The ACC Football Players of the Week have been recognized following their standout performances in last weekend’s games.
The selections are determined by a vote of a select media panel. The following are this week’s honorees:
CO-QUARTERBACK – Phil Jurkovec, Boston College, Jr., QB, Pittsburgh, Pa.
- Finished with his fifth career 300-yard passing game in Saturday’s 51-0 win over Colgate
- Moved into fifth place in Boston College career history in 300-yard games in just his 11th career game as an Eagle
- Marked the second straight season opener Jurkovec went over the 300-yard mark
- Finished 16-for-24 for 303 yards with three touchdown passes • Also rushed for 61 yards on five carries (12.2 yards per carry).
CO-QUARTERBACK – Brennan Armstrong, Virginia, Jr., QB, Shelby, Ohio
- Keyed the Cavaliers’ offense in their 43-0 victory to open the season against William & Mary
- Finished the game completing 21 of 31 pass attempts for 339 yards – a school record for a season opener
- Had scoring throws of 5 and 65 yards and ran for a pair of scores from 2 and 3 yards
- The 24 points for which he was responsible tied for fourth in the nation
- Second time in his career he has thrown for more than 300 yards in a game
- Completed 11 of 13 passes for 257 yards in the second half (an average of 23.4 yards per completion)
- Ranks No. 18 in the nation in passing efficiency (180.89).
RUNNING BACK – Mataeo Durant, Duke, Sr., RB, Plum Branch, S.C.
- Rushed 29 times for a Duke single-game record 255 yards and three touchdowns versus Charlotte
- Caught two passes for 37 yards • Touchdown runs covered 5, 59 and 53 yards
- Matched the Duke single-game record for TD runs of 50+ yards (two)
- Single-game rushing yardage total ranks 25th in ACC history
- Averaged 8.79 yards per rushing attempt, marking the 10th-highest single-game average in Duke history
- Rushing yardage total eclipsed the previous school record of 245 yards set by Shaun Wilson in 2014 versus Kansas
- All-purpose yardage total (292 yards) marks the fifth-highest single-game total in Duke history.
RECEIVER – Zay Flowers, Boston College, Jr., WR, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
- Finished with his fourth career 100-yard receiving game with seven receptions for 135 yards and a touchdown in Saturday’s season-opening win over Colgate
- Now tied for eighth in BC history with four career 100-yard receiving games
- Saturday’s effort helped the Eagles finish with 525 yards of total offense in the win.
OFFENSIVE LINEMAN – Ikem Ekwonu, NC State, So., LT, Charlotte, N.C.
- Top performer on an offensive line that paved the way for 525 yards of total offense – including 293 rushing yards – in the Wolfpack’s 45-0 win over USF
- Played all but one of the Pack’s offensive snaps (68) and led the team in pancake and knockdown blocks
- Had the highest grade on the offensive line (90%).
DEFENSIVE LINEMAN – Jermaine Johnson II, Florida State, Sr., DE, Eden Prairie, Minn.
- Set career highs with seven tackles, including 2.5 tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks, against No. 9 Notre Dame
- Helped FSU hold the Irish to 65 rushing yards
- First Seminoles in four years to compile those numbers against a ranked opponent
- Playing his first game as a Seminole, keyed an FSU defense that allowed 288 fewer rushing yards against the Irish than in 2020.
LINEBACKER – James Skalski, Clemson, Sr., LB, Sharpsburg, Ga.
- Recorded a game-high 14 tackles in the No. 3 Tigers 10-7 loss to No. 5 Georgia
- Led a Clemson defense that limited the Bulldogs to 256 total yards and three points (seven Georgia points came on a Tiger turnover)
- It marked the eighth time in history that Clemson has held an AP Top 5 opponent to 10 or fewer points.
DEFENSIVE BACK – Chamarri Conner, Virginia Tech, Jr., CB, Jacksonville, Fla.
- Led the Hokies’ defense with eight tackles in Friday night’s 17-10 victory over No. 10 North Carolina
- Of his eight stops, six were solo efforts
- Wore legendary coach Frank Beamer’s No. 25 jersey and recorded an interception in the fourth quarter to seal the game
- Interception was the fourth of his career.
SPECIALIST – Ja’Sir Taylor, Wake Forest, Sr., DB, Asbury Park, N.J.
- Became the first Wake Forest player to have a touchdown in his first career kickoff return, taking his only kick return of the Old Dominion game 99 yards for the score to set the tone for a 42-10 Demon Deacon win
- Only FBS player thus far to have a kickoff return for a touchdown during the 2021 season
- Friday night’s return tied for the third-longest play in Wake Forest history
- Also grabbed the fifth interception of his career in the second quarter against the Monarchs, becoming the first player in Wake Forest history to have a kick return touchdown and an interception in the same game.
CO-ROOKIE – Duce Chestnut, Syracuse, Fr., CB, Camden, N.J.
- Became just the third Syracuse true freshman defensive back to start the season opener for the Orange in more than 35 years in Saturday’s 29-9 road win at Ohio
- Came away with his first collegiate interception, a pass breakup and 0.5 TFLs
- Ranked second on the team with eight total tackles, including a team-leading five solo stops
- Keyed an Orange defense that held Ohio to just nine (three field goals) and forced a Bobcat safety.
CO-ROOKIE – Jasheen Davis, Wake Forest, Fr., DE, Snellville, Ga.
- Led the Demon Deacons in tackles (nine), tackles for loss (2.5) and sacks (1.5) in Friday night’s 4 42-10 win over Old Dominion
- First freshman in the Dave Clawson era with 1.5 or more sacks in a single game
- According to Pro Football Focus, Davis had the highest rating (76.2) for an ACC defensive end in week one.
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