The ACC announced Tuesday the 28 football student-athletes who have been chosen by its 14 league schools to attend the 2017 ACC Football Kickoff, July 13-14 at the Westin Charlotte located in Charlotte, N.C.
The football student-athletes who will be attending the 2017 ACC Football Kickoff are:
Boston College
Jon Baker, Offensive Lineman, 6-3, 298, Senior, Millis, Mass.
Harold Landry, Defensive End, 6-3, 250, Senior, Spring Lake, N.C.
Clemson
Tyrone Crowder, Offensive Guard, 6-2, 340, Redshirt Senior, Marston, N.C.
Christian Wilkins, Defensive Tackle, 6-4, 310, Junior, Springfield, Mass.
Duke
Daniel Jones, Quarterback, 6-5, 210, Redshirt Sophomore, Charlotte, N.C.
Bryon Fields, Jr., Cornerback, 5-11, 185, Redshirt Senior, Charlotte, N.C.
Florida State
Deondre Francois, Quarterback, 6-2, 205, Redshirt Sophomore, Orlando, Fla.
Derwin James, Defensive Back, 6-3, 211, Redshirt Sophomore, Haines City, Fla.
Georgia Tech
Ricky Jeune, Wide Receiver, 6-3, 212, Redshirt Senior, Spring Valley, N.Y.
KeShun Freeman, Defensive End, 6-2, 250, Senior, LaGrange, Ga.
Louisville
Lamar Jackson, Quarterback, 6-3, 200, Junior, Pompano Beach, Fla.
Jaire Alexander, Cornerback, 5-11, 192, Junior, Charlotte, N. C.
Miami
Mark Walton, Running Back, 5-9, 205, Junior, Miami, Fla.
Shaquille Quarterman, Linebacker, 6-1, 240, Sophomore, Orange Park, Fla.
North Carolina
Bentley Spain, Offensive Tackle, 6-6, 300, Senior, Charlotte, N.C.
M.J. Stewart, Cornerback, 6-0, 200, Senior, Arlington, Va.
NC State
Jaylen Samuels, All-Purpose, 5-11, 223, Senior, Charlotte, N. C.
Bradley Chubb, Defensive End, 6-4, 275, Senior, Marietta, Ga.
Pitt
Brian O’Neill, Offensive Tackle, 6-6, 305, Redshirt Junior, Wilmington, Del.
Avonte Maddox, Cornerback, 5-9, 180, Senior, Detroit, Mich.
Syracuse
Eric Dungey, Quarterback, 6-3, 221, Junior, Lake Oswego, Ore.
Zaire Franklin, Linebacker, 6-0, 244, Senior, Philadelphia, Pa.
Virginia
Kurt Benkert, Quarterback, 6-4, 229, Redshirt Senior, Cape Coral, Fla.
Quin Blanding, Safety, 6-2, 215, Senior, Virginia Beach, Va.
Virginia Tech
Cam Phillips, Wide Receiver, 6-0, 199, Senior, Laurel, Md.
Andrew Motuapuaka, Linebacker, 6-0, 233, Redshirt Senior, Virginia Beach, Va.
Wake Forest
Cam Serigne, Tight End, 6-3, 250, Redshirt Senior, Ashburn, Va.
Wendell Dunn, Defensive Lineman, 6-3, 250, Redshirt Senior, Miami, Fla.
For the second time in its history, the ACC will have the reigning Heisman Trophy winner at its preseason media event, as Louisville’s Lamar Jackson makes his second appearance at the Kickoff. Florida State’s Jameis Winston, the 2013 Heisman Trophy winner, attended the 2014 ACC Kickoff.
Jackson, the youngest player to win the Heisman Trophy, is one of two ACC players making a repeat appearance from the 2016 Kickoff. Syracuse linebacker Zaire Franklin will be making his third appearance for the Orange at the ACC Kickoff, having previously made appearances in 2015 and 2016. He will be the first ACC football student-athlete to attend the Kickoff three times.
In all, the ACC Kickoff student-athletes hail from 11 states with seven each from Florida and North Carolina, four from Virginia, two each from Massachusetts and Georgia and one apiece from Delaware, Maryland, Michigan, New York, Oregon and Pennsylvania.
Five of the student-athletes are returning to their hometown of Charlotte for the Kickoff, including quarterback Daniel Jones (Latin) and cornerback Bryon Fields, Jr. (Providence Day) of Duke, cornerback Jaire Alexander (Rocky River) of Louisville, offensive Tackle Bentley Spain (Providence) of North Carolina and all-purpose back Jaylen Samuels (Mallard Creek) of NC State.
Five of the student-athletes earned All-America honors in 2016, including Jackson, who was a unanimous first-team All-America selection, and Clemson defensive tackle Christian Wilkins who was a consensus All-America honoree. Additionally, Alexander, Virginia safety Quin Blanding and Boston College defensive end Harold Landry were second-team All-America picks.
Nine of the 28 student-athletes were named to the recently released Athlon Sports 2017 preseason All-America football team, including Alexander, Blanding, Jackson, Landry, Samuels, Wilkins, Florida State defensive back Derwin James, NC State defensive end Bradley Chubb and Pitt offensive tackle Brian O’Neill.
A total of 13 of the 28 student-athletes were chosen first, second or third team All-ACC in 2016.
Among the offensive players in attendance will be five quarterbacks, four offensive linemen, and five running backs or receivers. Defensively, five defensive linemen, three linebackers and six defensive backs will be on hand.
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