The 1972 North Carolina Tar Heels football team represented the North Carolina Tar Heels of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill during the 1972 NCAA University Division football season.[1] The team won its second consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) championship, going 6–0 in conference play, and played in the 1972 Sun Bowl, defeating Texas Tech by a score of 32–28. The Tar Heels ended the year ranked 12th in the AP Poll with an 11–1 record—the lone loss coming at Ohio State in their fourth game.[2] This was the first of only four seasons where North Carolina was able to win 11 games.
Schedule
Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
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September 9 | 1:30 p.m. | Richmond* | | | | W 28–18 | 31,500 | [3] |
September 16 | 1:30 p.m. | Maryland | | | | W 31–26 | 28,000 | [4] |
September 23 | 1:30 p.m. | NC State | | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC (rivalry)
| | W 34–33 | 47,000 | [5] |
September 30 | 1:30 p.m. | at No. 5 Ohio State* | | | | L 14–29 | 86,180 | [6] |
October 14 | 1:30 p.m. | Kentucky* | | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC
| | W 31–20 | 42,500 | [7] |
October 21 | 1:30 p.m. | at Wake Forest | | | ABC | W 21–0 | 27,000 | [8] |
November 4 | 1:30 p.m. | at Clemson | | | | W 26–10 | 38,235 | [9][10] |
November 11 | 1:30 p.m. | Virginia | No. 18 | | | W 23–3 | 36,500 | [11] |
November 18 | 1:30 p.m. | Duke | No. 16 | | ABC | W 14–0 | 47,000 | [12] |
November 25 | 1:30 p.m. | East Carolina* | No. 15 | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC
| | W 42–19 | 31,600 | [13] |
December 9 | 2:00 p.m. | vs. Florida* | No. 16 | | | W 28–24 | 33,103 | [14] |
December 30 | 1:00 p.m. | vs. Texas Tech* | No. 16 | | CBS | W 32–28 | 27,877 | [15] |
- *Non-conference game
- Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
- All times are in Eastern time
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Game summaries
Ohio State
North Carolina Tar Heels at Ohio State Buckeyes
at Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio
- Date: September 30, 1972
- Game time: 1:30 p.m.
- Game weather: Cloudy, 49 °F (9 °C)
- Game attendance: 86,180
- Box Score
Game information
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First quarter
- UNC – Gene Brown recovered blocked punt in end zone (Ellis Alexander kick), 9:37. North Carolina 7–0.
- OSU – Blair Conway 22-yard field goal, 0:06. North Carolina 7–3. Drive: 73 yards.
Second quarter
- OSU – Greg Hare 17-yard run (kick failed), 11:50. Ohio St 9–7. Drive: 47 yards.
Third quarter
- OSU – Randal Keith 11-yard run (Blair Conway kick), 8:41. Ohio St 16–7. Drive: 87 yards.
- OSU – Champ Henson 9-yard run (Blair Conway kick), 2:00. Ohio St 23–7. Drive: 84 yards.
Fourth quarter
- OSU – Archie Griffin 9-yard run (Blair Conway kick), 4:13. Ohio St 30–7. Drive: 31 yards.
- UNC – Earle Bethea 37-yard pass from Nick Vidnovic (Ellis Alexander), 0:00. Ohio St 30–14. Drive: 1 play, 37 yards, 0:05.
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- Top passers
- UNC – Nick Vidnovic – 4/14, 65 yards, TD, 2 INT
- OSU – Greg Hare – 5/12, 96 yards, INT
- Top rushers
- UNC – Ike Oglesby – 14 rushes, 67 yards
- OSU – Archie Griffin – 27 rushes, 239 yards, TD
- Top receivers
- UNC – Earle Bethea – 1 reception, 37 yards, TD
- OSU – Richard Galbos – 3 receptions, 72 yards
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Personnel
1972 North Carolina Tar Heels football team roster
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Players
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Coaches
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Offense
Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
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WR
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Earle Bethea
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RB
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Ike Oglesby
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QB
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Nick Vidnovic
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Jr
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Defense
Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
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DL
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Gene Brown
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Special teams
Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
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K
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Ellis Alexander
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- Head coach
- Coordinators/assistant coaches
- Legend
- (C) Team captain
- (S) Suspended
- (I) Ineligible
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References
- ^ "1972 North Carolina Tar Heels". College Football at Sports-Reference.com.
- ^ "1972 Final AP Football Poll".
- ^ "Tar Heels rush past Richmond, 28–18". The News and Observer. September 9, 1972. Retrieved October 28, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "North Carolina barely beats underdog Maryland 31–26". The Danville Register. September 17, 1972. Retrieved January 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Pack gamble fails, UNC victor, 34 to 33". Richmond Times-Dispatch. September 24, 1972. Retrieved January 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Frosh find leads Beckeyes by N.C." The Cincinnati Enquirer. October 1, 1972. Retrieved January 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "North Carolina staves off upset-minded Kentucky, 31–20". Rocky Mount Telegram. October 15, 1972. Retrieved October 22, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "N. Carolina tops Wake Forest 21–0". Tallahassee Democrat. October 22, 1972. Retrieved January 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Clemson Football Media Guide - 1973". Clemson University. 1973. p. 2. Retrieved November 5, 2023.
- ^ "Tar Heels down Clemson". Rocky Mount Telegram. November 5, 1972. Retrieved January 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tar Heels stumble to ACC title, 23–3". The Gastonia Gazette. November 12, 1972. Retrieved January 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "6 pass thefts carry UNC into Sun Bowl". Winston-Salem Journal & Sentinel. November 19, 1972. Retrieved January 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Carolina runs through Pirates, 42–19". The News and Observer. November 26, 1972. Retrieved March 3, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "3 TDs by Johnson power N. Carolina". The Courier-Journal. December 10, 1972. Retrieved October 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tar Heels win on late score". The Baltimore Sun. December 31, 1972. Retrieved January 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
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National championships in bold |