Football

Week 14 ACC Football Players of the Week

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – The Atlantic Coast Conference has announced its Football Players of the Week following standout performances in Week 14. Honorees were selected by a vote of a select media panel.
 
QUARTERBACK & ROOKIE – Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele, Fr., QB, California (Ewa Beach, Hawai’i)
  • Completed 31-of-40 passes for 330 yards with four touchdown passes in Cal's 38-35 victory over No. 21 SMU.
  • Engineered the most memorable drive of his young career, leading Cal 75 yards over seven plays and culminating in Kendrick Raphael's game-clinching touchdown run.
  • Posted the 10th season of 3,000 or more passing yards by a Cal quarterback and now ranks sixth on the Bears' all-time list with 3,117 passing yards this season.
  • This marks his second ACC Quarterback of the Week honor and fourth Rookie of the Week accolade this season.
 
RUNNING BACK – Kendrick Raphael, Jr., RB, California (Naples, Florida)
  • Ran the ball a career-high 33 times for 110 yards in Cal’s 38-35 upset victory over No. 21 SMU.
  • Scored the go-ahead touchdown with 43 seconds remaining in the contest.
  • Became the first Cal running back to record at least 30 rushing attempts in a game since 2023.
 
RECEIVER – Malachi Toney, Fr., WR, Miami (Liberty City, Florida)
  • Totaled 149 all-purpose yards in Miami’s 38-7 win on the road at No. 22 Pitt.
  • Caught three passes for 126 yards, including a 39-yard touchdown.
  • Added 23 rushing yards and also threw a touchdown pass to TE Elija Lofton.
 
OFFENSIVE LINEMAN – Jacarrius Peak, R-Jr., OT, NC State (Valdosta, Georgia)
  • Opened the path for the Wolfpack to gain 386 yards of total offense in the 42-19 victory over North Carolina.
  • Graded out at an incredible 100 percent in 70 snaps, as he did not miss an assignment or allow a sack from his left tackle spot.
  • Tallied eight pancake blocks in the contest.
  • The Wolfpack rushed for 185 yards and four touchdowns.
 
DEFENSIVE LINEMAN – T.J. Parker, Jr., DE, Clemson (Phenix City, Alabama)
  • Recorded four tackles, 3.0 tackles-for-loss, 3.0 sacks and a fumble recovery in Clemson's road rivalry win at South Carolina.
  • With his 3.0 sacks in the contest, Parker (21.5) passed Chester McGlockton (20.5 from 1989-91) for the 10th-most career sacks in Clemson history.
  • His 3.0 sacks tied Chester McGlockton (3.0 in 1990) for the most against South Carolina in Clemson history.
  • His 3.0 sacks were his second-most in a game in his career, one shy of his 4.0 at Pitt in 2024.
  • The fumble recovery was his career-high third of the season and sixth of his career.
 
LINEBACKER – T.J. Quinn, LB, R-Sr., Louisville (Valdosta, Georgia)
  • Shared the team lead with 10 tackles, including five solo stops, in the 41-0 win over Kentucky.
  • Marked his third game of the season with double-digit tackles.
  • Part of a defense that held Kentucky to a total of 140 yards of total offense for the game.
  • Helped the Cardinals record the first shutout in the Governor’s Cup series since 2004.
  • This marks his third ACC Linebacker of the Week honor this season.
 
DEFENSIVE BACK – Ricardo Jones, So., S, Clemson (Warner Robins, Georgia)
  • Recorded a career-high two interceptions and contributed an additional pass breakup in Clemson's road rivalry win at South Carolina.
  • Returned his second interception of the game 12 yards for a touchdown, the first pick-six of his career. The pick-six gave Clemson a late two-score lead to help seal the victory.
  • One of two ACC players this week with two interceptions but was the only player in the nation this week to record an interception return touchdown amid a multi-interception performance.
  • Posted Clemson’s first multi-interception game since Andrew Booth Jr.’s two interceptions in the same stadium in a 30-0 win at South Carolina in 2021.
  • Pushed his team lead in interceptions this season to six, the most by a Clemson player since DeAndre McDaniel’s eight interceptions in 2009.
  • Ranks second in the nation in interceptions (six) this season.
 
SPECIALIST – Sahmir Hagans, Gr., KR, Duke (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
  • Returned two kickoffs for a combined 101 yards in the win over Wake Forest.
  • Returned a kick 80 yards and set up another short field for Duke to cash in a touchdown and create a 17-point advantage to put the contest out of reach.
  • Has returned 13 kickoffs for 454 yards (34.92) on the season.
  • Leads the ACC in kickoff return yards and ranks third in returns.
  • Marks his second ACC Specialist of the Week honor on the season.