The case for North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye to win the Heisman Trophy

Four months ago, Drake Maye was competing just to be the starting quarterback at North Carolina.

Now, with two weeks left in the 2022 regular season, Maye finds himself a serious candidate for college football's most prestigious award.

With support growing for the redshirt freshman to be considered for this year's Heisman Trophy, UNC officially threw its support behind Maye on Monday by releasing a video on the football team's official Twitter account.

The 50-second montage features highlights of some of Maye's top plays this season around sound bites and quotes from various media hyping him for the Heisman with a soundtrack of fellow North Carolinian J. Cole's song "No Role Modelz."

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The school has also created a Twitter hashtag – #MayeforHeisman – to further promote Maye's Heisman candidacy.

"To hear my name in some of those (Heisman) conversations is a blessing and a dream,'' said Maye, who enters a home game for UNC (9-1, 6-0 ACC) against Georgia Tech ( 4-6, 3-4) on Saturday (5:30 p.m., ACC Network) leading the nation in passing touchdowns (34) and total offense per game (399.6).

The Heisman Trophy has been awarded annually since 1935 to the college football's most outstanding player. The winner is determined through voting among more than 800 media members across the nation along with every former living Heisman winner and a special fan vote.

Ballots for the 2022 Heisman Trophy will be distributed on Nov. 28 and must be submitted by Dec. 5. So Maye's performance in the ACC Championship game on Dec. 3 against Clemson could be a factor for some voters.

Four finalists will be announced on Dec. 5, all of whom will be invited to the Heisman ceremony in New York on Dec. 10.

UNC coach Mack Brown is among many who believe Maye has already earned himself a ticket to New York. "Drake has had his Heisman moments,'' Brown said Monday. "I think he should be invited to New York.''

None other than 2011 Heisman winner Robert Griffin III also endorsed Maye as a finalist via a Twitter post over the weekend.

"Drake Maye should be in New York for the Heisman,'' Griffin wrote.

No player from a North Carolina university has ever won the Heisman Trophy, nor has one been a finalist since they started attending the ceremony in 1982. The highest a North Carolina college player has finished in the Heisman balloting was Tar Heel great Charlie "Choo-Choo'' Justice, who was the runner-up in both the 1948 and 1949 Heisman vote.

SMU running back Doak Walker beat out Justice by a 778-443 margin in 1948 and Notre Dame end Leon Hart won the 1949 award by a 995-272 advantage.

"It would mean the world to me just to be there (as finalist), especially going up there with all those other tremendous players,'' Maye said. "Getting an invite would be pretty special because I've grown up watching all those guys (Heisman winners). It's one of the biggest awards in college football and college sports. It would be an honor for me to go. That would be pretty cool.''

Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker, who played at Greensboro's Dudley High School, and Ohio State quarterback C.J. Stroud are the current Heisman favorites. But Maye has gradually moved onto the list of contenders while leading UNC to a 9-1 overall record, the ACC Coastal Division title and the No. 11 spot in the USA Today Sports AFCA Coaches Top 25.

Maye has thrown for at least two touchdowns in every game this season and has passed for 300 or more yards in six of the last seven outings.

This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Can North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye win the Heisman Trophy?