Five Deacons Named to All-ACC Football Teams
11/28/2005 12:00:00 AM | Football
Nov. 28, 2005
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Greensboro, N.C. -- Five Wake Forest student-athletes were named the All-Atlantic Coast Conference football teams, the league announced on Monday. Senior tailback Chris Barclay and senior punter Ryan Plackemeier were selected by the league's media to the first team. Junior free safety Josh Gattis earned second team honors. Junior tackle Steve Vallos and sophomore linebacker Jon Abbate each were named to the honorable mention team.
Barclay was one of just two unanimous selections to the first team. A senior from of Louisville, Ky., Barclay carried 218 times for 1,127 yards and 10 touchdowns in 2005. He became the first player in ACC history to lead the ACC in rushing during the regular season in three straight years. Barclay led the ACC in rushing yards (1,127), rushing attempts (218) and all-purpose yards (1,508). He etched his name into the Wake Forest, ACC and NCAA record books. Barclay leaves Wake Forest as the team's all-time leader in seven major categories including yards (4,032), scoring (240 points), rushing touchdowns (40), total touchdowns (40), all-purpose yards (4,930), 200-yard rushing games (3) and 1,000-yard rushing seasons (3). His four touchdown performance against East Carolina this season, tied a school record. Barclay was a first team selection in 2004 and a second team selection in 2003.
Plackemeier, a finalist for the Ray Guy Award, leads the nation in average yards per punt and net punting. He leaves Wake Forest as the the school's, the ACC's and the NCAA's all-time leading punter with at least 200 attempts. The native of Bonsall, Calif., shattered his own Wake Forest single season punting average record with 47.2 yards per punt. He punted 67 times for 3,165 yards and dropped 20 punts inside the 20-yardline. Plackemeier had 13 punts of at least 60 yards, three punts of at least 70 yards and an 82-yarder against NC State. The 82-yarder was the fourth-longest punt in ACC history, the longest since 1989. At Georgia Tech, Plackemeier broke a 52-year old ACC single game record by averaging 56.4 yards per punt (five punts for 282 yards). He received 141 out of a possible 144 points in the voting.
Gattis, a junior from Durham, N.C., had five interceptions to lead the Deacons and tie for the ACC lead. He returned two of those interceptions for touchdowns, only one of three players nationally to score a pair of touchdowns on interceptions. Gattis had 13 special teams tackles, tied for the most in the conference. He had 12 pass break-ups to tie for the team lead and rank third in the ACC. Gattis finished the season as the team's second-leading tackler with 72 stops.
Abbate lead the Deacons in tackles for the second straight year. He battled through an early season hamstring injury, a sprained knee and a lacerated nose to finish his sophomore season with 76 stops in only 10 games. He also registered six tackles for loss and two interceptions. Abbate averaged 8.5 tackles against ACC opponents. His signature performance came against Clemson when, in the first half alone, he made 11 tackles and two interceptions. The sophomore of Powder Springs, Ga., was named the Bronko Nagurski National Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts. Abbate was an honorable mention All-ACC selection as a freshman in 2004.
Vallos was the team's most dominant lineman all season. He totaled 146 knockdown blocks, almost twice as many as any other lineman on the team. He averaged a knockdown block once every five plays. Vallos, a native of Boardman, Ohio, missed only seven assignments in 11 games, an average of one per 113 plays. A first team preseason All-ACC selection and 2004 second team All-ACC selection, Vallos has started all 34 games of his career. Vallos was a first team selection in 2004 as a sophomore.
Barclay and Plackemeier become the fifth and sixth players in Wake Forest history to be named All-ACC three times. The most recent Deacon to do so was John Henry Mills, who accomplished the feat in 1990-92. With the five players from this year, Deacon head coach Jim Grobe has seen players named All-ACC 22 times in five years.
