GREENSBORO, N.C. – Three quarterbacks – Duke’s Anthony Boone, Florida State’s Jameis Winston and Maryland’s C.J. Brown – were selected as the Atlantic Coast Conference Offensive Backs of the Week in the final 2013 ACC Football Players of the Week announced on Monday.
The trio of quarterback evenly split the votes among the ACC’s media panel after leading their teams to road wins in last Saturday’s regular-season finales. Boone threw for 274 yards and a pair of scores as Duke clinched the Coastal Division title with a win at North Carolina. Winston keyed Florida State’s victory at rival Florida by throwing for 327 yards and three touchdowns. Brown passed for three touchdowns and ran for two more while accumulating 138 rushing yards in Maryland’s win at NC State.
Winston also shared ACC Rookie of the Week honors with Miami wide receiver Stacy Coley. Other ACC honorees include Virginia Tech’s Andrew Miller as Offensive Lineman of the Week, Florida State’s Kelvin Benjamin as Receiver of the Week, Georgia Tech’s Jeremiah Attaochu as Defensive Lineman of the Week, Maryland’s Matt Robinson as Linebacker of the Week, Virginia Tech’s Kendall Fuller as Defensive Back of the Week, and Miami’s Pat O’Donnell as Specialist of the Week.
CO-OFFENSIVE BACK – Anthony Boone, Duke, Jr.-R, QB, 6-0, 230, Weddington, N.C.
Boone completed 23-of-34 passes (.677) for 274 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions in the 20th-ranked Blue Devils’ 27-25 Coastal Division-clinching win over North Carolina. Boone engineered Duke’s game-winning drive in the fourth quarter – an 11-play, 66-yard march that resulted in Ross Martin’s 27-yard field goal with 2:22 left. On the afternoon, Boone directed a Duke offense that committed no turnovers and allowed no sacks while rolling up 27 first downs and 461 total yards (187 rushing and 274 passing). Duke entered the week converting an ACC-low 25.3 percent on third down, but Boone led the Blue Devils to an 8-of-15 conversion rate (.533) versus UNC.
CO-OFFENSIVE BACK/CO-ROOKIE – Jameis Winston, Florida State, Fr.-R, QB, 6-4, 225, Bessemer, Ala.
Winston threw for 327 yards and three touchdowns in leading Florida State to a 37-7 win at Florida on Saturday. Winston became the first opposing quarterback to pass for 300 yards in over three years – a 42-game stretch – against the Gators. Florida entered the game ranked third in the nation in passing defense, allowing 157.7 yards per game, and had given up a nation-low five passing touchdowns all season. By halftime, Winston had already totaled 208 yards passing – his eighth 200-yard first half of the season – and two scores. On the day, Winston set a new FSU single-season record for passing touchdowns (35), breaking the old mark of 33 set in 2000 by Chris Weinke, and recorded his sixth 300-yard passing game of the season as FSU’s 30-point victory was the largest by the Seminoles ever versus Florida in Gainesville.
CO-OFFENSIVE BACK – C.J. Brown, Maryland, Jr.-R, QB, 6-3, 210, Cranberry Twp., Pa.
Brown accounted for five touchdowns (three rushing and two passing) for the second time this season in a 41-21 win over NC State. Brown rushed for a season-high 138 yards, which is the third-best rushing performance by a quarterback in school history, and averaged 9.2 yards per carry. His three touchdowns on the ground are the most by a Terrapin in a single game since 2010. He also passed for 259 yards, including a 53-yard scoring strike for Maryland’s first touchdown. It marked the third time this season Brown has passed for over 250 yards and rushed for over 100 yards.
OFFENSIVE LINEMAN – Andrew Miller, Virginia Tech, Sr.-R, LB, 6-4, 293, Bassett, Va.
Playing in his final game against Virginia Tech’s in-state rival, Miller had perhaps the finest game of his career in Saturday’s 16-6 win at Virginia. Miller played all 75 offensive snaps, grading out at 92 percent with a career-high 20 knockdown blocks as the Tech offensive line paved the way for nearly 150 yards on the ground by the running backs. He finished the regular season with an 86 percent grade and a team-high 115 knockdowns, 56 more than his closest teammate.
RECEIVER – Kelvin Benjamin, Florida State, R-So.., WR, 6-5, 238, Belle Glade, Fla.
Benjamin became the first Seminole in 10 years to tally 200 yards receiving in a game and single handedly outgained the Gators’ entire offense in Saturday’s 37-7 win at Florida. Benjamin’s 212 receiving yards are the most in a game in the ACC in 2013, and the three touchdown receptions tied the ACC high for the season. Benjamin’s first touchdown put FSU ahead 10-0 in the second quarter when he broke three tackles en route to a 45-yard score. The Gators entered the game with the nation’s No. 3 pass defense, allowing just 157.7 per game, and had given up only five passing touchdowns all season, but were unable to slow down Benjamin, who had 108 yards and two scores before halftime.
DEFENSIVE LINEMAN – Jeremiah Attaochu, Georgia Tech, Sr. DE, 6-3, 242, Washington, D.C..
Attaochu recorded a career-high 4.0 sacks – the third-most single-game sacks in Georgia Tech history – in a double-overtime loss to Georgia on Saturday. Attaochu, who also had eight tackles and a pass break-up, tied the Yellow Jacket all-time career sack record of 31.0, which ranks fifth in ACC history.
LINEBACKER – Matt Robinson, Maryland, Jr, LB, 6-4, 230, Columbia, Md.
Robinson finished with a career-high 17 tackles, the second-highest total for a Terp this season, including a personal-best 3.5 tackles for loss in Saturday’s 41-21 road win at NC State. He also registered a half-sack and one pass break-up.
DEFENSIVE BACK –Kendall Fuller, Virginia Tech, Fr., CB, 5-11, 180, Baltimore, Md.
Fuller was a lockdown corner all day for the Hokies in shutting down the Virginia offense in Virginia Tech’s 16-6 win. He had a career-high eight tackles and four pass break-ups to go along with a half-sack and his team-leading and Tech freshman record sixth interception of the year.
SPECIALIST– Pat O’Donnell, Miami, Gr., 6-5, 220, P, Lake Worth, Fla.
O’Donnell booted four punts for a 44.2-yard average, including three kicks inside Pitt’s 20-yard line, in Miami’s 41-31 road win at Pitt. However, O’Donnell’s biggest play occurred on the opening kickoff ,when the graduate punter forced a Pitt fumble which was recovered by Miami’s Garrett Kidd. O’Donnell’s first career forced fumble resulted in the first of three Stacy Coley touchdowns in the Miami win.
CO-ROOKIE – Stacy Coley, Miami, Fr., WR, 6-1, 180, Pompano Beach, Fla.
Coley accumulated 171 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns in Miami’s 41-31 road win at Pitt. Coley hauled in two receiving touchdowns and later posted a rushing score to his total. Coley now has touchdowns in three straight games. He finished with three catches for 73 yards and two touchdowns against the Panthers, while rushing for a 73-yard TD in the second quarter. With his 73-yard touchdown run, Coley became the only FBS player in 2013 to record a touchdown via receiving, rushing, punt return and kickoff return. He is the third Miami freshman in the past 20 years to record 10-plus touchdowns in his rookie campaign, joining Clinton Portis (1999) and Duke Johnson (2012).
