ACC Football Players of the WEEK
GREENSBORO,
N.C. (theACC.com) – The Atlantic Coast Conference 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 15-member media
panel. The following are this week’s honorees:
QUARTERBACK – Alex Hornibrook,
Florida State, Sr., QB, West Chester, Pa.
Hornibrook threw for a career-high 316 yards and three
touchdowns in FSU’s 31-13 win over NC State • In his first start as a Seminole,
Hornibrook did not turn the ball over in a career-high 40 pass attempts and had
five touchdowns without a turnover in the past two weeks • Hornibrook threw
touchdowns of 40, 43 and 9 yards.
RUNNING BACK – AJ Dillon,
Boston College, Jr., RB, New London, Conn.
Dillon earned ACC weekly running back honors for the third
consecutive week after he posted his third straight 150-yard rushing
performance with 23 carries for 159 yards in Saturday’s 27-24 loss to visiting
Wake Forest • It marked his 10th career game with 150-plus rushing yards,
second among active NCAA players • With 15 games of 100 rushing yards or more,
Dillon now ranks fifth on the Eagles’ all-time list • He also had a 33-yard
reception on Saturday to finish with 192 all-purpose yards.
RECEIVER – Tee Higgins,
Clemson, Jr., WR, Oak Ridge, Tenn.
Higgins recorded game highs with six receptions for 129 yards
and a touchdown in Saturday’s 21-20 road win at North Carolina • Higgins’
38-yard touchdown reception on a pass from Trevor Lawrence with 9:54 remaining
accounted for the Tigers’ winning score.
OFFENSIVE LINEMAN – Jack Wohlabaugh,
Duke, Jr., C, Akron, Ohio
Wohlabaugh spearheaded a Duke offense that produced 45
points, 24 first downs and 422 total yards In Friday night’s 45-10 win at
Virginia Tech • The Blue Devils committed zero turnovers, surrendered zero
sacks and converted 7 of 14 third-down snaps • Wohlabaugh opened holes for a
rushing attack that compiled 234 yards on 41 attempts (5.7 yards per rush) and
three touchdowns while allowing just four total negative yards on the night •
He also provided protection for a Duke passing game that completed 21 of 28
pass attempts (.750) for 188 yards and three touchdowns while not surrendering
a sack for the third straight game.
DEFENSIVE LINEMAN – Larrell
Murchison, NC State, Sr., DT, Elizabethtown, N.C.
Murchison led the Wolfpack with 3.5 of his team’s eight
quarterback sacks against Florida State on Saturday night • It marked the
third-highest individual single-game total in school history (only former NC
State All-American Mario Williams had more in a game with four twice) • Two of
Murchison’s sacks were third-down stops • Murchison tallied six total tackles
on the night and also accounted for a pair of quarterback hurries.
LINEBACKER – Koby Quansah,
Duke, Sr., LB, Manchester, Conn.
Quansah had a game-high 13 tackles, a fumble recovery, a
half-sack and a pass breakup in the Blue Devils’ 45-10 win at Virginia Tech •
His fumble recovery in the second quarter led to Duke’s first touchdown, which
jump-started a run of 31 unanswered points for the Blue Devils • He led a Duke
defense that limited Virginia Tech to 259 yards of total offense after the
Hokies entered the week averaging 27.7 points and 398.3 total yards per game • Virginia
Tech went just 4 of 12 (.333) on third-down conversions after entering the week
leading the ACC with a .522 third-down conversion rate • He helped stymie a
Virginia Tech aerial game into 8 of 20 passing for 120 yards and only two
completions of more than 10 yards.
DEFENSIVE BACK – Cyrus Fagan,
Florida State, Jr., S, Daytona Beach, Fla.
Fagan made his fourth start of the year and led FSU with a
career-high 10 tackles (eight solo) and a fumble recovery in FSU’s 31-13 win
over NC State • Fagan’s fumble recovery in the second quarter came with the
game tied • He added a pass breakup in the fourth quarter.
SPECIALIST – Sterling
Hofrichter, Syracuse, Sr., P/PK, Valrico, Fla.
Hofrichter punted five times for 215 yards (43.0 avg.) with a
net average of 42 yards per punt in Saturday’s win over Holy Cross • Four of
his five punts were downed inside the 20-yard line with three resulting in fair
catches • Two of his punts traveled at least 50 yards • With 10,021 career
yards in 42 career games, Hofrichter became the fifth Orange punter to eclipse
the 10,000-yard mark for his career • He also connected on a 52-yard field goal
in the first quarter that gave the Orange a 17-0 lead • It was Hofrichter’s
first field goal of the season and the longest make of his career.
ROOKIE – Amari Gainer, Florida
State, R-Fr., LB, Tallahassee, Fla.
In his first career start, Gainer finished with nine tackles,
a pair of sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss in FSU’s 31-13 win over NC State • The
Tallahassee native also forced a fumble on NC State’s final drive at the goal
line to prevent a Wolfpack touchdown • Gainer had both of Florida State’s sacks
on the evening.
