Morales entered the 2023 season as one-third of UNC’s talented tight end room, but quickly fell down the pecking order behind Bryson Nesbit and John Copenhaver. While Nesbit and Copenhaver combined for 864 receiving yards and nine touchdowns, Morales lagged behind with just 11 catches, 158 receiving yards and no scores. It was a noticeable decline in production for Morales, who’d caught 52 passes and nine touchdowns in the last two seasons combined. Now, the fifth-year senior will be playing his final year of college football elsewhere as a graduate transfer.

DL Kedrick Bingley-Jones

Bingley-Jones arrived in Chapel Hill with much fanfare as the No. 4 overall player in the state of North Carolina. But a slew of injuries hamstrung the start of his college career, and Bingley-Jones soon fell on the depth chart behind Tomari Fox, Jahvaree Ritzie, Myles Murphy and Travis Shaw. Though Bingley-Jones saw more playing time in 2023, he’s only credited with eight tackles and one tackle for loss across three seasons as a Tar Heel.

QB Jefferson Boaz

The third-string quarterback on UNC’s depth chart this season, Boaz saw limited playing time behind starter Drake Maye and backup Conner Harrell. He appeared in two games as a Tar Heel, completing a single pass in both. Now, Boaz will enter the transfer portal with two seasons of eligibility remaining.

Green rose to prominence as starter by default in 2022 after injuries ravaged the Carolina running back room. Green earned double-digit carries in each of UNC’s final six games of the season and topped 80 yards on the ground three times. His 665 total yards and nine total touchdowns were each easily career bests for the then-redshirt sophomore. But in 2023, the emergence of Omarion Hampton and the return of British Brooks (who missed all of 2022 with a knee injury) forced Green down the depth chart. Green has just four carries and 12 yards to his name this season.

LB Jalen Brooks

A junior reserve linebacker from Cardinal Gibbons High School in Raleigh, Brooks saw little playing time for UNC behind Cedric Gray, Power Echols and Amare Campbell. However, Brooks did earn praise from head coach Mack Brown this season and was named the team’s Special Teams Player of the Week for the win against Campbell. Brooks recovered a fumble on a kickoff.

K Ryan Coe

Coe began the season as the No. 1 kicker on the UNC depth chart and started against both South Carolina and Appalachian State. But it was a 39-yard miss from Coe as time expired against the Mountaineers which forced overtime, and Coe promptly missed the next week’s game against Minnesota due to an injury. He wouldn’t kick for Carolina again during the season, as Noah Burnette took over the starting job and missed only kick in the final 10 games of the regular season. Burnette earned second team All-ACC honors.

Greene came to Chapel Hill as a highly-touted prospect out of Virginia, but hardly ever saw the field as a Tar Heel. Hidden behind talents such as Josh Downs, Antoine Green and Tez Walker, Greene has caught just five passes in two seasons. His best game came during the Holiday Bowl against Oregon in 2022. Filling in for Downs and Green, neither of whom played, Greene caught three passes, including a touchdown from Drake Maye in the first half. Unfortunately, it did not prove a sign of things to come.

WR Tychaun ‘Doc’ Chapman

A speedster on both offense and special teams, Chapman gave UNC a lift late in the year by catching a 30+ yard pass in three consecutive games. That included a 35-yard touchdown from Drake Maye against Georgia Tech to temporarily give the Tar Heels the lead. But now, Chapman will seek other options.

Pettaway arrived as part of a heralded UNC recruiting class which also featured running back Omarion Hampton. He enjoyed a strong start to his true freshman season in 2022, scoring touchdowns in each of the first two games. But Pettaway would only manage eight total rushing yards after that as injuries limited his playing time, and unlike Hampton a breakout season was not in the cards for 2023. Pettaway did not register a rush in the season’s first four games, declared his intention to redshirt and now will be hitting the transfer portal.

A member of UNC’s thin linebacking corps, Caldwell nevertheless saw limited playing time in his two seasons as a Tar Heel. Cedric Gray and Power Echols dominated snap counts in 2022, prompting the coaching staff to emphasize rotations in 2023. But when Gray and Echols needed a breather this season, it was freshman Amare Campbell, not Caldwell, who often replaced them. Caldwell ends his Carolina career with just eight total tackles and a sack.

OL Justin Kanyuk

Another member of UNC’s 2022 recruiting class, Kanyuk arrived on campus as a three-star prospect from Pennsylvania. But he never saw playing time while redshirting his freshman season, and despite more efforts to rotate along the offensive line, Kanyuk still couldn’t break through in 2023.

LB Sebastian Cheeks

Originally from Illinois, Cheeks was outside the UNC football program’s normal recruiting footprint. Nevertheless, the linebacker prospect signed on as part of the 2022 recruiting class. Cheeks saw playing time early in his true freshman season, but unfortunately suffered an injury and was forced to redshirt. In 2023, Cheeks couldn’t quite crack the linebacker rotation for Carolina, with Amare Campbell taking most of the snaps when Cedric Gray or Power Echols were not in the game.

CB Tayon Holloway

A redshirt freshman cornerback, Holloway saw frequent action as the Tar Heels dealt with numerous injuries in the defensive backfield. The former four-star prospect registered four tackles and a tackle for loss in the season opener against South Carolina. Injuries kept Holloway on the sideline for wins against Duke and Campbell, but he was able to play in the season’s final two games. Now, Holloway will be hitting the portal, the first UNC starter to do so this year.

RB/DB D.J. Jones

Jones made headlines this past offseason after making the move from running back to defensive back. Jones had lost snaps in UNC’s crowded running back room, and the Tar Heels were depleted by injuries in the defensive backfield. Jones was not a starting defensive back, but did see time in a reserve role. Now, he’ll be hitting the transfer portal.

OL Diego Pounds

A three-star prospect out of Millbrook High School in Raleigh, Pounds saw increasing action during his sophomore season in 2023, eventually taking over as the full-time left tackle and guarding Drake Maye’s blind side. With Maye gone, Pounds is now entering the transfer portal. His departure means all but one UNC starter along the offensive line – Willie Lampkin – will not return next season. Ed Montilus, Spencer Rolland and Corey Gaynor will all enter the NFL Draft.