Football News

Top ACC spring game performers from April 13th and 20th

UNC, Miami, and Syracuse had standouts in their spring games

By Justin Dottavio@IMFB_Blog Apr 22, 2019, 8:00am EDT

Most of the ACC wrapped up spring practices by April 20th with the Hurricanes spring game in Orlando. On April 13th; UNC, Syracuse, Pitt, and Virginia Tech held their spring games while Miami held theirs on the 20th. Georgia Tech and Virginia are set to hold their spring games on April 26th and 27th, respectively.

I covered some earlier ACC spring games and their top performers here for SOTU. The ACC is a conference in flux and Miami has a real opportunity to own the Coastal if the offensive line can settle in, a quarterback can stand out, and the defense can figure out depth in the back seven.

Javonte Williams, RB, UNC

Javonte Williams was the star of the Tar Heels open scrimmage to coaches on April 6th and shined again in the spring game. Williams carried the ball six times for 51 yards (eight yards per carry) with a scrimmage opening touchdown against a Tar Heels defense that recorded 11 tackles for loss on the afternoon.

Williams is from nearby Wallace-Rose Hill High School. The former three-star prospect is five-foot-eleven, 205 pounds. In 2018, Williams averaged 5.2 yards per carry with five touchdowns. In Phil Longo’s offense he has the chance to get clutch touches, especially in the red zone.

Tommy DeVito, QB, Syracuse

Replacing Eric Dungey in Dino Baber’s offense looks to be quarterback Tommy DeVito. The six-foot-two, 211 pound DeVito was 13-for-16 passing for 178 passing yards and two touchdowns with an interception. DeVito did have a costly turnover but the offense moved the football well for both DeVito and Rex Culpepper.

DeVito is a four-star prospect from Don Bosco Prep in New Jersey. Coach Babers’ offense requires a big time QB for his brand of the Air Raid. In seven games during the 2018 season, DeVito threw for 525 passing yards while throwing four touchdowns and three interceptions.

Tre Tipton, WR Pitt

Tre Tipton caught two touchdowns passes out of the three total scores in Pitt’s 2019 spring football games. Both touchdowns catches were from returning starting quarterback Kenny Pickett. Tipton finished the day with three grabs for 43 yards and the two scores. That’s huge for a Pitt offense that’s struggled to score, even as ACC Coastal Champions in 2018. New offensive coordinator Mark Whipple is a familiar name to Hurricanes fans as he served as Miami offensive coordinator under Randy Shannon.

Tipton is a six-foot, 190 pound former three-star recruit from Pennsylvania. In 2016 and 2018, Tipton logged 17 total catches for 184 yards (10.8 yards per catch) and a score. He sat out the 2017 season after suffering an off-season knee injury.

Tate Martell, Quarterback, Miami

I liked what I saw from KJ Osborn and Will Mallory but Tate Martell has to be the standout from the Hurricanes scrimmage on April 20th. Martell was 6-of-10 passing for 154 yards and two touchdowns per the Miami Herald. It wasn’t just his execution that stood out but his improvement from only a week ago. Martell struggled in the second scrimmage while working both in the shotgun and under center.

Coach Enos did what he does best and put Martell in a position to be successful for the spring game where Martell was mostly in the shotgun. Martell flourished hitting KJ Osborn on an 80 yard touchdown off a s skinny post and had a nice throw that was dropped on a scramble, as well as an explosive run on a swing-draw.

Summary

Again, Miami has a real chance to win the Coastal and should always win the Coastal. The ‘Canes need to figure out the best five on the offensive line, get a little back seven depth on defense, and hope a quarterback stands out in the pack. UNC is going to score points with Williams at running back and Coach Longo’s scheme which is designed to score a lot quickly.

Of course Dino Babers offense will be good while Pitt looks to get their offense together with Coach Whipple at the helm.