Maye, Kancey, Elko, Verse highlight AP All-ACC selections

Associated PressDec 6, 2022, 2:59 PM EST

Bob Donnan/USA TODAY Sports

North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye is the unanimous choice as The Associated Press offensive player of the year in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Pittsburgh tackle Calijah Kancey was named the league’s top defensive player.

Duke’s Mike Elko, whose Blue Devils improved five games to 8-4 and earned a Military Bowl berth in his first season, is coach of the year in results released Tuesday following voting by 14 media members who cover the conference.

ACC champion Clemson had four first-team selections among six players overall. Tigers sophomore Will Shipley, who has rushed for 1,110 yards and 15 touchdowns this season, earned dual honors as first team running back and all-purpose player.

Kancey repeated as a first-team selection after recording 14.5 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks this season. He led Pittsburgh’s five-player contingent that included punishing rusher Israel Abanikanda, a unanimous first-team choice. The junior had a league-best 1,431 yards rushing with 20 TDs.

Maye, a redshirt freshman and the younger brother of former Tar Heels basketball star Luke Maye, passed for 4,115 yards and 35 TDs as UNC won the Coastal Division title. Tar Heels receiver Josh Downs (1,029 yards, 11 TDs) was also a unanimous first-team selection.

Florida State and North Carolina State, both bowl bound, also had six players chosen. Seminoles defensive end Jared Verse, who tied with Kancey in tackles for loss and sacks, was voted newcomer of the year after transferring from Albany.

The 2022 Associated Press All-Atlantic Coast Conference team, as selected by a panel of 14 sports writers who regularly cover the league. Players at all positions are listed alphabetically with name, school, height, weight, class and hometown; “u-” denotes unanimous selections:

First team

Offense

u-QB — Drake Maye, North Carolina, 6-4, 220, r-fr., Huntersville, North Carolina

u-RB — Israel Abanikanda, Pittsburgh, 5-11, 215, jr., New York, New York

RB — Will Shipley, Clemson, 5-11, 205, soph., Weddington, N.C.

u-WR — Josh Downs, North Carolina, 5-10, 175, jr., Suwanee, Georgia

WR — Zay Flowers, Boston College, 5-10, 172, sr., Fort Lauderdale, Florida

TE — Oronde Gadsden II, Syracuse, 6-5, 216, soph., Fort Lauderdale, Florida

OT — Jordan McFadden, Clemson, 6-2, 305, sr., Spartanburg, S.C.

OT — Graham Barton, Duke, 6-5, 311, jr., Brentwood, Texas

OG — Dillan Gibbons, Florida State, 6-5, 327, sr., Saint Petersburg, Florida

OG — Marcus Minor, Pittsburgh, 6-4, 325, sr., Lanham, Maryland

C — Grant Gibson, North Carolina State, 6-1, 310, grad., Charlotte, North Carolina

u-K — Chris Dunn, North Carolina State, 5-8, 170, grad., Lexington, North Carolina

All-purpose player — Will Shipley, Clemson

Defense

DE — Jared Verse, Florida State, 6-4, 251, soph., Berwick, Pennsylvania

DE — K.J. Henry, Clemson, 6-4, 255, grad., Winston-Salem, North Carolina

u-DT — Calijah Kancey, Pittsburgh, 6-0, 280, jr., Miami

DT — Tyler Davis, Clemson, 6-2, 300, sr., Apopka, Florida

LB — Yasir Abdullah, Louisville, 6-1, 242, sr., Miramar, Fla.

LB — Drake Thomas, North Carolina State, 6-0, 230, jr., Wake Forest, North Carolina

LB — Cedric Gray, North Carolina, 6-2, 230, jr., Charlotte, North Carolina

CB — Ayden White, North Carolina State, 6-0, 185, soph., Asheville, North Carolina

