Monk Headlines ACC Class of Legends
9/19/2014 11:02:00 AM | Football
Art Monk to be honored at ACC Championship Game in December
Syracuse alum and All-American wide receiver Art Monk headlines the 2014 ACC Class of Legends, which will be honored at the ACC Championship game in Charlotte, North Carolina on December 6.
Monk is one of the few players to earn selection to both the College Football Hall of Fame (2012) and the Pro Football Hall of Fame (2008). He ended his 15-year professional career as the first wide receiver in NFL history to top 900 receptions, finishing with 940 career catches.
Leading the rest of this year's class along with Monk are former Virginia and Navy head coach George Welsh, Florida State's two-time consensus All-American linebacker Derrick Brooks, four-time Pitt All-American defensive end Hugh Green.
Welsh finished his coaching career as the winningest coach in league history compiling a 189-132-4 record which included reclamation projects at the U.S. Naval Academy and at Virginia. In his near two-decade stint in Charlottesville, Welsh built the Cavaliers into one of the nation's premier football programs, winning seven or more games for 13 consecutive seasons.
Brooks, a 2014 inductee into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, is considered to be one of the greatest players in college and professional football history. The 1993 ACC Defensive Player of the Year, he was named to the NFL's Pro Bowl an astounding 11 times and led FSU to a national championship and Tampa Bay to the NFL title.
Green, a 1996 inductee into the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, is also considered by many to be one of the greatest collegiate players in history. He was a three-time consensus All-American and earned All-America honors in all four of his collegiate seasons for the Panthers.
The Legends are each selected by their respective schools and will be honored during this year's Dr. Pepper ACC Football Championship Game weekend. They will be honored at the ACC Night of Legends sponsored by the Belk Bowl on Friday, Dec. 5, and on Saturday Dec. 6, during ceremonies at Bank of America Stadium for the 10th Annual Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship, which will be nationally televised with either a 7:45 pm (ESPN) or 8 p.m. (ABC) kickoff.
The group of 14 former gridiron standouts from current ACC schools includes a former ACC Football Player of the Year; an ACC Defensive Player of the Year, 12 former All-Americas, including 10 first-team and six consensus All-American honorees and 12 players who combined for 118 years in the National Football League. Twelve of the Legends were drafted into the NFL, including nine first- or-second-round draft choices.
In all, the collection of players combined for three national championships, eight ACC championships, 11 Super Bowl appearances, eight Super Bowl championships and 26 Pro Bowl appearances. Three of the Legends were named to their respective NFL All-Decade teams.
Joining Welsh, Brooks, Green and Monk as this year's Legends are Boston College offensive lineman Chris Snee, who earned second-team All-America honors (AP) as a senior at guard; Clemson cornerback Donnell Woolford, a consensus All-America and key defensive figure for the Danny Ford-coached Tiger teams in the late 1980s; Duke wide receiver Chris Castor, the first wide receiver to earn Player of the Year honors in ACC history; Georgia Tech offensive lineman John Davis (Ellijay, Ga.), who earned first-team All-America honors as a tackle and as a center for the Yellow Jackets; and Louisville cornerback Frank Minnifield, who led the nation in kickoff returns and was an excellent cover cornerback for the Cardinals.
Completing the ACC Football Legends Class of 2014 are Miami's Darrin Smith, one of one-third of the famed Hurricane linebacker trio dubbed the "Bermuda Triangle" that helped lead "the U" to a pair of national championships in 1989 and 1991; North Carolina defensive end Greg Ellis, a two-time All-American who earned consensus All-America honors in 1997 playing for the Mack Brown-coached Tar Heel teams of the mid-1990s; NC State safety Jesse Campbell, a three-time All-ACC and two-time All-America defensive back for Coach Dick Sheridan's teams of the 1980s and 90s; Virginia Tech center Jake Grove, a unanimous first-team All-America in 2003 who was the winner of the Rimington Trophy, given annually to the nation's top pivotman; and Wake Forest running back Alan White, the runner-up for 1961 ACC Player of the Year who led the conference in rushing that year and went on to an award-winning career in athletic administration as director of athletics at Elon University.
