UNC Football: The five most important players for the 2023 season

Drake Maye

Let’s start with the most obvious on this list. Not only is the quarterback position the most important on the football field, but it also becomes even more important when your best player is at that position. Maye was phenomenal in 2022 and took Tar Heel Nation and the country by storm with his impressive ability to throw, scramble, and create something when nothing was there.

When Maye was successful, the Tar Heels were successful, and that’s going to be the case again in 2023. He’s the pre-season ACC player of the year, on the pre-season Heisman Watchlist, and a projected top-five pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Not only is he the most important player for the 2023 Tar Heels, but we could also debate he’s the most important UNC football player ever… nothing else needs to be said.

Cedric Gray

The quarterback of the defense per se. Defense is important if the Tar Heels are going to achieve their goals in 2023 of getting back to the ACC Championship game and bringing the program its first ACC title in more than forty years. Gray has appeared in every game during his time in Chapel Hill, including starting in all 14 games last season.

He earned the team’s William Fuller Defensive MVP last season. He was No. 3 in the country in tackles last season with 144. Gray will be the heart of the defense again, and the Tar Heels need him to be just as good, if not improved, from 2022 this season.

Desmond Evans

We’re going to stay on the defensive side of the ball. We know the defense must improve from 2022 if the Tar Heels have any chance to reach their goals in 2023, Maye and the offense can’t just be expected to outscore the opponent every game.

Evans was a five-star defensive end and the No. 1 player in the state of NC when he committed to Mack Brown and the Tar Heels. However, his first three years in Chapel Hill haven’t lived up to the hype. Playing in 30 total games and recording just 20 tackles and 1 sack. The front seven are going to have to force pressure into the backfield to help the secondary, and Evans is going to be a monster piece to that puzzle. If Evans finally has his breakout year, the defense very well could take a huge step in the right direction.

Kobe Paysour

This one may surprise some folks with the off-season talk in the wide receiver room mostly revolving around incoming transfer Devontez ‘Tez’ Walker and he is certain to live up to the hype. However, I believe Paysour is more important.

Paysour averaged 11.2 yards per catch in 2022 while catching four touchdowns. He really showed out in the Holiday Bowl against Oregon catching 7 passes for 98 yards and a touchdown. If Paysour can operate efficiently and build off his 2022 performance, then it opens the field for the other receiving options and will give Maye larger windows to complete passes. I expect Paysour to line up in the slot most of the time this season – but wouldn’t be surprised to see the Tar Heels move him around like they did Josh Downs either.

The Runningbacks

I’m not choosing an individual player for my fifth spot and going more untraditional. I’m going with the running back room. We all know that Elijah Green and Omarion Hampton were the best in this group last season, but they still weren’t great. Green rushed for 558 yards and Hampton 401 yards, and neither was the leading rusher on the team (that was Drake Maye in case you forgot).

Add in the fact that the running back room is crowded with at least five potential running backs, if not more, it’s too hard to choose just one to be an important piece. Green and Hampton are expected to be the two that see the most action, however, there are other options. Graduate senior British Brooks returns after not playing in 2022 due to an injury. Caleb Hood is expected to be healthy again after playing in seven games last season and averaging the most yards per carry among Tar Heel running backs at 5.8 yards per attempt. And George Pettaway saw game time, but not many carries in 2022.

Regardless of who gets the carries out of the backfield, they must be successful in going north/south and getting downfield. Drake Maye cannot lead the team in rushing again if the offense is aiming to be “flawless” as Mack Brown has said. It isn’t safe for Maye to be running as much as he did in 2022 and the Tar Heels must keep him protected and healthy this year – too many times last year we caught ourselves holding our breath after a Maye run that he was getting up from a tackle.

Maye is going to run some, but he doesn’t need to lead the team in rushing yards. The running back room needs to step up, gain yards at a quality rate, and force opposing teams to respect the run. As soon as they do that, it will allow Maye to open up the offense even more, and I think we will all be amazed to see the offense get better than they already are.