Two Duke Football Players Earn ACC Honors

The Duke Blue Devils are coming off another big win this past weekend, dominating NC State on the road. It was the third straight win for the Blue Devils who are now firmly back in the mix in terms of the Atlantic Coast Conference. 

While the Blue Devils have to have some things happen and basically win out, the chance is still there to make the conference title game once again. But the test gets tougher this weekend as they head to Miami to face a Hurricanes team that was previously ranked No. 1 before losing to Notre Dame. Miami is still very good and leading the ACC but a Duke upset would certainly change some things in this conference. 

If Duke wants to pull off the upset, they are going to need a big day from both sides of the ball but mainly from running back Nate Sheppard. And if the past few weeks are any indication, then Sheppard should have his normal type of game, which is good news for the Blue Devils. 

On Monday, Sheppard was honored once again by the ACC for a weekly award being named the Running Back of the Week for the conference. It's the fourth time this year that Sheppard has been named the winner of the award for the conference, continuing on his successful season. 

In the win over NC State, Sheppard rushed for 217 yards and three touchdowns on just 18 carries. He dominated once again and it was the second time this season Sheppard went over 200 yards rushing in a game. Sheppard has 1,189 rushing yards which is second in all of college football. He also has 17 touchdowns this year, which is fourth among running backs and he should be in the Heisman conversation.

But Sheppard wasn't the only Duke player honored. His teammate, Andrew Pellicciotta, was named the ACC Specialist of the Week. The safety returned a missed field-goal attempt 109 yards for a touchdown to end the first half. It was one of the best plays in all of college football last week and helped Duke extend their halftime lead. 

For the Blue Devils, the task this week is now Miami. The Blue Devils have the chance to really shake things up in the ACC race and complicate things a bit. Plus, they can get some revenge on former quarterback Darian Mensah, too. 

Miami and Duke will kick off at Noon on Saturday afternoon from Miami.