN Senior Writer
North Carolina announced Tuesday that Mack Brown will not return next season, one day after the Hall of Fame coach declared his intentions to return to the Tar Heels.
Athletic director Bubba Cunningham informed Brown of his decision on Tuesday. Brown, 73, will coach the team in the regular-season finale against NC State on Saturday, but a decision has not yet been made about whether he will coach the Tar Heels (6-5) in their bowl game.
“While this was not the perfect time and way in which I imagined going out, no time will ever be the perfect time,” Brown said in a statement. “I’ve spent 16 seasons at North Carolina and will always cherish the memories and relationships Sally and I have built while serving as head coach.
“We’ve had the chance to coach and mentor some great young men, and we’ll miss having the opportunity to do that in the future. Moving forward, my total focus is on helping these players and coaches prepare for Saturday’s game against N.C. State and give them the best chance to win. We want to send these seniors out right and I hope our fans will show up Saturday to do the same.”
In two stints at North Carolina, Brown has gone a combined 113-78-1. Brown, who won a national championship with Texas after his first UNC tenure, returned to the Tar Heels in 2019 and took them to an ACC championship game appearance in 2022.
“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,” 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.
“… 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. 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.”
Brown ranks eighth all time among FBS coaches with 288 victories, and he’s the only coach with 100-plus wins at multiple FBS schools — 113 at North Carolina and 158 at Texas.
With Brown out, there are now just two active FBS head coaches who have won a national championship: Georgia‘s Kirby Smart and Clemson‘s Dabo Swinney.
As Brown finishes out the season, Cunningham and Chancellor Lee H. Roberts will begin the search for a new head coach.
Brown has three years left on his contract, which pays him $5 million annually. The school said the remainder of the contract will be paid by the UNC athletic department and not through state funds.
The announcement Tuesday concludes what had become months filled with speculation about Brown and his future with the school. After allowing a school-record 70 points in an embarrassing home loss to James Madison in September, Brown told the Tar Heels in the locker room that he would step down if the team felt he could no longer do the job. His comments leaked publicly, and Brown had to announce that he was not resigning.
North Carolina lost three more games from there, then had to deal with the loss of receiver Tylee Craft, who died in October 2½ years after being diagnosed with cancer.
Brown told ESPN in a recent interview that his perspective had changed after that, with him believing the team now needed him more than ever “to step up and be strong and try to help them learn to navigate through these storms and this turmoil.”
After winning three straight — including Brown’s first win over his alma mater, Florida State — North Carolina stumbled in another poor performance at Boston College last weekend, losing 41-21.
That did not stop Brown from announcing during his weekly news conference Monday that he intended to return to North Carolina. However, he also said he hadn’t yet met with Cunningham to discuss his long-term future.
“Not one player has ever come to me and asked me about my future. Not one coach has ever come to me and asked me about my future. That’s what happens this time of the year,” Brown said Monday. “It’s really funny, if you lose a game now, you’re fired. It’s 100%, it’s unbelievable. So why worry, you just got to do your job.”
In 35 years as a head coach, Brown has gone 282-149-1. He got his head-coaching start at Tulane in 1985 and, after three seasons there, went to North Carolina. Following back-to-back 1-10 seasons, Brown transformed the Tar Heels program, taking them to nine or more wins four times. Texas hired him in 1998, and he won the most recent national championship for the Longhorns in 2005.
Following his departure from Texas in 2013 after 16 seasons there, Brown spent time working as a television analyst at ESPN. He returned to North Carolina following a five-year coaching hiatus to try to build back a stagnant Tar Heels program. During his most recent stint, he took North Carolina to the 2022 ACC championship game and helped Drake Maye become a first-round draft pick in 2024.
Big starts to the 2022 and 2023 seasons — including rising as high as No. 10 in 2023 — ended in disappointment as Brown didn’t get North Carolina to the 10-win mark. The 2024 season got off to a rough start when starting quarterback Max Johnson broke his leg in the opener and was lost for the season.
