Bjoern Werner named ACC defensive player of the year

Florida State defensive end Bjoern Werner has been named the ACC defensive player of the year, the league announced Wednesday.

Werner, who beat out teammates Cornellius Carradine, LaMarcus Joyner and Xavier Rhondes, Maryland's Joe Vellano, Boston College's Nick Clancy and Duke's Russ Cockrell for the award, led the ACC with 13 sacks this season. The 6'4", 260-pound defensive end averaged 1.08 sacks per game, a mark good for third-best among all NCAA players.

"The value he has to his team, the effect he has on his teammates, off the field and in the classroom and as a team leader is tremendous, and the things he's sacrificed to give up for other guys to make plays on our defense," Seminole coach Jimbo Fisher said. "He's a tremendous team player, he's a tremendous leader and he's a tremendous winner and I think he'll go down as one of the great football players in Florida State football history. He has had a tremendous year this year and I can't be happier for him."

Werner, who played only two years of high school football after growing up in Germnay, received 27 of the 46 votes among voting media members. Carradine finished second with nine votes.

"It is obviously an honor," Werner told Tallahassee.com. "Especially for me. I come from Germany and I always just wanted an opportunity to play here. And to be considered one of the top players is just the crème de la crème."

Werner is the second Florida State player to earn postseason honors from the ACC this year, as cornerback Ronald Darby was named the league's defensive rookie of the year on Tuesday.