CB — Anthony Johnson, Virginia, 6-2, 205, grad., Coconut Creek, Florida

S — Kam Kinchens, Miami, 5-11, 202, soph., Miami

S — Jammie Robinson, Florida State, 5-11, 203, jr., Cordele, Georgia

P — Lou Hedley, Miami, 6-4, 220, sr., Mandurah, Australia

Second team

Offense

QB — Jordan Travis, Florida State, 6-1, 212, jr., West Palm Beach, Florida

RB — Sean Tucker, Syracuse, 5-10, 210, soph., Owings Mills, Maryland

RB — Trey Benson, Florida State, 6-1, 215, soph., Greenville, Mississippi

WR — A.T. Perry, Wake Forest, 6-5, 205, jr., Lake Worth, Florida

WR — Tyler Hudson, Louisville, 6-2, 195, sr., Spring, Texas

TE — Will Mallory, Miami, 6-5, 245, sr., Jacksonville, Florida

OT — Matthew Bergeron, Syracuse, 6-5, 322, jr., Victoriaville, Quebec, Canada

OT — Robert Scott Jr., Florida State, 6-5, 334, soph., Conway, Arkansas

OG — Chandler Zavala, North Carolina State, 6-5, 325, grad., Boynton Beach, Florida

OG — Sean Maginn, Wake Forest, 6-3, 304, sr., Suwanee, Georgia

C — Bryan Hudson, Louisville, 6-4, 301, r-jr., Georgetown, Kentucky

K — B.T. Potter, Clemson, 5-10, 200, grad., Rock Hill, South Carolina

All-purpose player — Jalon Calhoun, Duke, 5-11, 189, sr., Greenville, South Carollina

Defense

DE — Myles Murphy, Clemson, 6-5, 275, jr., Marietta, Georgia

DE — Donovan Ezeiruaku, Boston College, 6-2, 236, so., Williamstown, New Jersey

DT — DeWayne Carter, Duke, 6-3, 298, r-jr., Pickerington, Ohio

DT — Kobie Turner, Wake Forest, 6-3, 290, sr., Clifton, Virginia

LB — SirVocea Dennis, Pittsburgh, 6-1, 230, sr., Syracuse, New York

LB — Mikel Jones, Syracuse, 6-1, 224, jr., Miami, Florida

LB — Nick Jackson, Virginia, 6-1, 234, sr., Atlanta

LB — Ayinde Eley, Georgia Tech, 6-3, 233, sr., Olney, Maryland

LB — Isaiah Moore, North Carolina State, 6-2, 232, grad., Chester, Virginia

LB — Charlie Thomas, Georgia Tech, 6-2, 207, sr., Thomasville, Georgia

CB — Fentrell Cypress II, Virginia, 6-0, 184, jr., Rock Hill, South Carolina

CB — Storm Duck, North Carolina, 6-0, 200, jr., Boiling Springs, South Carolina

S — Erick Hallett II, 5-11, 190, sr., Cypress, Texas

S — Tanner Ingle, North Carolina State, 5-10, 186, sr., Orlando, Florida

P — Daniel Sparks, Virginia, 6-6, 203, jr., Gadsden, Alabama

Coach of the Year — Mike Elko, Duke

Offensive Player of the Year — Drake Maye, North Carolina

Defensive Player of the Year — Calijah Kancey, Pittsburgh

Newcomer of the Year — Jared Verse, Florida State

Voting panel:

Mike Barber, Richmond (Virginia) Times-Dispatch; Jonathan Blau, Charleston (South Carolina) Post and Courier; Rick Bozich, WDRB-TV, Louisville, Kentucky; Jerry DiPaola, Tribune Total Media, Pittsburgh; Joe Giglio, WRAL/99.9 The Fan, Raleigh, North Carolina; Trevor Hass, Boston Globe; Adam Lichtenstein, South Florida Sun Sentinel; Nate Mink, Syracuse (New York), Post-Standard; Brian Murphy, WRALsportsfan.com, Raleigh, North Carolina; Matt Murschel, Orlando (Florida) Sentinel; Ken Suguira, Atlanta Journal-Constitution; David Teel, Richmond (Virginia) Times-Dispatch; David Thompson, Fayetteville (North Carolina) Observer; Steve Wiseman, Durham (North Carolina) Herald-Sun.

Georgia extends contract for AD Josh Brooks, plans two new football practice fields

Associated PressMay 26, 2023, 9:14 PM EDT

Joshua L. Jones / USA TODAY NETWORK

ATHENS, Ga. – On the heels of a second straight national football championship, Georgia has rewarded athletic director Josh Brooks a contract extension that ties him to the Bulldogs through at least 2029.

The athletic association board, wrapping up its annual spring meeting Friday at a resort on Lake Oconee, also announced plans for a new track and field facility that will free up space for two more football practice fields.

