UNC Football program lands first Class of 2026 commitment from an in-state product

Mack Brown and the UNC football program have officially landed their first commitment from a Class of 2026 student-athlete, as in-state product Zaid Lott has elected to stay close to home.

After it was reported a few days prior that Lott was committing to North Carolina, the rising junior made it official via social media on Monday afternoon.

The 6-foot-4, 190-pound quarterback isn't at the top of the recruiting rankings, as he currently has no stars to his name in 247Sports' player rankings. Although he's not a household name up to this point, there are a few factors to consider.

For starters, Lott's reps at the varsity level have been limited. His high school, Providence Day, featured four-star signal-caller Jadyn Davis, so the future Tar Heel was limited to backup duties.

In his limited action, Lott put up some outstanding numbers. During the 2023 season, Lott completed 21 of his 26 passes for 331 yards. In his lone start of the season, Lott completed 9 of his 11 pass attempts for 118 yards.

With limited varsity action comes little exposure via film, as college programs haven't fully been exposed to what Lott can do on the football field. In simple terms: the UNC football program was able to land another talented quarterback on the recruiting trail before he really truly shows what he is capable of.

It's not like the UNC football program was alone in his recruitment, as schools, such as NC State, Florida State and Boston College, also extended offers. However, it was the Tar Heels that came out with the win in this recruiting battle, as a potential high-rising prospect has decided to call Chapel Hill his future home.