No single player has meant more to the Clemson Tigers than Deshaun Watson as they finished the regular season with a perfect 12-0 record. The sophomore quarterback collected the first of what could be many postseason awards, taking home the ACC Player of the Year on Wednesday, per Bleacher Report's Bryan Fischer.
Watson was the runaway winner, with his 39 first-place votes more than four times as many as second-place finisher Dalvin Cook:
| Player | School | First-Place Votes |
| Deshaun Watson | Clemson | 39 |
| Dalvin Cook | Florida State | 9 |
| Marquise Williams | North Carolina | 1 |
| Jeremy Cash | Duke | 1 |
According to Aaron Brenner of the Post & Courier, Watson is the first player since Matt Ryan in 2007 to win ACC Player of the Year after getting tipped for the award in the preseason.