A sign of the UNC program’s progression under coach Butch Davis, the Tar Heels landed five defensive players on the ACC’s preseason all-conference football team, which was released on Wednesday.

Defensive end Robert Quinn, defensive tackle Marvin Austin, linebacker Quan Sturdivant, cornerback Kendrick Burney and safety Deunta Williams were all selected. The team was voted on by the media attending the ACC Kickoff press conferences in Greensboro Sunday and Monday. North Carolina had the nation’s No. 6 defense last season.

By comparison, Florida State quarterback Christian Ponder, the preseason pick for league player of the year, is one of two Seminoles on the team.

Also on the offense, Duke wide receiver Donovan Varner and N.C. State tight end George Bryan were the lone Triangle players picked.

How good is defensive end Robert Quinn? So good the UNC coaching staff essentially had to tell him to “take a knee” in the spring football game, coach Butch Davis said. Quinn was so dominant the Tar Heels couldn’t block him, which meant they couldn’t practice their offense.

Quinn, a junior, ripped off 11.0 sacks in 2009, and if you watched Carolina play at all you couldn’t help but be stunned by his development. He came into the spring even better. “He wanted to dominate every drill,” Davis said with a smile that suggested he had seen something special.

Quinn is an unusual player. He survived brain surgery as a high school senior and you figured it was a cool story that he was in college and playing at all. He also has an almost childish exuberance when you’re around him. Hewore four SillyBandz on his wrist to the ACC Football kickoff this week, and it’s not often you see 270-pound NFL prospects wearing the same bling as elementary school kids.

That gentle off-the-field nature belies a player who could be one of UNC’s best. He doesn’t have the nasty streak of Lawrence Taylor but he has a burst and overall game that reminds you of that former Tar Heel great. Taylor had 16.0 sacks as a senior in 1980, which remains a school record. But it was how he got those sacks that made Taylor so great – he didn’t just come around the edge, he roared around it with an intent to destroy.

Quinn says he wants to get 20 sacks this season, a figure that makes you want to chuckle – at least until you hear Butch Davis talk about him. You can be confident Quinn won’t be taking a knee against Carolina opponents this fall.

With quarterback Thaddeus Lewis completing his eligibility for Duke last season, the Blue Devils need a productive, trusted leader to replace him.

Sean Renfree, though just a redshirt sophomore, finds himself first in line for the opportunity.

A highly touted prospect out of Scottsdale, Ariz., Renfree saw limited action behind Lewis last season before suffering a torn anterior cruciate ligament last November. While recovering from the injury, Renfree wasn’t able to compete in contact drills during spring practice. But he was able to take part in many other drills.

“He got a lot more work in the the spring than I ever thought he would,” Duke coach David Cutcliffe said.

Renfree’s commitment to the Blue Devils goes beyond toughness. Cutcliffe said Renfree received an invitation to attend the Manning Passing Academy this summer, but declined.

For nearly two decades, the Mannings have held their passing camp in Louisiana each year. It brings together NFL, college and high school quarterbacks. Archie Manning and sons Peyton and Eli always attend. (As a reporter covering the New Orleans Saints beat, I first met Eli when he was a teenager at this event. I also watched Chris Simms, among others, as a high school player there).

While honored and intrigued at the opportunity, Renfree chose to stay in Durham working with his Duke teammates this summer, figuring it would help the team more. But Renfree worried about offending the Mannings.

Cutcliffe, having coached Peyton and Eli, told Renfree he’d handle passing on the regrets.

“I told him they wouldn’t be angry,” Cutcliffe said. “He said, “I don’t want to do it because I feel like I need to be here rehabbing and working with our players.’ I think that’s indicative of the commitment that Sean has as a player. It made me kind of smile, to be honest with you.”

Tom O’Brien has been trying to hire Jon Tenuta since, oh, about the time Tenuta graduated from Virginia in 1982. O’Brien finally got him, as the linebackers coach for this N.C. State team, and Wolfpack players had no idea what was ahead when Tenuta arrived for their first meeting.

