From GoCards.com...
From GoCards.com...
Reigning Heisman Trophy winner Lamar Jackson was
tabbed the Atlantic Coast Conference Preseason Player of the Year, and the
University of Louisville football team was picked to finish third in the
conference's Atlantic Division, the league announced on Monday.
According to a poll of the league's 167 media members in attendance at the 2017
ACC Kickoff in Charlotte, N.C., Florida State is the preseason favorite to claim
the ACC football championship. The Seminoles were the likely 2017 ACC champions
on 118 ballots, followed by defending national champion and two-time defending
ACC champion Clemson with 35 votes. Louisville was third with seven votes, while
Virginia Tech and Miami totaled three each and Duke had one.
In the Atlantic Division, Florida State led the way with 121 first-place votes
and 1,108 total points. Defending national champion Clemson followed with 37
first-place votes and 1,007 points, while Louisville received nine first-place
votes and checked in with 843 total points. NC State (658 total points) was
tabbed for a fourth-place Atlantic Division finish, followed by Wake Forest
(415), Syracuse (362) and Boston College (283).
Louisville returns 14 starters from last season's 9-4 team that finished as
co-champions of the ACC's Atlantic Division with a 7-1 conference record and
participants in the Citrus Bowl.
Jackson, the 2016 ACC Player of the Year, was the overwhelming selection to be
the league's player of the year in 2017. He was chosen to repeat after a
record-setting campaign in which he averaged 393.4 yards per game of total
offense and accounted for 51 touchdowns, both ACC single-season records. His
school-record 1,571 rushing yards and 21 rushing touchdowns were also ACC
records for a quarterback.
A rising junior from Pompano Beach, Fla., Jackson -- the youngest player to win
the Heisman Trophy -- also was named the 2016 National College Football Player
of the Year by the Maxwell Award, Walter Camp, the Sporting News, and CBS
Sports.
The Cardinals are entering their eighth season under the direction of head coach
Bobby Petrino, who has led the program to a 67-22 record and bowl appearances
each season. In his 12 seasons as a collegiate head coach, Petrino's 109-43
record (.717 winning percentage) is the 14th-best winning percentage among
active coaches at the Division I ranks.
Besides Jackson returning on the nation's third-rated offense in 2016, the
Cardinals bring back junior wide receiver Jaylen Smith, who finished third in
the nation with a 22.2 yards per catch average and was tied for second on the
team with six touchdown receptions. Senior running back Reggie Bonnafon, who
served in a multi-purpose role last season, will be the starter in the
backfield, while junior offensive tackles Geron Christian and Lukayus McNeil are
back to anchor the offensive line.
Louisville's defensive unit, which returns nine starters, is headlined by junior
cornerback Jaire Alexander, defensive lineman Drew Bailey and linebacker Stacy
Thomas.
Alexander, a second team all-ACC selection in 2016, led the Cardinals with five
interceptions. He recorded a pair in a loss to nationally ranked Clemson and
totaled two in a road win at Virginia.
Bailey, a starter in all 13 games, led the defensive line with 58 tackles and
also totaled 9.0 tackles for loss and a pair of sacks. He was credited with a
career-best 11 tackles in a 24-14 win over Duke.
Finishing second on the team in tackles last season, Thomas returns as the
leader of the defense. A starter in 11 games last year, Thomas registered six or
more tackles in eight games, including a season-high 11 in the Citrus Bowl
versus LSU.
Louisville opens the year on a neutral field against Purdue on Sept. 2 in Lucas
Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Ind. Kickoff on FOX is set for 7:30 p.m. EDT.