Louisville’s dual-threat quarterback Lamar Jackson was named ACC Player of the Year by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association after a record-breaking campaign. Florida State’s DeMarcus Walker was named Defensive Player of the Year.Jackson accounted for 4,928 yards of total offense and was responsible for an ACC single-season record 51 total touchdowns (30 passing, 21 rushing). He also set the ACC record for rushing yards by a quarterback in one season with 1,538, and his 21 rushing touchdowns are the most in a single season by an ACC signal-caller. Despite those absurd numbers, Jackson was not the unanimous choice with 36 votes.Clemson junior quarterback Deshaun Watson placed second with five votes. Florida State junior running back Dalvin Cook and Pitt redshirt junior running back James Conner collected three votes apiece, and Clemson senior linebacker Ben Boulware received one.Watson received six ACC Offensive Player of the Year votes, likely due to the fact that Boulware couldn’t be voted for the award.Jackson, who led the Cardinals to nine wins and a share of the ACC Atlantic Division championship, was named the Walter Camp Offensive Player of the Week and ACC Offensive Back of the Week three times. He is also up for the Manning, Maxwell and O’Brien awards. While the Heisman finalists haven’t been announced, he’s still the favorite for the award.In his breakout season, Jackson feasted on North Carolina teams. Between Charlotte, Duke, NC State and Wake Forest, Jackson tallied 15 total touchdowns and no interceptions.For Walker, the Seminoles leader on the defensive line registered an ACC-leading 15 sacks earned 23 of 47 votes. One ACSMA voter apparently decided to only write in for Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year.Similar to Jackson, Walker terrorized N.C. backfields with five sacks in three games against UNC, NC State and Wake Forest. He also forced a fumble in the loss to Tar Heels and finished the season strong with 8.5 sacks over the final six games.
