A la Lazarus, Tigers return from the dead
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
January 10, 2004

Scattershooting around ACC postseason football, while noting the conference went 5-1 in bowl games ...
One of the most resounding bowl wins was Clemson’s spanking of Tennessee, capping off a spectacular finish by the Tigers as they knocked off Florida State, hammered Duke and rival South Carolina and then handled the sixth-ranked Vols, 27-14.
Rewind to Nov. 1 when Clemson lost a 45-17 decision to Wake Forest. Everybody who wears Tiger paws wanted to can Coach Tommy Bowden. It looked almost certain that he would be fired at season’s end.
But the four-game finish, in which Clemson outscored those opponents 156-48 saved his job. In fact, the Tigers gave Bowden a three-year contract extension through 2010.
Bowden, a religious guy, compared the turnaround to the biblical story of Lazarus. We all learned that one in bible school when Jesus brought his friend back from the dead.
“Lazarus was in the cave about three days,” Bowden said. “I was there about three weeks.”
While all of the turmoil is behind them, at least for now, Bowden remains reluctant to talk about just how close he came to losing his job.
“One of these days I’ll talk about it,” Bowden said. “I plan on coaching five or six more years. I’ve always thought mid-50s. I’m 49 now. I hope I ain’t doing this until I’m 75. This could be my last contract. Could be. It could change, too.”
While Clemson did not give Bowden a raise with the extension, his buyout jumped from $750,000 to $4 million.
New ACC bowls?
Both the Peach Bowl and Orange Bowl are strongly considering adding second bowls by 2005 that would be affiliated with the ACC.
With three new teams joining the league’s mix (Miami, Virginia Tech and Boston College), the ACC is going to need more than its current six bowl affiliations.
Six ACC teams played in bowls this past go round and so did Miami, Tech and BC.
“I’m seriously considering starting another bowl game,” Peach Bowl president Gary Stokan said. “It seems to make sense because the ACC’s going to need more and I don’t know where they’ll go.”
Stokan confirmed he has had talks with the ACC office about another bowl that will be held either Dec. 22-23 or Dec. 26-27. The Peach Bowl was played on Jan. 2 this year. Such a new bowl could draw the ACC’s No. 6, 7 or 8 team.
Stokan would like to tie the bowl into the Big Ten as well.
“We could probably get 45,000 to 50,000 people for the game,” the Peach director said. “If you can do that, with the right TV partner and the right title sponsor, you could pay for $1 million per team.”
Meanwhile, Orange Bowl director Keith Tribble said his committee is also exploring another bowl game in Miami between Dec. 26 and 28.
The Miami bowl could not be put together by next season, but Peach officials believe their second bowl could if Boston College joins the ACC in the meantime.
What about BC? Something could happen by the end of the month that would allow Boston College to compete in the ACC beginning next fall.
Everything is hinging on whether or not Conference USA will release five of its members to join the Big East after this school year. If that happens, then the Big East would in turn release BC to the ACC.
Cincinnati, Louisville, South Florida, DePaul and Marquette have all accepted invitations to join the Big East but timing is now everything. Conference USA is understandably concerned that by allowing its five premiere programs to exit, it could have a negative impact on the league, particularly financially.
Meanwhile, ACC football schedules are on hold because of the possibility that BC could be in the mix next season. With or without BC, the league has agreed to stage a conference championship game next season if it gets NCAA approval in April.
“The feedback is not as negative as was originally thought,” ACC commissioner John Swofford said. “I think there’s a chance we could have one.”

The question is where? Nine cities have shown interest in hosting such a title game, including: Charlotte, N.C.; Jacksonville, Fla.; Orlando, Fla.; Miami, Fla.; Atlanta; Baltimore; The Meadowlands outside of New York City; Philadelphia and rumors of Washington, D.C. (FedEx Field).
Most insiders believe that the game will be held somewhere in Florida, but the thought of The Meadowlands with the New York market has to be intriguing.

