With Spring practices completed, the countdown until college football season is on.
For the UNC football program, they enter an offseason with a big question mark at quarterback. Drake Maye and Jacolby Criswell are duking it out for the starting quarterback job to lead the offense and so far, there isn’t a clear winner just yet. But aside from that, the Tar Heels have a revamped offensive line, a talented backfield, and a star at receiver in Josh Downs.
There’s going to be some turnover on the roster and new faces but some key recruits in the [autotag]Mack Brown[/autotag] era will start to have an impact.
As we go into this Summer, USA Today is impressed with what they have seen so far from UNC. And they have the Tar Heels at No. 3 in their preseason ACC power rankings:
The attention paid to the Tar Heels’ three-person competition to replace quarterback Sam Howell has overshadowed some pretty big concerns at running back and wide receiver. In the backfield, UNC has four options but no clear answer coming out of spring drills. At receiver, there may be a pair of clear starters in Josh Downs and Antoine Green but depth is at a premium.
Clemson topped the list at No. 1 despite a down year in 2021 followed by No. 2 N.C. State. Right behind UNC is No. 4 Wake Forest, and No. 5 Pitt.
The Tar Heels do have a tough schedule this season playing Notre Dame and Wake Forest again. But if the quarterback play is solid, UNC could really shock some people next year.
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