Virginia football player Heath Miller has reason to be thankful.

So do Georgia Tech's P.J. Daniels, Duke's Chris Douglas and several other members of the All-ACC team that was announced earlier this week.

They can be thankful that Miami and Virginia Tech won't be ACC members until next season. Otherwise, they wouldn't be first-team all-stars.

Miller, the Cavaliers' exceptional sophomore tight end, probably would have lost his position to Miami junior Kellen Winslow. Either Daniels or Douglas would have been replaced by Virginia Tech's Kevin Jones.

Three of the four first-team defensive backs -- James Butler of Georgia Tech, Stanford Samuels of Florida State, Eric King of Wake Forest and Andre Maddox of N.C. State -- would have been booted off by Virginia Tech's DeAngelo Hall and Miami's Sean Taylor and Antrel Rolle.

Such is the changing landscape of ACC football. Many of this year's standouts will be next season's also-rans.

The classic example is Daniels, a durable sophomore who rushed for 1,110 yards through the Yellow Jackets' first 11 games.

When the 2004 preseason all-conference team is selected, Daniels easily could be replaced by Jones, the leader of the nation's No. 12-ranked rushing offense, and Miami's Frank Gore, who was averaging almost 6 yards per carry when he suffered a knee injury in the season's fifth game.

But how much high-profile talent will actually arrive with the Hurricanes and Hokies?

Winslow could be in an NFL uniform by the time the Canes play their first ACC game. The same may go for juniors Rolle, Taylor and Vince Wilfork, a defensive tackle who has to be double-teamed on any passing play.

Rolle is perhaps the nation's best one-on-one cornerback, and many scouts project Taylor, a safety, as a top-five draft pick.

Three Virginia Tech juniors -- Jones, Hall and mammoth offensive tackle Jon Dunn -- are also prime NFL prospects.

But just for the heck of it, let's pretend that the new ACC will not lose a single underclassman to the NFL. Here's what the preseason all-conference team would look like:

Offense

QB: Charlie Whitehurst, Clemson

RB: Kevin Jones, Virginia Tech and Frank Gore, Miami, or P.J. Daniels, Georgia Tech

WR: Craphonso Thorpe, Florida State, and Derrick Hamilton, Clemson

TE: Kellen Winslow, Miami

OL: Jon Dunn, Virginia Tech; Alex Barron, FSU; C.J. Brooks, Maryland, and Elton Brown, Virginia

C: David Castillo, FSU

Defense

DL: Vince Wilfork, Miami; Randy Starks, Maryland; Eric Henderson, Georgia Tech; and Eric Moore, FSU

LB: Mikal Baaqee, Virginia Tech; Leroy Hill, Clemson; and D'Qwell Jackson, Maryland

DB: Antrel Rolle, Miami; Sean Taylor, Miami; DeAngelo Hall, Virginia Tech; and James Butler, Georgia Tech

Notice anything interesting, such as not a single player from the four North Carolina schools?

All four have legitimate candidates. N.C. State will have linebacker Pat Thomas, Maddox, wide receiver Tramain Hall, running back T.A. McLendon and possibly offensive lineman Chris Colmer.

Wake Forest has runner Chris Barclay and defensive back Eric King. Duke has linebacker Brendan Dewan, and North Carolina has quarterback Darian Durant.

When the pro defections shake down, some of the North Carolina-based players probably will move up and land preseason all-star spots. But the competition for individual honors, like the ACC team race itself, is about to get a lot more difficult.

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