Short yardage ... UNC has enrolled five freshman football players for its spring semester, which started three days ago, so that all can participate in spring practice (two are from Hargrave, two have transferred from East Tennessee State).
...Longtime Clemson assistant coach Rick Stockstill, who was with the Tigers for 14 years prior to serving as ECU’s offensive coordinator this past season, has signed on to become South Carolina’s wide receivers coach and will coach against the Tigers in the future. ...Speaking of Clemson, the Tigers signed junior college defensive tackle Cory Groover, rated a top-five JUCO d-tackle by analyst Max Emfinger, out of Southwest Mississippi Community College, but only under the conditions that he be given the No. 7 jersey, truly an odd number for a defensive lineman. Clemson balked at first but agreed when it heard that Michigan and Tennessee were going to let Groover have the number.
...Georgia Tech coach Chan Gailey had no idea that Jackets’ running back P.J. Daniels was near 300 yards rushing in the Humanitarian Bowl win over Tulsa until his players let him know. ...Daniels was near the mark when his teammates approached the coach. “They came to me and said, ‘Let’s try to get P.J. 300,’” Gailey said. “I had no clue. When he did, we got him out.” Daniels finished with 307, well behind Eddie Lee Ivery’s Tech record of 356. Daniels could have easily broken the mark, according to Ivery, who is now Tech’s assistant strength coach. “But that’s the kind of coach Chan Gailey is. He’s not about statistics.”
...Just for giggles, here is the AP preseason top five: Oklahoma, Ohio State, Miami, Michigan and Texas. Southern Cal started at No. 8 and LSU at No. 14.
...And remember, you can continue to keep updated on the state’s top 50 prospects and where they commit by checking out The Daily Progress online (www.dailyprogress.com) and check out the Gold List, which will be updated throughout the recruiting process.
 

November, December dry for UVa recruiters
Publication has UVa class fourth
By DOUG DOUGHTY
Exclusive to roanoke.com by 5 p.m. Thursdays

If Virginia hadn’t received 13 football commitments by Oct. 27, not to mention commitments from juniors Vic Hall and Maurice Covington, maybe there would be more concern about a recruiting drought that is now in its 11th week.

Even in the offseason, that's a long time to go without any news.

Granted, there has been some news, but not much of it good for the Cavaliers, whose last commitment was from Pottstown, Pa., defensive back Chris Gorham.

On the other hand, UVa hasn't lost a lot of players over that period, especially in the state.

Of the in-state players who have committed since the end of October, only one, Culpeper High School defensive back Kent Hicks, had an offer from the Cavaliers.

Hicks, rated the No. 5 prospect in Virginia by The Roanoke Times, picked Maryland over a group of schools that included Virginia and Virginia Tech. The Cavaliers were not involved with three other top 15 players who committed elsewhere: Lake Taylor running back Branden Ore (Virginia Tech), Landstown wide receiver Jeremy Gilchrist (Virginia Tech) and Landstown quarterback Terry "T.J." Mitchell (West Virginia).

Virginia is set at quarterback and running back, but the Cavaliers need wide receivers. They have gotten visits from two of the nation's best, Dwayne Jarrett from New Brunswick, N.J., and Doug Dutch from Gonzaga High School in Washington, D.C., but Dutch, for one, appears to have cooled on the Cavaliers.

UVa is still in the picture with Westfield High School wide receiver Eddie Royal, considered the best player in the state, if not the best prospect. There are questions about Royal's academic status, but the Cavaliers eventually offered him a scholarship -- several months after Virginia Tech, among others.

Royal had indicated that Virginia was his favorite at the beginning of the process, but the holdup on the UVa offer, as well as the Cavaliers’ decision not to extend a scholarship offer to Westfield quarterback Sean Glennon, could not have helped the Cavaliers' chances. Glennon committed to the Hokies and Royal's sister is a student at Tech, which means there's a lot for UVa to overcome.

Gilchrist, too, has some academic issues to attend to, but he and Royal would not have been the first academically risky prospects that UVa has recruited. If Jarrett and Royal go elsewhere, it’s unclear whether there is a Plan B. Virginia should be able to get by with Ottowa Anderson and Michael McGrew next year, but current freshman Deyon Williams needs to step up as a deep threat.

Anderson and McGrew will be seniors next year, with McGrew trying to come back from a season-ending knee injury. Other scholarship wideouts and their 2004 year in school are Scott Robinson (junior), Ron Morton (sophomore), Williams (sophomore), Fontel Mines (sophomore) and Emanuel Byers (freshman).

Marques Hagans caught 28 passes as a slot receiver this year but current plans call for him to be a full-time quarterback in the spring. If that proves to be the case, I wouldn't be surprised to see tailback Alvin Pearman (63 receptions) at slot receiver, but Pearman said before the Continental Tire Bowl that he was unaware of such a scenario.

CLEARLY, MARYLAND HAS become a major player in Mid-Atlantic recruiting and is under consideration by many of the prominent uncommitted prospects in Virginia.

In the G&W Recruiting report that arrived in our office Thursday, Maryland's class was rated No. 2 in the ACC to this point behind Miami's. Florida State was third and Virginia's was fourth. (Virginia Tech was sixth).

Miami’s class was rated sixth in G&W’s “Early Top 25,” Maryland’s was 10th and Florida State was 16th. Al Groh’s last two Virginia recruiting classes finished in the top 25, but G&W does not have Virginia's class in the top 25 at this point.

