The UNC football team will carry high expectations into the 2023 season, and it will do so with a number beside its name. The Tar Heels slotted in at No. 21 in the preseason AP Top 25 poll released on Monday. It’s the team’s second ranking in a major poll after coming in at No. 20 in the USA Today Coaches Poll last week.

Also representing the ACC in the poll are No. 8 Florida State and No. 9 Clemson. Pittsburgh, Louisville, Duke and NC State also received votes but were not ranked. As it stands, the Tigers are the only Carolina opponent this coming season to be ranked in the poll.

UNC is coming off an ACC Coastal Division title and a 9-5 record in 2022, though the team lost its final four games after starting 9-1 and cracking the Top 15 of the College Football Playoff poll. The Tar Heels are led by preseason ACC Player of the Year Drake Maye at quarterback. Maye won Player of the Year honors in 2022 and is viewed as a top contender for the Heisman Trophy and a likely first-round pick in next spring’s NFL Draft.

Also returning to the fold is All-ACC linebacker Cedric Gray, who led the conference in total tackles last season. Though star wide receiver Josh Downs is now in the NFL, Carolina revamped its receiving corps with the additions of Kent State’s Tez Walker (though Walker’s eligibility is still in doubt) and Georgia Tech’s Nate McCollum through the transfer portal.

Carolina will open the season against South Carolina in Charlotte on September 2 at 7:30 p.m. For a full look at the AP Poll, click here.

 

Featured image via Associated Press/Reinhold Matay

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