Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King, Miami defensive end Rueben Bain Jr., and Virginia coach Tony Elliott won top individual honors from The Associated Press for the 2025 season in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
In results released Monday, King was named the AP league offensive player of the year, Bain was defensive player of the year and Elliott was named coach of the year. Duke quarterback Darian Mensah (transfer) and Miami receiver Malachi Toney (freshman) were the league's top newcomers for each category.
King thrived as a dual threat, throwing for 2,697 yards and 12 touchdowns while running for 922 yards and 15 more scores.
Elliott was picked as the top coach after guiding the 20th-ranked Cavaliers to the league title game and a 10-win season after being picked to finish 14th in the league.
The selections of Bain and Toney, coming after voting by 17 media members who regularly cover the league, was part of a league-best haul of AP All-ACC honors for No. 10 Miami. The Hurricanes, who earned an at-large bid to the College Football Playoff, had five first-team selections and claimed nine spots on the All-ACC team.
Bain was part of a defense that ranked sixth nationally in scoring (13.8) and 11th in total yardage (277.8). The Hurricanes had three of the four first-team defensive linemen on the AP All-ACC team.
Toney was a second-team pick at receiver and a first-team pick as an all-purpose threat with his ability to run and return punts.
Mensah, who transferred from Tulane, led the league in passing efficiency, passing yardage (3,646) and passing TDs (30) in leading the Blue Devils t o their first outright ACC title since 1962. Duke, which beat Virginia in Saturday night's title game, joined Clemson with five picks for the second-highest total among league schools.
The 2025 Associated Press All-Atlantic Coast Conference team, as selected by a panel of 17 media members who regularly cover the league. Players at all positions are listed alphabetically with name, school, height, weight, class and hometown; “u-” denotes unanimous selections:
First team
Offense
QB — Haynes King, Georgia Tech, 6-3, 215, R-Sr., Longview, Texas
RB — J'Mari Taylor, Virginia, 5-9, 204, Gr., Charlotte, North Carolina
RB — Hollywood Smothers, N.C. State, 5-11, 195, R-So., Charlotte, North Carolina
WR — Duce Robinson, Florida State, 6-6, 223, Jr., Phoenix
WR — Chris Bell, Louisville, 6-2, 220, Sr., Yazoo City, Mississippi
TE — Justin Joly, N.C. State, 6-3, 263, Sr., Brewster, New York
OT — Francis Mauigoa, Miami, 6-6, 335, Jr., 'Ili'ili, American Samoa
OT — Brian Parker II, Duke, 6-5, 305, R-Jr., Cincinnati
OG — Keylan Rutledge, Georgia Tech, 6-4, 330, Sr., Royston, Georgia
OG — Logan Parr, SMU, 6-4, 318, Gr., Helotes, Texas
C — Luke Petitbon, Florida State, 6-2, 310, R-Sr., Annapolis, Maryland
PK — Aidan Birr, Georgia Tech, 6-1, 205, R-Jr., Kennedale, Texas
All-purpose — Malachi Toney, Miami, 5-11, 188, Fr., Liberty City, Florida
Defense
DE — Rueben Bain Jr., Miami, 6-3, 270, Jr., Miami
DE — Akheem Mesidor, Miami, 6-3, 265, R-Sr., Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
DT — Ahmad Moten Sr., Miami, 6-3, 300, R-Jr., Fort Lauderdale, Florida
DT — Peter Woods, Clemson, 6-3, 310, Jr., Alabaster, Alabama
LB — Caden Fordham, N.C. State, 6-1, 230, Gr., Ponte Vedra, Florida
LB — Kyle Louis, Pittsburgh, 6-1, 220, R-Jr., East Orange, New Jersey
