Beyond the Game: North Carolina Sports Facts
Local NHL Players
There are only four NHL players who were born in North Carolina. These players are Logan Brown (pictured above), Jarden Boll, Jake Leschyshyn, and Ben Smith. Two of the players, Logan Brown and Jake Leschyshyn, are from Raleigh which is home to the NHL team the Carolina Hurricanes. Ben Smith, from Winston Salem, became a Stanley Cup champ with the Blackhawks in the 2012-2013 season, only his second season in the NHL. North Carolina is home to a successful, growing NHL franchise but falls short when it comes to homegrown players.
State Sport
Stock car racing is the official sport of North Carolina as of 2011. Charlotte, North Carolina is home to Charlotte Motor Speedway which is known as the “home” of NASCAR. North Carolina houses more than 80% of NASCAR racing teams and related industries. Motorsports have generated billions of dollars in revenue for the state each year.
Professional Sports
North Carolina holds almost every major professional sport, minus the MLB. Although there isn’t an MLB team in North Carolina, there are two Triple-A East teams, the Charlotte Knights and Durham Bulls. Across North Carolina, professional sports teams include the Carolina Hurricanes (NHL), Charlotte Hornets (NBA), Carolina Panthers (NFL), Charlotte Chaos (PLL), Charlotte FC (MLS), North Carolina Courage (NWSL), and Anthem Rugby Carolina (MLR). North Carolina is also home to teams in the NASCAR Cup Series and the Haas Formula 1 Team.
NHL Record
The Carolina Hurricanes recorded the 6th longest playoff overtime in history at 79:47 minutes during the 2023 playoff series against the Florida Panthers. That series ended with a 4-0 loss against the Panthers.
Tar Heel NCAA Record
The Tar Heels have won 50 NCAA Championships across 8 sports. 22 of these NCAA Championships came from the Women’s Soccer team, spanning from 1981 to 2012. UNC-Chapel Hill is eighth overall in the NCAA Division 1 Team Championships.
North Carolina Olympians
As of 2021, 14 Olympic athletes and coaches were born and raised in North Carolina with a total of 32 Olympic athletes and coaches having ties to North Carolina. Harry Williamson, a runner from High Point, was the first NC Olympian in 1936. Michael Jordan is amongst the notable Olympians from North Carolina.
Duke University Football
Duke University was the first school to have a football team in North Carolina. The football team was created in 1888, back when the school was named Trinity College. Their first game was played against From 1890 to 1895, Trinity College played without a head coach, going undefeated in 1891.