Fire destroys former football coach Mack Brown’s home in Avery County

Mack Brown, the former University of North Carolina and University of Texas football coach, lost his home southwest northeast of Asheville in a major fire that left nothing but chimneys standing. With the house, Brown also lost memorabilia collected over his long coaching career. The cause of the fire hasn’t been determined yet.

From bizjournals.com:

The home, located in a gated community at 689 Spillway Drive in Linville, North Carolina, is a complete loss, according to Avery County, North Carolina Fire Marshall David Vance.

The news of the fire, first reported by the Austin American-Statesman, sparked an outpouring of support for Brown on social media.

Brown, who coached the University of North Carolina Tar Heels football team in Chapel Hill, N.C., from 1988-1997, acknowledged that support on Twitter, thanking his fans for the kind words and prayers. Brown, who stepped down as the Longhorns’ head coach in December 2013, had to handle the loss of the home on the same week he was set to debut as a college football television analyst.

And from austin.culturemap.com:

KVUE reports that Brown had recently relocated much of his Longhorn football memorabilia from his Austin residence to the North Carolina abode. He hasn’t stated what exactly was lost in the fire, but he took to Twitter to express his thanks to fans.

Image link for Mack Brown.