CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – Mack Brown did not hesitate in playing for the win in the final moments of North Carolina’s loss to Clemson, although that’s not to suggest his decision to go for two was a reckless, spur-of-the-moment call. Rather, it was an embodiment of his refreshed philosophy in the second and final phase of his coaching career.

Time is a commodity that oftentimes serves as a crutch of conservatism for head coaches. In youth, there’s always another snap and another game. Brown, who turned 68 in August, understands there is much more football behind him than ahead of him and if he wants to win, there’s no better time than the present.

On Monday, Brown doubled down on his decision to go for two against the top-ranked Tigers in Saturday’s 21-20 loss instead of kicking the extra point and hoping to get to overtime, telling reporters he would “100 percent go for it again.”

The Tar Heels scored to pull within a single point with 1:17 to play before Sam Howell was stopped short of the goal line on a speed option play that all but cemented the victory for Clemson.

“We’re going to be aggressive,” Brown said. “I’m at a stage in my life where I don’t care about anything but winning and doing it within the rules. So if anybody wants to criticize me, who cares? I don’t care. I’m not looking for another job. So I think the biggest thing is that it’s freedom to be this age and to have won this many games and be able to do what you think is best for your team.”

In the world of college football in which every play call and every win or loss is a referendum on the job status of the coach in question, it’s refreshing to hear a Hall of Famer not only tune out the noise, but also bite back.

“I’m the only one that sat there and knew how our defense looked and how they felt,” Brown said. “I’m the only one that watched the offense and the offensive coaches, that felt like they had a play they thought was going to win the game. Nobody else has that, so anybody else that’s making decisions on what I should have done doesn’t have the information I have.

“So that’s why it’s kind of comical when people say, ‘I wouldn’t have done that.’ Well, you’ve got no clue. You have no information. So you wouldn’t have done it after we lost. You would’ve done it if we’d have won and I’d have been Coach of the Year. So I don’t care about that stuff anymore.”

In hindsight, Brown’s aggressive approach was evident in his coaching hires shortly after taking the UNC job for a second time in November. He was progressive in seeking out coordinator schematics, centering on the explosive Air Raid passing attack to complement a power run game as well as hiring an upstart from Army with a forward-thinking defensive eye in Jay Bateman.

Brown’s updated philosophy was shared early on with his coordinators, which enabled them to build aggression into their schemes instead of questioning how assertive they should be during a particular series of a game. The baseline was set many months ago and instilled into both players and coaches.

“It was from the get go when he had this discussion with us,” offensive coordinator Phil Longo said. “It’s his mindset. It’s based on some statistical analysis, but it’s also based on the fact that he has confidence in our players, both on the offensive side and on the defensive side, and he has confidence in the plan that the staff comes up with each week. He’s going to try to win every football game, and I don’t think you’ll see that change. That’s his philosophy and that’s our staff’s philosophy.”

There’s some evidence in the stats – UNC’s nine fourth-down conversions are tied for the most nationally – although the bulk lies in late-game coaching decisions.

Instead of babying Sam Howell in the season opener against South Carolina, Brown took the training wheels off the true freshman signal caller to give UNC a chance to win its first Power 5 opener since 1997. Against Miami, Brown elected to attempt a 4th-and-17 with 2:55 to play and his team trailing 25-20 instead of punting and trying to force a stop on defense. And on Saturday, he chose one play to score two points from three yards out to upset the reigning national champions. Two of the three decisions resulted in come-from-behind victories.

“For the kids, I want them to know I came back to help them win,” Brown said. “And there would have been less criticism on me if I had kicked the extra point and let it play out, rather than if we lose, ‘Oh, we just were a little short.’ I wanted to win…

“I don’t care what the score is. If we’re behind, I’m going to keep taking risks to try to catch up. If it makes the score two more touchdowns down, I don’t care. It’s all about winning. And we need to start winning.”