ACC HC 'Really Hoped' Hubert Davis Wasn't Fired by UNC, No One 'Was Scared of Him'

At least one ACC head coach wasn't a fan of North Carolina firing Hubert Davis.

Per Jeff Goodman of the Field of 68, a coach said that other teams in the ACC weren't "scared of" Davis.

"I had really hoped he was the coach forever," the coach said. "No one in the ACC was scared of him. I'm worried that they hire someone really good now because if you get a big-time guy at UNC, they could be right there with Duke again."

North Carolina fired Davis on Tuesday, days after the Tar Heels' upset loss to VCU in the first round of the NCAA tournament.

Davis, 55, took over as head coach in 2021 after the legendary Roy Williams retired. Early on in Davis' tenure, it looked like he was going to help North Carolina remain a contender, as he took the Tar Heels to the national championship game in his first season.

North Carolina then missed the tournament completely in Davis' second season and never made it past the Sweet 16 again. The Tar Heels have faced back-to-back first-round exits in each of the last two years, a first for the program.

North Carolina's lack of success under Davis only stings more when compared to rival Duke, which has been to an Elite Eight and Final Four in the years since Mike Krzyzewski retired. The Blue Devils are also the top overall seed in this year's tournament and could very well hoist a national championship trophy in the coming weeks.

UNC is now hoping to find a coach who can bring it back to national prominence. According to Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports, that might mean hiring someone "outside of the Tar Heels' family" for the first time.

As for what's next for Davis, he told On3's Pete Nakos that he's hoping "to coach again in the very near future."