4:35PM: UNC Athletic Director Bubba Cunningham issued a statement about scrapping the new policy on the Victory Bell.

Original Article: Chansky’s Notebook: Belled Over

The new bell has got to go.

Seriously now, does anyone think the newly non-ecumenical Victory Bell is going to remain the way it is now? When you worship either Carolina Blue or royal blue, you are just not going to meet in the middle, as the new paint job does.

Whichever team wins Thursday night in Durham will somehow find a way to rid the bell’s platform of the alt color and logo of the rival school. By decree of the head coaches and athletic directors, it may not happen on the field at Wallace Wade Stadium, thanks to the Tar Heels’ painting spree in 2014 after their 45-20 romp that cost Larry Fedora and Bubba Cunningham 13-plus grand each out of their own personal checkbooks.

So no spray cans will be allowed on either sideline and no $22,000 carpet (ahem!) will have to be replaced in the visitors’ locker room. But, should UNC win its third straight game over the Dukies, that bell is going to lose its devilish logos and dark paint before it crosses the Orange County line. Even if the team bus has to be stopped by the pranking Chapel Hill police.

It will be nice to retain the bell for like the 23nd time in the last 26 seasons, but imagine having to look at it that way for an entire year? A better idea might have been to paint one side of a flat platform light blue and the other side dark, so it can be turned over with the losing side eating dirt until they meet again.
Cunningham and Duke AD Kevin White eventually came up with the new-tral design. What’s the next move, take off the pads and helmets and play flag football? This is a bell meant to be seen and heard by only the winning team, covered in only the winning team’s colors. It’s been that way before there was an ACC, since Choo Choo was swivel-hipping his way down the field.

Fedora played dumb when asked about the bell this week, even though he and Bubba bristled at the da Vinci-like invoice the Dukies sent over two years ago. Fedora says there will be no painting, win or lose, after the game. Let’s make that right after the game.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Related Stories
‹
UNC Football Hoping To Take Third Straight Win Over Rival Duke
Carolina’s home game with Duke marks the first of a three-game homestand in Kenan Stadium for the Tar Heels. UNC is favored against the Blue Devils and should be favored again next week against Florida State. To get their season back on track, these next three home games all stand as must-wins for […]
Chansky's Notebook: Reclamation Problems
The Victory Bell transfer needs some rules, don’t you think? The last two times Carolina took back the Victory Bell from Duke, it didn’t happen without incident. Much to the chagrin of UNC coaches and athletic brass who have to pay for it, sometimes literally. Duke has won back the bell so infrequently that the […]
Chansky's Notebook: Fast Start, Ugly Finish
The shootout in Durham turned pop-gun match in the second half. How frustrating was Carolina’s loss to Duke Saturday at revamped Wallace Wade Stadium? Thanks to millions pumped into David Cutcliffe’s program and his recruitment of better players than they have had in past decades, the Blue Devils have a program worthy of the Blue […]
Here's a List of Which Transfers Have Committed to UNC Football in 2026
The college football transfer portal opened Friday, Jan. 2 and closed Friday, Jan. 16. Here’s a list of players who have committed to head coach Bill Belichick and UNC out of the portal so far, with their classes for the 2026 season: QB Billy Edwards, Jr. (Most recent school: Wisconsin, redshirt senior) Ranked 3rd in […]
Tributes Pour In After James Spurling, Director of Kenan Stadium, Dies at 68
James Spurling, who served as the Director of Kenan Stadium and the Kenan Football Center in the heart of the UNC campus since 2006 and had been a Chapel Hill staple for many years prior, died Thursday. He was 68 years old. Tributes flooded in from across the Chapel Hill and UNC sports communities following […]
Financial Report Shows UNC Athletics Operated at $15 Million Deficit in 2024-25 Year
The newest financial report from the UNC athletic department to the NCAA shows the department operated at a deficit of more than $15 million during the 2024-25 fiscal year. The department reported revenues of $172,951,034 and reported expenses of $187,967,260. The UNC athletic department had operated at a profit in each of the past three […]
On Air Today: The 2026 DTH-Chron Rivalry Challenge!
The annual DTH vs Chron Rivalry Challenge is a UNC-Duke competition to see which fan base can donate the most to student journalism.
'Hard to Imagine': Newmark, Lombardi, Others Share Disbelief at Bill Belichick Hall of Fame Vote
UNC football general manager Michael Lombardi and athletic-director-in-waiting Steve Newmark were among many sports figures to share their disappointment and surprise at reports that head coach Bill Belichick was not voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame on his first ballot. An ESPN report published Tuesday night indicated Belichick, currently between his first and […]
Chansky's Notebook: Sophomore Slippage
UNC's schedule for the 2026 football season is out, and Art Chansky says it is very, very bad news for Bill Belichick's second year.
Schedule Set for UNC Football's 2026 Season
The UNC football program now has its complete schedule for the 2026 season. The ACC revealed all of the league members’ schedules Monday night. Your 2026 North Carolina Football Schedule. 🐏 🔗: https://t.co/VQdkI47r8n🎟️: https://t.co/XERIbvZEH8 pic.twitter.com/6Zb5uSn1y3 — Carolina Football (@UNCFootball) January 26, 2026 UNC will open the season in Dublin, Ireland against TCU as part of […]
›