Today marks the Fourth of July, and it’s an especially notable one at that. The year 2026 marks 250 years since the founding of the United States of America back in 1776.
In a sporting context, the best way people have represented the country over the years has been playing for Team USA in their various sports and international competitions. Whether it be basketball, soccer, or individual sports like track & field and swimming, many North Carolina Tar Heels count among the number of athletes who’ve
represented Team USA. On this Fourth of July, my question of the day is simply this: Who is your favorite Tar Heel to ever play on a Team USA?
One of the UNC things I’m proudest of is how many Tar Heels have gone on to not only play for the US Women’s National Soccer Team, but have helped them win World Cup and Olympic Gold Medals. The most famous of them is Mia Hamm, but if I were to pick a personal favorite, I have to go a little more recent.
Tobin Heath played for UNC from 2006-09, winning three national championship. She then went on to a long pro career, and even debuted for the USWNT while still playing at Carolina. Representing the US from 2008-2021, Heath won two World Cups and two Olympic Golds. However, it goes beyond just her success that always endeared her to me, it was also her playing style.
While at UNC, the legendary Anson Dorrance once said of Heath that she would rather nutmeg players than try and dribble around them. (For the uninitiated, nutmegging is when you put the ball through your opponents legs as you go past/around them.) Heath could always perform magic with the ball at her feet, and it was always fun watching that knowing that she was also a Tar Heel.
That’s my answer, but what about you: who’s your favorite Tar Heel who donned the red, white, and blue?
