It still feels weird to say, but Hubert Davis is out as head coach at North Carolina. In recent days, Davis reportedly made it quite clear to Bubba Cunningham and others that he wanted to stay put and get the Tar Heels back to the level the program belongs.
Hubert Davis' son takes parting shot at UNC with new social media post
That didn't happen, with his firing finally getting announced. So, what ended up sending things over the top? According to reporter Greg Barnes of Inside Carolina, the loss to VCU infuriated key donors. Barnes' sources told him funding for an 'adequate' roster next season would have been made difficult for UNC if Davis would have stayed on board. So, did this play a huge role in the latest decision? You bet.
Support among key donors, which was already teetering near the end of the season, cratered for Hubert Davis after UNC's collapse to VCU in the NCAAT. It would have been difficult to raise enough money to field an adequate roster for 2026-27 without a coaching change, per sources.
— Greg Barnes (@GSBarnes23) March 25, 2026
UNC donors played a large role in Hubert Davis getting fired by the Tar Heels
Unfortunately, we can't say we're surprised by this.
The loss to VCU was downright inexcusable and it had everyone livid. Blowing a 19-point lead in the first round of the NCAA Tournament is never going to be acceptable and the fact that Davis' seat was heating up only made things worse for him.
At the end of the day, this is North Carolina and the back-to-back seasons where the Heels did not live up to expectations in the postseason had anger growing in Chapel Hill. It just sucks that Caleb Wilson suffered his freak injury too.
Wilson broke his hand against Miami, but he was on the verge of returning to take on Duke in the regular-season finale. Instead, he broke his thumb dunking in practice and his season was over in a flash. After that injury, UNC went on to lose to Duke, Clemson and VCU to close out the campaign.
We never want to play the 'what if' game, but if Wilson was fully healthy, it's hard not to think about Carolina playing in the Sweet 16 right now. That's not the case and Davis is now going to be looking for a new job, as he wants to keep on coaching.
Davis is a Tar Heel through and through and he's always going to be a program legend. He represented the university the right way and it's something fans will always cherish him for. With that said, North Carolina wants to get back to playing for titles and the decision was made to move in a different direction. From the looks of it, donors added extra pressure for this difficult call to be made as well.