Hokies’ Wilson ACC Player of the Year

WILSON (Geoff Burke/Getty Images)

Virginia Tech running back David  Wilson is the conference’s Offensive and Overall Player of the Year for 2011. Wilson, who is pursuing the ACC’s single-season rushing yardage record and is fifth nationally in yards per game, was named on 18 of 45 ballots cast by the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association. Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly was second with nine votes.

Wilson immediately follows a former teammate, quarterback Tyrod Taylor, in winning the award. Virginia Tech is the first program to produce consecutive Players of the Year since Florida State quarterback Charlie Ward was honored in 1992 and 1993. It’s the fifth time that different players from the same school have won in consecutive years; that happened most recently with the selections of Virginia QBs Shawn Moore (1990) and Matt Blundin (1991).

Wilson, a junior from Danville, Va., ran for 100 or more yards in all but two of the Hokies’ 12 regular-season games. His total of 10 games at 100 or more ties an ACC record last established by Williams, then a freshman, in 2009. In one stretch of especially consistent play, he rushed for 132, 123, 128, 136 and 134 yards in consecutive starts.

With Wilson doing the bulk of the running, Virginia Tech stands fourth nationally in time of possession at more than 34 minutes a game.

Wilson has netted 1,595 yards and a per-game average of 132.9. That puts him well within reach of the ACC’s single-season record for total yards on the ground, which Virginia’s Thomas Jones set with 1,798 in 1999.