There are 10 FBS players who have recorded at least 1,000 yards receiving so far this season. Three of them hail from the Power 5 conferences.
The lone representative from the ACC: Syracuse’s Amba Etta-Tawo.
One of the most entertaining surprises of the 2016 ACC football season has been the breakout performance of Syracuse’s Etta-Tawo. This isn’t Etta-Tawo’s first run through the ACC; in 2013, he recorded 31 catches for 500 yards as a freshman at Maryland. But he’s back now as senior transfer, and he’s starred during his second run though the league.
Etta-Tawo leads the ACC with 1,158 receiving yards — 404 more yards than second place (Mike Williams). He’s also No. 1 in the conference with 75 receptions.
Where does Etta-Tawo land in terms of efficiency when stacked up against the other 1,000-yard pass-catchers? The accompanying table includes the 10 receivers who have more than 1,000 yards through the air in 2016. As it turns out, Etta-Tawo easily holds his own.
| Player | Team | Yards | Targets | Receptions | Catch Rate | Yards Per Target |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trent Jones | La. Tech | 1318 | 121 | 98 | 81% | 10.9 |
| Zay Jones | ECU | 1300 | 171 | 127 | 74.3% | 7.6 |
| Taywan Taylor | WKU | 1174 | 102 | 71 | 69.6% | 11.5 |
| Carlos Henderson | La. Tech | 1168 | 94 | 59 | 62.8% | 12.4 |
| Dede Westbrook | Oklahoma | 1166 | 81 | 64 | 79% | 14.4 |
| Amba Etta-Tawo | Syracuse | 1158 | 97 | 75 | 77.3% | 11.9 |
| Richie James | MTSU | 1132 | 120 | 73 | 60.8% | 9.6 |
| Noel Thomas | UConn | 1090 | 131 | 87 | 63.4% | 8.1 |
| Corey Davis | W. Michigan | 1011 | 87 | 61 | 70.1% | 11.6 |
| Austin Carr | Northwestern | 1010 | 106 | 70 | 66% | 9.5 |
*Target data courtesy of Football Study Hall
East Carolina’s Zay Jones has stayed busy: 127 receptions on an absurd 171 targets (19 per game). Trent Jones of Louisiana Tech leads the nation with 1,318 receiving yards, and he’s first in this group with a catch rate of 81 percent. Dede Westbrook has had quite the season for the Sooners — 14.4 yards per target is an incredible number for a high-volume receiver.
The ACC’s best receiver in 2016 stands his ground with all of those guys. Etta-Tawo is one of just three 1,000-yard receivers to catch at least three out of every four passes slung his direction. He’s averaging 11.9 yards per target, which is third-best in this elite group. He’s also one of only three 1,000-yard receivers to average more than 11 yards per target.
Syracuse needs to win two of its next three games to become bowl eligible. That will be a tricky proposition to navigate with all three of those opponents coming inside the top 45 of the S&P-plus rankings. However, there’s no questioning the prolificness of Etta-Tawo, who has become one of the best receivers in America while playing in Dino Babers’ veer and shoot offense.
AET has already set the single-season receiving yards record at Syracuse — jumping Marvin Harrison’s long-held record of 1,131 yards in the 1995 season.