Crisan: Kancey gets recognition he deserved, and ... Abanikanda didn't? taken on the South Side (Pitt)

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Calijah Kancey.

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Crisan: Kancey gets recognition he deserved, and ... Abanikanda didn't?

By Corey Crisan

Nov 29, 2022 • 10:30 pm

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On one hand, of course.

On the other, HOW!?

With the college football regular season in the books, finalists for many national prestigious awards are beginning to trickle in. As anticipated, at least one of Pitt's standout players earned his proper due, as Calijah Kancey was nominated as a finalist for the Outland Trophy.

But there is a glaring snub that we can't help but to note.

How was Israel Abanikanda not named a finalist for the Doak Walker Award!?

Seriously, what are we even doing here?

Abanikanda's unbelievable 2022 season is not getting its just due on the national scale. Instead, the three finalists for the Doak Walker Award read as follows: Blake Corum (Michigan), Bijan Robinson (Texas), and Chase Brown (Illinois).

I was stunned by this announcement.

Before I rant and rave about why Abanikanda was wrongfully snubbed, allow me to acknowledge Kancey's brilliance.

He is a semifinalist for the Outland Trophy, which is not to be understated for whom it is given to. It is an award for the nation's best interior lineman on either offense or defense. 

Think of how many offensive and defensive linemen there actually are in college football. He is one of three semifinalists and is the lone defensive player to earn recognition. 

The two players he is against are Michigan center Olusegun Oluwatimi and Northwestern offensive tackle Peter Skoronski. To be the lone defensive player here is a massive accomplishment, especially alongside a pair of high-end NFL draft prospects at their respective positions. 

Kancey has had another special season and should be on his way to multiple postseason accolades. Here is a cool stat provided by Pitt athletics on just how special Kancey's award nominations are. He is in some elite company.

We will dive more into the brilliance of Kancey as those trickle in. 

But, first, we have to address the Abanikanda snub.

He was wrongfully left off of this list of finalists, plain and simple. Abanikanda had more rushing yards per game and more 100-yard games than Corum, more yards per carry and more multi-rushing-touchdown games than Brown, the most rushing touchdowns in the country (20), and the most amount of total touchdowns (21) in the country.

Abanikanda also had the unforgettable 320-yard, six-touchdown performance in October, in which he broke Tony Dorsett's program record for rushing yards in a game. 

He also accomplished all of this with a mid-range-at-best passing attack supporting him throughout the season. Only Texas had a better passing attack, finishing 62nd in the country in terms of yards per game at 230.8. Pitt's was 81st at 220.8, Michigan's 91st at 214.6, and Illinois' 97th at 208.3.

The ACC's leading rusher did earn first-team All-ACC honors (more on that below) but to not even be considered a top-3 vote getter as the nation's best running back feels wrong. Nobody had impacted his team and dictated the flow of whether it would win or lose more than Abanikanda did. Nobody had the history written in the stars like Abanikanda did, and nobody came close to being a team MVP like Abanikanda was, clearly, for Pitt this season.

He would unquestionably have a shot at it next season, should he decide to return. We can only wait to find that out.

ALL-ACC HONORS

Nine Panthers were acknowledged to All-ACC teams, with an additional three earning honorable-mention honors, the conference announced on Tuesday.

• Four Panthers were recognized as first-team All-ACC selections: Abanikanda and left guard Marcus Minor on offense, and Kancey and SirVocea Dennis on defense.

Abanikanda edged Clemson's Will Shipley, 187 points to 164, in the polling, to lead the running backs. Minor tied with NC State's Chandler Zavala with 119 points for the top spot.

Kancey beat Clemson's Tyler Davis, 160 points to 116, as the ACC's top defensive tackle. Dennis tied with Louisville's Yasir Abdullah for second place in voting among linebackers.

• Second-team All-ACC selections: Wide receiver Jared Wayne, safety Erick Hallett II, and return specialist M.J. Devonshire.

• Third-team All-ACC selections: Offensive tackle Matt Goncalves and offensive guard/center Jake Kradel.

• Pitt's honorable mention All-ACC selections: Defensive end Deslin Alexandre, safety Brandon Hill, and cornerback Marquis Williams.