2005 ACSMA/AP All-ACC Football Team & Individual Awards(Total Points) -- 72 Total Ballots / Maximum 144 Points
OFFENSE First Team Second TeamQuarterback Marcus Vick, Jr., Virginia Tech (118) Charlie Whitehurst, Sr., Clemson (46)Running Back Chris Barclay, Sr., Wake Forest (144)# Lance Ball, So., Maryland (69) Tyrone Moss, Jr., Miami (98) P.J. Daniels, Sr., Georgia Tech (67)Wide Receiver Calvin Johnson, So., Georgia Tech (144)# Will Blackmon, Sr., Boston College (39) Chansi Stuckey, Jr., Clemson (118) Greg Carr, Fr., Florida State (29)Tight End Vernon Davis, Jr., Maryland (132) Jeff King, Sr., Virginia Tech (26) tie T.J. Williams, Sr., NC State (26) tieTackle Eric Winston, Sr., Miami (121) Jimmy Martin, Sr., Virginia Tech (43) D'Brickashaw Ferguson, Sr., Virginia (101) Jeremy Trueblood, Sr., Boston College (42)Guard Jason Murphy, Sr., Virginia Tech (95) Josh Beekman, Jr., Boston College (79) Kyle Ralph, Sr., North Carolina (85) Roman Fry, Jr., Clemson (63)Center Will Montgomery, Sr., Virginia Tech (85) Pat Ross, Sr., Boston College (36)
#Unanimous Selection
Honorable Mention (20 points or more)QB - Kyle Wright, So., Miami (29)RB - James Davis, Fr., Clemson (21)WR - Jesse Holley, Jr., North Carolina (28); Deyon Williams, Jr., Virginia (28); Sinorice Moss, Sr., Miami (23)TE - Greg Olsen, So., Miami (25)OT - Steve Vallos, Jr., Wake Forest (33); Brad Honeycutt, Sr., Georgia Tech (26)OG - Tony Tella, Sr., Miami (52), Tyler McMeans, Sr., Miami (47)C - David Castillo, Sr., Florida State (31)
DEFENSE First Team Second TeamDefensive Line Mathias Kiwanuka, Sr., Boston College (142) Eric Henderson, Sr., Georgia Tech (71) Darryl Tapp, Sr., Virginia Tech (123) Brodrick Bunkley, Sr., Florida State (64) Mario Williams, Jr., NC State (118) Kamerion Wimbley, Sr., Florida State (52) Manny Lawson, Sr., NC State (95) Jonathan Lewis, Sr., Virginia Tech (35)Linebacker D'Qwell Jackson, Sr., Maryland (141) A.J. Nicholson, Sr., Florida State (67) Stephen Tulloch, Jr., NC State (79) Vince Hall, So., Virginia Tech (62) Kai Parham, Jr., Virginia (78) Gerris Wilkinson, Sr., Georgia Tech (38)Defensive Back Jimmy Williams, Sr., Virginia Tech (114) Brandon Meriweather, Jr., Miami (78) Kelly Jennings, Sr., Miami (107) Josh Gattis, Jr., Wake Forest (64) Tye Hill, Sr., Clemson (92) Marcus Hamilton, Jr., Virginia (53) John Talley, Jr., Duke (81) Dawan Landry, Sr., Georgia Tech (35)
Honorable Mention (20 points or more)DL - Orien Harris, Sr., Miami (31); Gaines Adams, Jr., Clemson (26); Tommy Davis, Sr., North Carolina (22)LB - Anthony Waters, Jr., Clemson (32); Jon Abbate, So., Wake Forest (27); Ernie Sims, Jr., Florida State (23);Roger McIntosh, Sr., Miami (21); Tommy Richardson, Sr., North Carolina (20)DB - Marcus Hudson, Sr., NC State (29); Jamaal Fudge, Sr., Clemson (23); Jamie Silva, So., Boston College (23);Milton Harris, Sr., Maryland (22); Garland Heath, Jr., NC State (21); Pat Watkins, Sr., Florida State (20)
SPECIAL TEAMS First Team Second TeamPlacekicker Connor Hughes, Sr., Virginia (97) Jad Dean, Jr., Clemson (79)Punter Ryan Plackemeier, Sr., Wake Forest (141) Adam Podlesh, Jr., Maryland (51)Specialist Devin Hester, Jr., Miami (82) Darrell Blackman, So., NC State (50)
Honorable Mention (20 points or more)PK - Brandon Pace, Jr., Virginia Tech (21)SPEC - Will Blackmon, Sr., Boston College (31); Brandon Tate, Fr., North Carolina (24)
