Drake Maye named Preseason POTY, three Tar Heels make Preseason All-ACC Team

The media picks star quarterback Drake Maye for the highest ACC honor and considers two other Tar Heels as the best players in the conference.

Orlando Ramirez/USA Today Sports

More preseason honors are rolling in for UNC ahead of its 2023 campaign. 

The ACC released its 2023 Preseason All-ACC Football Team on Wednesday, naming sophomore Drake Maye as the Preseason ACC Player of the Year and the preseason All-ACC team quarterback.

Maye received 88 votes out of 176 for preseason player of the year. 

⭐️ 2023 All-ACC Preseason Football Team ⭐️

𝙋𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙤𝙣 𝙋𝙡𝙖𝙮𝙚𝙧 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙔𝙚𝙖𝙧: @DrakeMaye2

📰 https://t.co/akE43HAAjY pic.twitter.com/wyMhibaspg

— ACC Football (@ACCFootball) August 2, 2023

Junior receiver Tez Walker and senior linebacker Cedric Gray were also named to the preseason team. 

Maye and Gray aren't new to the highest ACC honors as they were both first-team selections at the end of the 2022 season. 

Walker, a transfer from Kent State, has high expectations going into 2023. Head coach Mack Brown and Maye have praised his speed and route running since he joined the team earlier this year. 

At Kent State, Walker had 63 receptions, 1,045 receiving yards and 13 total touchdowns, including one rushing touchdown. 

He and Georgia Tech transfer Nate McCollum will be expected to replace the receiver production lost from Josh Downs and Antoine Green going pro. 

Will Drake Maye repeat as the ACC Player of the Year?