Brooks’ new contract will increase his salary to $1.025 million a year, with annual raises of $100,000.

The 42-year-old Brooks, who took over the athletic department in 2021 after Greg McGarity retired, called the Georgia job “a dream for me” and said he hopes to spend the rest of his career in Athens.

“I am extremely grateful,” Brooks said. “I got into this business 20-plus years ago as a student equipment manager. My first job at Louisiana-Monroe was making $20,000 a year in football operations.”

The Georgia board approved a fiscal 2024 budget of $175.2 million, a nearly 8% increase from the most recent budget of $162.2 million and the sign of a prosperous program that is flush with money after its success on the gridiron.

The school received approval to move forward with its preliminary plans for a new track and field facility, which will be built across the street from the complex hosting the soccer and and softball teams.

The current track stadium is located adjacent to the Butts-Mehre athletic facility, which hosts the practice fields and training facilities for the football program.

Georgia lost a chunk of its outdoor fields when it built a new indoor practice facility. After the new track and field stadium is completed, the current space will be converted to two full-length, grass football practice fields at the request of coach Kirby Smart.

“He wants to find efficient ways to practice, and there is a lot of truth to the issues we’ve had with our current practice fields,” Brooks said. “There is a lot of strain on our turf facilities staff to keep that field in great shape when half the day it is getting shade, so that has been a challenge as well. For our football program, it is better to practice on grass fields than (artificial) turf, so to be able to have two side-by-side grass fields is huge. It makes for a much more efficient practice.”

The new track and field complex, which will continue to be named Spec Towns Track, will also include an indoor facility, the first of its kind in the state of Georgia.

Iowa AD Gary Barta announces retirement after 17 years at Big Ten school

Associated PressMay 26, 2023, 9:11 PM EDT

Joseph Cress/Iowa City Press-Citizen / USA TODAY NETWORK

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Iowa athletic director Gary Barta will retire on August 1 after 17 years at the university, the school announced Friday.

Barta, 59, is one of the longest-tenured athletic directors in a Power Five conference. He was hired by Iowa in 2006 after being the AD at Wyoming.

An interim director will be announced next week, Iowa said.

In September, Iowa hired former Ball State athletic director Beth Goetz to be deputy director of athletics and chief operating officer, putting her in position to possibly succeed Barta.

“It has been an absolute privilege and honor to serve in this role the past 17 years,” Barta said in a statement. “This decision didn’t come suddenly, nor did it come without significant thought, discussion, and prayer.”

“That said, I’m confident this is the right time for me and for my family.”

Iowa won four NCAA national team titles and 27 Big Ten team titles during Barta’s tenure. The women’s basketball team is coming off an appearance in the national championship game and the wrestling team is coming off a second-place finish at the NCAA championships.

Barta served as the chairman of the College Football Playoff committee in 2020 and 2021.

He faced heavy criticism over more than $11 million in settlements for lawsuits in recent years alleging racial and sexual discrimination within the athletic department.

Lawsuits filed by former field hockey coach Tracey Griesbaum and associate athletics director Jane Meyer led to a $6.5 million payout.

Iowa had to pay $400,000 as part of a Title IX lawsuit brought by athletes after it cut four sports in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of the agreement, Iowa reinstated the women’s swimming and diving program and add another women’s sport.

Iowa added women’s wrestling, the first among Power Five schools to compete this year.

A lawsuit brought by former football players alleging racial discrimination within the program was settled for $4.2 million last March, which prompted state auditor Rob Sand to call for Barta’s ouster.

“Gary Barta’s departure is a long time coming given the four different lawsuits for discrimination that cost Iowa more than $11 million,” Sand posted on Twitter.

The university did not allow taxpayer money to be used for the settlement with the former players.

Barta led Iowa through $380 million of facility upgrades, including renovation of Kinnick Stadium, the construction of a new football facility, a basketball practice facility and a training center for the wrestling teams.

Under Barta, Iowa has had just one head football coach (Kirk Ferentz), women’s basketball coach (Lisa Bluder) and wrestling coach (Tom Brands). All were in place when he arrived.

Barta has also come under scrutiny for allowing Ferentz to employee his son, Brian Ferentz, as offensive coordinator. To comply with the university’s nepotism policy, Brian Ferentz reports to Barta.