Battle of Backbone Mountain

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Locations of North Carolina and Wake Forest.

The North Carolina–Wake Forest rivalry is a series of athletic contests between the University of North Carolina Tar Heels and the Wake Forest University Demon Deacons. The first football game between the two institutions was played in 1888.[1] As a consequence of ACC expansion in the 21st century, the two schools do not play each other annually in football, as they were placed in separate divisions and assigned different opponents for their "protected" (i.e., annual) cross-division games. North Carolina got rival NC State as their cross-divisional opponent, while Wake Forest got Duke, which allowed the Duke-Wake Forest rivalry to continue.

Football

History

The University of North Carolina and Wake Forest University have a long shared athletic history, having formerly been located in close proximity to one another, as Wake Forest was originally located in Wake Forest, North Carolina. In 1956, the university moved its campus across the state of North Carolina to its current location in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.

The football rivalry, first meeting in 1888, is the oldest intercollegiate football rivalry in the American state of North Carolina[1] As of 2021, there have been 109 games between the two teams. The 2019 and 2021 games were non-conference games and thus were not counted in the ACC standings.[2][3][4] This unusual occurrence of a non-conference regular season game between teams in the same conference has only occurred once before in the recent history of the major FBS conferences.[5]

Results

North Carolina victoriesWake Forest victoriesTiesForfeits
No.DateLocationWinnerScore
1 October 18, 1888 Raleigh Wake Forest 6–4
2 May 1, 1889 Raleigh North Carolina 33–0
3 November 22, 1889 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 18–8
4 November 10, 1899 Raleigh Wake Forest1†–0
5 November 18, 1893 Raleigh North Carolina 40–0
6 September 17, 1908 Chapel Hill North Carolina 17–0
7 October 2, 1909 Chapel Hill North Carolina 18–0
8 October 22, 1910 Chapel Hill North Carolina 37–0
9 October 7, 1911 Chapel Hill North Carolina 12–3
10 October 12, 1912 Chapel Hill North Carolina 9–2
11 September 27, 1913 Chapel Hill North Carolina 7–0
12 November 15, 1913 Durham North Carolina 29–0
13 October 8, 1914 Durham North Carolina 53–0
14 November 14, 1914 Raleigh North Carolina 12–7
15 October 9, 1915 Chapel Hill North Carolina 35–0
16 September 30, 1916 Chapel Hill North Carolina 20–0
17 October 18, 1919 Chapel Hill North Carolina 6–0
18 October 2, 1920 Chapel Hill North Carolina 6–0
19 October 1, 1921 Chapel Hill North Carolina 21–0
20 September 30, 1922 Goldsboro North Carolina 62–0
21 September 29, 1923 Chapel Hill North Carolina 22–0
22 September 27, 1924 Wake Forest Wake Forest 7–6
23 September 26, 1925 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 6–0
24 September 25, 1926 Wake Forest Wake Forest 13–0
25 September 24, 1927 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 9–8
26 September 29, 1928 Chapel Hill North Carolina 65–0
27 September 28, 1929 Chapel Hill North Carolina 48–0
28 September 27, 1930 Chapel Hill North Carolina 13–7
29 September 26, 1931 Chapel Hill North Carolina 37–0
30 September 24, 1932 Chapel Hill Tie0–0
31 November 11, 1933 Chapel Hill North Carolina 26–0
32 September 29, 1934 Chapel Hill North Carolina 21–0
33 September 28, 1935 Chapel Hill North Carolina 14–0
34 September 26, 1936 Charlotte North Carolina 14–7
35 October 16, 1937 Wake Forest North Carolina 28–0
36 September 24, 1938 Chapel Hill North Carolina 14–6
37 September 30, 1939 Chapel Hill North Carolina 36–6
38 September 28, 1940 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 12–0
39 October 25, 1941 Wake Forest Wake Forest 13–0
40 September 26, 1942 Chapel Hill North Carolina 6–0
41 September 23, 1944 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 7–0
42 November 17, 1945 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 14–13
