Seven ACC players have made the Walter Camp pre-season watch list for the national player of the year award. The list, released Monday afternoon, is the second nod this Summer from the Walter Camp Foundation, with the organization having already released a pre-season All-American team. The seven ACC players on the Walter Camp Player of the Year list are listed below.
ACC Running Backs
Omarion Hampton; running back, North Carolina. Hampton compiled 1,726 total yards of offense for the Tar Heels last year, (1,504 rushing yards and 282 receiving yards), to go with 16 touchdowns. He is going into his third year for head coach Mack Brown.
Jamal Haynes, running back, Georgia Tech. Haynes spent his first two years in Atlanta as a receiver. Converting to running back for last season made him a vital part of the offense as he became a thousand-yard rusher with eight total touchdowns.
ACC Quarterbacks
Kyle McCord; quarterback, Syracuse. McCord has yet to play a game for the Orange. But his off-season arrival for Syracuse via the transfer portal was one of the biggest pieces of news for the school in some time. He played his first three seasons at Ohio State. In 2023, he threw for 3,170 yards, and 24 touchdowns against six interceptions.
D.J. Uiagalelei; quarterback, Florida State. This is DJU’s second go-around in the ACC. He spent his first three seasons at Clemson, throwing for 5,681 yards, with two seasons as a starter. Uiagalelei spent 2023 in Corvallis, OR playing for the Oregon State Beavers. He added another 2,638 passing yards on to his career totals. He has 57 touchdowns and 24 interceptions in his four years.
Grayson McCall; quarterback, North Carolina State. Like McCord, has yet to play an ACC game, but is eagerly anticipated by Wolfpack fans. The area fans know his game well. He spent five years playing quarterback for the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers. He brings 10,005 passing yards, 88 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions with him to Raleigh.
Elic Ayomanor; receiver, Stanford. This will be the first time for most ACC fans to see the Cardinal receiver. He had 1,013 yards and six touchdowns last year in his first season at Stanford.
Cam Ward; quarterback, Miami. The third ACC quarterback on the list who has yet to play a game in the conference but enters the year with much hype and anticipation. Ward transferred from Washington State, where he threw for just under 7,000 yards in two seasons. He also had 48 touchdowns and 16 interceptions in two seasons. He played two seasons at the FCS for Incarnate Word before Pullman.
The Logistics
There are 50 players in all on this year’s pre-season watch list. Players can be added as the season goes on. Ohio State and Notre Dame have the most representatives of any school with three players each on the watch list. Seven other schools have two each.
The award is voted on by the head coaches of all 133 FBS schools and their sports information directors.
The 2024 Player of Year watch list will be narrowed to 10 semi-finalists in early November and three finalists will be announced on November 26. The winner will be announced on ESPN’s College Football Awards Show on December 12.
The other awards announcing pre-season watch lists this week can be seen here.
