After North Carolina football lost to Duke on Sept. 28 for the first time since 2018, rumblings began around Mack Brown's job security as the North Carolina football coach. Brown is an icon at North Carolina with a 282-150-1 all-time record over two stints at the university,

Kitchens, who served a year as head coach of the Cleveland Browns, joined Mack Brown’s staff in February 2023.

Per the team's official website, they've named Freddie Kitchens as their interim head coach in place of Mack Brown. Brown was fired by North Carolina following their 41-21 loss to Boston College on Nov. 23, and his last day with the program is Sunday, Dec. 1.