Second-half run pushes #5 UNC over UVa.
Senior forward Tyler Zeller scored a game-high 25 points and had nine rebounds to lead North Carolina to a 70-52 victory over Virginia Saturday afternoon (Feb. 11) at the Dean E. Smith Center.
Sophomore forward Harrison Barnes scored 14 points and had a game-high 11 rebounds for the Tar Heels and junior forward John Henson scored 10 points and had 10 rebounds,
Senior forward Mike Scott scored 18 points for Virginia and also had six rebounds. Junior guard Jontel Evans added 12 points and five assists for the Cavaliers. Continue reading “Second-half run pushes #5 UNC over UVa.” »
ACC announces scheduling plans
Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner John Swofford announced on Friday the future scheduling formats as approved by the ACC’s Faculty Athletic Representatives and Athletics Directors.
The announcement was made following the annual ACC Winter Meetings and will go in effect once Pittsburgh and Syracuse become playing members in the conference.
“We have been engaged in discussions on the various options for integrating Pitt and Syracuse since early fall,” said ACC Commissioner John Swofford. “It’s a tremendous tribute to the leadership at our schools that we will be able to seamlessly add Pitt and Syracuse at the appropriate time when they become full playing members.” Continue reading “ACC announces scheduling plans” »
Late spurt pushes #23 UNC past UVa. women
Virginia fell on the road to No. 23 North Carolina, 64-56, on Friday (Feb. 3). Senior guard Ariana Moorer (Woodbridge, Va.) led all scorers with 21 points and tallied her 500th-career rebound for the Cavaliers.
The loss dropped Virginia’s record to 16-8 overall and 4-6 in ACC play. North Carolina improved to 17-5 overall and 7-2 in league play.
Moorer was 7-of-14 from the field and a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. Entering the contest with 498 rebounds, she tallied four during the contest to up her career total to 502. Moorer led all players with six steals. Continue reading “Late spurt pushes #23 UNC past UVa. women” »
UVa.-Carolina tickets on sale Jan. 20
Single-game tickets for the Virginia men’s basketball game against North Carolina on Saturday, Feb. 25, at John Paul Jones Arena go on sale Friday, Jan. 20, at 9 a.m. online at VirginiaSports.com. Fans can purchase tickets to this game in-person or by telephone beginning Monday, Jan. 23, at 9 a.m. All single-game tickets for Virginia’s match-up with North Carolina are available in upper level seating areas at four price levels: $15, $20, $25, and $32.
A pre-sale opportunity is currently underway for Virginia Athletics Foundation donors and 2011-12 Virginia men’s basketball season ticket holders. VAF donors and men’s basketball season ticket holders may purchase single-game tickets to the Virginia-North Carolina game in advance of the public. Fans eligible to participate in the pre-sale opportunity received an email with ordering instructions. Eligible fans may also call the Virginia Athletics Ticket Office at 1-800-542-UVA1 to place their order. Continue reading “UVa.-Carolina tickets on sale Jan. 20” »
UVa. women fall to #25 UNC in 2 OTs
Virginia dropped a 78-73 double-overtime contest to No. 25 North Carolina Thursday (Jan. 5) at John Paul Jones Arena. Cavalier sophomore guard Ataira Franklin (Bowie, Md.) scored a career-high 29 points and added nine boards to lead UVa in scoring and rebounding.
With the loss, Virginia dropped to 12-4 overall and 0-2 in Atlantic Coast Conference play. North Carolina handed UVa its first home loss of the season and improved to 12-2 overall and 2-0 in conference play.
Franklin was 9-of-25 from the field and 9-of-9 from the free throw line. She connected on two 3-pointers and also added five steals. Continue reading “UVa. women fall to #25 UNC in 2 OTs” »
ACC to expand hoops schedule
Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner John Swofford announced today that beginning in the 2012-13 season the league will play an 18-game conference schedule in men’s and women’s basketball.
“Our member institutions have been talking about this increase for awhile and knowing our league will be expanding to 14 in the future, we’ve decided to move to an 18-game conference schedule next year, regardless of our membership number,” Swofford said. “The additional conference games create a more equitable schedule and we’ve received significant feedback from our fans for more conference games.”
Minnifield leads UVa. All-ACC selections
Five Virginia football players were named either first-or-second-team onthe All-Atlantic Coast Conference football team, announced by the leagueon Monday. Three other players were named as honorable mention selections. Thefive selections are the most first-and second-team honorees for UVa since the2004 team garnered seven accolades over the two teams. The eight overallmembers on the All-ACC team are the most by a UVa team since the 2004 team alsohad eight players represented.
