Miami’s Johnson, FSU’s Darby Named ACC Rookies Of The Year

(Joel Auerback/Getty Images)(AP & ACSMA) - Miami running back Duke Johnson and Florida State cornerback Ronald Darby have been honored as the best rookies in the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2012 the league announced Tuesday.Johnson also was named the overall and offensive rookie of the year following a vote of 46 members of the Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association while Florida State cornerback Ronald Darby won the defensive rookie of the year.Johnson became the first Miami player to win the rookie award following a breakout season in which he broke Clinton Portis' 13-year-old school rushing record for freshmen, ending the year with 947 yards.He also led the ACC by averaging 33 yards per kickoff return, and his 2,070 all-purpose yards are the most by a Hurricanes freshman and second only to Willis McGahee's 2,108 in school history.The Hurricanes finished 7-5, were 5-3 in the league to share the Coastal Division title, but a self-imposed postseason ban sends Georgia Tech to the ACC championship game this weekend in Charlotte.(Stacy Revere/Getty Images)"It means a lot being the first in Miami history to win this award," Johnson said. "And it means so much to me and the team because I couldn't do it without my teammates. And this is just another way to make my mom proud and show how I really appreciate the sacrifices she made for me when I was younger."Joel Auerbach Stacy Revere