Seven Canes Named Phil Steele All-ACC

CLEVELAND, Ohio – Seven Miami Hurricanes were named to the 2013 Postseason All-ACC Team on Friday by Phil Steele’s College Football Preview. In addition, junior LB Denzel Perryman earned fourth-team All-America honors.

Perryman was one of three Hurricanes named first-team All-ACC by Steele. Sophomore RB Duke Johnson and graduate P Pat O’Donnell also earned first-team honors. Senior WR Allen Hurns and senior OG Brandon Linder were named to the second team, while senior QB Stephen Morris and freshman KR Stacy Coley were named to the third team.

erryman, who has started all 12 games at linebacker, leads the Hurricanes defense with 104 total tackles – 65 solo stops – along with 5.0 tackles for loss. Perryman, who was a first-team All-ACC choice by ACSMA, the league’s head coaches and Sporting News, has tallied 10+ tackles in six games this season. He was named honorable mention All-America by SI.com.

Despite missing the last four games of the season with a fractured ankle, Johnson was named to the first team after rushing for 920 yards and six TDs. He was averaging 115.0 rushing yards per game before his season-ending injury. He averaged 174.1 all-purpose yards per contest. Johnson picked up first-team All-ACC honors from Athlon Sports and second-team accolades from both ACSMA and the league’s head coaches.

O’Donnell, a consensus first-team All-ACC selection, ranks third nationally with a 47.3 yards-per-punt average, which leads the ACC by nearly 3.0 yards per kick. O’Donnell has 20 punts of 50+ yards to his credit and 17 that have landed inside the opponents’ 20-yard line.

Hurns, a second-team selection by ACSMA, the league’s head coaches and Athlon Sports,  is currently enjoying one of the greatest receiving seasons in program history. The senior leads Miami in both receptions (60) and receiving yards (1,138). He is only the fourth player with a 1,000-yard receiving season in school history and 19 yards shy of breaking the school single-season receiving yards mark. Currently, Hurns ranks seventh in Miami history in both career receptions (119) and career receiving yards (1,867) and eighth in career receiving TDs (14).

Linder, a preseason All-ACC selection, helped anchor Miami’s offensive line that paved the way for the Hurricanes to average 446.8 yards of total offense and 35.9 points per game. Miami’s offense scored 40+ points five times in 2013.

Morris, who will play in next month’s Senior Bowl, has thrown for 2,868 yards and 21 TDs through 12 games. For the second straight season, Morris has posted four 300-yard passing games. The Miami native ranks third all-time in Miami history with 7,736 passing yards and 49 passing TDs. Morris is the only QB this season to throw a 50+ yard pass in nine different games.

A first-team True Freshman All-American, Coley is the only FBS player this season to score a TD four ways: rushing, receiving, punt return and kick return.

No. 25 Miami (9-3) will face future ACC rival and No. 18/16 Louisville (11-1) in the 2013 Russell Athletic Bowl at the Florida Citrus Bowl in Orlando.

It marks Miami’s 35th bowl appearance and its first since 2010. The Russell Athletic Bowl will be Miami’s 37th postseason appearance; the Hurricanes played in the first two Palm Festival games – the precursor to the Orange Bowl Classic.

It’ll be Miami’s fourth appearance in the Russell Athletic Bowl. Miami’s first two appearances were in Miami Gardens – a 31-21 win over Virginia in the 1996 Carquest Bowl and a 46-23 win over NC State in the 1998 MicronPC Bowl. Miami’s last trip to Orlando was for the 2009 Champs Sports Bowl – a 20-14 loss to Wisconsin.

Miami (9-3, 5-3 ACC), ranked No. 25 in the final USA TODAY Sports Top 25 Coaches Poll, will face No. 18/16 Louisville (11-1, 7-1 AAC) at 6:45 p.m. ET on Dec. 28. The game will be televised live nationally on ESPN. It will be Louisville’s final game in the American Athletic Conference as the Cardinals will join the ACC on July 1, 2014.

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