Senior defensive tackle Matt Conrath, senior cornerbackChase Minnifield and senior offensive guard Austin Pasztor were named to thefirst team, the most honors UVa has earned since the 2005 team placedD’Brickashaw Ferguson, Connor Hughes and Kai Parham on the first-teamsquad. Junior offensive tackle OdayAboushi and junior linebacker Steve Greer were named to the All-ACC secondteam. Junior tailback Perry Jones,senior safety Rodney McLeod and senior center Anthony Mihota garnered honorablemention honors.
Minnifield (Lexington, Ky.) earns his second career All-ACC first-team honor,becoming the first Cavalier to win multiple first team honors in his careersince Ferguson in 2004 and 2005. Minnifield is the first UVa defensive back to have multiple All-ACCfirst team accolades since current UVa safeties coach and special teamscoordinator Anthony Poindexter earned three career nods (1997, ’98, ’99).Minnifield is No. 2 nationally among active career leaders with 13interceptions. He is a finalist for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award and asemifinalist for the Thorpe Award & Lott IMPACT Trophy. Minnifield was named the Thorpe AwardDefensive Back of the Week after helping limit then-No. 12 Georgia Tech to 24yards passing and its lowest rushing total at the time (272).
Conrath (Oak Lawn, Ill.) earns his first career All-ACCselection and becomes the first UVa defensive tackle to garner first teamhonors since Nate Collins in 2009. Conrath was named ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week twice, followingwins over then-No. 12 Georgia Tech and Duke. Along with Minnifield and Greer, he helped anchor a defense that is No.31 in the nation and No. 3 in the ACC, helping UVa improve from No. 78 and No.10 respectively in 2010. Conrath led UVawith three blocked field goals, all in separate games and all UVa wins. Conrath is third on the team and No. 3 in theACC among defensive linemen with 64 tackles.
Pasztor (Langton, Ontario) earns his first career All-ACC selectionand becomes the first UVa offensive guard to receive first team honors sinceBranden Albert in 2007. He has helpedUVa rush for 1,984 yards, the most by a UVa team since the 2004 season. Pasztor has allowed zero sacks and in 781offensive plays has given up only two QB hurries. He was named ACC Offensive Lineman of theWeek after grading out at 93 percent as UVa rolled up 527 yards of total offenseat Maryland.
Aboushi (Staten Island, N.Y.) earns his first career All-ACCselection and becomes the first UVa offensive tackle to be placed on eitherteam since Eugene Monroe was a first team selection in 2008. Aboushi was named ACC Offensive Lineman of theWeek following road wins at Indiana and Miami.
Greer (Solon, Ohio) earns his second career All-ACCselection after being named to the honorable mention team in 2009. Greer leadsUVa and is seventh in the ACC with 103 tackles. Greer is the first UVa linebacker to be named to either the first orsecond team since Clint Sintim also took home second team honors in 2008. Greer was named ACC Linebacker of the Weekfollowing his two sack performance at then-No. 23 Florida State and has led UVain tackles in 8-of-12 games.
Jones (Chesapeake, Va.) earns his first career All-ACCaccolade and becomes the first UVa tailback to be named to any All-ACC squadsince Cedric Peerman was also an honorable mention honoree in 2008. He is on track to become UVa’s first 1,000-yardrusher since 2004 and is No. 2 on the team with 41 receptions for 416 yards.
McLeod (Oxon Hill, Md.) earns his first career All-ACChonor. The senior was named nationaldefensive back of the week and ACC Defensive Back of the Week after grabbingthree interceptions in UVa’s road win at Maryland. The three INTs tied anational high for the season and tied a program record with eight others.
Mihota (Fredericksburg, Va.) earns his first career All-ACChonor and becomes the first UVa center since Zac Yarbrough was named to thesecond-team in 2004. Mihota was the onlycenter in the ACC to earn multiple offensive lineman of the week honors.
