North Carolina quarterback Max Johnson will miss the rest of the season after having surgery for a broken right leg. Johnson was carted off in Thursday’s season-opening 19-17 win at Minnesota and taken to the hospital.
The school announced Johnson’s status Friday, saying he had surgery in Minneapolis and is accompanied by his parents there. He will return to Chapel Hill, N.C., in coming days and is expected to make a full recovery.
Conner Harrell, who played for the Tar Heels in last season’s bowl game after Drake Maye declared for the NFL draft, led the team the rest of the way Thursday and is positioned to take over the starting job for next week’s home game against Charlotte.
Johnson, the son of former NFL quarterback Brad Johnson, had transferred from Texas A&M and won the starting job over Harrell to replace Maye, the No. 3 pick in this year’s draft. But Johnson was hurt when his leg bent awkwardly as he was taken to the ground on a blitz by Justin Walley in the third quarter.
Johnson immediately clutched his leg around the knee and stayed down for several minutes before being carted off the field.
The fifth-year quarterback, who started his career with two years at LSU, finished 12 of 19 for 71 yards with one interception and ran for a touchdown. The team awarded Johnson a game ball afterward.