Still, the way Brown’s team responded to adversity, and the death of their beloved teammate, is something Brown told ESPN last week that he will always remember.
“It is one of the most satisfying years I’ve ever had because of the way people are responding to each other,” Brown said before the Boston College game.
INDIANAPOLIS — Kyle Larson experienced his first crash at Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Thursday, the second day that Indianapolis 500 drivers participated in open testing on the 2.5-mile oval.
The 2021 NASCAR champion spun coming out of the first turn, hit the wall and bounced down to the warmup lane before tapping the wall a second time and eventually rolling to a stop.
Larson blamed himself, saying he forgot to hit the weight jacker going into the turn. But he also tried to find some positive from the incident.
“I’m happy to crash my first Indy car and live through it,” Larson said.
IN THE WALL 😬@KyleLarsonRacin makes contact with the wall exiting Turn 1 and in Turn 2.
📺: INDYCAR YouTube pic.twitter.com/5TE5c1BXDs
— NTT INDYCAR SERIES (@IndyCar) April 24, 2025
An Arrow McLaren official told The Indianapolis Star that Larson will not take part in the Thursday afternoon practice session due to the crash damage. The team decided not to rush the repairs, which would have left minimal practice time at best, the official said.
Larson is attempting to complete “the double” by racing in both the Indianapolis 500 and NASCAR’s Coca-Cola 600 on May 25. His first attempt was thwarted by a rain delay in the 2024 Indy 500 that saw him arrive to the NASCAR race just as that race was called off for weather.
He wasn’t the only familiar name to crash Thursday. Two-time Indianapolis 500 winner Takuma Sato crashed shortly after Larson, losing the back end of his car in the first turn and smacking the wall hard in the short chute before rolling to a stop.
“Lost it,” Sato said. “I simply lost it.”
Both drivers were checked at the infield hospital and released.
Graham Rahal also tapped the wall late in Wednesday’s practice.
Series officials added horsepower to the cars for the Thursday morning session as they test the IndyCar hybrid, which makes its IMS debut next month. An afternoon session without the boost closes out the two-day test.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Jesse Rogers
CHICAGO — Los Angeles Dodgers starter Blake Snell will back off his throwing program as he continues to recover from left shoulder inflammation, according to manager Dave Roberts.
“As he was playing catch, he just didn’t feel great,” Roberts said Wednesday afternoon before the Dodgers played the Chicago Cubs. “Right now, we’re going to slow play the throwing. Will probably get it looked at again when we get back home.”
Snell, 32, has been on the injured list since early April after making just two starts for the Dodgers. He signed a five-year, $182 million contract this past offseason.
Snell, who was set to throw a bullpen session Wednesday, felt discomfort in the shoulder while playing catch Tuesday. Roberts was asked how concerning the latest setback was.
“I wouldn’t say concerning because part of the messaging from us to Blake is, it’s about later on in the season and if there’s any type of discomfort, let’s not try to fight through it,” Roberts responded.
Snell is one of several Dodgers pitchers on the mend, including left-hander Clayton Kershaw, who pitched three innings in a minor league start Tuesday, his second rehab outing this spring.
“Velocity was good,” Roberts said. “Got into the fourth inning. He’ll make a start next week. Really positive stuff.”
The Dodgers also received positive news about right-hander Tyler Glasnow after he left his last start with leg cramps. His latest bullpen session went well, according to Roberts.
Meanwhile, Shohei Ohtani is throwing again after missing time on the paternity list. He’ll have another bullpen session Saturday as he recovers from elbow surgery, though the team still doesn’t have a timetable for his return to major league action.
The team was also without catcher Will Smith on Wednesday after he injured his wrist on a play at the plate in Tuesday’s loss to the Cubs.
“As he made the tag, his [left] wrist turned in and so there’s some residual soreness,” Roberts said.
Smith could get imaging done when the team returns to Los Angeles, but Roberts wasn’t overly concerned about the injury.
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