November 27, 2006

BLACKSBURG - Following its third straight 10-win season, seven Virginia Tech football players were rewarded Monday by being named to the All-ACC team, as selected by ACSMA/AP, the media association for the Atlantic Coast Conference. Branden Ore, Vince Hall and Brandon Flowers all made the first team while Duane Brown, Xavier Adibi, Eddie Royal and Brandon Pace all made the second team.

Hall led all linebackers with 113 points and leads the league with 115 tackles, including 10.0 for loss and 2.0 sacks. The junior from Chesapeake, Va., also had eight quarterback hurries, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery and a pass break up.

Ore missed basically the last two full games, but still made the first team as one of the two running backs. The sophomore from Chesapeake, Va., has rushed for 1,095 yards and 14 touchdowns and caught 14 passes for 203 yards and a score. He is second in the league in rushing yards per game and leads the league in all-purpose yards.

Tech's third first-teamer was sophomore cornerback Brandon Flowers, who leads the league in passes defended with 21. The Delray Beach, Fla., native has three interceptions and 18 pass break ups to go along with 48 tackles, including 7.5 for loss and 3.5 sacks. He also had three quarterback hurries and a forced fumble.

Brown makes the second team as an offensive tackle. The junior from Richmond, Va., started all 12 games, playing 678 offensive snaps and grading out at 87 percent. Adibi is second on the team with 78 tackles, including 5.5 for loss and 3.0 sacks. The junior linebacker from Hampton, Va., also has five quarterback hurries, three interceptions, three forced fumbles, three pass break ups and a fumble recovery that he returned for a touchdown. Pace led the league in field goal accuracy and scored 86 points. The senior from Virginia Beach, Va., is 17-of-18 on field goals and 35-of-37 on extra points this season. Royal makes the second team as a return specialist. The junior from Herndon, Va., leads the ACC in punt return average at 12.0 with a touchdown and also averaged 23.2 yards per kickoff return.

2006 ACSMA/AP All-ACC Football Team
(Total Points) -- 80 Total Ballots / Maximum 160 Points

OFFENSE	First Team	Second Team
Quarterback	Matt Ryan, Jr., Boston College (142)	Riley Skinner, Fr., Wake Forest (33)
Running Back	James Davis, So., Clemson (149)	Tashard Choice, Jr., Georgia Tech (103)
	Branden Ore, So., Virginia Tech (134)	C.J. Spiller, Fr., Clemson (58)
Wide Receiver	Calvin Johnson, Jr., Georgia Tech (160) #	Darrius Heyward-Bey, Fr., Maryland (46)
	Chansi Stuckey, Sr., Clemson (94)	Greg Carr, So., Florida State (38)
Tight End	Greg Olsen, Jr., Miami (112)	Anthony Hill, Jr., NC State (65)
Tackle	Steve Vallos, Sr., Wake Forest (150)	Duane Brown, Jr., Virginia Tech (58)
	Barry Richardson, Jr., Clemson (85)	Jim Marten, Sr., Boston College (49)
Guard	Josh Beekman, Sr., Boston College (142)	Leroy Harris, Sr., NC State (57)
	Nathan Bennett, Sr., Clemson (114)	Andrew Crummey, Jr., Maryland (42)
Center	Steve Justice, Jr., Wake Forest (113)	Dustin Fry, Sr., Clemson (96)
Honorable Mention (25 points or more)
QB - Reggie Ball, Sr., Georgia Tech (31); Sam Hollenbach, Sr., Maryland (29)
WR - Chris Davis, Sr., Florida State (36); Kevin Challenger, Jr., Boston College (35); Kevin Ogletree, So., Virginia (27)
TE - Joey Haynos, Jr., Maryland (31); Thomas Hunter, Sr., Clemson (26)
OT - Andrew Gardner, So., Georgia Tech (48); Stephon Heyer, Sr., Maryland (33)
OG - Branden Albert, So., Virginia (34); Cory Niblock, Sr., Florida State (34); Derrick Morse, Jr., Miami (31)
DEFENSE	First Team	Second Team
Defensive End	Gaines Adams, Sr., Clemson (157)	Chris Long, Jr., Virginia (55)
	Calais Campbell, So., Miami (105)	Adamm Oliver, Jr., Georgia Tech (34)
Defensive Tackle	Joe Anoai, Sr., Georgia Tech (108)	Kareem Brown, Sr., Miami (81)
	DeMarcus Tyler, Sr., NC State (98)	Andre Fluellen, Jr., Florida State (40) tie
		B.J. Raji, Jr., Boston College (40) tie
Linebacker	Vince Hall, Jr., Virginia Tech (113)	Philip Wheeler, Jr., Georgia Tech (86)
	Buster Davis, Sr., Florida State (102)	Erin Henderson, So., Maryland (64)
	Jon Abbate, Jr., Wake Forest (97)	Xavier Adibi, Jr., Virginia Tech (55)
Cornerback	John Talley, Sr., Duke (140)	Marcus Hamilton, Sr., Virginia (61)
	Brandon Flowers, So., Virginia Tech (88)	DeJuan Tribble, Jr., Boston College (59)
Safety	Josh Gattis, Sr., Wake Forest (149)	Kenny Phillips, So., Miami (49)
	Jamal Lewis, Jr., Georgia Tech (61)	Brandon Meriweather, Sr., Miami (48)
Honorable Mention (25 points or more)
DE - Baraka Atkins, Sr., Miami (27); Jyles Tucker, Sr., Wake Forest (26)
LB - Lawrence Timmons, Jr., Florida State (44); KaMichael Hall, Sr., Georgia Tech (27); Patrick Lowery, Sr., NC State (25)
CB - Josh Wilson, Sr., Maryland (35); Duane Coleman, Sr., Clemson (34)
S - Ryan Glasper, Sr., Boston College (38); Myron Rolle, Fr., Florida State (38); Patrick Ghee, Sr., Wake Forest (28)
SPECIAL TEAMS	First Team	Second Team
Placekicker	Sam Swank, So., Wake Forest (103)	Brandon Pace, Sr., Virginia Tech (87)
Punter	Durant Brooks, Jr., Georgia Tech (132)	Adam Podlesh, Sr., Maryland (60)
Specialist	Darrell Blackman, Jr., NC State (97)	Eddie Royal, Jr., Virginia Tech (57)
Honorable Mention (25 points or more)
PK - Dan Ennis, Sr., Maryland (34)
P - Sam Swank, So., Wake Forest (37)
# - Unanimous Selection