Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Source |
---|
September 12 | 1:00 p.m. | East Carolina* | No. 13 | | | W 56–0 | 51,300 | [2] |
September 19 | 1:00 p.m. | Miami (OH)* | No. 10 | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC
| | W 49–7 | 49,500 | [3] |
September 26 | 1:00 p.m. | Boston College* | No. 9 | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC
| | W 56–14 | 48,000 | [4] |
October 3 | 1:30 p.m. | at Georgia Tech* | No. 6 | | | W 28–7 | 39,263 | [5] |
October 10 | 1:00 p.m. | Wake Forest | No. 5 | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC (rivalry)
| | W 48–10 | 51,692 | [6] |
October 17 | 1:00 p.m. | at NC State | No. 4 | | | W 21–10 | 56,200 | [7] |
October 24 | 1:00 p.m. | South Carolina* | No. 3 | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC (rivalry)
| | L 13–31 | 50,500 | [8] |
October 31 | 1:30 p.m. | at Maryland | No. 9 | | | W 17–10 | 32,100 | [9] |
November 7 | 12:30 p.m. | No. 2 Clemson | No. 8 | - Kenan Memorial Stadium
- Chapel Hill, NC
| ABC | L 8–10 | 53,611 | [10] |
November 14 | 1:30 p.m. | at Virginia | No. 13 | | | W 17–14 | 30,047 | [11] |
November 21 | 1:30 p.m. | at Duke | No. 12 | | | W 31–10 | 38,525 | [12] |
| 9:00 p.m. | vs. Arkansas* | No. 11 | | ABC | W 31–27 | 71,009 | [13] |
- *Non-conference game
- Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
- All times are in Eastern time
|
1981 North Carolina Tar Heels football team roster
|
Players
|
Coaches
|
Offense
|
Defense
|
Special teams
|
- Head coach
- Coordinators/assistant coaches
- Legend
- (C) Team captain
- (S) Suspended
- (I) Ineligible
- Injured
- Redshirt
|
- ^ "1981 North Carolina Tar Heels Schedule and Results | College Football at Sports-Reference.com". sports-reference.com. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
- ^ "Bryant's 6 TDs paste Pirates". The News and Observer. September 13, 1981. Retrieved March 4, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Miami is run over at/by Heels, 49–7". The Cincinnati Enquirer. September 20, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Bryant's 4 Touchdowns Lead North Carolina". The Palm Beach Post. September 27, 1981. p. E6 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Heels take tough one from Tech". Winston-Salem Journal. October 4, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tar Heels crush Deacons, 48–10". Anderson Independent-Mail. October 11, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "UNC rallies for victory, 21–10". Johnson City Press-Chronicle. October 18, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Gamecocks upset 'Heels". The Tampa Tribune. October 25, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tar Heel bench scuttles Maryland by 17–10". The Daily Times. November 1, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tigers top Tar Heels". Florence Morning News. November 8, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tar Heels sneak past Cavaliers". Greensboro News & Record. November 15, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Tar Heels gain Gator Bowl bid". Fort Lauderdale News. November 22, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "North Carolina fogs Arkansas in Gator Bowl". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. December 29, 1981. Retrieved January 28, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.