Mack Brown: 'We shouldn't ever be critical of kids'

North Carolina fans are frustrated after the Tar Heels lost their second-straight game on Saturday. On Monday, head coach Mack Brown implored fans to not attack the players for the team’s recent shortcomings but criticize him instead.

“People should be critical of me. We shouldn’t ever be critical of kids,” Brown said. “They are trying their best. They’re working really hard. They work so hard. Oh my gosh, to work that hard and be that disappointed. I mean, you can’t imagine how hard they work.”

North Carolina’s hard work was unable to boost them to victory on Saturday against Duke. With just under six minutes left in the fourth quarter, the Blue Devils scored to take a 21-20 lead.

North Carolina had two more possessions in the game but failed to score on either of them. Duke’s Tre Freeman picked off UNC quarterback Jacolby Criswell on the Tar Heels’ final drive to effectively end the game.

Although it was North Carolina’s only turnover of the game, it was far from the team’s only mistake. In the loss, the Tar Heels committed 10 penalties, resulting in 84 total yards lost. It was the first time the Tar Heels have lost to their in-state rival since 2018.

Now, Mack Brown is determined to help his team get back on track.

“What you do is you go back to work,” Brown said. “Some of it we can fix. Some of it we have to change. We can’t fix. We don’t have free agency. So, I told the coaches, ‘Don’t blame players. That doesn’t work.
You got them all here. You’ve had them since January.’

“So let’s pull together. Let’s get tougher. Let’s make sure that we’re doing the things that are best for our football program. We got a huge challenge this weekend. Are the negatives out there? Yeah, for every guy in the country that lost yesterday or Saturday. Does it matter? No.

“Taking care of the kids is most important, teaching them lessons is the second most important thing and winning is the third because you don’t get to keep your job unless you win.”

On Saturday, Mack Brown and Co. have a chance to bounce back as they square off against Pittsburgh at noon ET. The game will air live on ESPN2.