Three student-athletes each from Miami and Clemson were recognized as the Atlantic Coast Conference announced its Football Players of the Week following the games of Thursday night and Saturday.
Miami running back Duke Johnson earned ACC Offensive Back of the Week honors following his stellar performance in last Thursday night’s 30-6 win at Virginia Tech. Hurricanes center Shane McDermott was named the ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week. On the defensive side, Jermaine Grace was recognized as ACC Co-Linebacker of the Week.
Clemson’s Stephone Anthony was named ACC Co-Linebacker of the Week following the Tigers’ 16-6 win over Syracuse. Tigers place-kicker Ammon Lakip earned ACC Specialist of the Week honors, and freshman running back Wayne Gallman was named the ACC Rookie of the Week.
North Carolina’s Mack Hollins was tabbed as ACC Receiver of the Week for his play in the Tar Heels’ 28-27 road victory at Virginia. Boston College defensive end Kevin Kavalec earned ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week following his performance in a 23-17 victory at Wake Forest. ACC Defensive Back of the Week honors went to Georgia Tech safety Isaiah Johnson, who made several big plays in the Yellow Jackets’ 56-28 win at Pitt.
OFFENSIVE BACK – Duke Johnson, Miami, Jr., RB, 5-9, 206, Miami, Fla.
Johnson rushed for a career-high 249 yards on 29 carries to lead the Hurricanes to a 30-6 victory over Virginia Tech on ESPN’sThursday Night Football. Johnson became the first Miami running back to surpass 200 yards rushing in a game since Willis McGahee did so against Virginia Tech in 2002, and just the fourth player in school history overall. Johnson’s 249 yards rushing were the second-most ever in a single game by a Hurricane and moved him past the 1,000-yard milestone for the season. In addition, Johnson caught his first touchdown pass of the year and led the team with 37 receiving yards.
OFFENSIVE LINEMAN – Shane McDermott, Miami, Sr., C, 6-4, 296, Lake Worth, Fla.
McDermott anchored an offensive line that allowed the Hurricanes to rush for a season-best 364 yards in the win over Virginia Tech. Miami did not allow a quarterback sack in the game. In addition, McDermott graded out at 94 percent and registered three pancake blocks.
RECEIVER – Mack Hollins, North Carolina, So., WR, 6-3, 200, Rockville, Md.
Hollins did a bit of everything in UNC’s 28-27 win over Virginia. He had a 57-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter and a 63-yard scoring catch in the second quarter to finish with a career-high 120 yards receiving. Hollins also recovered an onside kick by Nick Weiler with just over four minutes to play, moments after UNC had taken its first lead of the game. In addition, Hollins twice downed UNC punts inside the Virginia 2-yard line.
DEFENSIVE LINEMAN – Kevin Kavalec, Boston College, So., DE, 6-2, 256, Middleburg Heights, Ohio
Kavalec led the Eagles with a career-high 10 tackles, including eight solo stops, in BC’s 23-17 win over Wake Forest on Saturday. He recorded two sacks for a loss of 14 yards, becoming the only BC player this season to have two sacks in one game. Of his 10 tackles, 4.5 were for loss, totaling 23 yards. He now ranks second on the team with 7.5 tackles for loss.
CO-LINEBACKER – Stephone Anthony, Clemson, Sr., LB, 6-2, 245, Polkton, N.C.
Anthony started Saturday night’s 16-6 win over visiting Syracuse by recording a six-yard sack on the opening play, and then followed with a caused fumble and an interception. He finished with seven tackles overall. His interception and eight-yard return came after the Tigers had turned the ball over and gave the momentum back to Clemson in the close game. He also had a quarterback hurry.
CO-LINEBACKER – Jermaine Grace, Miami , So., LB, 6-1, 210, Miami Gardens, Fla.
Grace played a key role on a defensive unit that limited Virginia Tech to 262 yards of total offense. Against the Hokies, Grace tallied four tackles (three solo) and registered a sack for the second-consecutive game. He also had a pair of fumble recoveries in the third quarter, which eliminated any chance of a Virginia Tech comeback.
DEFENSIVE BACK – Isaiah Johnson, Georgia Tech, Sr.-r, S, 6-2, 213, Tyrone, Ga.
Johnson made a career-high 14 tackles – eight solo – and recorded both a forced fumble and fumble recovery in Georgia Tech’s 56-28 road win at Pitt. Johnson was part of Tech’s defense that forced six Pitt turnovers – tied for the most by an opponent in school history. It marked his sixth career fumble recovery and his third career forced fumble.
SPECIALIST – Ammon Lakip, Clemson, Jr., PK, 5-10, 200, Johns Creek, Ga.
Lakip scored 10 of Clemson’s 16 points in the 16-6 win over Syracuse. The junior made all three of his field goal tries, connecting on attempts from 38, 18 and 41 yards for a perfect showing in a game that was close throughout. His field goal from 41 yards out with 3:30 left in the third quarter gave Clemson a 9-6 lead.
ROOKIE – Wayne Gallman, Clemson, Fr., RB, 6-1, 200, Loganville, Ga.
Gallman became the first Clemson running back this season to gain over 100 yards in a game in the Tigers’ victory over Syracuse. He finished the day with 28 rushes for 101 yards and made two receptions for 12 yards. Clemson controlled the ball for the last 8:17 of the game, and Gallman carried on nine of the plays, converting once on third down and then on fourth down.
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