For those of us in the media who cover the ACC, we were asked to submit our preseason ballot for the Preseason All-ACC team, our predicted order of finish and who we think will be the ACC Player of the Year. Our deadline to turn in our ballots is this evening.
In all, I voted six Clemson players on my Preseason All-ACC Football Team. There is no real surprise who I picked. Five of the six players—quarterback Trevor Lawrence, running back Travis Etienne, left tackle Jackson Carman, defensive tackle Tyler Davis and cornerback Derion Kendrick—were selected at the end of last season as either first- or second-team All-ACC, while one—linebacker James Skalski—was an honorable mention All-ACC pick.
So, picking the All-ACC team was not difficult for me. Neither was picking the order of finish by all 15 teams this year. The top three teams are clearly Clemson, Notre Dame and North Carolina.
But there was a moment of pause when I went to pick my preseason choice for ACC Player of the Year. Do I go with Lawrence or Etienne?
I think the obvious choice is Lawrence. He is the odds-on favorite to win the Heisman Trophy this season. After all, he is the starting quarterback on the top-ranked team in the country. He is also the early bet to be the top pick in next April’s NFL Draft.
But does all of that make Lawrence the ACC Player of the Year?
As we all know, Lawrence has already quarterbacked the Tigers to a national championship and to another title game appearance in his first two years at Clemson. However, in both cases, he did not win ACC Player of the Year honors.
Those honors went to Travis Etienne, who became the first running back in 43 years to win ACC Player of the Year honors in back-to-back seasons, and just the second player in Clemson history to do it, joining Ring of Honor and Hall of Famer Steve Fuller.
So, who did I pick?
Well, I went with Etienne. He likely will break the ACC’s all-time career rushing record this season, which NC State’s Ted Brown has held for 41 years. The Clemson running back already owns the ACC’s career records for rushing touchdowns and total touchdowns.
When it is all said and done, Etienne will likely own several other Clemson and ACC records, as well.
Would I be surprised if Lawrence ultimately won ACC Player of the Year honors? No, not at all. But right now, you have to go with Etienne. I just can’t go against a guy who has already won the award two times.
My All-ACC Preseason Football team, including Player of the Year and predicted order of finish
QUARTERBACK
Trevor Lawrence – QB – Clemson
RUNNING BACK
Travis Etienne – RB – Clemson
Javonte Williams – RB – North Carolina
WIDE RECEIVER
Dazz Newsome – WR/RS – North Carolina
Tamorrion Terry – WR – Florida State
Dyami Brown – WR – North Carolina
TIGHT END
Brevin Jordan – TE – Miami (FL)
ALL-PURPOSE BACK
Hassan Hall – RS – Louisville
OFFENSIVE TACKLE
Jackson Carman – OL – Clemson
Tyler Vrabel – OL – Boston College
OFFENSIVE GUARD
Tommy Kraemer – OL – Notre Dame
Aaron Banks – OL – Notre Dame
CENTER
Jimmy Morrissey – OL – Pittsburgh
DEFENSIVE END
Chris Rumph II – DE – Duke
Carlos Basham Jr. – DL – Wake Forest
DEFENSIVE TACKLE
Tyler Davis – DL – Clemson
Marvin Wilson – DT – Florida State
LINEBACKER
Rayshard Ashby – LB – Virginia Tech
Chazz Surratt – LB – North Carolina
James Skalski – LB – Clemson
CORNERBACK
Derion Kendrick – CB – Clemson
Asante Samuel, Jr. – DB – Florida State
SAFETY
Paris Ford – S – Pittsburgh
Hamsah Nasirildeen – DB – Florida State
PLACEKICKER
Nick Sciba – PK – Wake Forest
PUNTER
Oscar Bradburn – P – Virginia Tech
SPECIALIST
Damond Philyaw-Johnson – WR/RS – Duke
PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Travis Etienne – RB – Clemson
PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH
1 Clemson
2 Notre Dame
3 North Carolina
4 Louisville
5 Virginia Tech
6 Miami (FL)
7 Pittsburgh
8 Florida State
9 Virginia
10 Wake Forest
11 Duke
12 Boston College
13 NC State
14 Syracuse
15 Georgia Tech
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