# List of North Carolina Tar Heels head football coaches

The North Carolina Tar Heels college football team represents the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level. The program has had 35 head coaches, and two interim head coaches, since it began play during the 1888 season. Since December 2024, Bill Belichick has served as North Carolina's head coach.
The Tar Heels have played more than 1,100 games over 122 seasons. In that time, ten coaches have led the Tar Heels in postseason bowl games: Carl Snavely, Jim Hickey, Bill Dooley, Dick Crum, Mack Brown, Carl Torbush, John Bunting, Butch Davis, Everett Withers, and Larry Fedora. Four of those coaches also won conference championships: Snavely's teams captured two as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon), and Hickey, Dooley, and Crum won a combined five in the ACC. Brothers Bill Fetzer and Bob Fetzer, co-head coaches from 1921 to 1925, also led North Carolina to a SoCon title in 1922.
Brown is the leader in games won (113) during his 16 years with the program. Branch Bocock has the highest winning percentage of those who have coached more than one game, with .812. Gene McEver has the lowest winning percentage of those who have coached more than one game, with .167. Of the 35 head coaches who have led the Tar Heels, Snavely, Jim Tatum, and Brown have been inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame.

## Key

Key to symbols in coaches list :
| General | General | Overall | Overall | Conference | Conference | Postseason | Postseason |
| No. | Order of coaches | GC | Games coached | CW | Conference wins | PW | Postseason wins |
| DC | Division championships | OW | Overall wins | CL | Conference losses | PL | Postseason losses |
| CC | Conference championships | OL | Overall losses | CT | Conference ties | PT | Postseason ties |
| NC | National championships | OT | Overall ties | C% | Conference winning percentage | | |
| † | Elected to the College Football Hall of Fame | O% | Overall winning percentage | | | | |

## Coaches

List of head football coaches showing season(s) coached, overall records, conference records, postseason records, championships and selected awards :
| No. | Name | Season(s) | GC | OW | OL | OT | O% | CW | CL | CT | C% | PW | PL | PT | DC | CC | NC | Awards |
| — | No coach | 1888, 1889, 1891–1892 | 17 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 0.529 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | — |
| 1 | Hector Cowan | 1889 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0.500 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | — |
| X | William P. Graves | 1891 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | — |
| 2 | William J. "Yup" Cook | 1893 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0.429 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | — |
| 3 | Vernon K. Irvine | 1894 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0.666 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 4 | Thomas Trenchard | 1895, 1913–1915 (4) | 37 | 26 | 9 | 2 | 0.729 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 5 | Gordon Johnston | 1896 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0.437 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 6 | William Ayres Reynolds | 1897–1900 (4) | 38 | 27 | 7 | 4 | 0.763 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 7 | Charles O. Jenkins | 1901 | 9 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0.777 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 8 | Herman Olcott | 1902–1903 (2) | 18 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 0.694 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 9 | R. R. Brown | 1904 | 9 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0.666 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 10 | William Warner | 1905 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0.562 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 11 | Willis Kienholz | 1906 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 0.285 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 12 | Otis Lamson | 1907 | 9 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0.500 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 13 | Edward L. Greene | 1908 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 0.500 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 14 | Arthur Brides | 1909–1910 (2) | 16 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0.500 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 15 | Branch Bocock | 1911 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0.812 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 16 | C. W. Martin | 1912 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0.437 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 17 | Thomas J. Campbell | 1916, 1919 (2) | 17 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 0.558 | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 18 | Myron Fuller | 1920 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0.250 | — | — | — | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 19 | Bob Fetzer & Bill Fetzer | 1921–1925 (5) | 46 | 30 | 12 | 4 | 0.695 | 13 | 5 | 2 | 0.700 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | — |
| 20 | Chuck Collins | 1926–1933 (8) | 78 | 38 | 31 | 9 | 0.544 | 24 | 22 | 8 | 0.518 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 21 | Carl Snavely$^†$ | 1934–1935, 1945–1952 (10) | 99 | 59 | 35 | 5 | 0.621 | 32 | 11 | 2 | 0.733 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | — |
| 22 | Raymond Wolf | 1936–1941 (6) | 58 | 38 | 17 | 3 | 0.681 | 23 | 9 | 1 | 0.712 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 23 | Jim Tatum$^†$ | 1942, 1956–1958 (4) | 39 | 19 | 17 | 3 | 0.525 | 13 | 10 | 2 | 0.560 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 24 | Tom Young | 1943 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0.666 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0.500 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 25 | Gene McEver | 1944 | 9 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 0.167 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0.125 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 26 | George T. Barclay | 1953–1955 (3) | 30 | 11 | 18 | 1 | 0.383 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 0.529 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 27 | Jim Hickey | 1959–1966 (8) | 81 | 36 | 45 | 0 | 0.444 | 28 | 25 | 0 | 0.528 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ACC Coach of the Year (1963) |
| 28 | Bill Dooley | 1967–1977 (11) | 124 | 69 | 53 | 2 | 0.560 | 38 | 22 | 2 | 0.629 | 1 | 5 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | ACC Coach of the Year (1971) |
| 29 | Dick Crum | 1978–1987 (10) | 116 | 72 | 41 | 3 | 0.633 | 38 | 23 | 1 | 0.620 | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ACC Coach of the Year (1980) |
| 30 | Mack Brown $^†$ | 1988–1997, 2019–2024 (16) | 193 | 113 | 79 | 1 | 0.588 | 67 | 58 | 1 | 0.536 | 4 | 6 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | ACC Coach of the Year (1996) |
| 31 | Carl Torbush | 1997–2000 (4) | 35 | 17 | 18 | — | 0.485 | 9 | 15 | — | 0.375 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | — |
| 32 | John Bunting | 2001–2006 (6) | 72 | 27 | 45 | — | 0.375 | 18 | 30 | — | 0.375 | 1 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 33 | Butch Davis | 2007–2010 (4) | 35 | 12 | 23 | — | 0.342 | 7 | 17 | — | 0.291 | 1 | 2 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Int | Everett Withers | 2011 | 13 | 7 | 6 | — | 0.538 | 3 | 5 | — | 0.375 | 0 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 34 | Larry Fedora | 2012–2018 (7) | 88 | 45 | 43 | — | 0.511 | 28 | 28 | — | .500 | 1 | 4 | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | — |
| Int | Freddie Kitchens | 2024 | 1 | 0 | 1 | — | 0.000 | 0 | 0 | — | .000 | 0 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
| 35 | Bill Belichick | 2025–present | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | – | 0 | 0 | — | – | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |