Dre' Bly

Height:
5-10
Weight:
180
Class:
Freshman
Hometown:
Chesapeake, VA
High School:
Western Branch

The first freshman in ACC history to earn consensus first-team All-America honors, Bly became just the fifth freshman in NCAA history to be named to the Associated Press All-America first team in 1996. He was also a first-team All-America selection by the Walter Camp Football Foundation, the Football Writers Association of America, The Sporting News and Athlon Sports and a finalist for the Thorpe Award as the National Defensive Back of the Year. He earned ACC first-team honors and was the league's Rookie of the Year. He is the only UNC freshman to earn first-team All-America honors. He made two second-half interceptions, broke up two passes and had seven tackles against West Virginia in the 1997 Gator Bowl. Bly led the nation in interceptions and interceptions per game. He set an ACC single-season interceptions record with 11, one more than Bob Sullivan of Maryland had in 10 games in 1965. The Chesapeake, Va. native had three multi-interception games. In 1997, Bly became the first player in UNC history to repeat consensus first-team All-America honors. He had five interceptions, including one he returned for a touchdown in a comeback win over Virginia. In 1998, he set the ACC all-time record with his 20th interception (not counting the two he had in the Gator Bowl). He was named first-team All-America by the Walter Camp Foundation. Bly is the only player in ACC history to earn first-team All-America honors on three occasions.