North Carolina State University Athletics
Pack Picked To Finish 3rd in ACC's Atlantic Division
7/27/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
GREENSBORO, N.C. (ACSMA) – NC State was picked by the media attending the annual ACC Football Kickoff to finish third in the Atlantic Division. The Wolfpack also received two votes to win the fifth-annual ACC Football Championship, played this year in Tampa at Raymond James Stadium on Dec. 5.
Virginia Tech, winner of three ACC championships in its first five seasons of membership, was the overwhelming pick to claim a fourth in voting conducted by media at the ACC Football Kickoff at Grandover Resort on Sunday, receiving 78 first-place votes and 512 points.
Georgia Tech, buoyed by the return of running back Jonathan Dwyer, was picked to finish second with nine first-place votes and a total of 415 points.
Dwyer, who earned the 2008 ACC Player of the Year, reveived 39 votes for the preseason honor this year, topping Clemson running back C.J. Spiller's 28 votes. NC State sophomore quarterback Russell Wilson, the first freshman quarterback in conference history to win first-team ACC honors last season, was picked third with 16 votes.
A total of 87 media representatives voted in the preseason poll.
The Hokies, who have won two of the first four ACC title games, was picked to beat the Atlantic Division representative, Florida State. The actual game will be broadcast by ESPN at 8 p.m. on Dec. 5.
Voting was more balanced in the Atlantic, in which four of six teams got first-place votes. FSU won with 56 first-place citations and 479 points. Runner-up Clemson (387 points) was the choice for first by 14 electors; N.C. State (364) was picked No. 1 on 10 ballots; and Wake Forest (295) received the nod from seven voters. Maryland (157) came in at fifth and Boston College (145), the two-time defending Atlantic champion, finished sixth.
When asked about the fact that four of the six teams in the division received first-place votes, Wolfpack coach Tom O'Brien said: "That just means nobody is sure what is going to happen."
The Hokies received 78 first-place votes and 512 points in divisional balloting. Georgia Tech claimed the other nine first-place votes and 415 points for second. North Carolina (350) and Miami (282) followed the top two and placed ahead of Virginia (148) and Duke (120).
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