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North Carolina football teams don’t have a deep history of starting seasons winning the first four games, especially in the more modern era.

It has happened 23 times in Chapel Hill, though nine of those seasons occurred before World War I. The most recent season in which the Tar Heels started 4-0 was 1997, current Carolina Coach Mack Brown’s final season of his first stint at the helm of the Heels.

With UNC’s 41-24 win at Pittsburgh this past Saturday night, however, Brown and the Tar Heels are 4-0 again.

“Yeah, so I was 45…,” he said following the win at Pitt, referring to his age 26 years ago. “What a significant accomplishment for them, so proud of them. And we've had the hardest schedule we've had since we've been here.

“We've probably had the hardest four games that I've ever played to start the season. Maybe there was a team that was better, but not four teams. And all four of these teams are physical and our guys stood up to the challenge.”

The Tar Heels, who are now ranked No. 15 in both major polls, have beaten three Power 5 teams among their four games, with wins over South Carolina on a neutral site in Charlotte, home versus Minnesota, and at Pitt. The other win was in overtime at home over Appalachian State.

What’s interesting to note is the significance of 4-0 starts in the program’s history. Three key stretches mark arguably the best periods ever at UNC.

The Charlie “Choo Choo” Justice era ranged from 1946-49, with UNC opening at least 4-0 twice. The 1948 team finished ranked No. 3 in the nation, which remains the highest final ranking ever attained by a Carolina club.

The 1980 and 1981 teams were also loaded with plenty of future NFL players, with the 1980 squad led on defense by eventual legend Lawrence Taylor. Those two clubs finished the season ranked in the top 10.

Brown’s final team of his first stint at UNC might be the greatest team ever in Carolina blue. Coming off a top-10 ranking the season before, in which they went 10-2, the 1997 group started 8-0 before losing to Florida State at home. They finished 11-1 and were ranked No. 6 in the AP and No. 4 in the coaches’ polls.

Yet, Brown left to take the job at Texas following the final regular season game and didn’t return until after the 2018 campaign.

So, in year five of stint two, Brown has the Tar Heels at 4-0 again, and there’s a solid chance the Heels can extend the unbeaten streak for a while.

1894: 6-3

1897: 7-3

1898: 9-0

1899: 7-3-1

1901: 7-2

1902: 5-1-3

1911: 6-1-1

1913: 5-4

1914: 10-1

1935: 8-1

1936: 8-2

1939: 8-1-1

1948: 9-1-1

1949: 7-4

1970: 8-4

1971: 9-3

1976: 9-3

1979: 8-3-1

1980: 11-1

1981: 10-2

1983: 8-4

1997: 11-1

2023: ??