FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — With another way of juggling players, the back-up quarterback has gone back to North Carolina where he couldn’t get a starting role while the last remaining uncommitted basketball player officially put his name in the transfer portal.
Jacolby Criswell apparently was running out of options and North Carolina let him come back while Trevon Brazile is still expected to be a second-round NBA Draft choice if he stays there and doesn’t find his third college to play for.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — With another way of juggling players, the back-up quarterback has gone back to North Carolina where he couldn’t get a starting role while the last remaining uncommitted basketball player officially put his name in the transfer portal.
Jacolby Criswell apparently was running out of options and North Carolina let him come back while Trevon Brazile is still expected to be a second-round NBA Draft choice if he stays there and doesn’t find his third college to play for.
Criswell, from Morrilton, was expected to come back last year and be the back-up to KJ Jefferson and assume the role of starter this coming season. Coach Sam Pittman and offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino realized that wasn’t going to happen and obviously felt the need to upgrade the position, so they went and got Taylen Green after his career at Boise State. It wasn’t clear Criswell was even going to be Green’s back-up as Malachi Singleton and incoming freshman KJ Jackson had spots where they shined in spring practice.
Brazile, on the other hand, is going to be playing somewhere next year. Apparently, though, it won’t be at Arkansas. It’s probably more a formality to just keep his options open if he doesn’t get a favorable read on the NBA. The only school he can come back to would be the Razorbacks unless he went through the procedure to put his name in the portal.
Before last season, he was projected as a possible lottery pick in the first round. Injuries and other things led to a disappointing year where he is still projected as a possible pick in most mock drafts, but he’s fallen all the way to the second round.
The Hogs have a revolving door in just about every sport. That includes the women’s basketball program, where keeping up with that roster is almost as difficult a task for Mike Neighbors as what John Calipari is having to do on the men’s side. It will be completely new faces on the floor at Bud Walton this year in all respects.
Just don’t try to memorize the rosters anymore. With all the changes it takes half the season before anybody has it down, so don’t feel bad. A lot of us in the media are fighting to figure it out, too. Just don’t expect it settle down anytime soon.
North Carolina’s thin quarterback room is getting a familiar addition.
Former UNC quarterback Jacolby Criswell, who spent the 2023 season at Arkansas, is returning to play at North Carolina, sources told ESPN. Criswell began his career at UNC from 2020 to 2022, transferring after getting beat out by Drake Maye to become the starter for the 2022 season.
Criswell, who will have two years of eligibility remaining, is a former ESPN 300 recruit who was well regarded by the Tar Heels and their staff. Entering summer camp for UNC in 2022, the quarterback competition was considered a tight race.
Once Maye secured the job, Criswell transferred to Arkansas, which is his home state.
UNC recruited Criswell out of Arkansas in the class of 2020, as he was ESPN’s No. 10 dual-threat quarterback. He’s a bigger quarterback at 6-foot-1, 230 pounds.
Criswell enters the 2024 season with appearances in 18 games. He has thrown for 347 yards, rushed for 177 and accounted for 5 TDs in his career. He started the Wofford game in 2021, filling in for the injured Sam Howell, and completed 11 of 19 passes for 125 yards while rushing five times for 66 yards and a touchdown.
He returns as an intriguing option in UNC’s quarterback room. Transfer Max Johnson started the UNC spring game. Johnson is 12-10 in his career as a starter, going 4-4 at Texas A&M and 8-6 during his time at LSU.
The only other returning UNC quarterback with starting experience is Conner Harrell, who started the 30-10 loss to West Virginia in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. In that game, Harrell went 18-for-27 for 199 yards with two interceptions and a touchdown.
UNC also has class of 2024 quarterback Michael Merdinger, who committed in May 2023. He has three listed offers from power conference schools. UNC has a four-star commitment from Bryce Baker for the class of 2025.
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