Rick Barnes and Mack Brown coached basketball and football, respectively, at Texas for 14 years. The Tennessee coach remains good friends with Brown.

Brown as recently as Monday said he planned to return next season, but Bubba Cunningham, the UNC athletic director, informed Brown later Monday that “he will not return as head coach.”

Only five days before the final week of the regular season, North Carolina became the first power conference school to enter the market. Legendary coach Mack Brown will not be retained in 2025, clearing the way for UNC to be by far the top option on the market for prospective candidates.