Most of the commitments to Virginia came so early that much of the luster has worn off. If Chris Long from St. Anne's-Belfield had waited until this point to make his decision and no doubt received dozens of offer, there would be a lot more of a buzz surrounding the Cavaliers’ class.

LONG, BY THE WAY, received an invitation to the Army All-America Bowl last Saturday in San Antonio, Texas. He has been undergoing rehabilitation for a shoulder injury that might have required surgery if aggravated in another football game.

UVa targets in San Antonio included defensive lineman Demario Presley from Greensboro, N.C.; offensive lineman Leon Hart from Columbia, S.C.; defensive tackle Dwayne Hendricks from Millville, N.J., Dutch and Jasrrett.

All have visited Charlottesville except for Hart, scheduled to be at Virginia on Jan. 23.

A SPORTSWRITER FROM the Omaha, Neb., newspaper called The Roanoke Times office on Tuesday to say that a prominent Nebraska booster was listed as headed to Charlottesville according to his flight log.

The reporter said their information usually was reliable, leading to speculation the Cornhuskers might be talking to UVa head coach Al Groh, but the subsequent introduction of recently fired Oakland Raiders coach Bill Callahan made that a moot point.

 

'Freakin' athlete expected shortly at Tech
UVa recruit no longer at Fork Union
By DOUG DOUGHTY
Exclusive to roanoke.com by 5 p.m. Fridays

To listen to the message on John Shuman's e-mail, it was easy to get the wrong impression.

Shuman said he had gone to Florida to promote some of his Fork Union players and I had this picture of Shuman loading up an Abbott bus with players and equipment and barnstorming through the Everglades.

Turns out, it was only Shuman and an assistant coach, equipped with a can of tapes that they were eager to show to college coaches at the national convention in Orlando.

Shuman already had known of one commitment before the break, although it might have been two or three.

Shuman, back in Fluvanna County on Friday, said 6-foot-2, 221-pound Fork Union wide receiver Joshua Morgan has committed to Virginia Tech and will enroll for the second semester.

"Josh Morgan is the best freakin' athlete I've ever been around," Shuman said. "They finally pulled the trigger."

Shuman said he didn't do a good job of getting the ball to Morgan, timed in 4.31 seconds for 40 yards at Fork Union's combine.

Morgan took visits to North Carolina, Maryland and Iowa "and committed to all three," Shuman said. "Then, he went home for Christmas break and committed to Virginia Tech."

"I've got a pretty good understanding he's going to Tech. He's pretty solid there. He's not on our campus."

Morgan, from Washington, D.C., is the third member of the 2002 H.D. Woodson team to commit to the Hokies. Tech earlier had received commitments from defensive back Theodore Miller and defensive lineman William Wall, who were juniors when Morgan was a senior at Woodson.

A fourth Woodson graduate already is at Tech, freshman defensive back Roland Minor, who was redshirted this past season.

FORK UNION'S policy is for an undergraduate to stay for two semesters -- that's how Ahmad Brooks ended up at Hargrave -- and the policy has not changed. Shuman was not happy to learn that Morgan would not be returning for the second semester.

By the same token, Shuman said Friday that he is "concerned" about the status of linebacker James Terry, a 2003 UVa signee who played for Fork Union this past fall.

Terry also has not returned for the second semester and, while he has met NCAA guidelines for freshman eligibility, UVa does not subscribe to the "gray-shirting" process that has become increasingly popular.

(Gray-shirts is a term given to players who enroll at mid-year, some after December graduations from high school, and are able to go through spring practice without starting their eligibility clock.)

Shuman said he hopes to improve relations with Virginia and thinks things may have soured last year, when 2002 UVa signees Brooks, Robert Armstrong and Keenan Carter all were supposed to go to Fork Union.

Brooks ended up at Hargrave, Armstrong left Fork Union after one semester and enrolled at Maryland and Carter was dismissed from school in the second semester. Then, 2003 UVa signee Philip Brown enrolled at Fork Union for the second semester and was gone in six weeks.

"We didn't have a very good year with UVa last year," Shuman admitted.

SHUMAN SAID THAT Virginia Tech will get the final visit for Maurice Reevey, a 6-3, 235-pound defensive end who spent his senior year at Highland Springs High School. Reevey has been to West Virginia and Pittsburgh, and will go to Clemson last week.

Reevey had an injury that prevented him from playing this year at Fork Union but has received 20 scholarship offers "based on his tape from last year at Highland Springs," Shuman said.

Reevey, who moved from New Jersey to Virginia during his junior year in high school, is not yet an academic qualifier.

