Mack Brown said earlier this week that the Tar Heels would be using both quarterbacks in some capacity on Saturday afternoon against James Madison, but we now know who will be the first of those two to hit the field.
As Matt Zientz of 247Sports and CBS Sports first reported, UNC sources say junior Jacolby Criswell will be getting the start on Saturday over sophomore Conner Harrell, who started each of the last two games after the injury to opening game starter Max Johnson. This comes after Criswell’s strong performance against NC Central where he was 14 of 23 for 161 yards and a touchdown. He also carried the ball three times for 16 yards.
This will be Criswell’s third career start and his second as a Tar Heel quarterback. His first career start came with the Tar Heels back in 2021 against Wofford in place of the injured Sam Howell. He finished that game 11-19 for 125 yards passing and ran for 66 yards and a touchdown on the ground all in the first half. Last year at Arkansas, Criswell started the team’s game against Missouri, going 12-20 for 96 yards and a touchdown while carrying the ball fifteen times for -23 yards.
Let’s hope that he performance resembles more of what we saw back in 2021 on Saturday and allows the team to finally settle the quarterback battle.
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