Dabo Swinney picked third in ACC Coach of the Year voting |
| - Thursday, December 5, 2019, 9:10 AM |
GREENSBORO, N.C. (theACC.com) – Louisville first-year head coach Scott Satterfield has been voted the Atlantic Coast Conference Football Coach of the Year after guiding the Cardinals to second place in the Atlantic Division following the program’s 2-10 finish in 2018.
Satterfield led the way in balloting among a select panel of 46 media members and the league’s 14 head coaches. Satterfield received 23 votes, followed by Virginia’s Bronco Mendenhall with 17 and Clemson’s Dabo Swinney with 15. Taking the helm at Louisville following a highly successful stint at Appalachian State, Satterfield faced what appeared to be a massive rebuilding task with a program that closed the 2018 season with nine consecutive losses and went 0-8 in ACC play. The Cardinals were not only picked to repeat their last-place Atlantic Division finish during last July’s 2019 ACC Football Kickoff, they placed 209 points out of sixth place in the media’s preseason poll. The Cardinals responded by posting a 7-5 overall record, a 5-3 mark in ACC play and earned bowl eligibility by mid-November. Louisville filled five spots on the 2019 All-ACC football team, including a pair of first-teamers in All-America wide receiver Tutu Atwell and ACC Jacobs Blocking Trophy winner Mekhi Becton. Competing against one of the nation's most difficult schedules, the Cardinals played three ranked teams this year, including two in the top 10 in No. 9 Notre Dame and No. 3 Clemson. The Cardinals snapped a 10-game losing streak against ranked opponents with a 62-59 win over No. 19 Wake Forest on Oct. 12. It was Louisville’s first road win over a ranked opponent since a 38-35 win at West Virginia in 2011. One of 22 semifinalists for the annual George Munger Collegiate Coach of the Year Award, Satterfield guided his team to the third-biggest single-season turnaround among FBS teams this year. Louisville is only the second team in ACC history to improve from 0-8 to 5-3 in league play in consecutive years, joining Georgia Tech in 1994-95. Complete voting for the 2019 ACC Coach of the Year was as follows: ACC Coach of the Year Scott Satterfield, Louisville - 23 Bronco Mendenhall, Virginia - 17 Dabo Swinney, Clemson - 15 Justin Fuente, Virginia Tech - 2 Dave Clawson, Wake Forest -2 Mack Brown, North Carolina - 1