43 November 16, 1946 Chapel Hill North Carolina 26–14
44 October 11, 1947 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 19–7
45 October 9, 1948 Wake Forest North Carolina 28–6
46 October 15, 1949 Chapel Hill North Carolina 28–14
47 October 14, 1950 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 13–7
48 October 27, 1951 Wake Forest Wake Forest 39–7
49 October 18, 1952 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 9–7
50 October 10, 1953 Wake Forest North Carolina 18–13
51 October 23, 1954 Chapel Hill North Carolina 14–7
52 October 22, 1955 Wake Forest Wake Forest 25–0
53 October 27, 1956 Chapel Hill Tie6–6
54 October 26, 1957 Winston-Salem North Carolina 14–7
55 October 25, 1958 Chapel Hill North Carolina 26–7
56 October 24, 1959 Winston-Salem North Carolina 21–19
No.DateLocationWinnerScore
57 October 15, 1960 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 13–12
58 November 25, 1961 Winston-Salem Wake Forest 17–14
59 October 27, 1962 Chapel Hill North Carolina 23–14
60 October 5, 1963 Winston-Salem North Carolina 21–0
61 October 3, 1964 Chapel Hill North Carolina 23–0
62 October 23, 1965 Winston-Salem Wake Forest 12–10
63 October 22, 1966 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 3–0
64 October 28, 1967 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 20–10
65 October 26, 1968 Winston-Salem Wake Forest 48–31
66 October 25, 1969 Chapel Hill North Carolina 23–3
67 October 24, 1970 Winston-Salem Wake Forest 14–13
68 October 23, 1971 Chapel Hill North Carolina 7–3
69 October 21, 1972 Winston-Salem North Carolina 21–0
70 November 17, 1973 Chapel Hill North Carolina 42–0
71 September 21, 1974 Winston-Salem North Carolina 31–0
72 November 1, 1975 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 21–9
73 October 30, 1976 Winston-Salem North Carolina 34–14
74 October 8, 1977 Chapel Hill North Carolina 24–3
75 October 14, 1978 Winston-Salem North Carolina 34–29
76 October 13, 1979 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 24–19
77 October 11, 1980 Winston-Salem North Carolina 27–9
78 October 10, 1981 Chapel Hill North Carolina 48–10
79 October 9, 1982 Winston-Salem North Carolina 24–7
80 October 8, 1983 Chapel Hill North Carolina 30–10
81 October 13, 1984 Winston-Salem Wake Forest 14–3
82 October 12, 1985 Chapel Hill North Carolina 34–14
83 October 11, 1986 Winston-Salem North Carolina 40–30
84 October 10, 1987 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 22–14
85 October 8, 1988 Winston-Salem Wake Forest 42–24
86 October 7, 1989 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 17–16
87 October 6, 1990 Winston-Salem North Carolina 31–24
88 October 12, 1991 Chapel Hill North Carolina 24–10
89 September 5, 1992 Winston-Salem North Carolina 35–17
90 October 9, 1993 Chapel Hill North Carolina 45–35
91 November 12, 1994 Winston-Salem North Carolina 50–0
92 October 21, 1995 Chapel Hill North Carolina 31–7
93 October 5, 1996 Winston-Salem North Carolina 45–6
94 October 11, 1997 Chapel Hill North Carolina 30–12
95 October 24, 1998 Winston-Salem North Carolina 38–31
96 November 6, 1999 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 19–3
97 September 9, 2000 Winston-Salem North Carolina 35–14
98 November 10, 2001 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 32–31
99 October 26, 2002 Winston-Salem Wake Forest 31–0
100 November 8, 2003 Chapel Hill North Carolina 42–34
101 November 13, 2004 Winston-Salem North Carolina 31–24
102 October 28, 2006 Chapel Hill Wake Forest 24–17
103 October 27, 2007 Winston-Salem Wake Forest 37–10
104 October 29, 2011 Chapel Hill North Carolina 49–24
105 September 8, 2012 Winston-Salem Wake Forest 28–27
106 October 17, 2015 Chapel Hill North Carolina 50–14
107 September 13, 2019 Winston-Salem Wake Forest 24–18
108 November 14, 2020 Chapel Hill North Carolina 59–53
109 November 6, 2021 Chapel Hill North Carolina 58–55
110 November 12, 2022 Winston-Salem #15 North Carolina 36–34
Series: North Carolina leads 72–36–2
† North Carolina had to forfeit.

