UNC coaching search: Bubba Cunningham details steps ahead after firing Hubert Davis

Amid rampant speculation, North Carolina and head coach Hubert Davis parted ways after five seasons Tuesday night.

Across Davis’ tenure in Chapel Hill, the Tar Heels compiled a 125-54 (68-30) record and made a run to the 2022 National Championship Game. However, the program has failed to advance past the First Round of the NCAA Tournament in both of the past two seasons. This led to many believing a change was on the horizon for the program, and that came to fruition on Tuesday.

Now, North Carolina will be conducting an outside search for a head coach for the first time since it poached Basketball Hall of Famer Roy Williams from Kansas prior to the 2003-04 season. During an appearance on ‘Carolina Insider’ on Wednesday, AD Bubba Cunningham detailed the immediate steps ahead following Davis’ departure.

“Well, we know we’ve got the most highly sought after job in the country,” Cunningham said. “I mean, the history, the tradition, and the success of this program is second-to-none. We will be inundated with requests for consideration. The first thing we’re going to do, which we’ve already done, is to be contracted with Turnkey Sports. Chad Chatlos is going to assist us in the search. That will be the process. A lot of people say ‘you should know all the coaches’ and ‘you should be able to do that’. Well, when a job like this comes open, there are so many requests.”

Bubba Cunningham, administration plan to ‘tap into the incredible tradition’ of UNC

There’s no question North Carolina is one of the most coveted jobs in all of college basketball. The program boasts 2,419 wins all-time (third most in NCAA history) and six National Championships (T-third most in NCAA history). Following Davis’ shortcomings at the program, a slam-dunk hire is crucial for Cunningham and Carolina’s administration.

“You really want to get back to people and have respect for what they’re trying to bring to you. So, it does help us filter that. Certainly, we’ve talked about, and will continue to talk about, potential candidates and a timeline and the entire process. Having an outside firm be shelter or shield to really screen a lot of the calls coming will be helpful for us.

“In addition to that, we’re going to tap into the incredible tradition of Carolina basketball. Whether that’s coaches, players, or former coaches who have great knowledge of the history of this place and have had a lot of experience in college basketball.”

Whoever North Carolina brings on to lead the program into its next era will face lofty expectations, as the program has employed just five head coaches since 1961. Two of those five head coaches, Dean Smith and Roy Williams, are in the Basketball Hall of Fame.