Pack linebacker Nate Irving said he was used to his group laughing and joking around – and quickly learned his new coach had a different vibe. Irving said Tenuta walked in, and said, “Alright, the laughing stops now.”

“He introduced himself and got straight down to business,” Irving said.

Tenuta, 53, has been a defensive coordinator at seven different schools and spent the past two seasons at Notre Dame. Before that he spent six seasons at Georgia Tech and one at UNC. Tenuta is known for both his gruff, demanding style and his dazzling ability to create blitzing defenses. O’Brien said Tenuta’s style will blend in well with what he and defensive coordinator Mike Archer want to achieve this season.

But what has struck Irving, too, is how well Tenuta knows the game. While Irving expects more blitzes, he also expects State’s run defense to improve, in part because Tenuta is so specific in what he expects.

O’Brien, for one, is thrilled to finally have Tenuta on his staff. “He brings an attitude about the way he coaches and approaches the game,” O’Brien said.

Yes, he does. Irving learned that the first meeting.

Tom O’Brien tends to shoot straight, so it’s worth paying close attention when he talks about Mike Glennon. It’s easy to assume that Russell Wilson will start at quarterback for State, but O’Brien continued to insist Monday that the quarterback position is open.

“Mike Glennon is going to push Russell for the starting job,” O’Brien said. And asked they could share the position, O’Brien said, “I’ve never been a two-quarterback guy.”

It’s not just what he says, but how he says it. There’s some real conviction in O’Brien’s voice when it comes to Glennon. Remember, O’Brien is a guy whose best Boston College teams featured drop-back, NFL-style passers.

North Carolina coach Butch Davis suggested maybe the school was “a little naive” in how it dealt with players and agents and that a lesson can be learned from the current scandal.

Speaking Monday in Greensboro at ACC Media Days, Davis repeated his stance that the school did all it could as far as educating its athletes about how to deal with agents. Davis said last week the NCAA told UNC they did a good job with that aspect. But that doesn’t mean they were perfect.

“People make mistakes and they learn from it,” Davis said. “There are instances that happen and we will deal with them and be a better program because of them. We will learn from them. Maybe we were a little naive.”

Earlier this month, NCAA investigators visited Chapel Hill to interview UNC football players Marvin Austin and Greg Little about possible benefits they received from agents. If the allegations are proven true, their eligibility would be in jeopardy.

The NCAA requested that UNC not pursue its own investigation of the events. UNC’s coaches and players are also not supposed to comment specifically about the events and the investigation.

But there’s nothing wrong with them talking in general about agents and their impact on the daily life of student-athletes. Nearly every ACC coach this weekend has been asked a question about this topic.

Davis also said he thought it would be a good idea for schools and conferences to create a database of information about agents, with good and bad reviews.

“That way we can tell our (players) that, if these guys are visiting campus you need to know that these are bad guys,” Davis said. “If a guy is a crook on the West Coast, we not know about it here.”

The ACC media just picked Virginia Tech to win the league Monday, and Georgia Tech garnered only enough votes for fourth overall (see post below). And does Yellow Jackets coach Paul Johnson looked worried? Um, no.

“We lost some key players,” Johnson shrugged when told of the media vote. “We can be competitive.”

Oh, yes they can. The Yellow Jackets won the ACC last year, beating Clemson in the title game, and Tech returns quarterback Josh Nesbitt and running back Roddy Jones to an offense that confounds opponents. And fired Virginia coach Al Groh is taking over as Tech’s defensive coordinator. One thing Groh knows how to do is coach defense (in addition to beating Carolina), so that’s a major addition.Tech scored 33.8 points per game last season but allowed 24.8.

Johnson just seems to have this Spurrier-esque confidence, without the bravado. He even calls the offense but doesn’t bother to write down or chart the plays in games.  “I’ve always been that way,” he said. “It helps to not have 500 plays.”

Tech lost five starters on offense and on defense, but there is depth and talent returning. A pivotal game comes Sept. 18, at UNC at noon. Tech should beat South Carolina State and win at Kansas to open the season. With a win in Chapel Hill, the Jackets could be off and running – again.