Basketball:
The Tar Heels basketball program is one of the most successful in collegiate sports history. The men’s team played their first season in 1910, and as of the 2012-2013 Season, have amassed five national titles, which is the tied, third highest haul, in history. The Tar Heels are also one of the few teams in history to have posted an undefeated season, which they did in 1924.
Apart from their national titles, the team has also won seventeen ACC tournament titles and twenty nine ACC regular season titles. This includes a record nineteen regular season championship winning streak. As of the 2012-2013 Season, the team has amassed an impressive .737 winning percentage, which is the second highest winning percentage of all time. One of the program’s other outstanding achievement has been to record two thousand victories in the NCAA, making it the second of three colleges in history to do so. In 2012, the Tar Heels were ranked at number one, on ESPN’s list of the “50 Most Successful Programs of the Past 50 Years”.
Football:
The Tar Heels football team competes in the Football Bowl Subdivision of the NCAA, and plays in the Coastal Division of the ACC. The team played their first season in 1888, and as of the 2012-2013 Season has competed for 121 years. The team has compiled an overall record of 646-488-54, which constitutes a winning percentage of .566. In its long history, the team has won three Southern Conference titles, five Atlantic Coast Conference titles and has appeared in twenty nine bowl games.
While not one of the most consistent programs in the NCAA, the Tar Heels have produced some great players, who have featured prominently in the NHL. These include Lawrence Taylor, Ken Willard, Charlie Justice, Julius Peppers, Chris Hanburger and Hakeem Nicks to name a few. The Tar Heels are also credited with having introduced the modern use of the forward pass, which they introduced in 1895 during a game against the UGA Bulldogs.
Baseball:
The Tar Heels baseball team also competes in the Coastal Division of the ACC and plays their home matches at the Boshamer Stadium. The team has been quite successful in its long history (they played their first match in 1867), and has won ten conference Championships, with the latest coming in 2013. The team has also won six Conference Tournament championships, and has made ten College World Series appearances, with the latest coming in 2013.
The team has been very successful over the last seven years, and made it to the College World Series every year between 2006 and 2009. Over all they have made it to the World Series six times in the past eight years.
Other Sports:
Apart from the three major sports (basketball, football and baseball), the Tar Heels have had major success in other sports as well. The field hockey team has won sixteen ACC Championships and six national titles. The men’s lacrosse team has won four national titles and the women’s team has won one title.
The Tar Heels most successful team has been the women’s soccer team. It is one of the most successful teams in the NCAA and has won thirty eight ACC championships, and a staggering twenty two National Championships. The men’s soccer team has also won two national titles.