Four Tigers Named to Sporting News ACC All-Freshman Team

---

Clemson, SC-Four Clemson players have been named to the ACC

All-Freshman team as chosen by The Sporting News. Derrick Hamilton

(WR), Ben Hall (TE), Donnell Washington (DL) and Eric Sampson (LB)

were all named to the team. Clemson had more selections than any

other school.

Earlier, The Sporting News selected Derrick Hamilton and

Donnell Washington to its second-team Freshman All-America team, and

Hall was a third-team selection. It was the most Clemson players on

The Sporting News Freshman All-America teams since 1988.

Hamilton caught 53 passes for 684 yards this season, Clemson

freshman records in both categories. His reception total was the

third best in ACC history for a freshman, while his reception yardage

total was fourth best. Hall caught three touchdown passes, most ever

by a Clemson freshman tight end.

Washington had 44 tackles for the season, most among Clemson

freshmen. He also had eight tackles for loss and four sacks.

Sampson was right behind him with 35 tackles. He had 14 in the win

over Wake Forest when John Leake was injured.

Freshmen made significant contributions to Clemson's season in 2001.

Four different freshmen (Derrick Hamilton, Roscoe Crosby, Airese

Currie, and Ben Hall) scored touchdowns for the Tigers in the 49-24

Humanitarian Bowl victory over Louisiana Tech. It marked the first

time in Clemson history that four different freshmen scored a

touchdown in the same game.

Four different players on the 2001 Clemson team set rookie

receiving records. Derrick Hamilton set the overall freshman mark

for total receptions (53) and reception yards (684); Roscoe Crosby

set the true freshman record for total receptions (27) and reception

yards (465) and tied the record for touchdown receptions with

Hamilton (4); Airese Currie set the true freshman record for yards

per reception (17.8) and Ben Hall set the touchdown reception mark

for a freshman tight end (3).

Fourteen different freshmen played for the Tigers in 2001,

including 10 who played in 10 games and six who played in all 12

games. Six different freshmen started at one time or another in 2001.

Clemson freshman receivers combined to catch 106 passes for

1548 yards and 12 scores. That is the most productive freshman class

in Clemson history in terms of all three categories. A freshman

led Clemson in receiving in 10 of the 12 games in 2001.

Clemson freshman defensive players combined to make 173

tackles, 15 tackles for loss and five quarterback sacks in 2001. At

the end of the year, 13 Clemson freshmen were listed on the 44-man

two-deep, more than any other final season depth chart in Clemson

history. Clemson played six freshmen at a time on defense during

games in the second half of the season.

The 14 freshmen who played in games for the Tigers this year

combined to appear in 3097 plays from scrimmage (not counting

special teams), an average of 221 plays per freshman over the course

of the season.

Trending on TigerNet

Tigers sign sharpshooter out of transfer portal

NCAA announces latest transfer, NIL rule changes ratified

Former Clemson 5-star signee headed to Louisville

Clemson prospects in final Mel Kiper rankings, seven-round ESPN NFL draft projection