Notable Games

2001

The Tar Heels built a 24–0 first-half lead behind a phenomenal performance by freshman quarterback Darian Durant, who threw for a freshmen school record 361 yards. Carolina looked in control taking a 31–14 lead into the fourth quarter after Durant threw his fourth touchdown pass of the game. Then things began to unravel for the Tar Heels. After the Deacons cut the lead to 7, the Tar Heels snapped the ball out of the back of the end zone for a safety, cutting the lead to 31–26 with 4:49 left in the game. Wake Forest put together a 59-yard drive, capped by a 1-yard touchdown run by quarterback James MacPherson with just over a minute remaining. The Tar Heels’ final chance fell short as Wake safety Quinton Williams forced a Darian Durant fumble with 45 seconds remaining, and the Deacons won 32–31. The 24-point comeback was one of the largest in ACC history.[6]

2021

Wake Forest entered the game 8–0 for the first time in program history and ranked #9 in the College Football Playoff rankings and #10 in the AP Poll, both rankings being the highest in program history. The game featured an explosion of offense as the teams combined for 1,161 total yards. With 7:38 remaining in the third quarter, Wake Forest quarterback Sam Hartman connected with receiver A.T. Perry on a 66 yard touchdown pass, which gave the Demon Deacons a 45–27 lead. Over the next 21 minutes of the game, North Carolina went on a 31–3 run which included three rushing touchdowns by running back Ty Chandler, who finished the game with career highs of 213 yards and four touchdowns. After Carolina cut the lead to seven with 10:40 left in the game, Tar Heel safety Cam'Ron Kelly intercepted Hartman for the second time of the game. The Tar Heels quickly scored, tying the game at 48–48. The Tar Heel defense forced two consecutive turnovers on downs as Carolina erased a 14-point fourth quarter deficit, ultimately winning the game 58–55. With the win, the Tar Heels notched their first home win against a top-ten opponent since defeating #3 Miami in 2004.[7]

See also

Men's basketball

Carolina currently leads the series 164–70.

The rivalry dates back to when Wake Forest was in Wake Forest, NC, and was only a short distance from UNC's campus. The rivalry that grew between the two schools became very intense, with fights breaking out on the court in certain match ups. Their rivalry eventually expanded into the Big Four with NC State and Duke, which are recognized as being some of the fiercest rivalries in NCAA men's basketball.

Over the years there have been many classic and exciting games in this series. In 1983, UNC came back from behind to win 80–78 at the Greensboro Coliseum. In 1995, the two teams faced each other in the ACC Tournament Championship game. Wake won behind center Tim Duncan and shooting guard Randolph Childress who made the go-ahead basket in an 82–80 overtime win.