LB — Sammy Brown, Clemson, 6-2, 235, So., Commerce, Georgia
CB — Hezekiah Masses, California, 6-1, 185, Sr., Deerfield Beach, Florida
CB — Avieon Terrell, Clemson, 5-11, 180, Jr., Atlanta
S — Nick Andersen, Wake Forest, 5-11, 197, Sr., Clifton, Virginia
S — Ahmaad Moses, SMU, 5-10, 205, Sr., Arlington, Texas
P — Jack Stonehouse, Syracuse, 6-1, 215, R-Sr., Camarillo, California
Second team
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Offense
QB — Darian Mensah, Duke, 6-3, 205, R-So., San Luis Obispo, California
RB — Demond Claiborne, Wake Forest, 5-10, 195, Sr., Aylett, Virginia
RB — Nate Sheppard, Duke, 5-10, 200, Fr., Mandeville, Louisiana
WR — Malachi Toney, Miami, 5-11, 188, Fr., Liberty City, Florida
WR — Cooper Barkate, Duke, 6-1, 195, Gr., Newport Beach, California
TE — Sam Roush, Stanford, 6-5, 260, Sr., Nashville, Tennessee
OT — Blake Miller, Clemson, 6-6, 315, Gr., Strongsville, Ohio
OT — PJ Williams, SMU, 6-5, 313, R-Jr., Dickinson, Texas
OG — Anez Cooper, Miami, 6-6, 345, Sr., Pleasant Grove, Alabama
OG — Logan Taylor, Boston College, 6-7, 312, R-Sr., Lunenburg, Nova Scotia
C — Brady Wilson, Virginia, 6-2, 298, Gr., Spanish Fort, Alabama
PK — Trey Butkowski, Pittsburgh, 6-0, 170, Fr., Orlando, Florida
All-purpose — Jacob De Jesus, California, 5-7, 170, Sr., Manteca, California
Defense
DE — Isaiah Smith, SMU, 6-4, 248, Sr., Washington, District of Columbia
DE — Melkart Abou Jaoude, North Carolina, 6-5, 260, R-Jr., Newton, New Jersey
DT — Jordan van den Berg, Georgia Tech, 6-3, 310, R-Sr., Johannesburg, South Africa
DT — Rene Konga, Louisville, 6-4, 300, R-Sr., Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
LB — Cade Uluave, California, 6-1, 235, Jr., South Jordan Utah
LB - Rasheem Biles, Pittsburgh, 6-1, 220, Jr., Columbus, Ohio
LB — Matt Rose, Stanford, 6-2, 230, R-Jr., Brecksville, Ohio
CB — Keionte Scott, Miami, 6-0, 195, R-Sr., San Diego
CB — Chandler Rivers, Duke, 5-10, 185, Sr., Beaumont, Texas
S — Jakobe Thomas, Miami, 6-2, 200, R-Sr., Tullahoma, Tennessee
S — (tie) Ricardo Jones, Clemson, 6-2, 195, So., Warner Robins, Georgia; Earl Little Jr., Florida State, 6-1, 199, R-Jr., Fort Lauderdale, Florida
P — Daniel Sparks, Virginia, 6-6, 217, Gr., Gadsden, Alabama
Coach of the Year — Tony Elliott, Virginia
Offensive Player of the Year — Haynes King, Georgia Tech
Defensive Player of the Year — Rueben Bain Jr., Miami
Transfer newcomer of the year — Darian Mensah, Duke
Freshman newcomer of the year — Malachi Toney, Miami
Voting panel:
Lia Assimakopoulos, The Dallas Morning News; Chad Bishop, Atlanta Journal-Constitution; Eric Crawford, WDRB TV, Louisville, Kentucky; Javon Edmonds, Syracuse.com; Amanda Filipcic-Godsey, The (Johnstown, PA) Tribune-Democrat; Chapel Fowler, The State of Columbia, South Carolina; David Hale, ESPN.com; Trevor Hass, Boston.com;; John Johnson, WXII TV, Winston-Salem, North Carolina; Ryan Kelly, WCTV-TV, Tallahassee, Florida; Adam Lichtenstein, Florida Sun Sentinel; Eric Mac Lain, ACC Network; Greg Madia, The (Charlottesville, Virginia) Daily Progress; Mitchell Northam, SB Nation; Kate Rogerson, WTVD-TV, Durham, North Carolina; Damien Sordelett, Roanoke (Virginia) Times; Pat Welter, WRAL TV, Raleigh, North Carolina.
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here and here (AP News mobile app). AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football
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