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RALEIGH – A decision is coming for Drake Maye, and perhaps fairly soon.
Now that North Carolina’s regular season is over, the highly touted quarterback, who is slated to go among the top four in the NFL Draft next April if he enters his name, will now take some time to evaluate his situation, get some information, speak with family, and make a decision.
If one has been made, Maye isn’t saying so. And if he’s leaning, he hasn’t specifically said that, either. He will have to one way or the other, and likely fairly soon with the transfer portal opening up next week.
The UNC staff is having meetings this week with each player to discuss their situations at Carolina and futures. Maye is one of those Tar Heels, so might there be a time table as to when he will make or announce a decision?
“I’m not really sure… I have to sit down with my family (and) make some decisions,” Maye said Saturday night following UNC’s 39-20 loss at NC State at Carter-Finley Stadium. “At the end of the day, (I’m a) Tar Heel playing in Carolina blue almost meant the world to me. A dream come true.
“We didn’t finish off the right way, but (I) may have another chance to do that.”
Maye will also visit with Darrell Moody, a Senior Advisor to Brown, who is in charge with compiling NFL information for the players, among other things. Moody spent 18 years as an NFL scout and is exceptionally well connected in the league.
Maye, however, won’t speak with Moody first. But he will be part of the process to some degree.
“I talk to my family first,” Maye said. “Coach Moody’s the man. He was an NFL scout for a bunch of years, and he knows a lot of people. So, I definitely value his opinion… Nothing really outweighs, first off what I want to do, second off my family.”
Not only must Maye make and reveal whether or not he’s going to the NFL, he must decide on if he will play in the bowl game. The Tar Heels (8-4, 4-4) finished in seventh place in the ACC, and likely will play in a mid-level bowl, though if Maye plays in the game, they could be a more intriguing option for a slightly better bowl. Bowls will be announced Sunday.
Playing in the game means Maye would risk injury. But so did returning to the game versus the Wolfpack late in the fourth quarter after suffering a lower right leg injury earlier in the final quarter.
Maye returned to the field because he’s a fierce competitor and wanted to finish the game battling. It’s conceivable he may apply similar logic to playing in a bowl game, especially if it means leading the Heels to a ninth win for the second consecutive season.
“I haven’t made a decision yet,” he said about playing in the bowl game. “I think a lot of things weigh into it. But obviously, I’d love to give one more chance out there with these guys.”
One more chance would be to also rectify the ugly manner this regular season ended.
Carolina put forth its worst performance of the season, doing it against the programs chief rival.
“It’s a bummer the way it ended,” Maye said.
It might be a bummer for UNC fans when the redshirt sophomore announces his eventual decision, or it might not. Regardless, his future will soon be known.
