Legendary ACC head coach Bill Dooley passed away on Tuesday morning.
Dooley, 82, coached for North Carolina, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest in a career that spanned 26 years and 161 games overall. He won multiple ACC championships with UNC, as well as ACC Coach of the Year.
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His family released a statement through the University of North Carolina.
“Coach Bill Dooley passed away this morning,” the statement read. “He will be missed by his family and friends and will be remembered by all of us whose lives he has touched so deeply.”
Everyone at UNC mourns the passing of legendary coach Bill Dooley, who died today at 82. https://t.co/gkyLt6FGOe pic.twitter.com/egFB90Jysd
— Carolina Football (@TarHeelFootball) August 9, 2016
According to the release, he died of natural causes in Wilmington, N.C.
During his coaching career at UNC, from 1967-77, he set a university record for wins with his 69-53-2 record. Dick Crum, who won 72 games (1978-87), went on to surpass the record and Mack Brown (1988-97) tied it.
He is the only football coach with the program to win multiple Atlantic Coast Conference championships, doing so in 1971, ’72 and ’77. He took the team to six postseason bowl games. His team finished in the Associated Press top 20 twice (12th in 1972, 17th in 1977) and in the UPI top 20 three times (18th in 1971, tied 14th in 1972 and 14th in 1977). He won ACC Coach of the Year in 1971, going 9-3 and winning the championship.
Under Dooley, the Tar Heels set the school record for wins in a season, going 11-1 in 1972. He went on to become head coach and director of athletics at Virginia Tech in 1978.
He coached there until 1986, earning a record of 63-38-1. He then coached at Wake Forest (1987-92, 29-36-2 record).
“Coach Dooley was a great coach and an even better man who made a lasting impact on this university and on college football as a whole,” Carolina head coach Larry Fedora said. “He touched the lives of the young men who played for him in a profound and special way. He proved that Carolina was a program that could produce a winning tradition and his legacy is something we strive to uphold each and every day. Our thoughts are with Marie and the entire Dooley family in this very difficult time.”
He posted an overall career record of 161-127-5.