NCAA Boycott of North Carolina Could Last Six Years

The UNC men’s basketball team spent Sunday in Greensboro dispatching of Notre Dame in front of a frenzied crowd after a water crisis forced the game to be moved from Chapel Hill.

UNC head coach Roy Williams said he would have preferred to play in Chapel Hill but that he was happy the fans in Greensboro got to see the game, because it may be their only chance this season.

“I’m glad we were able to take a game here because of that stupid rule that we have in our state that took a lot of great opportunities for people in our state and great athletes that like to do things in our state,” Williams said.

Williams was referring to House Bill 2, which was passed in a one-day special session last March. The law, which advocates have called the worst-piece of anti-LGBT legislation in the nation, requires transgender individuals to use the bathroom in government buildings that matches their birth certificate rather than their gender identity.

The law was also cited by the NCAA as why the organization decided to move championship events from the Tar Heel state. That included moving first and second round matchups of the upcoming NCAA men’s basketball tournament out of Greensboro.

That boycott of North Carolina may extend through at least the spring of 2022, according to a letter sent to North Carolina lawmakers.

The letter was signed by Scott Dupree, the executive director of the Greater Raleigh Sports Alliance and a member of the North Carolina Sports Association.

Dupree warned lawmakers that “North Carolina is on the brink of losing all NCAA Championship events for six consecutive years.”

Dupree wrote that different sites around North Carolina had submitted a total of 133 bids across varying sports for the upcoming NCAA decision cycle. The NCAA will not consider any of those applications, according to the letter.

That exclusion, Dupree wrote, could represent more than $250 million in potential economic impact.

The committee review of applications is set to begin in the next seven to 10 days, according to Dupree, meaning time may be running out for locations across the Tar Heel state to host NCAA championship events.

North Carolina Senate president pro tem Phil Berger issued a statement on Monday blaming the persistence of HB2 on Democratic Governor Roy Cooper, who was elected in November. Berger cited a decision by Democrats in the Senate, under the guidance of Cooper, to vote against a repeal of HB2 as it was coupled with another provision that would allow portions of the law to remain.

Cooper released a statement on Monday saying the upcoming deadline form the NCAA means, “there is no time to waste in repealing House Bill 2.”

Cooper called for a clean repeal of HB2, saying there would be enough bipartisan votes to rescind the law.

Berger has said in recent interviews that he does not anticipate a straight repeal of House Bill 2 to be voted on during the ongoing long legislative session.