The Boston College football team was predicted to finish fifth in the ACC Atlantic Division, according to a poll of media members at the ACC Football Kickoff event Monday in Greensboro, N.C.

Florida State was tabbed as the consensus choice to win the Atlantic and defeat Coastal Division favorite Virginia Tech in the league’s championship game. It’s the second consecutive season the media picked that scenario. Last season Clemson captured the league title, defeating Virginia Tech, 38-10, in the championship game.

Following FSU (543 points) in the Atlantic poll were Clemson (470), NC State (402), Wake Forest (241), BC (181) and Maryland (148). Trailing Virginia Tech (558) in the Coastal were North Carolina (341), Virginia (326), Miami (245) and Duke (104).

Clemson sophomore wide receiver Sammy Watkins was named Preseason Player of the Year. Watkins last year set ACC single-season freshman records for receptions (82), reception yardage (1,219) and receiving touchdowns (12). Watkins (25 votes) was followed in close balloting by three quarterbacks: Virginia Tech junior Logan Thomas (21), Florida State senior E.J. Manuel (19) and Clemson junior Tajh Boyd (18). No BC players received votes.

BC opens its season Sept. 1 when it hosts Miami. The Eagles play Florida State Oct. 13 in Tallahassee, Fla., and host Virginia Tech Nov. 17.

Boston College linebacker Kevin Pierre-Louis was named as one of 84 players on the watch list for the 2012 Bronko Nagurski Trophy, which is presented by the Football Writers Association of America and the Charlotte Touchdown Club to the nation’s best defensive player.

Pierre-Louis, a junior from Norwalk, Conn., has 167 tackles (96 solo) over 22 games in his first two seasons at BC. He was second on the team in tackles both seasons to Luke Kuechly, who won the Nagurski Trophy last year as a junior before heading to the NFL.

Five Nagurski finalists will be announced Nov. 15, with the winner revealed at a banquet in Charlotte on Dec. 3.

Click here for more information and a list of the 84 players on the watch list.

Forward Jake O’Brien, who has one year of eligibility remaining, will transfer from Boston University, according to a tweet from CBSSports’ Jeff Goodman.

Because O’Brien has finished his undergraduate studies, the 6-foot-8 Weymouth native would be eligible to play immediately as his new school as a graduate student.

O’Brien, who has missed the last 1½ seasons with a broken foot that required two surgeries, reportedly wants to play for a team that has a chance to appear in the NCAA tournament. BU has been barred from participating in the 2013 America East tournament after announcing its decision to leave the conference next year for the Patriot League, making it highly unlikely the Terriers would have a shot at the NCAAs (their only hope would be at-large bid).

O’Brien, a 6-foot-9, 220-pounder who prepped at BC High, was the America East Rookie of the Year as a freshman, when he averaged 12.5 points and 4.6 rebounds. He was a third-team all-conference player as a sophomore after averaging 13.8 points and 6.4 boards. He averaged 11.6 points and 5.8 rebounds through 14 games as a junior before a broken navicular bone in his foot forced him the sideline.

Former Boston University standout John Holland, who is on the roster for the Thunder’s summer team in Orlando this week, will switch to the other 2012 NBA finalist for games in Las Vegas. Holland will join a Heat team that opens play in Las Vegas on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. against the Raptors.

Holland did not see action in the Thunder’s loss to the Celtics in Monday’s summer opener in Orlando.

Holland, the 2011 America East Player of the Year and an All-America honorable mention, played last season with Chorale Roanne in France’s top league and averaged 14.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.3 steals per game.

Forward Tony Gaffney, a Boston native who starred at UMass after transferring from BU, is playing with the Jazz’ summer team. Gaffney had four points and three rebounds in 18 minutes in Monday’s loss to the Pistons.

Gaffney, who joined the Celtics at the end of the 2009-10 regular season and was on the roster for the playoffs as the C’s reached the NBA finals, played in Germany’s top league for Telekom Baskets Bonn last season. Gaffney led the German Basketball League in blocked shots and was fifth in steals while averaging 13 points and six rebounds.

Boston College senior Chris Pantale was named to the preseason watch list for the 2012 John Mackey Award, given to the most outstanding collegiate tight end. It’s his second straight appearance on the list.

In three seasons (38 games) at BC, Pantale has 77 receptions for 797 yards and five touchdowns. The 6-foot-6, 255-pounder from Wayne, N.J., caught 21 passes for 236 yards and three touchdowns in 12 games last season.

The Mackey semifinalists will be announced Nov. 12 and the finalists a week later. The award will be presented Dec. 6 during the College Football Awards Red Carpet Show on ESPNU.

The award has been presented since 2000. Previous winners include Colorado’s Daniel Graham (2002) and Florida’s Aaron Hernandez (2009), both of whom went on to play for the Patriots, and Iowa’s Dallas Clark, who signed with the Buccaneers this year after nine productive seasons with the Colts.

