Anson Dorrance has stepped down as the head coach of the North Carolina women’s team after 45 seasons.
He leaves with 21 NCAA championships, the most ever by a head coach in any NCAA Division I sport.
Dorrance, 73, informed his players of the decision on Sunday, four days before the start of the 2024 season at Denver. Assistant Damon Nahas will serve as interim head coach.
“As many of you know I modeled our program after Dean Smith‘s basketball program, and retiring at this time is a credit to his thinking, as well,” says Dorrance. “He would re-evaluate his tenure, not after the season, but after he had time to recharge his batteries prior to the next season. When he didn’t, he retired. After last season I initially was excited about the chance to bolster our roster, which we most certainly have done, but as preseason training camp went on, I realized I didn’t have the same energy it takes to give 100% to this year’s team. The players and staff, the university, Carolina athletics and our great fans deserve more, and the respect I have for the amazing legacy the current and former players have built led me to make this decision at this time.”
UNC had unprecedented turnover after the 2023 season, having 11 players turn pro, including Ally Sentnor and Savy King, taken with the top two picks in the 2024 NWSL Draft.
In 2008, Dorrance was included into the National Soccer Hall of Fame, where he is joined by eight former UNC players: Mia Hamm, Kristine Lilly, Linda Hamilton, April Heinrichs, Carla Werden (Overbeck), Shannon Higgins, Cindy Parlow (Cone) and Tisha Venturini (Hoch),
Dorrance’s announcement comes a day after two former players, Crystal Dunn and Emily Fox, started for the USA in its 1-0 win over Brazil in the 2024 women’s soccer gold-medal game at the Paris Olympics. All five U.S, gold-medal teams have had at least two UNC players. Fourteen Tar Heels have won Olympic 21 gold medals.
A year earlier, England finished second at the Women’s World Cup with a team that was coached by former Tar Heel Sarina Wiegman and featured two former UNC players in the starting lineup, Lucy Bronze and Alessia Russo.
Dorrance coached the USA to the 1991 Women’s World Cup title in China with a team that featured six Carolina products in the starting lineup. Ten Tar Heels have started on 14 world championship teams.
Dorrance leaves with a 934-88-53 record in 45 women’s seasons (1979-2023). He also was head coach of the men’s soccer team from 1977-88, winning 172 games and guiding UNC to an ACC title and NCAA final four berth in 1987. His teams won a combined 1,106 games over 47 years.
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Publish date : 2024-08-11 11:34:00
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