WESTERN BRANCH quarterback Ryan Pond, rated No. 2 on The Roanoke Times' list of the state's top juniors following the 2002 season, has made an oral commitment to play baseball at North Carolina State.

Pond was named All-Tidewater for the second year in a row and set the South Hampton Roads record for passing yardage (5,739) in a career but received negligible Division I-A recruiting interest. He was 34th on The Roanoke Times' list of the top football prospects in the state.

ODDS 'N' ENDS: Fork Union quarterback-tight end-defensive end David Carter will visit West Virginia, Marshall and Ohio University. Carter (6-5, 230) looked like a Division I-A prospect to this observer at the Fork Union-Hargrave game. ... Fort Defiance offensive lineman Blake Lucas, rated the No. 59 prospect in the state by The Roanoke Times, has accepted an invitation to walk on at William and Mary. ... Tony Washington, football coach at Nandua on the Eastern Shore, reports that 6-2, 210-pound junior Trahern Vinnie is a "can't-miss" prospect. Vinnie, who has rushed for more than 1,000 yards in each of three consecutive seasons, is a state wrestling champion and 4.0 student. ... Hampton High School coach Mike Smith said Virginia has said it will come to the school to check on Charles Robinson, a 6-5, 220-pound senior linebacker who was named Peninsula District Defensive Player of the Year. Robinson was on The Roanoke Times' "Waiting List" of prospects with academic issues but actually is an academic qualifier, Smith said. ... Smith said the word he is hearing is that Virginia will not get Daily Press Defensive Player of the Year Jerod Mayo from Kecoughtan. N.C. State has been a longtime leader for Mayo. ... Several of the players who have eliminated Virginia say they were fond of the UVa staff but did not mesh with the players on their visits. ... Hermitage High School coach Patrick Kane said that first-team All-Richmond Metro punter and place-kicker Andrew Wilcox has been invited to walk on at Virginia Tech. ... Virginia coach Al Groh is expected to visit Bath County quarterback and Group A Player of the Year Jacob Phillips either at home or at his school but there is no indication of the scholarship offer that would cause Phillips to change his commitment to William and Mary.

 

Cavaliers depend on Byars
Production declines recently as he battles through some injuries
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Jan 9, 2004
DUKE at VIRGINIA
SUNDAY: 5:30 p.m. ON THE AIR: TV - CSN (CR53, CC24). Radio - WRVA (1140), 5 p.m.

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Two rebounds against N.C. State. Two points against Providence. Five points against William and Mary.

If the Virginia Cavaliers are to exceed expectations this season, if they hope to upset second-ranked Duke on Sunday night, they need more production than that from forward Derrick Byars.

"He's an important part of our team, and he's a very talented player," U.Va. coach Pete Gillen said. "We can still win without [significant contributions] from him, but that's not going to happen very often."

No one knows that better than the 6-7 sophomore from Memphis, Tenn.

"It's just been a little slump," Byars said. "I realize this year that my role's bigger. I just have to pick it up some more"

Extenuating circumstances are involved. Byars, who has dislocated his left shoulder several times, re-injured it again during practice Christmas evening. He's played the past four games - against N.C. State, Iowa State, Providence and W&M - with his non-shooting shoulder wrapped under a T-shirt beneath his jersey.

He'd totaled 17 points and 11 rebounds in a Dec. 22 win over Coastal Carolina - his first double-double at Virginia. He had 20 points and eight boards in a win over previously unbeaten Iowa State on Dec. 31.

"This is my second year, and I'm a veteran on this team," Byars said. "Coach has asked me to step my game up and be more confident, so that's what I'm doing."

Though his shoulder hurts him on the court, "I try to not to worry about it," Byars said. "More than anything, it probably affects my shooting. But I've just got to stay positive."

After an inconsistent freshman season at U.Va. - Byars started 16 of the 31 games he played but went scoreless seven times in 2002-03 - he bulked up to 218 pounds, nearly 20 more than his first-year weight. His extra muscle has benefited both Byars and the Cavaliers (0-1, 10-2).

Heading into Virginia's game with ACC rival Duke (1-0, 11-1) at U-Hall, Byars ranks third on the team in scoring (11.9 ppg), third in rebounding (5.8) and third in minutes played (28.6). He's shooting 50.5 percent from the floor and 41 percent from 3-point range.

In Memphis, Byars said, he lives "right behind" the home of Elvis Presley, who would have celebrated his 69th birthday yesterday. Byars, in fact, attended Graceland Elementary School.

At Ridgeway High, Byars became an honor student and a fourth-team Parade All-American. He plans to earn more accolades at U.Va.

