Pete Thamel expects both Max Johnson, Conner Harrell to play in UNC opener at Minnesota

ESPN’s Pete Thamel expects both Max Johnson and Conner Harrell to play quarterback Thursday night in UNC’s season opener at Minnesota.

“Well, there’s been a little cat-and-mouse game between Minnesota coach P.J. Fleck and North Carolina’s Mack Brown,” Thamel said Wednesday on ESPN’s “College Football Live.”

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“P.J. didn’t release a depth chart, so Mack decided to be a little bit coy about who his starter’s going to be. Max Johnson has the most experience. He obviously played at LSU. He played at Texas A&M,” Thamel said. “He brings 1,600 snaps into this, so he’s probably expected to start over Conner Harrell, but I do expect both to play. Mack Brown told me as much last week.

Thamel continued: “What Conner Harrell brings is an element of dynamism. He could come in situationally. He could come in the ‘Wildcat.’ He started North Carolina’s bowl game last year. He’s not the polished passer that Johnson is, nor does he have the experience, but he can really stress a defense. Look for both to see some action in Minneapolis.”

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Harrell redshirted as a freshman and then backed up future No. 3 overall pick Drake Maye last season, appearing in five games. That included his first career start, which he made in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. UNC lost that postseason contest, 30-10, to West Virginia, and Harrell threw two picks. That said, he did complete 18-of-27 passes for 199 yards and a touchdown as well. He also carried the ball 17 times, although he netted only 25 yards on the ground in the defeat.

The Tar Heels added Johnson through the transfer portal this offseason. The lefty’s got 22 career starts under his belt between a pair of two-year stints at LSU and Texas A&M. The former four-star prospect from Athens, Georgia, broke out in 2021 at LSU when he posted a 27:6 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He threw for 2,815 yards and completed 60.3% of his passes that year, but the Tigers finished only 6-7, including 3-5 in the SEC.

Last year, Johnson appeared in eight games at Texas A&M, starting five. Along the way, he hit on 62.1% of his passes and piled up 1,452 yards through the air, plus nine touchdowns and five interceptions.

Johnson could be QB1 at UNC this year, but, as Thamel mentioned Wednesday, the Tar Heels could use Harrell, too, beginning Thursday night in the opener at Minnesota.