Pitt defense anticipates tough challenge facing off against Drake Maye

The Pitt Panthers have dug themselves an early 1-2 hole at the start of the 2023 season with consecutive losses to Cincinnati and West Virginia. If Pitt was hoping for any type of reprieve this week, they won’t be finding that with its next opponent.

North Carolina is set to invade Acrisure Stadium tonight for an 8:00 p.m. kickoff. The Tar Heels will be the best team Pitt will face thus far in the 2023 campaign. North Carolina is undefeated, ranked No. 17 in the country, and the Tar Heels boast one of the best quarterbacks in college football in Drake Maye.

Maye, the reigning ACC Player of the Year, comes into Saturday’s contest completing 72% of his passes with 891 passing yards, though he has a 4-4 touchdown to interception ratio to this point. He did throw for 38 touchdowns a season ago, and while the touchdown numbers aren’t quite there yet, the Pitt defense understands the challenge at hand.

“It’s definitely always a great opportunity to play somebody high-caliber like him,” Pitt senior defensive tackle David Green said of Maye. “Really going against him last year, he showed a lot of things why he’s got the accolades that he does. He’s a great player and we’re really just focusing on what we’ve got to focus on and when that time comes we’ll be ready for it.”

Pitt lost to North Carolina a season ago by a score of 42-24, thanks to five touchdown passes by the North Carolina quarterback. The Panthers led that game after three quarters, but Maye found a rhythm and helped the Tar Heels win the fourth quarter 21-0. The 2022 performance has stuck in the minds of the Pitt team, but starting conference play against a good team in general should be enough motivation anyway.

“Regardless of last year, we remember,” said Pitt safeties coach Cory Sanders. “I remember. They threw five touchdowns and 388 yards last year, so we remember that. But at the end of the day, you’ve got to be able to let those things go and move on. This is conference play and we’re ready to get into conference play and compete.”

Maye’s throwing prowess was on display in that 2022 meeting, but throughout his career he’s displayed the ability to move around in the pocket and make plays with his feet. He was North Carolina’ leading rusher in 2022 with 698 yards, and has 116 yards and a touchdown through three games this year.

“He’s a quick processor and at the same time, too, he can escape,” Sanders said of Maye. “He can escape out of the pocket and extend plays. So he’s a good runner and he’s a good thrower, so he’s a dual-threat type of guy from that standpoint with a good arm.”

The reason Maye’s touchdown pace is down is likely because of a new cast of receivers. The Tar Heels placed both of their top two receivers in the NFL following last season and there has not been a clear replacement for guys like Josh Downs and Antoine Green.

Nate McCollum, a Georgia Tech transfer, started to come alive after a slow start and showed last week he will probably be Maye’s top target moving forward. In the Tar Heels’ 31-13 win over Minnesota last week, McCollum caught 15 passes for 165 yards and a score. McCollum is a player the Panthers are familiar with as he has six career catches for 73 yards and a touchdown in two games against Pitt when he played for the Yellow Jackets previously.

“So he’s a quick guy, he tracks the ball well, he finds the ball and he can make some moves after he gets the ball in his hands,” Sanders said.

In recent years, North Carolina had trouble establishing a true rushing attack. The Tar Heels’ rushing tandem of Omarion Hamption and British Brooks have combined for 445 yards and seven touchdowns on the year, which has been an added benefit in its own right, and has also allowed Maye to take less hits.

Pitt, normally stingy against the run, has had some breakdowns in recent weeks and has allowed a pair of 100-yard rushers in both losses. This defense usually prides itself on being able to shut down the run and they are looking to improve on that heading into Saturday.

“There’s always more to do definitely,” said Green. “I feel like we’ve got to play the run better and I feel like teams are trying to attack us with their run, so we’ve just got to be able to stop the run and be good to the front stuff after that. Every day is a day to get better.”

Pitt’s passing defense actually ranks second in the country at the moment, though those numbers are likely a bit inflated. Wofford, Cincinnati, and West Virginia are not exactly air-raid offenses. The Panthers have some talented safeties, though they have still yet to really be challenged, and this will be their first real test against an offense that can push the ball downfield.

“He does a lot of things really well,” Pitt safety Javon McIntyre said of the opposing quarterback. “He’s a good player, but we’ve got good players too, so we always just come in ready to learn our opposition every week.”

McIntyre is tied for second on the team in tackles with 17, trailing his fellow safety Donovan McMillon, who has a team-best 26 stops. Both played well last week, though in limited passing opportunities. Pitt is trying to turn the page from that West Virginia game and views North Carolina as a fresh start.

“I think we’re just ready to work,” said McIntyre. “I mean, every day and every week is a new week. We know what happened the last two weeks and we fell short of our goal, but it’s a new week regardless and we’ve got to come in ready to work, put our head down, and get back to that 1-0 schedule, so we come back 1-0 next week.”

The Panthers do hold a 1-2 overall record, but they also have an 0-0 mark in ACC play with eight conference games still in front of them. While there is a lot of noise around the team’s slow start, the mantra inside the locker room is focusing on what they can do in conference.

“Our goals are still in front of us and really now we’re getting into ACC play, so we’ve really got to start fresh now and continue to keep battling each and every day,” Green said of Pitt’s mindset heading into the final nine games.