Carolina, Mack Brown Agree on One-Year Contract Extension

CHAPEL HILL – The University of North Carolina and Head Football Coach Mack Brown have agreed on a one-year extension, Director of Athletics Bubba Cunningham announced Saturday. The extension maintains the terms of the original agreement and keeps the length of Brown's contract at five years, now through the 2024 season.

"Mack's return has had an outstanding impact — not just in Kenan Stadium, but throughout the Carolina community,'' Cunningham said. "Our students are winning on the field and doing well in the classroom, our fan base is energized and we are all excited about building on the great successes of this season."

Brown, the nation's only active Hall of Fame coach, is currently the winningest active coach in college football and his 250 career victories rank ninth on the FBS all-time list. The 2005 Paul W. "Bear" Bryant National Coach of the Year and the 2008 Bobby Dodd National Coach of the Year, Brown is one of a handful of coaches in college football history to lead two separate programs to Top-Five national finishes. He is also one of just five active head coaches who has won a National Championship.

"I want to thank the Board of Trustees, Chancellor Guskiewicz, Bubba and the athletics department for their great support," Brown said. "You could really see things come together. Our fans have stepped up filling the stadium each week. I love what we've been able to do with our facilities and the excitement around the program has given us the opportunity to have one of the top recruiting classes in the country. North Carolina is a wonderful place and everyone can tell we're building something special here. I'm having a great time. I love our staff and these kids and I'm planning on being here for a long, long time. Because Sally and I love UNC and Chapel Hill, we won't coach anywhere else, which gives this place as much stability as anywhere in the country. Now, we'll continue to focus on recruiting and preparing for our bowl game. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone at the Military Bowl on Dec. 27."

In his first season back at the helm at North Carolina in 2019, Brown led the Tar Heels to a 6-6 record and the Military Bowl. The six wins are one more than UNC had won in its previous two seasons combined (5) and the Tar Heels qualified for a bowl game for the first time since 2016. Carolina played close games seemingly all season. Its nine games decided by seven points or less were the most since 1936. The Tar Heels' six losses came by a total of just 26 points and the combined records of those teams was 52-11.

Next up, Carolina will sign one of the nation's highest-ranked recruiting classes on Dec. 18. There will be a signing day celebration at the Blue Zone Concourse Club that day at 6 p.m. 2019 Carolina Football season ticket holders and anyone who has already made a deposit for 2020 Carolina Football season ticket holders should already have received an email from the ticket office with a link to purchase tickets to the event. If you'd like to make a deposit for 2020 Carolina Football season tickets, you can do so by clicking HERE. Call 1-800-722-HEEL (4335) with questions.

Carolina continues preparations for the Military Bowl against Temple on Dec. 27. The team will conduct the first of 10 practices Saturday leading up to the bowl game. The Tar Heels will head to Washington, D.C. on Sunday, Dec. 22 for a week of practice and events leading up to the game at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis, Md. For more information and ticket options, visit GoHeels.com.

For up-to-date information on Carolina football, visit GoHeels.com/Football and follow us on Twitter (@TarHeelFootball), Instagram (@tarheelfootball) and Facebook (Facebook.com/TarHeelFootball).

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