What attracted Max Johnson to transfer to the UNC football program?
With Drake Maye departing for the NFL, the UNC football program was in need of a quarterback, particularly one with experience who can come in and compete for the starting job.
In the same token, Max Johnson, formerly at Texas A&M, was looking for a new home where he could take over the reins of a program's offense. Having 22 starts under his belt, the lefty quarterback intrigued various programs looking for a signal-caller.
Ultimately, the two sides found each other, as Johnson is now battling for the UNC football program's starting quarterback job this fall.
After spring practice wrapped up, Johnson revealed to On3 why North Carolina was a landing spot that appealed to him:
“It’s attractive because you’ve got the last however many quarterbacks they put in the league. Drake (Maye) had an unbelievable span that he had here, Sam (Howell), Mitch Trubisky, all those guys had an unbelievable college career.”
“It was fun to watch, and I know that there’s been different offensive coordinators coming through, but they’ve all produced. It was really fun watching Coach Lindsay last year and it’s kind of cool learning that same system Drake ran and he put up crazy numbers.
But honestly the people I absolutely loved, loved the people here when I came on a visit.”
Sure, coaches (especially offensive coordinators), have changed over the span of time in Chapel Hill, but quarterbacks continue to thrive in the offense regardless. The guys Johnson mentioned all went on to be drafted by NFL teams, two of which were top-three selections overall, as the Tar Heels have found ways to succeed with the guys who lead their offense at the time.
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Now, it's important to note that the starting gig isn't going to just be handed to him. He'll have to battle talented, yet inexperienced, Conner Harrell along with Jacolby Criswell, a familiar face that transferred back to North Carolina.
It will be an interesting positional battle for sure, but regardless of how it plays out, the UNC football program should continue to be able to find ways to help their quarterback succeed.