Pitt Running Back James Conner Named ACC Player Of The Year
PITTSBURGH (93-7 The FAN) - Coming off a year in which he ran for 1,675 yards and 24 touchdowns on 277 carries and broke longstanding Pitt rushing records, running back James Conner has been named the ACC Player of the Year.
In addition to being named the ACC Player of the Year, Conner was also named the ACC's Offensive Player of the Year. Making the feat even more impressive is that Conner is the first underclassman running back to win either honor.
Conner beat out Florida State quarterback and reigning Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston. Conner received 16 votes to Winston's 13 for Player of the Year and received 23 votes to Winston's 16 for the top offensive player.
For the second year in a row now Pitt has had a player earn one of the ACC's top individual football honors as defensive lineman Aaron Donald was named the league's Defensive Player of the Year in 2013.
Conner joined the Starkey and Mueller show and talked about his outlook on the award coming into the season and whether or not he thought this was a real possibility for him.
"Coming in, I knew that I had a great possibility of taking this trophy home," Conner said. "There's great competition in this league with Jameis Winston and Tyler Murphy. For it to be finalized and official, it means a lot. I'm honored."
Conner also talked about his unique running style that has led to him winning an award like this saying he'd prefer to run players over than run around them.
"Being a power team, a lot of downhill running and you're going to have to break a couple of tackles in this type of offense," Conner told us. "If somebody is in your way,you got to lower that shoulder and do what you got to do."
In a release from the university, Conner made the following statement:
"I'm greatly honored and humbled to receive this honor," Conner said. "I want to thank my coaches, teammates and especially my offensive linemen who did such a great job blocking this year. I also want to thank the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association for selecting me for this award. Finally, I want to thank all of our great Pitt fans for their support. They share in this honor, too."
Conner will look to continue his tremendous success this year in a bowl game as the Panthers earned bowl eligibility in their final game of the year with a 35-23 victory over the Miami Hurricanes.
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