11. Drake Maye and Jacolby Criswell, North Carolina
Now with Sam Howell in the NFL, few programs in the country are tasked with replacing a bigger hole at the quarterback position. Mack Brown and UNC have options, though, and the team’s win over Wofford, in the home finale, offers a bit of a template. (Howell, of course, returned to play in the mayo-soaked bowl game.)
Back in Dec. 2020, Brown told Josh Graham of WSJS that he planned to replace Howell with a quarterback already on his roster, despite interest from others in the transfer portal.
During that win over Wofford, Jacolby Criswell completed 11-of-19 pass attempts for 125 yards. He also ran for 66 yards and a touchdown — a one-yard plunge to open the game’s scoring. Criswell was a 4-star prospect in the 2020 recruiting class.
Drake Maye, a Top 60 prospect out of Charlotte in the 2021 recruiting class, attempted his first pass as a college quarterback. Overall, he went 7-of-9 on pass attempts — 89 yards and a four-yard touchdown toss to Kamari Morales.
In the 2022 Spring Game, Criswell completed all six of his pass attempts, including a 12-yard touchdown toss to All-ACC wideout Josh Downs. Maye was 6-of-8 for 75 yards and a touchdown, too.