Where Drake Maye ranks among all quarterbacks in college football

Sam Howell will be missed, but the cupboard isn’t bare at quarterback in Chapel Hill. Jacolby Criswell – a four-star prospect in the 2020 signing class – and Maye – the No. 56 prospect in the ’21 haul – are battling to replace Howell under center this fall. No starter was declared exiting spring ball, but the guess here is Maye holds an inside track to the No. 1 spot on the depth chart. The North Carolina native played in four contests as the No. 3 quarterback last fall to preserve his redshirt season. In those limited snaps, Maye completed seven of 10 passes for 89 yards and a score and ran for 62 yards on six attempts. Criswell played in 10 games over the last two years and also posted a strong performance in the limited sample size. The Arkansas native completed 16 of 25 throws for 195 yards and a score and added 94 rushing yards in that span. Whichever quarterback wins the job inherits a receiving corps set to return No. 1 target Josh Downs (101 catches in ’21) but is also working behind an offensive line with major question marks.