2011 All-ACC Teams
FIRST TEAM
Offense
QB-Tajh Boyd, Clemson (71)
RB-David Wilson, Virginia Tech (90)*
RB-Giovani Bernard, North Carolina (66)
WR-Sammy Watkins, Clemson (86)
WR-Chris Givens, Wake Forest (69)
OT-Blake DeChristopher, Virginia Tech (86)
OT-Zebrie Sanders, Florida State (46)
OG-Austin Pasztor, Virginia (49)
OG-Omoregie Uzzi, Georgia Tech (45)
C-Dalton Freeman, Clemson (44)
TE-Dwayne Allen, Clemson (78)
K-Dustin Hopkins, Florida State (75)
Spec.- T.J. Graham, NC State (45)
Defense
DE-Andre Branch, Clemson (79)
DE-Quinton Coples, North Carolina (64)
DT-Joe Vellano, Maryland (68)
DT-Matt Conrath, Virginia (55)
LB-Luke Kuechly, Boston College (90)*
LB-Sean Spence, Miami (82)
LB-Zach Brown, North Carolina (48)
CB-David Amerson, NC State (86)
CB-Chase Minnifield, Virginia (47)
S-Matt Daniels, Duke (80)
S-Josh Bush, Wake Forest (41)
P-Shawn Powell, Florida State (85)
SECOND TEAM
Offense
QB-Logan Thomas, Virginia Tech (49)
WR-Dwight Jones, North Carolina (58)
WR-Conner Vernon, Duke (34)
RB-Lamar Miller, Miami (62)
RB-Andre Ellington, Clemson (26)
OT-Oday Aboushi, Virginia (43)
OT-James Hurst, North Carolina (30)
OG-Jaymes Brooks, Virginia Tech (35)
OG-Jonathan Cooper, North Carolina (31)
OG-Joe Looney, Wake Forest (31)
C-Tyler Horn, Miami (32)
TE-George Bryan, NC State (29)
K-Chandler Catanzaro, Clemson (37)
Spec.-Sammy Watkins, Clemson (33)
Defense
DE-Brandon Jenkins, Florida State (51)
DE-James Gayle, Virginia Tech (25)
DT-Brandon Thompson, Clemson (43)
DT-Nikita Whitlock, Wake Forest (30)
LB-Terrell Manning, NC State (44)
LB-Julian Burnett, Georgia Tech (34)
LB-Steve Greer, Virginia (23)
CB-Jayron Hosley, Virginia Tech (36)
CB-Kyle Fuller, Virginia Tech (34)
S-Eddie Whitley, Virginia Tech (33)
S-Lamarcus Joyner, Florida State (23)
P-Alex King, Duke (22)
Honorable Mention: Jeremiah Attaochu, lb, Georgia Tech (16); Brandan Bishop, s, NC State (19); Nigel Bradham, lb, Florida State (20); Audie Cole, lb, NC State (19); J.R. Collins, de, Virginia Tech (17); Everett Dawkins, dt, Florida State (18); Antone Exum, s, Virginia Tech (15); Demetrius Hartsfield, lb, Maryland (11); Cooper Helfet, te, Duke (25); Perry Jones, rb, Virginia (16); Cody Journell, k, Virginia Tech (10); Rodney McLeod, s, Virginia (17); Anthony Mihota, c, Virginia (21); Merrill Noel, cb, Wake Forest (30); Greg Nosal, og, Virginia Tech (10); Tydreke Powell, dt, North Carolina (17); Phillip Price, ot, Clemson (12); Greg Reid, spc., Florida State (27); Rod Sweeting, cb, Georgia Tech (13); Bruce Taylor, lb, Virginia Tech (11); T.J. Thorpe, spc., North Carolina (22); Landon Walker, ot, Clemson (29); Bjoern Werner, de, Florida State (13); Earl Wolff, s, NC State (12); Dawson Zimmerman, p, Clemson (15).
Chris Graham: My All-ACC Ballot
I have as a member of the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association a vote on the All-ACC teams.
At the risk of my sanity, here’s how I filled out my ballot for the 2011 season.
Last time I posted my ballot, at the end of the 2010-2011 basketball season, I was pilloried by North Carolina fans for not voting for more of their players for the various postseason honors.
I’m sure there will be other groups of fans upset with these selections. I’m OK with that.
