This has come way, way down and I'm not quite sure why as the Heels were hit pretty hard by opt outs/injuries led by star QB and potential Top 2 NFL Draft pick Drake Maye. Conner Harrell will start in place of Maye, but he has played just 21 snaps on the year. At least two key receivers, the team's top two tight ends and a few top defenders also are out. WVU wasn't hit nearly as bad and won four of its final five games. None of the 247Sports UNC guys picked the Heels to win. Just a sprinkle ...

Midseason, UNC might have been favored by this amount had these teams met. Since, their fates present quite a contrast. West Virginia finished on a 4-1 straight-up roll as QB Garrett Green has been on fire. The Tar Heels’ lone win against an FBS foe in their last five was by two points over Duke, and they are yielding north of 30 ppg lately. Defections have damaged UNC, with NFL-bound QB Derek Maye, top WR Tez Walker and LB Cedric Walker bowing out. Maye’s replacement, Conner Harrell, has logged six passes all year. The Mountaineers have been lightly impacted by opt-outs. Having been picked last in the Big 12, they surely bring more motivation to the table.

North Carolina hasn’t won a bowl game since 2019, and it’s unlikely that the Tar Heels will have an offensive eruption this go-round due to a massive number of opt-outs and transfers. The Mountaineers have been hit by roster attrition as well, which will make quarterback Garrett Greene’s job much more difficult – even more so than in the regular season when he was as wildly inconsistent.

When I see a top QB opt out of a bowl game, I'm probably going to just bet Under blindly (worry about spread closer to kickoff) and that's where we are here with UNC's Drake Maye officially turning pro. His top WR, Devontez Walker, also is going pro and will skip the Mayo Bowl.