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Raleigh: Former NC State football coach Chuck Amato dies at 80

University athletics said he died early Monday at his Raleigh home. Brown-Wynne later posted that a service is planned at Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral. A date has not been set.

UpdatedThis story has changed since it was first published.

By Triangle Local Newsroom · Published · Updated

Downtown Raleigh buildings under a blue sky

File photo: James Willamor (CC BY-SA 3.0), via Wikimedia Commons.

What we know

Confirmed

  • Chuck Amato, the former NC State football head coach, died early Monday morning, Oct. 19, 2026, at age 80.Confirmed by NC State Athletics, Oct. 19, 2026
  • The university said he died at his home in Raleigh while under hospice care.Confirmed by NC State Athletics
  • He was head coach from 2000 to 2006. His teams went 49-37 in those seven seasons.Confirmed by NC State Athletics; WRAL; The News & Observer
  • The 2002 Wolfpack finished 11-3, which the university called the most wins in school history, and beat Notre Dame in the New Year's Day Gator Bowl.Confirmed by NC State Athletics; The News & Observer
  • The athletics department said his teams reached five bowl games in his first six seasons, with postseason wins in the MicronPC.com Bowl, the Tangerine Bowl, the Meineke Car Care Bowl and the Gator Bowl.Confirmed by NC State Athletics
  • The university said he is the only NC State graduate to lead the football program in more than 100 years. He played linebacker there in the 1960s, won two ACC wrestling titles, and later worked as a Wolfpack assistant and as a coordinator at Florida State under Bobby Bowden.Confirmed by NC State Athletics
  • The athletics department posted the notice at 3:02 p.m. Monday. That campus post said funeral arrangements had not been finalized.Confirmed by NC State Athletics
  • Brown-Wynne Funeral Home later posted a Dignity Memorial notice saying a service to honor his life will be held at Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral in Raleigh, at a date and time still to be determined. The funeral home said it is serving the family.Confirmed by Brown-Wynne Funeral Home, via Dignity Memorial

Still unknown

  • The date and time of the cathedral service

What happened

In Raleigh, former NC State football coach Chuck Amato has died. He was 80.

NC State Athletics said he died early Monday, Oct. 19, at his home in the city while under hospice care. The department posted that notice at 3:02 p.m.

He led the Wolfpack from 2000 to 2006. Those teams went 49-37 and, in 2002, finished 11-3, the most wins in school history, the university said. That season ended with a New Year's Day Gator Bowl win over Notre Dame. The athletics department also listed postseason wins in the MicronPC.com Bowl, the Tangerine Bowl and the Meineke Car Care Bowl, and said the program reached five bowl games in his first six seasons.

The university called him the only NC State graduate to run the football program in more than 100 years. He played linebacker for the Wolfpack in the 1960s, won two ACC wrestling titles, and later coached as an assistant in Raleigh and as a coordinator at Florida State under Bobby Bowden.

The News & Observer reported the death Monday morning, before the campus post, and matched his age, his years as head coach, and the 2002 win total. WRAL and CBS Sports, writing after the university notice, matched those same points.

Campus officials said Monday afternoon that funeral plans had not been finalized. Brown-Wynne Funeral Home later posted that a service to honor his life will be held at Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral in Raleigh, with the date and hour still to be set.

Why it matters

Amato was NC State's head football coach from 2000 to 2006 and lived in Raleigh. The university confirmed his death Monday. Local readers need the official account, not a copied tribute.

Updates

  1. Oct 19, 2026, 10:08 PM

    Brown-Wynne posts that a service is planned at Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral in Raleigh. A date and time have not been set. The university's Monday afternoon notice still said arrangements were not finalized.

  2. Oct 19, 2026, 4:12 PM

    NC State Athletics confirms Chuck Amato died early Monday at his Raleigh home at age 80. He was head coach from 2000 to 2006.

Sources

  1. Pack Mourns Loss of Iconic Former Head Coach Chuck Amato (NC State Athletics, posted 3:02 p.m. Oct. 19, 2026: died early Monday at 80 at his Raleigh home under hospice care; head coach 2000-2006; 49-37; 11-3 in 2002; five bowl games in first six seasons; only NC State graduate to lead the program in more than 100 years; funeral arrangements not finalized)

    Official sourcePublished by NC State Athletics · Checked Oct 19, 2026, 4:10 PM

  2. Former NC State football coach Chuck Amato dies at 80 (WRAL: 2000-2006; 49-37; quotes the university memorial)

    Published by WRAL · Checked Oct 19, 2026, 4:10 PM

  3. Former NC State football coach Chuck Amato has died (The News & Observer, first published 11:26 a.m. Oct. 19, 2026: age 80; head coach 2000-2006; player in the 1960s; school-record 11 wins in 2002)

    Published by The News & Observer · Checked Oct 19, 2026, 4:10 PM

  4. Chuck Amato dies at 80 (CBS Sports: the school announced the death Monday; 49-37 over seven seasons from 2000-06; 11-win 2002 season)

    Published by CBS Sports · Checked Oct 19, 2026, 4:10 PM

  5. Charles Chuck Michael Amato obituary (Brown-Wynne Funeral Home, via Dignity Memorial: died Oct. 19, 2026, at 80; service at Holy Name of Jesus Cathedral in Raleigh at a date and time to be determined; Brown-Wynne serving the family)

    Published by Brown-Wynne Funeral Home, via Dignity Memorial · Checked Oct 19, 2026, 10:05 PM

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