Here we go …
Coach of the Year: Mike London, Virginia
Offensive Rookie of the Year: Sammy Watkins, Clemson
Defensive Rookie of the Year: Merrill Noel, Wake Forest
Offensive Player of the Year: Tajh Boyd, Clemson
Defensive Player of the Year: David Amerson, N.C. State
Overall Player of the Year: Tajh Boyd, Clemson
First-Team Offense
| Pos | First Name | Last Name | School |
| WR | Sammy | Watkins | Clemson |
| WR | Chris | Givens | Wake Forest |
| OT | Oday | Aboushi | Virginia |
| OT | James | Hurst | North Carolina |
| OG | Harland | Gunn | Miami |
| OG | Austin | Pasztor | Virginia |
| C | Jay | Finch | Georgia Tech |
| TE | Dqayne | Allen | Clemson |
| RB | David | Wilson | Virginia Tech |
| RB | Giovani | Bernard | North Carolina |
| QB | Tajh | Boyd | Clemson |
| PK | Dustin | Hopkins | Florida State |
| SP | Greg | Reid | Florida State |
Second Team Offense
| WR | Dwight | Jones | North Carolina |
| WR | Conner | Vernon | Duke |
| OT | john | Wetzel | Boston College |
| OT | Blake | DeChristopher | Virginia Tech |
| OG | Omoregie | Uzzi | Georgia Tech |
| OG | Garrett | Faircloth | Florida State |
| C | Anthony | Mihota | Virginia |
| TE | Cooper | Helfet | Duke |
| RB | Lamar | Miller | Miami |
| RB | Perry | Jones | Virginia |
| QB | Tanner | Price | Wake Forest |
| PK | Chandler | Catanzaro | Clemson |
| SP | T.J. | Graham | N.C. State |
First Team Defense
| DE | Andre | Branch | Clemson |
| DE | Brandon | Jenkins | Florida State |
| DT | Joe | Vellano | Maryland |
| DT | Nikita | Whitlock | Wake Forest |
| LB | Luke | Kuechly | Boston College |
| LB | Sean | Spence | Miami |
| LB | Terrell | Manning | N.C. State |
| CB | David | Amerson | N.C. State |
| CB | Merrill | Noel | Wake Forest |
| S | Josh | Bush | Wake Forest |
| S | Eric | Franklin | Maryland |
| P | Shawn | Powell | Florida State |
Second Team Defense
| DE | Cam | johnson | Virginia |
| DE | Kareem | Martin | North Carolina |
| DT | Matt | Conrath | Virginia |
| DT | Everett | Dawkins | Florida State |
| LB | Julian | Burnett | Georgia Tech |
| LB | Jermiah | Attaochu | Georgia Tech |
| LB | Bruce | Taylor | Virginia Tech |
| CB | Chase | Minnifield | Virginia |
| CB | Jayron | Hosley | Virginia Tech |
| S | Matt | Daniels | Duke |
| S | Cyhl | Quarles | Wake Forest |
| P | Dawson | Zimmerman | Clemson |
Tech, UVa. players among ACC Players of the Week
Wake Forest sophomore quarterback Tanner Price headlines a list of eight players announced Monday as the Atlantic Coast Conference Football Players of the Week. Price threw for 297 yards and one touchdown completing 22 of 35 passes to lead the Deacons to a 34-27 win over NC State in their ACC opener.
Virginia senior kicker Robert Randolph was a perfect 4-for-4 in field goals to help the Cavaliers win on the road at Indiana. Randolph connected from 23 yards with no time remaining in the first half and then made the game-winner, his fourth field goal of the day, from 23 yards out to give Virginia the 34-31 win. Randolph is now a perfect 8-for-8 on the season and is tied for the lead nationally in field goals per game (4.00).
Randolph is joined by teammates Oday Aboushi and Cam Johnson, the winners of the offensive and defensive lineman of the week, respectively. Wake Forest had two players recognized, with linebacker of the week Kyle Wilber and Price picking up honors. Three other schools had one player of the week named, with North Carolina’s Dwight Jones winning receiver of the week, Virginia Tech’s Kyle Fuller grabbing defensive back of the week, and Clemson’s Sammy Watkins picking up rookie of the week.
OFFENSIVE BACK – Tanner Price, Wake Forest, QB, So., 6-2, 205, Austin, TX
Price, a 6-2, 205-pound sophomore from Austin, TX (Westlake) completed 22 of 35 passes for 297 yards and one touchdown in leading Wake Forest to a 34-27 win over NC State. Price threw a 31-yard scoring pass to Michael Campanaro in the first quarter to put Wake Forest ahead 7-0. He completed 10 of 12 passes for 130 yards in the first quarter as Wake Forest built a 10-0 lead.
RECEIVER – Dwight Jones, North Carolina, WR, Sr., 6-4, 225, Burlington, N.C.
Senior wide receiver Dwight Jones finished with six catches for 135 yards and a 66-yard touchdown. It was his second 100-yard game in as many weeks and the sixth of his career.
