The ACC is in a pretty strong position from a wide receiver standpoint.

In Clemson, the league has one of the country’s top one-two duos at the position, while Pittsburgh’s Tyler Boyd is the top returning Power Five receiver in receiving yards from a year ago. There are several other wideouts who produced at a pretty high level last year. Then there are groups like Florida State’s, one packed layers deep with potential playmakers, to the point that it could interfere with one single Seminole wideout finishing as a top five receiver in the conference.

All-told, it’s going to be a tough year for ACC defensive backs as they try to hold these players from crossing the first-down markers and attempt to keep them out of the end zone. That should be a difficult task.

5. Travis Rudolph, So., Florida State

Rudolph is a tough choice for a two reasons. First, there are other receivers in the ACC who have been more productive so far. And second, it’s unclear exactly what’s going to happen with Florida State’s receiving group, and who’s going to emerge as the next star. Players like Ermon Lane (No. 3 WR in the 2014 247Sports Composite) and George Campbell (No. 3 in the 2015 Composite) certainly have the talent to produce far beyond their years. But Rudolph —Â who was no slouch as the No. 6 receiver in the same Composite as Lane —Â seems to be the safest bet to replace Rashad Greene’s departed production. Rudolph is an excellent route-runner, a skill that will be counted on as the Seminoles try to find a dependable target with the loss of Nick O’Leary at tight end. Look for him to gobble up a number of those medium-range throws, and his production — 38 catches for 555 yards and four touchdowns — to potentially double.

4. Ryan Switzer, Jr., North Carolina

Even before Switzer was a major weapon at wide receiver, the North Carolina athlete was among college football’s best playmakers. As a true freshman, Switzer tied the NCAA record for punt return touchdowns in a season with five, averaging 20.9 yards per punt return and earning a bevy of All-America honors. After making 32 catches for 341 yards that year, he entered his sophomore year as a much grater threat at wide receiver, finishing that season with 61 catches for 757 yards and four scores, including a nine-catch, 136-yard, two-touchdown effort in North Carolina’s wild win over Georgia Tech. At Switzer’s rate of improvement, it wouldn’t be any sort of surprise to see him top the 1,000-yard mark this season.

3. Artavis Scott, So., Clemson

Speaking of 1,000 yards, if Artavis Scott doesn’t get there this year, it probably won’t have anything to do with his ability level … it will have more to do with the Tigers’ receiving talent competing for catches and yards. In fact, Scott isn’t even the top Clemson receiver on this list despite a great 2014 that saw him haul in 76 catches for 965 yards and eight touchdowns. The first-team Freshman All-American last year was the No. 68 overall player and the No. 8 wide receiver in the 2014 247Sports Composite, but wound up out-producing most of the players ranked ahead of him last year.

2. Mike Williams, Jr., Clemson

The No. 1 factor that kept Scott from a 1,000-yard freshman season, Williams topped the 1,000-yard mark himself by just 30 yards. At 6-4 210, Williams is taller than Scott and he’s arguably more explosive, averaging 17.5 yards per catch over his two-year Clemson career, including 18.1 yards per catch a year ago. The scary part is that Williams still has a little bit of polish to add to his game, but he’s always going to be a terror down the field. Williams was the No. 32 wide receiver in the 2013 Composite, though he was the No. 4 overall ranked player in South Carolina.

1. Tyler Boyd, Jr., Pittsburgh

Boyd leads all returning Power Five Conference receivers in receiving yards after a sophomore season that saw him finish 11th nationally with 1,261 receiving yards over 78 catches with eight touchdowns. The most impressive part? He produced those numbers in an offense that ranked 102nd in passing yards per game as the Panthers leaned heavily on the running game with James Conner. Because of that, Boyd flies a bit more under the radar than he should from a national perspective. But Boyd has produced at a huge level, putting together a better freshman season (85 catches, 1,174 yards) than the one that Larry Fitzgerald had. The 6-2 190-pounder has 11 100-yard games to his credit, topping the century mark in five of his last six games. Boyd is also a solid special teamer, averaging just under 25 yards per kick return and 12.2 yards per punt return for his career, earning second-team All-ACC honors as a return specialist last year. Boyd was the No. 13 receiver in the 2013 247Sports Composite.

