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CHAPEL HILL – With North Carolina preparing to host Pittsburgh on Saturday at Kenan Stadium, several offensive Tar Heels were available Tuesday evening for the weekly players interviews to discuss themselves, their units, the team, and getting ready for the Panthers.

UNC, which is ranked No. 21 in the nation this week, is 6-1 overall and 3-0 in the ACC. Pitt is 4-3 and 1-2.

Below are videos of Q&A sessions with quarterback Drake Maye, receivers Josh Downs and Antoine Green, and running back Elijah Green along with some notes and pulled quotes from what they had to say:

Green scored the first two touchdowns of his college career in the win at Duke, playing 18 of his 28 offensive snaps on the season that night. A broken thumb on his left hand prevented him from carrying the ball for a while, and he even spent time on the scout team, but Green kept getting in work after practice, extra film time, and took advantage when his opportunity came.

He was mostly asked questions about that and the mood of the team being different from a year ago.

*Green played 10 snaps versus FAMU and then none on offense until the Duke game, as noted above. So, what was it like for him to finally get out there and have an impact on the game?

“I was just blessed with the opportunity,” he said. “My number was called, so I went in there and just did my job.”

Okay, but what was his job?

“It’s all about preparation, so throughout the week, you’ve got to prepare that you’re going to get into the game regardless of what position you’re at (or) where you are on the depth chart,” he said. “So, it’s just focusing in on the game plan and trying to stick to it, and then being able to execute when I got on the field.”

*After Green scored his first touchdown in the game, a one-yard run in the third quarter, he flipped the ball to the referee before requesting he be given the ball back. It was his first TD, so he wanted the ball as a keepsake.

He was prompted by tight end Kamari Morales.

“He always told me, ‘Once you score, make sure you get the ball,’ so I scored and I didn’t even know what to think, really,” Green recalled. “I was just so excited, so I threw the ball to the ref, and then I was like, ‘Wait, I need to get the ball.’

“So, I went back to the ref and said, ‘I’m sorry, I need this.’ I grabbed it from him and took it.”

Green was somewhat apologetic with the ref, and the official said, ‘You can’t take this,’ he said, ‘I need this.’”

Any response from the official afterward?

“I think he kind of figured it out,” Green said.

*Green is still listed as the fifth back on the depth chart, though Phil Longo said Monday that Green is one of the three likely to play Saturday versus Pitt. His approach is to simply do what he needs to in order to prepare. It is a theme of Green’s for sure.

“I just try to not pay attention to that kind of stuff,” he said. “You’ve got to half self-confidence in yourself, and believe in your capabilities, and all those things will sort themselves out, I believe.”

*So, Green couldn’t carry the ball for a while but insisted on staying on special teams, in which he has been in for 67 plays this season, most on the kickoff team. He just wanted to help the team in any way he could.

“The injury obviously hindered my ability to run the ball, so I had to find other ways I could impact the game, and that way was on special teams,” he said. “I worked a lot on special teams in the last couple of years, and have finally been able to find a role on special teams, because I believe that is really important, especially trying to play at the next level – you have to be able play special teams.”

Among the things Green spoke about are how he and Josh Downs complement each other on the field, if they are the best WR tandem in the ACC, the team dealing with being ranked, Drake Maye, and his speed considering some teammates have said Green is faster than he was a year ago.

*So, as far as the speed topic goes, Green acknowledged he might be a bit faster.

“I’ve always had a little bit of speed behind me, but I think I (sped) up this year just by dropping weight,” Green said. “I focused on that in the offseason as well working on my acceleration.”

How does a football player work on improving his acceleration?

“Drills with (assistant strength & conditioning) Coach (A.J.) Blue, honestly, and the strength staff,” he said. “They did a lot of new stuff with us this year to help us get faster and stronger.”

*Green was asked to make the case that he and Downs are the best receiving tandem in the ACC, and maybe even the country.

“Ain’t no need to argue, I’m going to go with us every time against everybody,” green replied.

Downs spoke about how he and Antoine Green complement each other on the field, how the Heels using the middle of the field has helped him and other receivers getting some isolation coverage, if he and Green are the best receiving tandem in the ACC, about Elijah Green and his speed, and much more.

*About Downs and Antoine Green being the best WR tandem in the ACC, Downs

“A one-two punch, honestly, there’s nothing that I feel like we can’t do as a tandem,” Downs said. “I feel like we both can do every part of the football game, every part of the receivers game, we can run routes, we can go deep, we can go get the ball, and we can catch.”

*Downs says they are better playing off each other this season because they have another year under them playing off one another.

“Just more mature, definitely more experience,” he said. “We understand our roles more, we’ve already played against a lot of the teams we’re playing against now, so we understand the defenses better. And the experience comes with that as well.

“I feel like having a year under our belt playing with each other we have a different chemistry.”

Maye was asked a lot of different questions, including about how he is handling more personal attention, including some Heisman hype, the team winning, Elijah Green, texting with his dad before games, Mack Brown’s message to the team with five games left, and more.

*Maye fumbled twice in the win at Duke, one of which actually happened when running back Caleb Hood hit Maye’s arm as he was looking to possibly pass the ball. Maye said that actually happens sometimes in practice, and also that it was on him, not Hood.

“That stuff happens in practice sometimes, that’s not on Caleb at all,” Maye said. “We call it, ‘clearance footwork,’ I’ve gotta get out of the way, especially with it’s an RPO with the running back on the right side going left.”

*That play appears to most people as a fluke thing, but Maye says there is something he can learn from it to avoid it happening in the future.

“Oh yeah, a hundred percent,” Maye said. “It’s not a common thing in practice, but it’s happened before. It’s happened to me here before, I think maybe in a scrimmage my freshman year… The little things I can do a better job.”