The 2023 college football season is almost here as Week 0 begins this week with a small slate of games.
With North Carolina not playing until Week 1, the excitement will have to wait just a little longer. But when Mack Brown and the Tar Heels hit the field against South Carolina, they will look to make a statement early on.
Before the two teams meet in Charlotte, ESPN has listed the best and worst-case scenarios for each team in the top 25. That includes North Carolina who checked in at No. 19 in their rankings.
Here is what ESPN listed as the best-case scenario for Mack Brown’s team in the 2023 season:
For all Maye’s impressive numbers last year, his heroics likely hid a number of big flaws for a while. The Heels opened the season 8-1, but six of those wins came by a touchdown or less, including three in which UNC trailed in the fourth quarter. The four-game losing streak to cap the season marked the point at which Maye’s magic was no longer enough, and the close-call wins turned into close-call losses to Georgia Tech, NC State and Oregon. If all else is the same this year, but the close-game luck is just a bit worse, there’s a formula for a 5-7 or 6-6 campaign.
Maye is the single most important player for North Carolina, there’s no denying that. And if UNC’s luck in one-score games runs out this year, it could be a totally different story.
Let’s hope that doesn’t happen.
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