North Carolina coach Mack Brown spoke to the media on Monday with the discussion focused mostly on the aftermath of UNC’s embarrassing, 70-50 loss to James Madison. Specifically, Brown clarified his postgame locker room comments.
“I can’t stand losing,” Brown said. “It makes me physically sick, and I feel responsible, and I put all the pressure on myself to have done it better. And I didn’t do that, so that’s what’s disappointing for me.”
Sources told 247Sports’ Inside Carolina that Brown’s postgame address to the team left players and administrators in attendance thinking he was retiring with an announcement soon to follow.
Monday’s press conference addressed those rumors as Brown attempted to clarify what he said, his interactions with the UNC players and conversations with North Carolina Athletic Director Bubba Cunningham and Chancellor Lee Roberts
In the 48 hours since the stunning loss, the Carolina football program — and its future — have been left In flux. Brown’s reaction to the loss and specifically his postgame locker room comments to the team provided no security for the future of the program in the immediate or the longterm.
The Tar Heels (3-1) take on Duke (4-0) Saturday at 4 p.m. ET at Wallace Wade Stadium in Durham, North Carolina. UNC will not make players available to the media this week, and players were not available following the loss to JMU on Saturday either.
Below are the main points from Brown’s Monday press conference comments on the heels of a tumultuous weekend in Chapel Hill.
What did Mack Brown say to the team after the game?
“What I said is, ‘If you all don’t feel like I’m the leader you need, then I’ll go do something else.’ And (the players) said, ‘No, man, we’re in. Let’s go.’ It was overwhelming. I wish I hadn’t put them in that spot. So, but that’s all it was. And if I was going to quit, I’d have come in here and done it. So, yes, we’re not talking about that anymore. Let’s go to Duke. We’ve got it. We got it handled.”
Brown was asked about the rumors and reports that many players, staff and administration left the locker room on Saturday thinking that he had quit. Brown said that his comments and intentions were misinterpreted as he attempted to clarify.
“Yes. I asked them if they wanted new leadership, and they said, ‘No.’ I backed away to think about it. I told them, ‘Let’s go. Let’s go forward. Let’s get ready for Duke right afterward.'”
Brown has always said that he does not handle losses well; his emotions get the best of him, which has always been a weakness.
“I was very disappointed in the game, disappointed in me, and as you all know, I don’t handle things well after losses,” Brown explained. “It’s probably the worst times in my life, because I’ve got a spoiled life and walking off the field (on Saturday), I was really disappointed because we had a great week’s practice. We’re 3-0, felt really good about the team and we made entirely too many mistakes during the ballgame. So as I was walking off the field, I thought, ‘I’m responsible for all this. It’s on me, so I should ask the players about leadership if they feel good about me moving forward.’ And that’s something I shouldn’t do.
“I shouldn’t put that pressure on those young people at that point. And I’m supposed to be a leader, and probably the worst things I’ve ever said in my life are after losses.
“You’re supposed to learn from losses. I didn’t do that very well on Saturday night. And I’m supposed to be a mentor for young coaches, and I didn’t do that well either. So disappointed in me. I’ll grow from it and not do it again.
How does Brown deal with keeping issues in-house?
“Things used to stay in the locker room. The locker room was sacred. It’s obviously not anymore.”
Brown revisits the 24 hours after the game
“I went home, I sent the team a Teamworks (text message) and said, ‘Hey, sorry, we’re moving forward. Let’s go.’ To make sure everybody was on the same page. And that was done probably an hour after I got home, 30 minutes after I got home. For any of you that don’t believe it, Jeremy’s got it documented. And then I started breaking down this game to see what we did wrong, see what we can do better to fix it.”
Brown also talked to UNC athletic director Bubba Cunningham and chancellor Lee Roberts after the game. On Monday, he revealed the substance of those conversations.
“I told Bubba, I apologized. And the chancellor is great. I love Lee. Lee texted me after the game and said, ‘Sorry about the game. You don’t need to be apologizing to me.’
“I told Bubba, ‘I apologize. I shouldn’t have gotten emotional.’ I was trying to do what was right. I always try to do what’s right. I normally slow down when I get mad because I’m not a good person when I’m mad, I don’t handle things well. I don’t say the right stuff when I’m mad. I have a really bad temper, and I have learned that that’s why I get by myself and I keep my mouth shut when I’m mad after losses. In this time, it just grabbed me, and it was a mistake, like I said.”
Why is continuing on as UNC coach worth it?
“No, it would get me if I didn’t care. I mean, I care that much. I want to win. I want to do what’s right. I want this place to have good football. It’s what I came back for. And I want to teach the kids lessons, and I taught them one from a negative standpoint, so they can see what not to do from their coach. And that’s embarrassing to me. I shouldn’t have done that, but like I said, I can handle the weight on my shoulders. I messed it up. I admit it I messed it up. I’m moving forward with it after this conversation.”
