UNC Football: Drake Maye named ACC Preseason Player of the Year

The UNC football program’s star quarterback, and reining ACC Player of the Year, was voted by the media as the preseason favorite to win the award in 2023.

Drake Maye is your 2023 ACC Preseason Player of the Year.

After winning the award for the 2022 college football season, the UNC football program’s star quarterback is back for his second year as the Tar Heels starting signal-caller. All eyes are on Maye as he looks to replicate and potentially improve upon his production from a season ago.

Of the 176 media members that voted for the ACC Preseason Player of the Year, Maye earned 88 total votes. He finished 22 votes ahead of Florida State’s Jordan Travis, who earned 66 votes.

Here’s a breakdown of the voting tallies for the award:

Preseason Player of the Year
1. Drake Maye, QB, North Carolina (88)
2. Jordan Travis, QB, Florida State (66)
3. Will Shipley, RB, Clemson (17)
4. Jeremiah Trotter Jr., LB, Clemson (3)
T5. Riley Leonard, QB, Duke (1)
T5. Tyler Davis, DT, Clemson (1)

Maye is coming off a historical first season as the Tar Heels’ starting quarterback. In 2022, Maye threw for 3,847 yards and 35 touchdowns to go along with a team-leading 629 rushing yards and six scores on the ground.

The Tar Heels quarterback became just the ninth FBS quarterback since 2010 to post 3,500 passing yards, 35 passing touchdowns, 500 rushing yards, and five rushing scores in a single season. Maye also became the only ACC player over the last 25 seasons to record at least 300 passing yards and 50 rushing yards in four consecutive games.

Maye is viewed as one of the top players in the country, as he’s expected to be a top-5 selection in the 2024 NFL Draft. However, Maye and the UNC football program still have unfinished business as they look to be one of the top teams in the country this upcoming season.

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