• Clemson led all ACC teams with 12 total selections. Here are the full lists of first-, second-, and third-team All-ACC selections:

First-Team All-ACC
Offense
QB - Drake Maye, North Carolina, 177 points
RB - Israel Abanikanda, Pitt, 187
RB - Will Shipley, Clemson, 164
WR - Zay Flowers, Boston College, 184
WR - Josh Downs, North Carolina, 184
WR - A.T. Perry, Wake Forest, 167
TE - Oronde Gadsden II, Syracuse, 127
AP - Will Shipley, Clemson, 166
OT - Jordan McFadden, Clemson, 159
OT - Graham Barton, Duke, 132
OG - Dillan Gibbons, Florida State, 131
OG - Chandler Zavala, NC State, 119 (tie)
OG - Marcus Minor, Pitt, 119 (tie)
C - Grant Gibson, NC State, 132
 
Defense
DE - Jared Verse, Florida State, 163
DE - Myles Murphy, Clemson, 112
DT - Calijah Kancey, Pitt, 160
DT - Tyler Davis, Clemson, 116
LB - Cedric Gray, North Carolina, 128
LB - Yasir Abdullah, Louisville, 116
LB - SirVocea Dennis, Pitt, 116
CB - Aydan White, NC State, 117
CB - Anthony Johnson, Virginia, 84
S - Kam Kinchens, Miami, 139
S - Jammie Robinson, Florida State, 129
 
Specialists
PK - Christopher Dunn, NC State, 177
P - Lou Hedley, Miami, 133
SP - Will Shipley, Clemson, 131
 
Second-Team All-ACC
Offense
QB - Jordan Travis, Florida State, 98
RB - Sean Tucker, Syracuse, 140
RB - Trey Benson, Florida State, 137
WR - Jared Wayne, Pitt, 114
WR - Tyler Hudson, Louisville, 109
WR - Johnny Wilson, Florida State, 81
TE - Will Mallory, Miami, 94
AP - Josh Downs, North Carolina, 81
OT - Matthew Bergeron, Syracuse, 114
OT - Robert Scott, Florida State, 69
OG - Sean Maginn, Wake Forest, 88
OG - Caleb Chandler, Louisville, 81
C - Bryan Hudson, Louisville, 57


Defense
DE - K.J. Henry, Clemson, 80
DE - Donovan Ezeiruaku, Boston College, 75
DT - DeWayne Carter, Duke, 95
DT - Bryan Bresee, Clemson, 61
LB - Drake Thomas, NC State, 108
LB - Nick Jackson, Virginia, 75
LB - Ayinde Eley, Georgia Tech, 70
CB - Fentrell Cypress, Virginia, 69
CB - Storm Duck, North Carolina, 65
S - Tanner Ingle, NC State, 91
S - Erick Hallett II, Pitt, 83
 
Specialists
PK - B.T. Potter, Clemson, 86
P - Daniel Sparks, Virginia, 97
SP - M.J. Devonshire, Pitt, 89
 
Third-Team All-ACC
Offense
QB - Sam Hartman, Wake Forest, 82
RB - Henry Parrish, Jr., Miami, 49
RB - Justice Ellison, Wake Forest, 38
WR - Jalon Calhoun, Duke, 68
WR - Antoine Green, North Carolina, 56
WR - Keytaon Thompson, Virginia, 50
TE - Davis Allen, Clemson, 52
AP - Sean Tucker, Syracuse, 64
OT - Matt Goncalves, Pitt, 66
OT - Asim Richards, North Carolina, 62
OG - D'Mitri Emmanuel, Florida State, 57
OG - Jake Kradel, Pitt, 50
C - Will Putnam, Clemson, 51
 
Defense
DE - Yaya Diaby, Louisville, 65
DE - Keion White, Georgia Tech, 44
DT - Kobie Turner, Wake Forest, 53
DT - Cory Durden, NC State, 44
LB - Charlie Thomas, Georgia Tech, 63
LB - Trenton Simpson, Clemson, 58
LB - Mikel Jones, Syracuse, 55
CB - Kei'Trel Clark, Louisville, 64
CB - Tyrique Stevenson, Miami, 42
S - Darius Joiner, Duke, 63
S - LaMiles Brooks, Georgia Tech, 47
 
Specialists
PK - James Turner, Louisville, 72
P - Ben Kiernan, North Carolina, 53
SP - Jalon Calhoun, Duke, 74

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