University of North Carolina Athletics
CAROLINA: Carolina in the Postseason
December 23, 2013 | Football
NOTE: This article originally appeared in the December 17 issue of CAROLINA: The Magazine.
This year's Belk Bowl is Carolina's first under second-year head coach Larry Fedora, but it's the sixth time in the last seven seasons that the Tar Heels are playing in the postseason, and the 30th bowl appearance in program history.
The Tar Heels are 13-16 all-time in bowl games, with their first appearance coming in the 1947 Sugar Bowl, a 20-10 loss to Georgia. Carolina's first bowl win came in 1963, when the Tar Heels defeated Air Force in the Gator Bowl, 35-0. As the number of bowl games increased, so too did the postseason opportunities for Carolina football. This year, Carolina stays in-state and plays in a familiar venue - Charlotte's Bank of America Stadium - to cap 2013.
Over the last ten seasons, Carolina has appeared in seven bowl games. All but three of them have been in Charlotte. Saturday, December 28 marks the fourth time that the Tar Heels will have appeared in this particular bowl game (albeit under a different sponsor).
2004 Continental Tire Bowl
Boston College 37, Carolina 24
Tom O'Brien and the Boston College Eagles (then of the Big East) sealed a win over the Tar Heels when kicker Ryan Ohliger - taking the handoff from a freshman named Matt Ryan - scored on a fake field goal in the fourth quarter.
2008 Meineke Car Care Bowl
West Virginia 31, Carolina 30
Pat White found Alric Arnett for a 20-yard score in the fourth quarter to give West Virginia the lead, then T.J. Yates tossed an interception on the final drive to seal a one-point Mountaineer win. The result couldn't overshadow the incredible day Hakeem Nicks had in his final game as a Tar Heel. Nicks had three touchdowns on eight catches and 217 yards.
2009 Meineke Car Care Bowl
Pittsburgh 19, Carolina 17
Pitt's Dan Hutchins kicked his fourth field goal - this one from 33 yards - with 52 seconds to play, and T.J. Yates' 4th and 10 pass attempt couldn't find Greg Little on 4th and 10 with six seconds on the clock. The Panthers' Dion Lewis ran for 159 yards and a touchdown on his way to MVP honors.
Bowl wins have been difficult to come by for the Tar Heels of late. Since the 2001 Peach Bowl, a 16-10 win over Auburn, Carolina is 1-4 in bowl games. But that one win was special.
2010 Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl
Carolina 30, Tennessee 27
Carolina traveled to Nashville on December 30, 2010 to face Tennessee. In the fourth quarter, Donte Paige-Moss blocked a Volunteer extra point attempt to keep the Tar Heels within three. That proved crucial as T.J. Yates spiked the ball with one second left on the clock, despite the fact that the Tar Heels had too many players on the field. After the penalty yardage was marked off, Casey Barth tied the game with a 39-yard field goal. The teams traded touchdowns in overtime before Quan Sturdivant intercepted a Tyler Bray pass. Barth's 23-yard try was good for the win. The Tennessee fans, who far outnumbered their neighbors to the east in attendance, were less than thrilled.
Carolina in Charlotte
The Belk Bowl will be Carolina's 23rd game in Charlotte. The Tar Heels are 15-5-2 all-time in the Queen City, with the bulk of those games coming in the first half of the 20th century. In the early 1900s, Carolina had a regular meeting with Davidson in Charlotte, though they also played Virginia Tech, Clemson and Wake Forest there as well. Carolina and N.C. State played two games at Bank of America Stadium in 1998 and 1999. Those meetings marked the Tar Heels' first appearance in Charlotte since a win over Davidson in 1942, and the first regular season game held at a neutral site for Carolina since a win over the Gators in Jacksonville, Florida in 1972.
