BUIES CREEK, N.C. – A year after leading the conference in receiving yards, Campbell’s Aaron Blockmon has been named to the 2017 Preseason All-Pioneer Football League team.

The redshirt junior was named First Team All-PFL in 2016, becoming the Camels’ first 1,000 yard receiver with a league leading 1,038 yards and 10 touchdowns, both Campbell records. Blockmon surpassed the 100 receiving yards mark six times on the season, hauling in a touchdown in each of his final five games.

The Sanford, N.C. native and former Southern Lee star is already Campbell’s all-time leader in receiving yards (1,491) and receiving touchdowns (15) after just two seasons on the field.

Campbell was voted fifth in the 2017 PFL Preseason Coaches' Poll, announced Monday by the conference.

Campbell heads into its 10th season of football in 2017 (modern era). The Camels brought football back to the Creek in 2008 after a 58 year hiatus. 2017 will also mark the program's final season as a member of the PFL. Campbell heads to the Big South in 2018.

The Camels return 44 letterwinners, including 11 starters (six offense, five defense), from their 2016 squad that went 5-5 overall and 3-4 in PFL play, notching the program's second season at .500 or better in the modern era.

Campbell kicks off its 2017 schedule on August 31, hosting Methodist at Barker-Lane Stadium.

GREENVILLE, N.C. – East Carolina senior receivers Jimmy Williams (Biletnikoff Award) and Davon Grayson (Wuerffel Trophy) and have garnered preseason watch list accolades both organizations announced Tuesday morning. The duo joins junior offensive lineman Garrett McGhin, who was named to the Rimington Trophy Watch List on July 11.

Williams, who was granted a medical hardship waiver by the league office on Dec. 13, 2016, started all 12 games for the Pirates a year ago tallying 45 receptions for 818 yards and eight touchdowns. The former Washington standout turned in three 100-yard receiving performances, which included a career-high 179-yard effort at Virginia Tech. Williams stood first on the team TDs and yards per catch (18.2), while ranking second in yardage and third in receptions.

For his career, Williams has played in 30 career games (19 starts), catching 87 passes for 1,275 yards (14.7 ypr) with 11 touchdowns. He has produced 23 multiple-catch contests and made at least one reception in 28 outings, which includes a streak of 13 straight. The Washington, N.C. native is a two-time (2015-16) winner of ECU’s Rock Roggeman Heart-of-the-Pirate Award for display of leadership, spirit and inspiration.

Off the field, Williams is working towards his bachelor’s degree in recreation and park management with a minor in sports studies. He is an active member in the community working with organizations such as Special Olympics (coach/event day coordinator), Ronald McDonald (visitation, clean-up), James & Connie Maynard Children’s Hospital/Vidant Medical Center (patient visitation), Food Bank of Eastern North Carolina (packing/distribution of food to needy families), Pitt County Schools (Reading is Rewarding) and Beaufort County Schools (Black History Month, guest speaker), earning preseason accolades on the 2017 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team Watch List.

Since 2006, ECU receivers have been included on the Biletnikoff Award Watch List on nine occasions. Williams’ selection follows Justin Hardy (2012-14), Zay Jones (2015-16), Lance Lewis (2011), Dwayne Harris (2010) and Aundrae Allison (2006). A year ago, Jones became the first Pirate receiver to be named a finalist for the prestigious award.

The Biletnikoff Award, presented by the Tallahassee Quarterback Club (TQC) Foundation, annually recognizes the outstanding receiver, not merely a wide receiver, and the award recipient is selected by the highly distinguished Biletnikoff Award National Selection Committee, a group of over 200 prominent college football journalists, commentators and former receivers. Receivers may be added to the watch list as their season performances dictate. Ten semifinalists will be announced Nov. 13 before three finalists are declared Nov. 21. The 2017 winner will be presented live on Dec. 7 on The Home Depot College Football Awards Show, which will be aired on ESPN.

Grayson, who redshirted in 2016 due to an injury, has started 28 of 31 career games hauling down 76 passes for 881 yards (11.6 ypr) with seven touchdowns. He has netted multiple receptions in 23 contests with 32 of his 76 grabs going for 12 or more yards. In the classroom, Grayson earned his bachelor’s degree in sport studies on May 7, 2017 and is currently working on a second degree in family and community services. Grayson has also volunteered his time in the community working with programs such as the James & Connie Maynard Children’s Hospital/Vidant Medical Center (patient visitation), Food Bank of Eastern North Carolina (packing/distribution of food to needy families) and Third Street Community Center Field Day, while working 40 hours a week as an intern in the ECU Athletics Marketing and Fan Engagement department during the Spring of 2017.

The Wuerffel Trophy, known as “College Football’s Premier Award for Community Service,” is presented annually by the All Sports Association in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. Named after 1996 Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Danny Wuerffel from the University of Florida, the Wuerffel Trophy is awarded to the FBS player that best combines exemplary community service with athletic and academic achievement.

Voting for the Wuerffel Trophy is performed by a National Selection Committee that includes college football television and print media, industry notables, former head coaches and prior Wuerffel Trophy recipients.

The formal announcement of the 2017 recipient will be made at the National Football Foundation’s press conference in New York City on Dec. 5. The presentation of the 2017 Wuerffel Trophy will occur at the 49th Annual All Sports Association Awards Banquet on Feb. 16, 2018 in Fort Walton Beach, Fla.

Greensboro, N.C. (theACC.com) – The Atlantic Coast Conference has eight players on the 2017 preseason watch list for the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award, the Walter Camp Foundation announced Friday. The eight ACC players ties for the highest from any conference. Two players, Harold Landry and Dexter Lawrence, played their high school football in North Carolina.

The 2016 Walter Camp Player of the Year, Louisville junior quarterback Lamar Jackson, headlines the 2017 Watch List. Jackson accounted for 5,114 total yards and 51 touchdowns in 2016 for the Cardinals. The youngest player to win the Heisman Trophy, Jackson was also named as the 2016 National Player of the Year by CBSports.com, The Sporting News and the Maxwell Award.

The ACC has had the most players nominated on preseason watch lists for the Bednarik Award (top defensive player), the Outland (top interior lineman) and Nagurski  (top defensive player) Trophies, the Mackey (top tight end), Groza (top placekicker) and Hornung (most versatile) Awards and tied for the most players chosen for the preseason watch list for the Jim Thorpe Award (top defensive back), the Wuerffel Trophy (service) and the Walter Camp.

In all, 92 ACC players have totaled 165 appearances on preseason watch lists.

The Walter Camp watch list will be narrowed to 10 semi-finalists in mid-November.  The 2017 Walter Camp Player of the Year recipient, which is voted on by the 130 NCAA Bowl Subdivision head coaches and sports information directors, will be announced on Thursday, December 7.  The winner will then receive the trophy at the Foundation’s 51st annual national awards banquet on January 13, 2018 in New Haven.

ACC Players Selected to the 2017 Preseason Walter Camp Award Watch List:

Name	Position	School	Cl.	Hometown
Deondre Francois	QB	Florida State	So.-R	Orlando, Fla.
Quadree Henderson	WR-PR-KR	Pitt	Jr.	Wilmington, Del.
Lamar Jackson	QB	Louisville	Jr.	Louisville, Ky.
Derwin James	DB-KR	Florida State	So.	Haines City, Fla.
Harold Landry	DE	Boston College	Sr.	Spring Lake, N.C.
Dexter Lawrence	DT	Clemson	So.	Wake Forest, N.C.
Mark Walton	RB	Miami	Jr.	Miami, Fla.
Christian Wilkins	DT-FB	Clemson	Jr.	Springfield, Mass.