North Carolina football revives helmet stickers program

Sometimes to go forward, you need to go back.

After an eight-win season in 2022 and a nine-win effort in 2023, the North Carolina Tar Heels are pulling out all the stops this fall to win at least 10 games the first time since 2015 -- including bringing back an old helmet tradition.

In head coach Mack Brown's first stint leading the Tar Heels three decades ago, the team deployed a uniform-based reward system to motivate players. Strong performances would result in a player earning a small Tar Heel emblem sticker for their helmet, a popular tactic originally pioneered by legendary coach Bo Schembechler's Miami (Ohio) teams in the 1960s. Michigan, Ohio State and Florida State have been among the programs to adopt the sticker system over the years.

But by the time Brown returned to North Carolina in 2019, the tradition had fallen by the wayside in Chapel Hill. Now the veteran coach, entering his fourth season since returning in 2019, is bringing it back.

"There are some other teams in college football who do it, I like the way the decals pop out on their helmets," defensive end Kaimon Rucker told UNC Sports. "It gives them a little extra swag and style. We have a classy look -- the Tar Heel foot and the black mark on the heel. It's a little extra motivation and incentive."

Games with over 100 yards and unit Player of the Week honors are among the quantifiable accomplishments that can earn a player a sticker. One of the more subjective ways defensive players can obtain a decal? Efforts deemed "psycho plays" by new defensive coordinator Geoff Collins.

"That's for relentless effort, off the charts," Rucker explained. "You're playing out of your mind. It's like if you're out of a play, you sprint across the field and make psycho effort to get back in it."