North Carolina victoriesWake Forest victories
No.DateWinnerScore
11910–11 North Carolina 31–28
21910–11 Wake Forest 38–16
31911–12 North Carolina 18–15
41912–13 Wake Forest 22–21
51912–13 North Carolina 19–15
61913–14 North Carolina 28–24
71913–14 Wake Forest 39–30
81913–14 Wake Forest 32–29
91914–15 Wake Forest 26–23
101914–15 North Carolina 32–20
111914–15 Wake Forest 30–25
121915–16 Wake Forest 27–22
131918–19 North Carolina 30–17
141921–22 North Carolina 41–27
151921–22 North Carolina 32–28
161922–23 North Carolina 38–26
171922–23 North Carolina 25–23
181923–24 North Carolina 32–16
191923–24 North Carolina 33–12
201924–25 North Carolina 22–18
211924–25 North Carolina 44–24
221925–26 Wake Forest 29–28
231925–26 North Carolina 32–22
241926–27 Wake Forest 30–23
251926–27 North Carolina 32–26
261927–28 North Carolina 38–22
271927–28 North Carolina 29–17
281928–29 North Carolina 42–19
291928–29 North Carolina 34–10
301929–30 North Carolina 49–18
311929–30 North Carolina 37–15
321930–31 North Carolina 30–13
331930–31 North Carolina 45–25
341931–32 North Carolina 32–17
351931–32 North Carolina 34–24
361932–33 North Carolina 36–33
371932–33 North Carolina 38–26
381933–34 North Carolina 41–21
391933–34 North Carolina 41–21
401934–35 North Carolina 31–11
411934–35 North Carolina 32–21
421935–36 North Carolina 26–19
431935–36 North Carolina 32–23
441936–37 Wake Forest 24–23
451936–37 North Carolina 31–30
461936–37 North Carolina 37–35
471937–38 North Carolina 31–26
481937–38 Wake Forest 44–34
491938–39 Wake Forest 57–37
501938–39 North Carolina 56–54
511939–40 North Carolina 54–51
521939–40 Wake Forest 42–36
531939–40 North Carolina 43–35
541940–41 North Carolina 61–45
551940–41 North Carolina 43–40
561941–42 Wake Forest 36–20
571941–42 North Carolina 51–30
581941–42 Wake Forest 32–26
591942–43 North Carolina 49–37
601942–43 North Carolina 32–31
611944–45 North Carolina 65–29
621944–45 North Carolina 65–40
631945–46 North Carolina 70–47
641945–46 North Carolina 61–32
651945–46 Wake Forest 31–29
661946–47 North Carolina 70–49
671946–47 North Carolina 54–46
681947–48 North Carolina 56–35
691947–48 Wake Forest 53–37
701948–49 North Carolina 55–50
711948–49 North Carolina 69–54
721949–50 North Carolina 54–50
731949–50 Wake Forest 57–54
741950–51 North Carolina 65–56
751950–51 North Carolina 82–70
761951–52 Wake Forest 55–53
771951–52 Wake Forest 55–46
781952–53 North Carolina 72–68
791952–53 Wake Forest 89–63
No.DateWinnerScore
801953–54 North Carolina 66–65
811953–54 Wake Forest 76–62
821954–55 North Carolina 95–79
831954–55 North Carolina 83–79
841954–55 Wake Forest 95–82
851955–56 Wake Forest 76–71
861955–56 North Carolina 77–73
871955–56 Wake Forest 77–56
881956–57 North Carolina 63–55
891956–57 North Carolina 72–69
901956–57 North Carolina 69–64
911956–57 North Carolina 61–59
921957–58 North Carolina 71–45
931957–58 North Carolina 60–57
941958–59 North Carolina 44–34
951958–59 North Carolina 75–66
961959–60 Wake Forest 53–50
971959–60 North Carolina 62–59
981959–60 Wake Forest 80–69
991960–61 North Carolina 83–74
1001960–61 North Carolina 93–78
1011961–62 Wake Forest 91–72
1021961–62 Wake Forest 87–80
1031962–63 Wake Forest 78–70
1041962–63 Wake Forest 72–71
1051962–63 Wake Forest 56–55
1061963–64 Wake Forest 80–71
1071963–64 North Carolina 81–73
1081964–65 Wake Forest 107–85
1091964–65 North Carolina 107–91
1101964–65 Wake Forest 92–76
1111965–66 North Carolina 99–83
1121965–66 North Carolina 115–87
1131966–67 North Carolina 76–74
1141966–67 North Carolina 75–73
1151966–67 North Carolina 89–79
1161967–68 North Carolina 74–62
1171967–68 North Carolina 80–60
1181967–68 North Carolina 83–70
1191968–69 North Carolina 94–89
1201968–69 North Carolina 84–76
1211968–69 North Carolina 80–72
1221969–70 Wake Forest 91–90
1231969–70 Wake Forest 88–85
1241970–71 Wake Forest 96–84
1251970–71 North Carolina 93–75
1261971–72 North Carolina 99–76
1271971–72 North Carolina 92–72
1281971–72 North Carolina 71–59
1291972–73 North Carolina 99–80
1301972–73 North Carolina 69–51
1311972–73 Wake Forest 54–52
