University of North Carolina Athletics
From Fetzer To Finley: Dorrance's Legend Only Grows
September 27, 2001 | Women's Soccer
Sept. 27, 2001
By Dave Lohse
Associate Director of Athletic Communications
Every summer when I sit down at my computer to annually update the Anson Durance coaching biography, the first question that always seems to come to my mind is, "At what point do my mere words no longer do justice to the man's accomplishments?"
That seems to be the perpetual dilemma. After all, I'm writing about someone who is literally a living legend. Dorrance is an individual who built from scratch an athletic program that fully deserves the label, "Dynasty." Filmmakers have already done a feature length documentary about the program that bears the name "Dynasty." He has also appropriately been called "The Father of Women's Soccer" and that goes for women's soccer as we know it in the United States as well as internationally.
So in the fall of 2001, as Dorrance is in the midst of his 23rd season as the head women's soccer coach at the University of North Carolina, many folks must be wondering what there is left to be accomplished.
In large measure Dorrance himself learned the answer to that question last season. The 2000 Carolina team suffered the program's most losses in a single season in 20 years but somehow persevered to again win Atlantic Coast Conference and NCAA titles. What may have been even more amazing was the fact that three times in the NCAA Tournament, Carolina trailed its opponent 1-0 midway through the second half. All three times, the Tar Heels came from behind to win 2-1 in regulation en route to the national title. That was three teams who had Carolina on the ropes well into the second half of play. Three teams which had great opportunities to strike a blow to Carolina's dynasty. And three teams that once again showed how even Carolina, which rarely ever trails in any game, can still be dangerous even when it is wounded.
Dean Smith, the head men's basketball coach at the University of North Carolina from 1961-97 and the man who unseated Kentucky's legendary Adolph Rupp four years ago as the winningest NCAA Division I men's college basketball coach in history, has always been amongst Anson's admirers. Shortly after Coach Smith and the Tar Heels won the 1993 national championship at the Superdome in New Orleans, Anson sought out Coach Smith to deliver a personal congratulation. Coach Smith's reply? "We're just trying to keep up with women's soccer, Anson."
Four years ago, when Coach Smith, arguably the school's most famous employee in its 208-year history, was asked by the Football News about Carolina's 1997 preseason #1 ranking in football and what is was like for some sport other than men's basketball to be sharing the throne at the University, Smith came up with a similar retort. Coach Smith's reply this time? "This is a women's soccer school. We're just trying to keep up with them." Coach Smith's clever retort--almost verbatim to what he said personally to Anson four years earlier--was a way to give Anson his due, knowing that Anson himself is amongst the biggest of all Dean Smith fans.
From the winningest head coach of all-time of one sport to the winningest head coach of all-time of another sport, that seemed to Dorrance like the ultimate compliment. And Anson himself felt humbled by it. There is no human being on Earth who harbors more respect for Dean Smith than Anson Dorrance. As Anson has said, "So much of what we have tried to do in our program is modeled after what Dean Smith has done and accomplished...to have our program compared favorably to his by the man himself is enormously humbling."
Later this fall Dorrance will reach another milestone in his amazing coaching career. It is inevitable that the Tar Heels will win their 500th game in history soon. UNC entered the season with a 22-year record of 487-22-11 with all those decisions coming with Dorrance at the helm.
The first chance that Carolina may have to win that 500th game would be against Clemson on October 18 in Chapel Hill. If it doesn't happen then it will happen sometime shortly after that. The numbers are almost staggering. However long it takes this fall the likelihood is that Dorrance will post his 500th career win prior to coaching his 540th game as the Carolina head coach.
And that last statistic, ladies and gentlemen, is nothing short of insane.
