With UNC commitment out of the way, Hough junior QB Tad Hudson focuses on winning fast
Hough High junior quarterback Tad Hudson was almost teammates with North Carolina freshman Drake Maye once.
But in a few years, they’ll finally wear the same uniform.
Hudson committed to North Carolina earlier this month, ahead of his junior year. Maye, who played his freshman year at Hough, transferred to Myers Park just before Hudson started high school.
And Hudson said Maye helped convince him that playing at North Carolina, and for Tar Heels coach Mack Brown, would be the best thing for him.
“He recruited me a little bit,” Hudson said. “He was always telling me, like, ‘Just go where your heart is, and (do) what’s best for you.’ I wouldn’t say he was recruiting that hard but it was definitely cool to have some insight, because all these coaches are telling you a bunch of things and you don’t know if some of it’s true. Then you have Drake telling you, ‘Oh, it’s true. Everything they’re telling you is the truth.’ That’s pretty good.”
In high school, Maye developed into the top in-state quarterback in his class and one of the nation’s top 20 recruits overall. Hudson, who is 6-foot-3 and 220 pounds, is trending in a similar direction.
247 Sports ranks Hudson a top 250 player overall in the nation, and the No. 13 prospect nationally at his position. Hudson is the No. 1 QB in his class in North Carolina.
After throwing for 1,623 yards and 16 touchdowns in a shortened spring season, Hudson had offers from schools like Auburn, N.C. State and Texas.
By making his college decision early, Hudson hopes to focus on having a big junior (and senior) season at Hough, and hopefully guiding the Huskies to the first state championship in school history.
Hudson started the year Thursday, helping Hough to a 32-16 win over rival Myers Park at Memorial Stadium in uptown Charlotte. He completed 12-of-20 passes for 208 yards.
“The main thing was get it all done before the season,” Hudson said of his commitment, “so I can focus completely on the season and just put all of my time there, instead of going to schools, watching a bunch of games, and talking all the time.
“So it’s nice to get it out of the way.”
Hough coach Matt Jenkins said the Tar Heels are getting a “unique talent” in Hudson.
“No. 1,” Jenkins said, “he’s a great human being. He comes from a great family and they’re just really, really good people and really down to earth. When you meet him, you wouldn’t realize he has any of the accolades he has or that so many major universities wanted him. He’s just a great kid.”
Jenkins marvels at Hudson’s arm strength and his ability to throw all kinds of passes — and he thinks Hudson’s going to get much better.
“He’s got tremendous arm talent and he really understands the game,” Jenkins said. “He’s still growing and learning as a quarterback, and people forget he’s only played (11) varsity games in his life.”
And with the college thing out of the way, Hudson wants to keep gaining experience at his position on what he feels is a talented team. Hough is ranked No. 2 in the Charlotte Observer’s Sweet 16 poll and the Huskies play at rival Mooresville Friday.
“Since we played in the spring, you don’t have a big wait, like a year, to play again,” Hudson said. “I’d say some injuries like with (defensive lineman) Curtis Neal (a Wisconsin recruit who tore his ACL) hurt us a little bit, but i mean I feel great. The whole team feels pretty good, so it’s nice to be back at it so soon. It’s a little like (having) spring ball.”
This story was originally published August 23, 2021 at 6:30 AM.