"I feel like I can get first-team all-conference at some point in my career," Byars said. "That's one of my ultimate goals."

Byars, 19, reminds Gillen of a soft-spoken player he coached at Xavier, a big man who's now with the New Jersey Nets.

"Derrick's like an Aaron Williams, who was shy and quiet," Gillen said. "He's such a nice kid off the court, but he's got to be more of a son of a gun on the court.

"Will he ever be Charles Oakley? No, but we've got to get him to be more aggressive."

That he's talented is apparent to anyone who watches Byars play. That he's tough should be evident, too. In addition to his shoulder problems, he's played through ankle and elbow injuries at U.Va.

That said, is he too nice to be an elite basketball player?

Byars shook his head.

"I'm not too nice," he said with a smile. "I'm just quiet."
 

Sweet Virginia, sour reception
Duke star ready to hear the booing during a sort of homecoming at U.Va.
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Jan 10, 2004

Two of his best friends play basketball for the University of Virginia. Another buddy plays football for the Cavaliers. He lived in Charlottesville for four years as a boy, and his family still has friends there. He attended high school in Roanoke and is proud to be a Virginian.

J.J. Redick isn't kidding himself, though. However strong his ties to this state may be, the Duke sophomore knows that boos will drown out any cheers when he's introduced tomorrow night. That's to be expected when you walk into University Hall as a member of Mike Krzyzewski's Blue Devils, whom Redick chose over Pete Gillen's Cavaliers.

"I know their fans hate me and they're going to get on me, but it's also something I kind of enjoy," said Redick, who averaged 20.3 points in three games against Virginia last season. "It's going to be neat to go back there."

Just another game? Not to No. 4.

"Personally, it's a special game," said Redick, whose classmates at Cave Spring High included Tom Hagan, now U.Va.'s punter. "I'm not going to lie. Virginia is my home state, and it means a lot to me, and I have a lot of respect for the U.Va. program and Coach Gillen."

The 6-4, 195-pound guard, perhaps the nation's best pure shooter, has rebounded from a slow start and leads second-ranked Duke (1-0, 11-1) in scoring. He's also on the brink of an ACC record for consecutive free throws. Redick has made 48 straight from the line, tying the ACC record set by Virginia's Jeff Lamp in 1979-80. The mark could fall in the building where Lamp played so many stellar games.

"It's ironic," Redick said. "I'm sure if I get the opportunity to shoot some free throws against U.Va., they're going to be pretty pressure-packed."

Tomorrow's game will match the best players to come out of the Star City in recent years: Redick, who led Cave Spring to the Group AAA title in 2002; and Virginia freshman guard J.R. Reynolds, who starred for four seasons at Roanoke Catholic before transferring to Oak Hill Academy for his senior year.

Redick and Reynolds, who's averaging 6.2 points for U.Va. (0-1, 10-2), played together for several years on the Roanoke Jaguars AAU team. Their paths diverged when Redick entered high school and joined Boo Williams' powerful AAU program in Tidewater. His teammates included Newport News' Elton Brown and Virginia Beach's Jason Clark, now juniors at U.Va.

The three talked often about attending the same college, but Redick, a lifelong Duke fan, couldn't pass up the opportunity to play for Coach K. Still, he said, "those two are my friends for life. I miss those guys a lot."

One of the jewels of Duke's heralded freshman class last season, Redick didn't disappoint. He started 30 games, averaged 15 points, 2.5 rebounds, 2 assists and 1.3 steals, made the all-conference third team, and finished second in balloting for ACC rookie of the year.

"J.J., I thought, had as good a freshman year as any freshman we've had," Krzyzewski said.

Redick's regular-season highlights included a tour de force against U.Va. at Cameron Indoor Stadium. He scored a career-high 34 points in Duke's 104-93 victory, sinking 11 of 11 attempts from the line and 9 of 13 from the floor, including 5 of 6 from beyond the arc. He hit his postseason peak in the ACC tournament final. Redick torched N.C. State for 23 of his game-high 30 points in the final 10:05 to help the Blue Devils capture their fifth straight conference title.

"I was thrown in right away, and I had a lot of pressure to score," Redick said of his freshman season. "I feel I grew up a lot last year, and it ended up being a great experience for me."

Redick headed into the offseason with the goal, as Coach K put it, of "becoming not just a scorer, but a player." A hamstring injury, however, sidelined Redick from late June until early October, and that slowed his progress. So did tendinitis in his left foot early this season. He's healthy now, though, and showing that there's more to his game than a textbook jumper.

"If anybody really knows the game, they know I'm more than a shooter," Redick said. "If I was just a shooter, I wouldn't be playing at this level."