Pitt junior defensive tackle Calijah Kancey was named the ACC Defensive Player on the Year on Wednesday. Kancey posted monster numbers for an interior linemen throughout the 2022 season. He recorded 14.5 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks in 11 games played this year.
“I am extremely thankful and humbled to receive this incredible honor from the ACC,” Kancey said in a press release. “I share this award with all of my teammates and coaches. They make me better every day, on and off the field. I’m so proud to wear the Blue and Gold with them.”
Kancey was also named first team All-ACC on Tuesday, the second year in a row he collected that honor. The Player of the Year award carries a little more significance, though, and it speaks to the season Kancey posted.
The junior linemen is also a finalist for the Outland Trophy, given to the nation’s top interior linemen. Kancey is also a finalist for the Nagurki Trophy, awarded to college football’s top defensive player.
Kancey becomes the first Pitt player to win the ACC Defensive Player of the Year since Aaron Donald took home the honors back in 2013. Donald himself collected the Nagurki and Outland trophies in that 2013 season and Kancey will have a chance to follow in those footsteps in the coming weeks.
Like Donald, Kancey is a defensive tackle on the smaller side that is a specialist at rushing the passer. Pro Football Focus graded Kancey as the top-rated interior linemen at rushing the passer in college football this season.
Kancey’s dominance was evident earlier this month when he struck for 3.5 sacks in a commanding 37-7 win over Virginia. He also posted 3.5 tackles for loss in an earlier game against Georgia Tech as well.
“Calijah has been absolutely outstanding all season long and is highly deserving of this honor,” Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi said. “As both a run stopper and rushing the passer, he has been tremendous. On behalf of our entire program, I want to congratulate Calijah on receiving this award. He has absolutely earned it.”
Pitt landed Kancey as a member of the 2019 recruiting class out of Miami Northwestern High School. He was graded as a three-star recruit and did not generate much national attention, however it did not take long for Kancey to show off his ability at the college level.
As a redshirt freshman he posted seven tackles for loss and earned Freshman All-American honors. He followed that up in 2021 with a first-team All-ACC selection and was also named third-team All-American as he was an integral part to Pitt’s ACC Championship team.
Kancey’s play on the interior this year has also freed up his teammates to have productive seasons. Pitt leads the nation in sacks currently with 45, and having Kancey’s presence in the middle is a big part of that.
Kancey is very likely in line to be Pitt’s next All-American defensive linemen. He will follow in the footsteps of Pitt greats like Donald and Hugh Green, and more recent stars like Patrick Jones and Rashad Weaver.
The star defensive tackle would have two years of eligibility remaining, but after two highly productive seasons it would seem that leaving early for the NFL will be in the cards. Kancey has not publicly indicated his intentions for next season.
