"Resign" "System is broken" - Fans trash Bubba Cunningham for alleged North Carolina bias amid reports of March Madness-linked incentives

After starting the day in the bubble, the North Carolina Tar Heels made it into the 68-team field of the NCAA Tournament on Selection Sunday. The decision has sparked widespread backlash from several teams whose fans linked the Tar Heels' inclusion to their athletic director Bubba Cunningham being the chairman of the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee.

The Tar Heels had only one Quad 1 win all season versus opponents like the West Virginia Mountaineers, who had six Quad 1 wins and the Indiana Hoosiers, who had four Quad 1 wins accounting for the controversy surrounding North Carolina making the field.

According to a report from 247Sports, Cunningham is set to receive a $104,166 bonus due to the Tar Heels making the tournament.

College basketball fans on X had mixed reactions to the Tar Heels making the NCAA Tournament.

"Resign," one fan said.

"System is broken," another fan said.

"Suspicious much?" one fan said.

Some fans focused on the potential conflict of interest of Cunningham being paid a hefty bonus for North Carolina making the Big Dance.

"The AD of North Carolina making a six-figure bonus for GETTING IN the NCAA tournament is somewhere in the intersection of embarrassment, neglectful of department needs, and smoky backrooms," one fan said.

"@NCAA @MarchMadnessMBB the people DEMAND ANSWERS. How did you let this Selection Sunday become so corrupt? This is inexcusable and a dark day for the sport. I wish I had it in me to boycott your tournament, but that would be hard to do. Frauds though," another fan said.

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North Carolina A. D explains the fairness of the selection process

According to the NCAA rules, any athletic director with ties to a particular program must recuse themselves whenever their school's status in the tournament is up for discussion to maintain the fairness of the selection process.

During a teleconference call with the media on Saturday night after the selection was complete, North Carolina Tar Heels athletic director Bubba Cunningham explained how he avoided any bias towards his team during the process.

“When we got down to those last three or four teams, frequently Carolina was in the discussion,” Cunningham said “And as soon as we were part of the discussion, I left the room. Any of us that have to chair the committee, you come in with that knowledge. I’ve been on the committee now for five years, I’ve watched four others lead the committee. And I think it’s been a great learning experience.

"You do have an opinion, you do have your own thoughts and your own ideas. But the responsibility of the chair is to have the committee work together to be fair, to find the best 37 to put in the field, and allow everyone to speak their mind. We follow those procedures as they have been prescribed and used for a number of years.”

After the heated discourse about the North Carolina Tar Heels making the field, they will play against the San Diego Aztecs in the First Four of the NCAA Tournament on Wednesday.