City: Raleigh, NC

Category: Spectator Sports

Description: The Heels, as they are affectionately nicknamed, sport a turquoise shade called Carolina Blue. Their mascot is an ornery ram, and their fans consider their seasons a yearly struggle for all that is right in the world. The women’s basketball and soccer teams are consistently excellent and the baseball team vies for national honors regularly, but the men’s basketball team inspires worship. Longtime men’s coach Dean Smith retired in 1997, but his presence still hangs over Chapel Hill like a holy spirit. And since his former assistant Roy Williams returned in 2003 from a long stint at the University of Kansas, the Heels have taken two national titles. Expectations run high every year, and if you score tickets to the “Dean Dome,” the best of which go to alumni and hardcore student fans, expect a crush of Carolina blue madness. The 20,000-seat dome can seem too quiet at times, especially compared to the thunderous noise of Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium, but when the crowd comes to life, they know how to make some noise.