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Drake Maye, Jacolby Criswell could split time at QB this season

Barkley-Truaxby: Barkley Truax08/22/22BarkleyTruax
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Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images.

The hardest part of losing your starting quarterback to the NFL is finding their heir – which was precisely the position Mack Brown and the North Carolina Tar Heels are in following Sam Howell‘s departure. Brown took to the podium for his Monday press conference to name a starter in the form of Drake Maye, though Brown isn’t sure whether or not Maye will remain in the game after the first drive.

“I’ve said [Maye] earned the job. We’ve looked at every little thing,” Brown said. “Every day, from spring till now, it’s very close … It’s really, really close decision that we ended up just saying, ‘I feel like he’s earned the right to be out there first.’

“There’s not enough to get into what one is better than the other. We’re so lucky that they’re both good. They’re both smart, they both get along. They both know the offense, they’ve both been here some. Neither one has game experience and we’re lucky that both know how to run our offense.”

If Maye were to be pulled, Jacolby Criswell would be the man to replace him in the lineup, though it seems that both will see split minutes throughout the season.

“This has not been something that surprised them,” Brown said of the announcement. “I mean, they knew from day one they were competing for this job, and I will say the only thing that matters is who will give us the best chance to win. Nothing else is important.”

Maye first arrived on campus in Chapel Hill as part of the 2021 recruiting class. He was rated as a four-star player, the No. 8 quarterback and the No. 3 player out of the state of North Carolina in the 2021 cycle, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

After limited playing time as a true freshman last season, Maye is far more comfortable within the offense. Now, as he takes over as UNC’s starting quarterback, Maye is ready to take another leap during the season as the official starter – for now.