Drake Maye Scouting Report

Drake Maye, QB

Measurements:

Height: 6’4
Weight: 223lbs
Classification: RS Sophomore
School: North Carolina

Testing Numbers:

Arm: 32 1/4”
Hand: 9 1/8”
40: N/A
Broad: N/A
Vert: N/A

Prospect Bio:

Talk about a sports royalty; you can’t mention the name of Drake Maye without mentioning the greatness that follows the Maye name.

He comes from a talented family; his brother, Luke, was a Tar Heel basketball great from 2015–19, known most notably for the shot that sent UNC back to the Final Four vs. Kentucky in 2017. That same year, his brother, Cole, a pitcher, won an NCAA baseball title at Florida. His mother, Amiee, saw her fair share of success on the basketball court, and then, of course, his father, Mark, was an All-American quarterback and all-state athlete in three sports, not to mention starting quarterback at North Carolina in the mid-’80s.

Now, Drake [Maye], the youngest of the bunch, is tasked with, not only, filling those big shoes but also finishing a story his father began writing early on but was cut short by injury.

As a freshman in high school, Maye began his playing days at Willam A. Hough High, spending just one season at the school before transferring to Meyer Park to play under Scott Chadwick. In his two full seasons at the school (he didn’t play his senior year due to COVID), Maye produced 6,713 yards and 86 TDs on 398-of-581 (68.5%) passing. While being named a second-team All-American and MaxPreps North Carolina Player of the Year as a junior.

Maye was also one of the state’s top basketball players, a three-year standout who averaged 16.1 points and 11.3 rebounds per game as a junior and earned all-conference and all-district honors.

Like his father and brothers Luke and Beau, Drake Maye also committed to North Carolina. He redshirted after not playing much in his freshman season, but it didn’t take long for the youngest of the Maye bunch to begin to write his own legacy.

After being named ACC Player of the Year, a member of the First Team All-ACC, and ACC rookie of the year following his 2022 campaign, Maye officially put the world on notice. While his 2023 season wasn’t as good statistically, Maye continued to prove why he was one of the best players in the entire class, finishing as the only ACC quarterback to eclipse over 4,000 offensive yards and one of eight FBS quarterbacks to average over 300 yards per game.

Career Stats:

RS Freshman

Adj Completion Percentage: 75.4%
Yards: 4293
TDs: 37
INTs: 7

RS Sophomore

Adj Completion Percentage: 75.1%
Yards: 3608
TDs: 24
INTs: 9

Advanced Metrics:

Passing Pressures

RS Freshman
- Kept Clean: 63.2% dropbacks — 79.9% Adj. Completion (26 TDs — 4 INTs)
- Under Pressure: 36.8% dropbacks — 61.5% Adj. Completion (11 TDs — 4 INTs)
- Not Blitzed: 64.5% of dropbacks — 79.7% Adj. Completion (18 TDs — 5 INTs)
- Blitzed: 35.5% of dropbacks — 67.5% Adj. Completion (19 TDs — 2 INTs)

RS Sophomore
- Kept Clean: 70.6% dropbacks — 77% Adj. Completion (17 TDs — 4 INTs)
- Under Pressure: 29.4% dropbacks — 65.6% Adj. Completion (7 TDs — 5 INTs)
- Not Blitzed: 61.1% dropbacks — 80.2% Adj. Completion (12 TDs — 5 INTs)
- Blitzed: 38.9% dropbacks — 66.9 Adj. Completion (12 TDs — 4 INTs)

Passing Depth

RS Freshman:
- Behind LOS:
  - 62-66 (93.9%)
  - 12.8% of Attempts
  - Average Depth of Target: -3.6 yards
  - 322 yards
- Short:
  - 160-201 (79.6%)
  - 39% of Attempts
  - Average Depth of Target: 4.8 yards
  - 1,361 yards
- Medium:
  - 74-124 (59.7%)
  - 24% of Attempts
  - Average Depth of Target: 13.4 yards
  - 1,279 yards
- Deep:
  - 43-85 (50.6%)
  - 16.5% of Attempts
  - Average Depth of Target: 30.1
  - 1,331 yards

RS Sophomore
- Behind LOS:
  - 63-67 (94%)
  - 15.8% of Attempts
  - Average Depth of Target: -3.3 yards
  - 317 yards
- Short:
  - 118-149 (79.2%)
  - 35.1% of Attempts
  - Average Depth of Target: 4.8
  - 997 yards
- Medium:
  - 48-89 (53.9%)
  - 20.9% of Attempts
  - Average Depth of Target: 14.4 yards
  - 842 yards
- Deep:
  - 40-84 (47.6%)
  - 19.8% of Attempts
  - Average Depth of Target: 29.9 yards
  - 1,452 yards

Prospect Overview:

To watch Drake Maye, you’ll need some popcorn, an Advil, and a seat belt because this young man will send you into a whrilwind of emotions. Not only because of his roller coaster style of play, but because of the context that surrounds him as well.

There is much chatter about the step back in production Maye took from Year One to Year Two, but it must first be acknowledged that A.) he went into the latter operating with a new play caller as his offensive coordinator after Phil Longo took the same gig at Wisconsin and B.) There wasn’t very much talent surrounding him.

Maye plays with a bit of an off/on switch, which makes sense given the circumstances. He can operate within an offense when he believes in the concepts and those around him, but when he doesn’t, he tends to become Superman.

The term that can be used to best describe Maye is a certified gunslinger. He isn’t afraid to stand and deliver in the face of pressure and has a seamless arm to make any throw on the field. There are times he can get greedy with his decision-making, chasing the big play instead of the easy yards, but the young man is a magician with the football, sometimes to his own fault.

Maye is willing to make a play with the football or die trying. He has a high football IQ and understands where to go with the football when under pressure; has 31 touchdowns and six career interceptions when blitzed. Maye throws the football with great anticipation at all three levels and does a good job of placing defenders where he wants to with his eyes opening up passing windows.

There are many times I wish he’d be more nuanced in his lower mechanics, but what can I say? The kid has a talented arm, and he knows it; he has reps against Minnesota, Clemson, and NC State where his feet were not in position to make a proper pass, but the location of the football was magnificent.

On the move Maye is presented as a threat, both as a rusher and as a passer. He was used in multiple ways as the primary rusher in the red zone and played with a “every play is his last” mentality.

Maye has the measurements and traits to become the next big thing at QB in this league. It would be nice to see him find a way to reign himself in a bit, but I believe that will come with more comfortability in a system and with more reps.

Cover Image Credit: Orlando Ramirez – USA Today Sports