North Carolina dominated the ACC Coastal division with a perfect 8-0 record in conference play a year ago – finishing two games up on Pittsburgh for the division title. The Tar Heels have enough talent to repeat as the top team in the Coastal in 2016 but they will need their best players to rise to the occasion and hold off some legitimate threats from the other top contenders. Ultimately, which team comes out on top will be determined by the players with the most talent so we took the time to break down who will be the most important to the top teams. Here is a look at the four best preseason candidates to be the MVP in the ACC Coastal.
QB: Brad Kaaya
Miami Hurricanes
There has been a ton of hype in Miami since Mark Richt was hired as the head coach this offseason and it certainly helps that he will have one of the best quarterbacks in the conference on his side. Kaaya is coming off a strong sophomore season in which he threw for 3,238 yards and 16 touchdowns but the consensus is that he has only started to tap in to his potential. That’s the polite way of putting it. Some pessimists would say that he’s nothing special and likely won’t be as offensive guru Al Golden was only able to get so much out of him. We’ll find out this year but so far, Kaaya has been decent but not great.
The 6’4’’, 215-pound passer has all of the tools to thrive as a pocket quarterback and his continued development will be the key to the Hurricanes’ success in their first year under Richt.
RB: Elijah Hood
North Carolina Tar Heels
The Tar Heels will be relying on a new quarterback in Mitch Trubisky and that will make it that much more important to get consistent production from their rushing attack this coming season. Hood is coming off a breakout sophomore season in which he rushed for 1,463 yards and 17 touchdowns with eight 100-yard games in total. North Carolina returns four starters on its offensive line and a solid receiving core but ultimately it will be on Hood to carry the bulk of the load on offense and keep the pressure out of Trubisky at the quarterback position. This is an offense that is going to light it up on a weekly basis and Hood will be one of the centerpieces, racking up the stats.
RB: James Conner
Pittsburgh Panthers
Conner emerged as one of the best running backs in the entire country two years ago when he ran for 1,765 yards and 26 touchdowns while earning ACC Offensive Player of the Year honors. A season-ending knee injury kept him sidelined for all of 2015 and shortly after that, he was diagnosed with cancer and underwent chemotherapy to battle the disease. Conner entered full remission and will enter this fall looking to return to form on the football field following months of hard work and training. He’s an incredible story.
Conner has the potential to absolutely dominate as a powerful, slashing runner and if he can regain his 2014 form he will reemerge as the Panthers’ MVP this coming season. Even if he can’t regain the form, just the fact that he’s playing with be a huge inspiration to the team.
QB: Thomas Sirk
Duke Blue Devils
Duke got a major scare when their starting quarterback suffered a ruptured Achilles in February, but he is fit and declared that he will be ready when the regular season rolls around in September. Sirk was excellent as a junior in 2015 when he threw for 2,625 yards and 16 touchdowns while leading the Blue Devils with a team-high 803 rushing yards and another eight scores on the ground. Head coach David Cutcliffe is the quarterback whisperer and Sirk is just his latest project. Because of his development, Sirk is one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the country and is definitely one of the key factors as to why Duke football is respectable these days.
A talented dual-threat quarterback with the potential to put up big numbers in the ACC, Sirk will undoubtedly be Duke’s MVP in 2016.
