Duke football picked to finish 12th in ACC, Philyaw-Johnson named preseason All-ACC

Damond Philyaw-Johnson turned heads as a redshirt sophomore last season, and enters the 2020 campaign with huge expectations.

Duke announced that the nifty wide receiver and kick returner was named to the preseason All-ACC team Friday morning as a specialist, a year after finishing second in the country with a 32.3-yard kick return average and two kick return touchdowns.

Much of Philyaw-Johnson's 2019 production came during a historic game against Wake Forest, in which he posted 251 total kickoff returns—the highest single-game total in program history—and both of his touchdowns. The two scores tied the single-game NCAA record.

The 134 media members who selected the All-ACC team also picked the Blue Devils to finish 12th in the conference.

A notable omission from the All-ACC team is Duke defensive end Chris Rumph II, who enters the 2020 season as a potential first-round NFL Draft pick next spring and has garnered serious attention from outlets such as Pro Football Focus.

The full preseason conference standings can be found below, with first-place votes in parentheses:

1.  Clemson (132)
2.  Notre Dame (2)
3.  North Carolina
4.  Louisville 
5.  Virginia Tech
6.  Miami         
7.  Florida State
8.  Pitt       
9.  Virginia   
10. Wake Forest   
11. NC State     
12. Duke     
13. Boston College
14. Syracuse       
15. Georgia Tech