
Blanding (Jr., Virginia Beach, Va.) ranks No. 2 in the ACC and No. 10 in the nation with 10.0 tackles per game. Blanding recorded 120 tackles in 2016, which ranks No. 7 in the nation. His 10.0 tackles per game average and 120 total tackles are the most in the nation by a defensive back. Blanding has finished No. 2 in the ACC in tackles three seasons in a row, twice behind teammate Micah Kiser.
College Sports Madness also named Blanding a second-team All-American in 2016. In 2015 Blanding was named a second-team All-American by USA Today and an honorable mention honoree by Sports Illustrated.