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Friedlander: Introducing this season’s ACC ‘Dudes Who Deserve Better’ team
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Football is the ultimate team sport.
It takes all 11 men on the field, working together as a unit, to be successful. Even if 10 are doing their jobs well, it sometimes only takes 1 being out of position or missing a tackle to bring a play, a game or sometimes even an entire season down.
Still, there’s something to be said for individual accomplishment. And the glory that goes with it.
It just feels better when your team is winning.
This list of “dudes who deserve better” is a tribute to the many talented ACC players who are having great seasons, even if their teams aren’t. Or those who, in one case, aren’t getting the kind of opportunity they hoped to contribute to a winning team’s success.
These 10, in no particular order, are the kind whose efforts each Saturday often go unnoticed. But when you do notice, you can’t help but shake your head and say to yourself: “Man, that dude deserves better.”
Omarion Hampton, RB, North Carolina
No one in the ACC has been dealt a more frustrating hand than Hampton. He led the conference in rushing last season and was being counted on to be even more of a factor this year in the absence of star quarterback Drake Maye.
He’s certainly held up his end of the bargain. With 901 yards through 7 games, the rugged back is again on pace to lead the league. He’s among the national leaders in yards after contact and he’s scored 7 touchdowns, to go with 20 receptions out of the backfield.
Not even that has been enough to overcome the Tar Heels’ quarterback struggles, offensive line inconsistency and a defense that is again among the worst in the ACC. UNC’s season might be going down in flames after 4 straight losses and an 0-3 start to the conference schedule. But it hasn’t been Hampton’s fault.
Alijah Huzzie, CB, North Carolina
Hampton’s UNC teammate is the kind of defender with a knack for being around the ball. He led the Tar Heels with 3 interceptions last season and has 15 for his career, which started at East Tennessee State. It’s tough to be around the ball, though, when the other team isn’t throwing it your way.
That’s been the case for the senior cornerback so far this season. He’s been good when tested. He’s tied for the ACC lead with 7 pass breakups. But with opponents picking on several other weak links in the UNC secondary, Huzzie has had fewer opportunities to make plays. He has yet to pick off a pass through 7 games.
Huzzie has, however, been able to make an impact on special teams. His 16.8-yard average on 8 punt returns is the best in the conference and includes a 69-yarder for a touchdown that helped the Tar Heels rally from a late deficit against Georgia Tech. A game UNC, naturally, still found a way to lose.
Nohl Williams, CB, Cal
Williams is putting together a truly memorable individual effort in the midst of a forgettable season that has seen the Bears lose their first 4 ACC games by a combined total of 9 points. He leads the nation with 6 interceptions, 2 more than anyone else. And he took one of those picks, against Heisman Trophy frontrunner Cam Ward no less, back 40 yards for a touchdown in helping Cal build a 25-point second half lead, which Miami eventually erased.
The senior cornerback, who started his college career at UNLV, has been just as effective as a kick returner. He returned 1 80 yards for a touchdown in the season-opening win against UC Davis, and his average of 36.2 yards per return would lead the ACC if he had enough attempts to qualify.
Williams still isn’t getting the kind of attention he deserves and might be getting if he played for someone other than Cal. But he’s at least starting to get recognition. In addition to being added to the Bednarik Award watch list, he was also 1 of 3 ACC players – along with Ward and Boston College edge rusher Donovan Ezeiruaku – on ESPN’s list of the nation’s top 25 players.
Fernando Mendoza, QB, Cal
Despite being the incumbent starter who helped the Bears earn bowl eligibility last season, Mendoza had to win back his job during the preseason after coach Justin Wilcox brought in transfer Chandler Rogers to compete with him. He won the competition and carried the momentum into the season as a passer and a leader.
Mendoza is completing 67.4% of his attempts for 1,734 yards and 8 touchdowns with only 3 interceptions. All while taking a physical beating virtually every time he drops back to throw. While the sophomore from Miami has done everything he can to keep Cal competitive in its inaugural ACC season, he hasn’t gotten much help from an offensive line that has allowed a league-leading 27 sacks.
Elic Ayomanor, WR, Stanford
Ayomanor introduced himself to the college football world last season with a school record-setting performance in a double-overtime win against Colorado, punctuated by a spectacular grab off Travis Hunter’s helmet for 1 of his 3 touchdowns.
He made an early splash this season in a nationally televised Friday night game at Syracuse. He showed off his hands and agility by making a tough 1-handed catch in the end zone. Then with the game on the line and everyone in the stadium knowing he could get the ball, he made a contested 4th-down catch that set up a game-winning field goal for the Cardinal’s first conference win as an ACC member.