OFFENSIVE LINEMAN – Oday Aboushi, Virginia, OT, Jr., 6-6, 310, Staten Island, N.Y.
Just three days after attending a reception at the Department of State in Washington, D.C. to honor Muslim-American athletes, Oday Aboushi came up big for UVa’s offensive line in its 34-31 victory at Indiana. Aboushi graded out at 89 percent for the 72 plays he was in on for the Cavaliers. He had 13 knockdown blocks and help Virginia roll up 360 yards of total offense.
DEFENSIVE LINEMAN – Cam Johnson, Virginia, DE, Sr., 6-4, 270, Washington, D.C.
Made the key play in UVa’s 34-31 win at Indiana. After Virginia battled back to tie the game at 31, Johnson sacked IU quarterback Edward Wright-Baker with 1:13 to play, stripping the ball away and recovering the fumble, to give the Cavaliers possession at the Hoosier’s 14-yard line. That set up Robert Randolph’s game-winning field goal as time expired. Johnson finished the game with three tackles, two for a loss, one sack, one knocked down pass, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery and three quarterback pressures.
LINEBACKER – Kyle Wilber, Wake Forest, OLB, Sr., 6-5, 240, Apopka, Fla.
Outside linebacker Kyle Wilber, a 6-5, 240-pound redshirt senior from Apopka, Fla (Apopka) recorded seven tackles against NC State including five solo stops and two assists. He also forced a fumble and had a half-tackle for loss.
DEFENSIVE BACK – Kyle Fuller, Virginia Tech, CB, So., 6-0, 187, Baltimore, Md.
Fuller was a lynchpin in a secondary that held the potent East Carolina passing attack to just over 100 yards through the air. Fuller posted a team-high 44 points in coaches’ grading after picking up four tackles, including two for loss, with an interception and a pass break up.
SPECIALIST – Robert Randolph, Virginia, PK, Sr., 5-10, 170, Naples, Fla.
Tied his career high with four field goals including the game winner as time expired from 23 yards. He also connected from 42, 44 and 23 yards. Randolph is now 8-8 this season (which leads the NCAA in accuracy and FGs made) and has been named the national placekicker of the week for the second consecutive week. Randolph has converted 18 of his last 19 kicks dating back to last season.
ROOKIE – Sammy Watkins, Clemson, WR, Fr., 6-1, 200, Fort Myers, Fla.
Watkins gained 196 yards in all-purpose running in Clemson’s 35-27 win over Wofford. The true freshman had five kickoff returns for 110 yards and added four catches for 56 yards and 3 rushes for 30 yards in an impressive all-around performance. Combined, he had 12 touches for his 196 yards in the game. The all-purpose total was the most by a Clemson freshman since 2001 when Derrick Hamilton had 205 against Maryland.
Brackets announced for ACC Tournament
The No. 1-seeded Virginia baseball team will open play at the 2011 ACC Baseball Championship at 3 p.m. Wednesday when it battles No. 8 seed Wake Forest at Durham Bulls Athletic Park in Durham, N.C.
Virginia and Wake Forest will compete in Division A along with No. 4 seed North Carolina and No. 5 seed Miami in the pool-play format. Virginia also is scheduled to play at 11 a.m. Friday against Miami and 7 p.m. Saturday versus North Carolina. Continue reading “Brackets announced for ACC Tournament” »
ACC announces football TV schedule
A prime time kickoff for the seventh annual Atlantic Coast Conference Football Championship Game, the debut of a syndicated ACC Regional Sports Network package and a minimum of 18 nationally-televised exposures highlights the early season TV and game time schedule announced Wednesday by Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner John Swofford at the Conference’s annual spring meetings in Amelia Island, Fla.
Included in the release were game times and TV networks for all home games for the league in its first three weeks of the season, as well as for all of its 2011 Thursday night games and all national television games confirmed to date. Continue reading “ACC announces football TV schedule” »
ACC lands 35 players in 2011 NFL Draft
The Atlantic Coast Conference had a total of 35 of its players chosen in the 2011 National Football League Draft, held Thursday, Friday and Saturday at Radio City Music Hall in New York.
The ACC finished second only to the SEC (38) among collegiate conferences in numbers of players chosen. The Pac-12 Conference had 31, followed by the Big Ten and Big 12 Conferences with 29 selections each. The Big East (22) and Western Athletic Conferences (15) were next followed by the Mountain West (9). Continue reading “ACC lands 35 players in 2011 NFL Draft” »
