When Clemson plays North Carolina in the ACC Championship Game on Saturday, the Tigers will face a quarterback that they courted during the recruiting process.

Drake Maye, the ACC’s leading passer, had Dabo Swinney and the Tigers as a suitor in his recruitment before he ultimately ended up matriculating at UNC.

“I knew Drake. We recruited Drake,” Swinney said during his weekly Tuesday press conference. “So, great kid, great family. Tar Heel family, and you know he loves it and he bleeds it, and he’ll be a tough out.”

A heavy North Carolina legacy as the son of former UNC star quarterback Mark Maye and brother of former UNC basketball standout Luke Maye, Drake originally committed to Alabama in July 2019 before flipping his commitment to the Tar Heels in March 2020.

Drake, who enrolled early at UNC in January 2021 and is now a redshirt freshman, received a scholarship offer from Clemson after working out at Swinney’s football camp in June 2019.

Swinney was asked Tuesday if he thought the Tigers were close to getting Drake, a former five-star prospect who was the No. 4 quarterback in the 2021 recruiting class according to 247Sports.

“I think we were definitely in it with him. Yeah, I think he really liked it,” Swinney said. “Like I said, great family. I think we were definitely in it with him. We recruited his brother hard, too, for basketball. So, I think we were in it, but I’m pretty sure he was going to North Carolina all along. But he at least talked to us.”

This season, Maye leads the ACC in completions (298), completion percentage (67.7), passing yards (3,847) and passer rating (165.1), while he is tied with Wake Forest’s Sam Hartman for the conference lead in passing touchdowns (35).

“The quarterback is a great, great football player,” Swinney said. “He’s a guy that was probably leading for the Heisman going into the Georgia Tech game. That was probably his worst game. He just missed a few plays. He doesn’t miss many, and he just missed some plays in that game. But he’s a very good player. That’s why we recruited him. He’s a winner. He’s very accurate. He puts the ball where the guys have a chance to make a play, and just really impressive.”

Maye has thrown just five interceptions in 12 games, and he is a threat on the ground as well, having rushed for 629 yards and six more scores.

“The thing about Drake is he’s got 35 touchdowns and five picks, so he takes care of the ball,” Swinney added. “But he’s also the leading rusher on the team. So, he’s a very productive runner. They’re not afraid to run him at all. He gets a lot of yards on scrambles, but a lot of designed runs, too, especially quarterback draw.”