Ayomanor has continued to be productive. He’s caught 31 passes for 388 yards and 4 touchdowns. But because his team is going nowhere fast, with 4 straight lopsided losses since the Syracuse game, he’s become little more than an afterthought. Until his name gets called in an early round of the NFL Draft.
Demond Claiborne, RB, Wake Forest
The Deacons’ leading rusher was carted from the field with a dislocated kneecap during the first half against Louisiana on Sept. 28. It’s an injury that would have ended the day and perhaps even the rest of the season for most backs.
But Claiborne returned for the second half. And broke off a 60-yard touchdown run.
He’s been by far the best player on one of the worst teams in the ACC, playing major roles in 2 of Wake’s 3 wins by scoring the winning touchdown with 1:01 remaining against NC State and getting into the end zone twice in last week’s victory at UConn. He is 6th in the ACC in rushing yards (584) and tied for 2nd with 8 rushing touchdowns while also catching a pass for a score.
KC Concepcion, WR, NC State
The dynamic receiver was the Wolfpack’s only consistent offensive threat last season on the way to earning ACC Offensive Freshman of the Year honors. He got off to a promising start by catching 9 passes for 121 yards and 3 touchdowns in State’s opener against Western Carolina. But the combination of defenses game planning to stop him and an injury to starting quarterback Grayson McCall has limited his production since.
Coach Dave Doeren and offensive coordinator Robert Anae are still finding ways to get him touches. Last week against Cal he ran for a short touchdown off a direct snap, caught 4 passes for 52 yards and even completed one for a key 28-yard gain. His production, however, is way down from a year ago.
He’s accounted for only 244 receiving yards and 1 more touchdown in the 6 games since his big opening night performance. He’s had 3 games in which he has caught at least 4 passes but averaged fewer than 4 yards per reception. And after rushing for 365 yards, 2nd-most on the team in 2023, he’s run for only 13 yards on 10 carries this season.
Davin Vann, DE, NC State
A 5th-year senior who returned to help his draft stock and anchor a Wolfpack defense that lost much of its leadership, Vann has done everything he’s set out to do. He ranks 4th in the ACC with 10.0 tackles for loss, including 4.5 sacks. And he leads the nation with 4 forced fumbles.
Not even that has been enough to prevent State from suffering a huge drop-off. The Wolfpack have given up 50-plus points twice and are 15th out of 17 teams in the ACC in scoring defense at 31 points allowed per game. And they’re just 4–4 after being picked to finish 4th in the conference.
Vann’s performance on the field isn’t the only thing flying under the radar. Though praised locally, his effort to provide aid and support to victims of Hurricane Helene in Western North Carolina is the kind of thing that would receive national attention if he played for a team with a higher profile.
Nate Yarnell, QB, Pitt
Panthers coach Pat Narduzzi spent the entire offseason pumping up Yarnell as his starting quarterback. He even brought the redshirt junior to the ACC’s preseason media event in Charlotte. But when the season began, Yarnell was on the sidelines while Alabama transfer Eli Holstein was on the field taking snaps.
You can’t argue with Narduzzi’s decision. Holstein has been lighting it up and has led Pitt to a 6-0 record and a No. 19 national ranking. Still, you have to feel bad for Yarnell. The kid has been a good soldier and done everything he’s asked as a backup quarterback. He’s resisted the lure of the transfer portal to wait for his turn to be the Panthers’ starter. He’s played well when given a shot.
Unless he really likes where he is and is comfortable with being a career backup, it might be time for Yarnell to start considering a change of scenery. Because if he hadn’t already figured it out yet, they’re just not that into him at Pitt.
Patrick Payton, Edge, Florida State
Payton is an NFL-caliber prospect who thrived as the bookend to 1st round-pick Jared Verse last season. He recorded 44 tackles, 14.5 TFLs and 7.0 sacks last season while helping the Seminoles to an undefeated regular season and ACC championship.
After briefly flirting with the transfer portal in search of name, image and likeness opportunities in the same ballpark as Verse, the 6-5, 235-pound combination of speed, length and power decided to remain in Tallahassee and become FSU’s next 1st-round success story.
Think he’s regretting that decision now?
Payton has done nothing to hurt his pro prospects. He ranks among the ACC’s top 10 in sacks and TFLs with 4 and 8, respectively. As one of the few remaining holdovers from last year’s team, however, that can’t be much consolation as his 1-6 team implodes around him.
Award-winning columnist Brett Friedlander has covered the ACC and college basketball since the 1980s.
