North Carolina vs. Pittsburgh

North Carolina and Pittsburgh have 19 meetings on file, the first in 1974; North Carolina leads the series 13–⁠6 in the games on file. Over the last 10 meetings it’s North Carolina 7–⁠3.

North Carolina wins
13
Pittsburgh wins
6
Ties
0
Earliest on file
1974
Longest streak
6 North Carolina
Current streak
1 North Carolina
Last 10 meetings
North Carolina 7–⁠3
Most recent
2026

The series at a glance

Every meeting by decade, colored by the winner
’0’1’2’3’4’5’6’7’8’9W–L
1970s2–⁠1
1980s0–⁠1
1990s1–⁠0
2000s1–⁠1
2010s6–⁠1
2020s3–⁠2
Both ranked
1 meeting: North Carolina 0, Pittsburgh 1; 1 both in the top 10
Average margin
7.6 points; 13 decided by one score (8 or fewer)
At North Carolina
7–⁠1 North Carolina’s record at home
At Pittsburgh
4–⁠6 Pittsburgh’s record at home
Neutral sites
0–⁠1 North Carolina first

Every meeting on file, as played. Ranks are the AP poll’s going in.

Games that tell the story

  1. North Carolina’s biggest win1998: North Carolina 29, Pittsburgh 10by 19 points
  2. Pittsburgh’s biggest win2024: Pittsburgh 34, North Carolina 24by 10 points
  3. Upset2026: North Carolina 21, Pittsburgh 17North Carolina had a 24% chance, by our ratings before kickoff
  4. Upset2000: North Carolina 20, Pittsburgh 17North Carolina had a 28% chance, by our ratings before kickoff
  5. Upset2017: North Carolina 34, Pittsburgh 31North Carolina had a 32% chance, by our ratings before kickoff
  6. Ranked showdown1982: Pittsburgh 7, North Carolina 6No. 5 North Carolina at No. 1 Pittsburgh

Coach against coach

YearsNorth CarolinaSeriesPittsburgh
2015–⁠2018Larry Fedora4–⁠0Pat Narduzzi
2019–⁠2024Mack Brown2–⁠3Pat Narduzzi

Head-coach pairings with three or more meetings on file, the series read from North Carolina’s side (Fedora 4–⁠0 against Narduzzi). A season split between coaches goes to the one credited with the game.

Both programs through the years

End-of-season Elo ratings of North Carolina and Pittsburgh, 1974 on13001500170019801990200020102020

Our Elo rating at the end of each season, a measure of how strong a team was, not a forecast; 1500 is an average FBS team.

Stars of the series

Biggest days

Mitchell Trubisky North Carolina35 of 46, 453 yards, 5 TD2016 Passing
Drake Maye North Carolina34 of 44, 388 yards, 5 TD2022 Passing
Ryan Switzer North Carolina16 catches, 208 yards, 1 TD2016 Receiving
Antoine Green North Carolina10 catches, 180 yards, 2 TD2022 Receiving

Named most valuable

Dion Lewis Pittsburgh2009

Biggest days: the week’s best individual games by our big-days rule, from box scores (2004 on). Most valuable: as the games’ Wikipedia articles name them (CC BY-SA).

Every game

Oct 10, 2026North Carolina 21, 25Pittsburgh 17at Pittsburgh
Oct 5, 2024Pittsburgh 34, North Carolina 24at North Carolina
Sep 23, 202317North Carolina 41, Pittsburgh 24at Pittsburgh
Oct 29, 202221North Carolina 42, Pittsburgh 24at North Carolina
Nov 11, 202125Pittsburgh 30, North Carolina 23at Pittsburgh
Nov 14, 2019Pittsburgh 34, North Carolina 27at Pittsburgh
Sep 22, 2018North Carolina 38, Pittsburgh 35at North Carolina
Nov 9, 2017North Carolina 34, Pittsburgh 31at Pittsburgh
Sep 24, 2016North Carolina 37, Pittsburgh 36at North Carolina
Oct 29, 2015North Carolina 26, 23Pittsburgh 19at Pittsburgh
Nov 15, 2014North Carolina 40, Pittsburgh 35at North Carolina
Nov 16, 2013North Carolina 34, Pittsburgh 27at Pittsburgh
Dec 26, 200917Pittsburgh 19, North Carolina 17Neutral siteMeineke Car Care Bowl
Nov 4, 2000North Carolina 20, Pittsburgh 17at Pittsburgh
Oct 10, 1998North Carolina 29, Pittsburgh 10at North Carolina
Sep 9, 19821Pittsburgh 7, 5North Carolina 6at Pittsburgh
Sep 22, 1979North Carolina 17, 13Pittsburgh 7at North Carolina
Sep 30, 19789Pittsburgh 20, North Carolina 16at Pittsburgh
Oct 5, 1974North Carolina 45, 17Pittsburgh 29at North Carolina

Every game is listed as played on the field.