North Carolina orders throwback uniforms from 1980 season

North Carolina might be going old school in 2025. According to Inside Carolina, the Tar Heels have ordered a set of throwback uniforms from the 1980 season to potentially wear this fall during Bill Belichick’s innaugural season as head coach.

UNC finished the 1980 college football season with an 11-1 record. North Carolina has won 11 games in a single season twice since then — but 1980 was the last time the Tar Heels won the ACC. Taylor Vippolis shared a few shots from the season finale, a win over Texas 16-7.

Bill Belichick and North Carolina have ordered throwback uniforms from the 1980 season, when the Tar Heels finished 11-1, with the hope of debuting them this season, according to sources at @InsideCarolina. pic.twitter.com/J8Wcqivpym

— Taylor Vippolis (@tvippolis) August 6, 2025

The Carolina blue uniforms have big block letters that take up almost the entirety of the front and back of the uniform. Numbers are facing outward on both shoulders, and two rings appear on both sleeves. The helmet are the cherry on top — the throwback U-N-C stair-step logo on the helmet, along with incentive/achievement stickers.

1980 was the third season for Carolina under head coach Dick Crum. The captain of the team — eventual Pro Football Hall of Famer in Lawrence Taylor. Taylor led the way with a whopping 16 sacks during the 1980 campaign as well as a consensus All-American. He went second overall in the 1981 NFL Draft.

Belichick is bringing these back likely in the hope for Carolina returning to the ACC glory it hasn’t tasted in over four decades. UNC finished 2024 with a 6-7 record.

And while winning the conference championship seems like a lofty goal for the Tar Heels — there’s a whole new regime running things in Chapel Hill. Belichick has brought in 42 players from the NCAA transfer portal, and has brought in largely a brand new staff to help turn the program around.

Belichick isn’t ordering these throwback jerseys for fun, though. The six-time Super Bowl-winning head coach isn’t the losing type. Wearing those uniforms could be a form of motivation for his players. If they start out the season on the wrong foot — perhaps they wait to re-debut them. That remains to be seen, but it’s clear the new Carolina head coach is sending the statement to his players that he expects them to perform at the highest level this fall.

That effort will begin in just a few short weeks as North Carolina will kick off its 2025 season against TCU on Monday, Sept. 1. The game will be aired live on ESPN with kickoff set for 8 p.m. ET.