ACC Daily: Reactions to 2025 Walter Camp Preseason FBS All-America Team

The 2025 Walter Camp Preseason FBS All-America Team—the 136th edition of the nation’s oldest college football All-America team—released Tuesday at noon and features players from 35 different schools and eight conferences.

The Southeastern Conference (SEC) has the most schools (11) and players (16) on the 2025 preseason team. Trailing just behind the SEC is the Big Ten with nine schools and 15 players, followed by the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) with eight players from six member schools.

Clemson is one of five schools with three players on the preseason All-America teams—there is a First Team and a Second Team—including its quarterback, Cade Klubnik, who is listed as the First Team Offense QB.

Apart from Klubnik, Miami offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa is the only other player representing the ACC on the First Team Offense, while defensive tackle Peter Woods (Clemson) and linebacker Kyle Louis (Pittsburgh) were selected for the Walter Camp Preseason First Team Defense.

That leaves running back Isaac Brown (Louisville), defensive end T.J. Parker (Clemson) and safety Isaiah Nwokobia (SMU) as the remaining ACC players—all Second Team selections.

The only question remaining is: did the selection committee get these choices right?

Ranking players in the preseason is an incredibly difficult task as is, given the nature of college football’s unpredictability. Injuries occur, rookie stars emerge, and there is a very thin margin separating the individuals who have already proven themselves as elite college football players.

Here are some thoughts on the players representing the ACC.

Offense

1. While quarterback Cade Klubnik was selected for Walter Camp’s Preseason First Team Offense, and is ranked by several National Football League (NFL) and college football analysts as the top quarterback in the upcoming 2026 NFL Draft, leaving Louisiana State University (LSU)’s Garrett Nussmeier off the list completely is slightly foolish.

Klubnik arguably could be lower on the list than Nussmeier, who wasn't even selected for the Second Team Offense.

Klubnik threw for 3,639 yards with 36 touchdowns and six interceptions in 2024, recording an overall QBR of 78.7, good for 12th in FBS. Not only was Nussmeier’s QBR of 80.0 (10th in the nation) higher than Klubnik’s—he also passed for more yards (4,052) and threw nearly just as many touchdown passes (29) in a conference which historically produces tougher opponents.

Nussmeier also did so coming off a season in which he backed up former LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels (Washington Commanders). Klubnik was named the Tigers’ starting quarterback in 2023 and had a season of development under his belt.

2. In terms of the running back selections, Wake Forest’s Demond Claiborne could have been selected for the Second Team Offense instead of Louisville’s Isaac Brown.

Claiborne received 63 more carries than Brown in 2024 (228 compared to 165) and rushed for less yards by a fraction (1,049 compared to 1,173), but he didn’t play alongside a future early second-round draft pick in Tyler Shough and an offense which ranked third in the ACC in scoring at a clip of 36.5 points per game.

The Demon Deacons’ tailback broke out in 2023 and emerged fully into the spotlight in 2024 with 11 touchdowns on the ground and two receiving, including 254 receiving yards.

Claiborne is also a senior while Brown is a rising sophomore. For seniority purposes, the selection makes more sense to go to the older of the two.

More thoughts on offensive selections:

• Clemson’s Antonio Williams could have at least made the Second Team.
• Francis Mauigoa is the best offensive tackle in the country and deservedly earned a First Team selection.

Defense

1. Clemson edge rusher T.J. Parker earned a nod on the Preseason Second Team, but the absence of Miami’s Rueben Bain Jr. is noticeable.

Bain’s statistics may not show it—he accumulated just 11 sacks and 67 tackles across the past two seasons—but his film speaks volumes about the type of player he is and the violence he contributes on the defensive side.

2. With the amount of sheer talent coming out of the SEC, it is a bit of a surprise to see Pitt’s Kyle Louis listed as a First Team selection. Louis, a defensive swiss army knife, registered an impressive seven sacks and four interceptions last year but only compiled 45 tackles.

More thoughts on defensive selections:

• Clemson defensive back Avieon Terrell should have at least been a Second Team selection.
• The committee nailed their picks of Peter Woods (Clemson) and Isaiah Nwokobia (SMU), both of whom are projected to have monster seasons after already tearing it up a year prior.

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