1321973–74 North Carolina 95–78
1331973–74 North Carolina 77–67
1341973–74 North Carolina 76–62
1351974–75 North Carolina 80–78
1361974–75 North Carolina 101–91
1371974–75 North Carolina 101–100
1381975–76 Wake Forest 95–83
1391975–76 North Carolina 99–74
1401975–76 North Carolina 88–85
1411976–77 Wake Forest 97–96
1421976–77 North Carolina 77–75
1431976–77 Wake Forest 67–66
1441977–78 North Carolina 71–69
1451977–78 Wake Forest 71–62
1461977–78 Wake Forest 82–77
1471978–79 North Carolina 73–55
1481978–79 Wake Forest 59–56
1491978–79 North Carolina 76–69
1501979–80 North Carolina 72–68
1511979–80 North Carolina 73–61
1521979–80 North Carolina 75–62
1531980–81 Wake Forest 82–71
1541980–81 North Carolina 74–60
1551980–81 Wake Forest 84–68
1561980–81 North Carolina 58–57
1571981–82 Wake Forest 55–48
1581981–82 North Carolina 69–51
No.DateWinnerScore
1591982–83 North Carolina 58–57
1601982–83 North Carolina 58–57
1611983–84 North Carolina 70–62
1621983–84 North Carolina 100–63
1631984–85 North Carolina 79–73
1641984–85 North Carolina 69–59
1651984–85 North Carolina 72–61
1661985–86 North Carolina 89–65
1671985–86 North Carolina 91–62
1681986–87 North Carolina 79–53
1691986–87 North Carolina 94–85
1701987–88 Wake Forest 83–80
1711987–88 North Carolina 80–62
1721987–88 North Carolina 83–62
1731988–89 North Carolina 88–74
1741988–89 North Carolina 99–76
1751989–90 North Carolina 73–61
1761989–90 North Carolina 72–67
1771990–91 North Carolina 91–81
1781990–91 North Carolina 85–70
1791991–92 North Carolina 90–79
1801991–92 North Carolina 80–78
1811991–92 North Carolina 80–65
1821992–93 Wake Forest 88–62
1831992–93 North Carolina 83–65
1841993–94 North Carolina 85–61
1851993–94 Wake Forest 68–61
1861993–94 North Carolina 86–84
1871994–95 North Carolina 62–61
1881994–95 Wake Forest 79–70
1891994–95 Wake Forest 82–80
1901995–96 North Carolina 65–59
1911995–96 Wake Forest 84–60
1921996–97 Wake Forest 81–57
1931996–97 North Carolina 74–60
1941996–97 North Carolina 86–73
1951997–98 North Carolina 79–73
1961997–98 North Carolina 72–53
1971998–99 North Carolina 52–40
1981998–99 North Carolina 68–65
1991999–00 Wake Forest 66–57
2001999–00 North Carolina 87–64
2011999–00 Wake Forest 58–52
2022000–01 North Carolina 70–69
2032000–01 North Carolina 80–74
2042001–02 Wake Forest 84–62
2052001–02 Wake Forest 90–66
2062002–03 Wake Forest 79–75
2072002–03 Wake Forest 75–60
2082003–04 Wake Forest 119–114
2092003–04 North Carolina 79–73
2102004–05 Wake Forest 95–82
2112005–06 North Carolina 83–72
2122006–07 North Carolina 88–60
2132006–07 North Carolina 104–67
2142007–08 North Carolina 89–73
2152008–09 Wake Forest 92–89
2162009–10 Wake Forest 82–69
2172009–10 North Carolina 77–68
2182010–11 North Carolina 78–64
2192011–12 North Carolina 68–53
2202012–13 North Carolina 87–62
2212013–14 Wake Forest 73–67
2222013–14 North Carolina 105–72
2232014–15 North Carolina 87–71
2242015–16 North Carolina 83–68
2252016–17 North Carolina 93–87
2262017–18 North Carolina 73–69
2272018–19 North Carolina 95–57
2282019–20 Wake Forest 74–57
2292019–20 North Carolina 93–83
2302020–21 North Carolina 80–73
2312021–22 Wake Forest 98–76
2322022–23 North Carolina 88–79
2332022–23 Wake Forest 92–85
2342023–24 North Carolina 85–64
Series: North Carolina leads 165–69

References

  1. ^ a b "Old Rivalry Renewed As Deacs Invade Carolina". The Dispatch, Lexington NC. October 23, 1954.
  2. ^ "2012 Wake Forest Football Media Guide".
  3. ^ "2015 North Carolina Football Yearbook" (PDF).
  4. ^ "UNC, Wake Forest Schedule Non–Conference Football Series". 26 January 2015.
  5. ^ "California Golden Bears Football Schedule". University of California at Berkeley Department of Athletics. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
  6. ^ "Wake Forest Comes All The Way Back To Beat UNC, 32–31". Godeacs. Retrieved November 13, 2021.
  7. ^ "Chandler, Tar Heels rally past No. 10 Demon Deacons, 58–55". ESPN. Retrieved November 10, 2021.
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Carolina%E2%80%93Wake_Forest_rivalry