COLLEGE FOOTBALL (EARLY POSTSEASON EDITION):
DG’s ACC/NC “Fun Facts & Shout-Outs”
Visit NFL, College, High School Football
(Weekly Video = Posted Below)
By David Glenn
North Carolina Sports Network
(last updated Dec. 15, 2025)
While the focus of our “This Week In College Football” show is forward-looking as often as possible, we always take a glance back at the previous weekend in college football, too, and sometimes we’ll offer some quick mentions to those making impactful headlines on the gridiron, especially in the Atlantic Coast Conference and/or across North Carolina.
With that in mind, below is our early postseason edition of “Fun Facts and Shout-Outs,” brought to you by our good friends at Jimmy’s bar and King Neptune restaurant in Wrightsville Beach.
Jimmy’s has a full bar, nightly drink specials and live music 365 days a year(!). (It’s a great place to watch a game, too.) Right next door, King Neptune has become one of the best restaurants in the entire greater Wilmington area.
Early Postseason “Fun Fact #1″
Fun Fact: For the first time in the 100-plus-year history of the National Football League, the University of North Carolina has produced a top-tier quarterback in that league.
Believe it or not, the NFL was founded in 1920, but the Tar Heels — who have sent more than 250 players to The League overall, including defensive legends such as Lawrence Taylor and Julius Peppers — had never produced a quarterback who became a true star at the next level.
That’s until now, in 2025, more than a century after the creation of the NFL.
New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye, a former UNC superstar who became the #3 overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, has emerged this season as a Most Valuable Player candidate in the professional ranks. Entering the team’s recent bye week, Maye — who starred at Myers Park High School in Charlotte before his time in Chapel Hill — led the NFL in passer rating, completion percentage and passing yards.
At 11-3, the Patriots lead the AFC’s Eastern Division and are tied for the second-best record in the entire league. Maye has thrown 23 touchdown passes, against only seven interceptions. He is completing more than 70 percent of his passes and is on pace for more than 4,300 regular-season passing yards.
Entering New England’s game Sunday at Baltimore, Maye and Los Angeles Rams QB Matthew Stafford were listed as the two favorites for the NFL’s prestigious MVP honor. Even if Maye doesn’t win that award, he will have certified himself as the best NFL signal-caller ever produced by UNC.
The only other Carolina quarterbacks who have ever even become temporary starters at the NFL level all came within the past 15 years: TJ Yates from the Butch Davis era, Mitch Trubisky from the Larry Fedora era, and Sam Howell from the Mack Brown Part Two era.
Yates ended up with only 12 career starts as a pro, and Trubisky (60 career NFL starts) and Howell (18 career NFL starts) are now both NFL backups, in Buffalo and Philadelphia, respectively.
Other college football programs in North Carolina have produced big-time NFL quarterbacks.
Sonny Jurgensen of Duke played 18 seasons in the NFL, made five Pro Bowls and earned four All-Pro honors on his way to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Jeff Blake of East Carolina played 13 NFL seasons, including eight as a starter. Philip Rivers of NC State — now back for his 18th NFL season — was a 15-year starter before retiring and then recently un-retiring.
For all of those star QBs’ impressive accomplishments and accolades, though, none of them ever earned the NFL’s Most Valuable Player award.
Maybe Maye will.
Now on to this week’s shout-outs….
#1—Shout-out, at the college level, to second-year Duke coach Manny Diaz and the 2025 Blue Devils.
When Duke beat Virginia in overtime at the ACC championship game in Charlotte earlier this month — the North Carolina Sports Network was there, on the field at Bank of America Stadium, to see it all up close — the Blue Devils made all sorts of the right kinds of history.
It would be a massive understatement to say that it’s not easy to win in football at Duke, where — in the Power Four context — the academic standards are very high and the football stadium is very small. In the past 60 years, remember, the Blue Devils had captured the ACC title on the gridiron only once.
That long-ago championship came under legendary coach Steve Spurrier, in 1989, and it came before the creation of the ACC championship game. In ’89, remember, Duke tied Virginia for first place in the conference standings, so the teams were declared co-champions, even though the Cavaliers had defeated the Blue Devils head-to-head that season. That one will count forever as an ACC co-title for the Devils, as it should, but it wasn’t hard to see why the Wahoos felt like they were the true ACC champs that season.
Under Diaz this year, Duke just captured its first outright ACC football championship — meaning no ties — since way back in 1962, and that’s just a stunning accomplishment, especially in a state whose four ACC schools have collectively claimed only two league titles on the gridiron since 1989.
Wake Forest did it under coach Jim Grobe in 2006, and now Duke has done it under Diaz in 2025.
The most prominent North Carolina high school products on the Blue Devils’ depth chart this season have included honorable mention All-ACC defensive end Vincent Anthony Jr. (Durham Jordan), wide receiver and return man Que’Sean Brown (Kernersville East Forsyth), bruising second-team running back Anderson Castle (an Appalachian State transfer who previously starred at Boone Watauga), linebacker Tre Freeman (Northern Durham), third-team All-ACC defensive tackle Aaron Hall (Durham Southern), kicker Todd Pelino (Concord Cannon) and safety DaShawn Stone (Asheville Reynolds).
#2—Finally, shout-outs, at the high school level, to the eight state champions produced by the North Carolina High School Athletic Association playoffs over this past month or so.
From Class 8A (largest schools) to Class 1A (smallest schools), the winners were Hough High from the Charlotte area, Grimsley High from Greensboro, Watauga High from Boone, Crest High from Shelby, Reidsville High (north of Greensboro), Shelby High (west of Charlotte), Tarboro High (a bit east of I-95) and Wilson Prep (east of Raleigh).
In this week’s shout-outs, the focus is on the two largest classifications, which tend to produce the most college football prospects.
The Class 8A champion, William Amos Hough High, is from the Charlotte suburb of Cornelius. The school has existed for only 15 years, but it quickly has become a huge producer of college football talent, and this year marked its 13th consecutive trip to the NCHSAA playoffs.
The Huskies defeated Millbrook High (from Raleigh) 21-0 in the championship game at UNC’s Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill to finish a perfect 14-0 on the season and capture the program’s first-ever state championship.
Congratulations to third-year Hough head coach DeShawn Baker, star running back Jamarion Morrison (offensive MVP) and star linebacker Ryan Peterson (defensive MVP) for their huge roles in bringing that title back to the Queen City.
The Huskies’ top-ranked college prospect, senior cornerback Samari Matthews, has signed with the Texas Longhorns and will continue his gridiron career in the Southeastern Conference.
The Class 7A champion, Grimsley High, is a powerhouse program from Greensboro. The Whirlies won their third state championship just in the past five years, defeating Clayton 24-14 in the title contest. That game also was played at Kenan Stadium in Chapel Hill.
Grimsley High is actually the same school that once was called Greensboro High. Before the name change, back in the 1960s, the Whirlies captured several additional state titles.
Kudos to 10th-year Grimsley head coach Darryl Brown for building one of the best high school programs in the entire state, and for his third championship in the past five years. Shout-outs, also, to Whirlies running back Micah Williams (the title game’s offensive MVP) and safety Makai Yon (defensive MVP).
Grimsley’s star quarterback, senior Faizon Brandon, who is rated by many the #1 football prospect in the entire Bold North State, has signed with the Tennessee Volunteers and also will play in the SEC at the next level.
Congratulations to this week’s honorees, and Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to you and yours from all of us here at the North Carolina Sports Network. Thanks again for your ongoing support.