Two-time All-Ivy League forward Keith Wright signed a deal to play for the Mavericks in the Las Vegas Summer League this month. Wright, who was not drafted last month, will suit up for five games between July 15-21 at UNLV.

Wright averaged 10.4 points and a team-high 8.1 rebounds in leading Harvard to its first-ever outright Ivy League title in 2012. He is Harvard’s all-time leader in blocks (149).

The Thunder’s summer league roster will have a Boston flavor when it opens play in Orlando on Monday afternoon against the Celtics.

Coming off a rookie season that ended with his team reaching the NBA finals, Boston College product Reggie Jackson is slated to get some work on Oklahoma City’s summer squad. Jackson averaged 3.1 points and 1.6 assists in 11.1 minutes during the regular season. He did not see action in the postseason as the Thunder relied on their veterans to carry them to the finals.

One of Jackson’s teammates this month will be swingman John Holland, who finished a standout career at Boston University a year ago as the America East Player of the Year and an All-America honorable mention. Holland played last season with Chorale Roanne in France’s top league and scored 14.1 points, shooting 55 percent from the field, including 41 percent from 3-point range. He also averaged 4.6 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.9 assists per game.

The Thunder begin play in the Orlando Pro Summer League on Monday when they match up against the Celtics at 1 p.m. The Celtics also have two local college products on their summer roster, as former BC center Sean Williams and ex-UMass forward Stephane Lasme are scheduled to suit up.

Former Boston College and Fairfield forward Rakim Sanders, who did not get drafted last month, is on the Warriors’ summer roster.

Former Northeastern guard Matt Janning, who played for Novipiu Casale in Italy last season, has hooked on with the Pacers’ summer team. Janning impressed the Suns in the summer of 2010 and received a multiyear contract but was cut early in the season without appearing in a game. He saw action for two teams in the D-League in 2010-11, including a stint with the Maine Red Claws, before heading to Europe. With Casale last season he averaged 12.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.7 assists.

Andrew Van Nest will join the Boston College basketball team after graduating from Harvard in the spring. Van Nest will be eligible immediately, as he is enrolling at BC as a graduate student.

A 6-foot-10, 235-pound forward from Weston (Weston High School/Northfield Mount Hermon), Van Nest played just one game last season, seeing two minutes of action in the Crimson’s 67-46 victory over BC on Dec. 29. He appeared in 23 games as a junior, starting twice, and averaged 2.1 points and 1.3 rebounds in 9.4 minutes. As a sophomore, he played in 15 games, averaging 2.7 points, 1.7 rebounds and 8.7 rebounds. Van Nest missed his freshman season after having shoulder surgery.

The ACC schedule has expanded two games to 18 for the 2012-13 season, and Boston College’s opponents were announced Friday. The Eagles will play home-and-home series against Clemson, Duke, Maryland, Miami, NC State and Wake Forest. BC also will host Georgia Tech and North Carolina, while playing road games at Florida State and Virginia Tech.

The ACC tournament is scheduled for March 13-16 at the Greensboro (N.C.) Coliseum.

BC’s nonconference schedule is highlighted by games against Auburn, Penn State (ACC-Big Ten Challenge) and New England foes Harvard, Holy Cross and Providence.

The remainder of the schedule will be released in late August.

BC went 9-22 last season and finished in a four-way tie for last place in the ACC at 4-12.

In other BC news, outgoing transfer Matt Humphrey, who started 29 games for the Eagles and was second on the team in scoring at 10.3 points per game, has landed at West Virginia. The 6-foot-5 guard, who played two seasons at Oregon before moving to BC, has one year of eligibility remaining and can play immediately for the Mountaineers, as he completed his undergraduate degree.

Alex Dragicevich averaged 6.6 points for Notre Dame last season. (AP)

Boston College basketball coach Steve Donahue confirmed via a school statement Wednesday that Alex Dragicevich will transfer from Notre Dame and be eligible to play two seasons for the Eagles after sitting out the 2012-13 campaign.

Dragicevich, a 6-foot-7, 221-pound guard from Northbrook, Ill., appeared in all 34 games for the Irish last season, staring 10. He averaged 6.6 points in 20.9 minutes and shot 34.2 percent from 3-point range. In the Big East opener against 22nd-ranked Pittsburgh on Dec. 27, he scored a game-high 22 points on 8-of-13 shooting, sparking a 72-59 upset.

Dragicevich told the Chicago Tribune earlier this month that he chose BC over Loyola.

“Their system is something that I was really surprised by,” Dragicevich said. “It surprised me in a way where comparing to other schools recruiting me, I really see myself succeeding in it. The way they play is perfect for me, in my eyes.

“I like the way they move the ball, the way they screen, and they like to score it a lot. They like to get up and down the court.”

Added Dragicevich: “From what coach Donahue told me, he said I can come in and really help them score. That’s what they like to do. He liks to get scorers out there, he likes guys who know how to play. They thought I was a smart player and that’s how I fit in — somebody who knows how to play.”