Monk is one of the few players to earn selection to both the College Football Hall of Fame (2012) and the Pro Football Hall of Fame (2008). He ended his 15-year professional career as the first wide receiver in NFL history to top 900 receptions, finishing with 940 career catches.
Leading the rest of this year's class along with Monk are former Virginia and Navy head coach George Welsh, Florida State's two-time consensus All-American linebacker Derrick Brooks, four-time Pitt All-American defensive end Hugh Green.
Welsh finished his coaching career as the winningest coach in league history compiling a 189-132-4 record which included reclamation projects at the U.S. Naval Academy and at Virginia. In his near two-decade stint in Charlottesville, Welsh built the Cavaliers into one of the nation's premier football programs, winning seven or more games for 13 consecutive seasons.
Brooks, a 2014 inductee into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, is considered to be one of the greatest players in college and professional football history. The 1993 ACC Defensive Player of the Year, he was named to the NFL's Pro Bowl an astounding 11 times and led FSU to a national championship and Tampa Bay to the NFL title.
Green, a 1996 inductee into the National Football Foundation and College Hall of Fame, is also considered by many to be one of the greatest collegiate players in history. He was a three-time consensus All-American and earned All-America honors in all four of his collegiate seasons for the Panthers.
The Legends are each selected by their respective schools and will be honored during this year's Dr. Pepper ACC Football Championship Game weekend. They will be honored at the ACC Night of Legends sponsored by the Belk Bowl on Friday, Dec. 5, and on Saturday Dec. 6, during ceremonies at Bank of America Stadium for the 10th Annual Dr Pepper ACC Football Championship, which will be nationally televised with either a 7:45 pm (ESPN) or 8 p.m. (ABC) kickoff.
The group of 14 former gridiron standouts from current ACC schools includes a former ACC Football Player of the Year; an ACC Defensive Player of the Year, 12 former All-Americas, including 10 first-team and six consensus All-American honorees and 12 players who combined for 118 years in the National Football League. Twelve of the Legends were drafted into the NFL, including nine first- or-second-round draft choices.
In all, the collection of players combined for three national championships, eight ACC championships, 11 Super Bowl appearances, eight Super Bowl championships and 26 Pro Bowl appearances. Three of the Legends were named to their respective NFL All-Decade teams.
Joining Welsh, Brooks, Green and Monk as this year's Legends are Boston College offensive lineman Chris Snee, who earned second-team All-America honors (AP) as a senior at guard; Clemson cornerback Donnell Woolford, a consensus All-America and key defensive figure for the Danny Ford-coached Tiger teams in the late 1980s; Duke wide receiver Chris Castor, the first wide receiver to earn Player of the Year honors in ACC history; Georgia Tech offensive lineman John Davis (Ellijay, Ga.), who earned first-team All-America honors as a tackle and as a center for the Yellow Jackets; and Louisville cornerback Frank Minnifield, who led the nation in kickoff returns and was an excellent cover cornerback for the Cardinals.
Completing the ACC Football Legends Class of 2014 are Miami's Darrin Smith, one of one-third of the famed Hurricane linebacker trio dubbed the "Bermuda Triangle" that helped lead "the U" to a pair of national championships in 1989 and 1991; North Carolina defensive end Greg Ellis, a two-time All-American who earned consensus All-America honors in 1997 playing for the Mack Brown-coached Tar Heel teams of the mid-1990s; NC State safety Jesse Campbell, a three-time All-ACC and two-time All-America defensive back for Coach Dick Sheridan's teams of the 1980s and 90s; Virginia Tech center Jake Grove, a unanimous first-team All-America in 2003 who was the winner of the Rimington Trophy, given annually to the nation's top pivotman; and Wake Forest running back Alan White, the runner-up for 1961 ACC Player of the Year who led the conference in rushing that year and went on to an award-winning career in athletic administration as director of athletics at Elon University.
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