Drake Maye reveals Mack Brown's message to UNC team after loss to Clemson

For North Carolina, the 2022 season ended about as frustratingly as any season could have. After clinching a spot in the ACC Championship Game on the back of a great offense and quarterback Drake Maye, the Tar Heels lost to rival NC State and were blown out by Clemson in the ACC Championship Game.

While speaking to the media after the game, Drake Maye shared head coach Mack Brown’s message to the North Carolina team.

“He just said I thought we fought hard,” Drake Maye explained. “We’re not gonna accept defeat. We’re gonna give it all we got.”

Despite the challenging end to the season, Mack Brown is still proud of his team. He, like his Tar Heels team, is also still wondering what could have been if a few things played out differently.

“Obviously, we didn’t–it didn’t–end the way that we wanted to, but he’s still proud of us, basically. We wish we had some plays back that were big plays in the game, but,” Drake Maye trailed off.

North Carolina will have the chance to end the season on a high note with a bowl game win. The Tar Heels are headed to the Holiday Bowl, where they’ll take on a tough Oregon team.

Mack Brown on what Drake Maye can take away from the ACC Championship

After the difficult loss, Mack Brown explained what Drake Maye can take from the game.

“Drake is the reason we’re in the game. He played the best defense (Clemson) we’ve played all year by far. It’s one of the best defenses in the country, and we’ll all grow from playing a great team. When you play a team that’s been in the playoffs every year for about six out of the last eight, I think, it shows you what you’ve got to do to get where we want to go, and we’re not there yet,” Mack Brown said.

“We’re better than everybody else because we got here, but we weren’t better than they were. This was kind of like the Notre Dame game. They were physically better than we were and they whipped us.”