American college football season
The 1980 North Carolina Tar Heels football team represented the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) during the 1980 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by Dick Crum in his third season as ahead coach, the team finished the season with an 11–1 overall record, winning the ACC title with a 6–0 mark in conference played and beating Texas in the Astro–Bluebonnet Bowl. The 11 wins tied a program record set during the 1972 season.
Linebacker Lawrence Taylor had 16 sacks in his final year for the Tar Heels and set numerous defensive records. His accolades included a consensus selection to the 1980 College Football All-America Team included All-America and ACC Player of the Year honors.[1] Crum was named ACC Coach of the Year.
Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
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September 6 | 1:00 p.m. | Furman* | No. 14 | | | W 35–13 | 50,100 | [2] |
September 13 | 8:30 p.m. | at Texas Tech* | No. 15 | | | W 9–3 | 37,797 | [3] |
September 27 | 1:00 p.m. | No. 19 Maryland | No. 14 | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC
| | W 17–3 | 51,400 | [4] |
October 4 | 1:00 p.m. | Georgia Tech* | No. 10 | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC
| | W 33–0 | 49,750 | [5] |
October 11 | 1:00 p.m. | at Wake Forest | No. 8 | | | W 27–9 | 37,411 | [6] |
October 18 | 1:00 p.m. | NC State | No. 8 | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC (rivalry)
| | W 28–8 | 51,845 | [7] |
October 25 | 1:00 p.m. | East Carolina* | No. 7 | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC
| | W 31–3 | 48,100 | [8] |
November 1 | 2:30 p.m. | at No. 16 Oklahoma* | No. 6 | | ESPN | L 7–41 | 74,852 | [9] |
November 8 | 1:00 p.m. | at Clemson | No. 14 | | | W 24–19 | 62,500 | [10] |
November 15 | 1:00 p.m. | Virginia | No. 15 | | | W 26–3 | 49,500 | [11] |
November 22 | 1:00 p.m. | Duke | No. 15 | | | W 44–21 | 51,389 | [12] |
December 31 | 8:00 p.m. | vs. Texas* | No. 13 | | Mizlou | W 16–7 | 36,669 | [13] |
- *Non-conference game
- Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
- All times are in Eastern time
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[14]
1980 North Carolina Tar Heels football team roster
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Players
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Coaches
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Offense
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Defense
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Special teams
Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
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P
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5
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Steve Streater
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Sr
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- Head coach
- Coordinators/assistant coaches
Denny Marcin, Larry Marmie, Cleve Bryant
- Legend
- (C) Team captain
- (S) Suspended
- (I) Ineligible
Injured
Redshirt
Roster
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Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking | Week |
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Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
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AP | 14 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 14 | 15 | 15 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 10 |
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Coaches | 17 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 11 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 14 | 15 | 13 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 9 |
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[15]
[16]
Vs. Texas (Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl)
[edit]
North Carolina vs. Texas
|
1 |
2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
• Tar Heels |
6 |
7 | 3 | 0 |
16 |
Longhorns |
0 |
7 | 0 | 0 |
7 |
|
[17]
The following players were drafted into professional football following the season.
[18]
- ^ Whitley, David. L.T. was reckless, magnificent, espn.com, accessed January 29, 2007.
- ^ "Carolina topples Furman". The News and Observer. September 7, 1980. Retrieved November 30, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "North Carolina tops Tech". The Tyler Courier-Times. September 14, 1980. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tar Heels' defense stops Maryland, 17–3". The Tampa Tribune. September 28, 1980. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "North Carolina rolls over Georgia Tech". The Victoria Advocate. October 5, 1980. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tar Heels dominate Wake in 27–9 victory". The Daily Progress. October 12, 1980. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "UNC looks like the class of the ACC against State". The Roanoke Times & World-News. October 19, 1980. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "No. 7 Tar Heels clip East Carolina 31–3". News-Press. October 26, 1980. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sooners demolish sixth-rated Tarheels". Wisconsin State Journal. November 2, 1980. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Goal line stand saves Tar Heels". The Danville Register. November 9, 1980. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tar Heels earn Bluebonnent berth with 26–3 victory over Virginia". Suffolk News-Herald. November 16, 1980. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Bryant's running helps Tar Heels KO Blue Devils' rally". The Charlotte Observer. November 23, 1980. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "North Carolina runs over Longhorns, 16–7". San Angelo Standard-Times. January 1, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Carolina Football : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive".
- ^ "UNC Deals Maryland 1st Defeat, 17-3". The Washington Post. September 28, 1980. Retrieved December 1, 2019.
- ^ "Hey, Not Everyone Can Be Perfect". Sports Illustrated. November 10, 1980. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
- ^ "N. CAROLINA DEFEATS TEXAS, 16-7". The New York Times. January 1, 1981. Retrieved November 13, 2019.
- ^ "1981 NFL Draft Listing - Pro-Football-Reference.com". Archived from the original on December 21, 2007.
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National championships in bold |