Chansky's Notebook: For 'Leaping' Sake!

Phil Longo has enlisted Drake Maye’s parents to help him.

We all have our hearts in our mouths when UNC’s freshman sensation goes airborne at the end of a run. You can imagine what Aimee and Mark Maye do when their youngest of four sons leaves the ground. Carolina’s offensive coordinator knows how he feels.

“I’ve now recruited mom and dad,” Longo said Monday.

“Coach [Brown] strategically used the word, we don’t want to be selfish, right? Let’s be smart because we want to get up after these jumps and be able to help the team on the next play, the next day, the next game.

“But now I’m on the phone with mom and dad, and I’m recruiting their help to try and quell Drake.”

Longo continued, “I just want him to be smarter and stay healthy. So now we’re down to if you’re near the goal line and you need it to win the game, do whatever you want as long as you secure the football.

“The other thing that makes me nervous, when you jump very few people naturally hold the ball up against their body. When you jump, your arms and your legs tend to flare out, and that means the ball is away from your body.

“What we said was, ‘What are you gaining by jumping? You’re taking hits to your lower body. You’re landing on your upper body. Here are a broken collarbone, dislocated shoulder, concussion, neck issue, the potential of fumbling the football.

“That’s what you got on the negative side of leaping and trying to go over people. And then it’s also people know, down in the red zone, this cat’s gonna jump, and they’re gonna take shots on you. And so what are you getting on the positive side? Another yard, another two yards.”

Now after five games and three injury-defying jumps, Maye hears it from his head coach, offensive coordinator and, yikes, his parents.

“So, goal line, gotta win the game, maybe the championship,” Longo said. “I mean it’s down to like next to nothing. We don’t want to leap and leave the floor anymore. So I said, ‘Save that for basketball.’

“Slide, go down, run out of bounds, get on the ground. That way you’re healthy enough to execute the next play. I’m hoping that will be enough of a conversation that we shouldn’t have this problem anymore. Hopefully, he’ll hear me this week.”

We also hope so, Drake. Stay grounded, young man.

Featured image via Associated Press/Chris Seward

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Chansky’s Notebook: For ‘Leaping’ Sake!

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