Cavs adds Carter to commitment list
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
January 26, 2006

As of last Thursday, all Brent Carter talked to his coaches about was playing for either Penn State or Boston College. He was considering not even taking his final recruiting visit to Virginia.
But once Carter crossed the Mason-Dixon line and spent a weekend in Charlottesville, the running back from Pottstown, Pa., decided Virginia would be his home for the next few years. A four-star rated running back by Rivals.com, Carter became UVa's 25th commitment on Wednesday, as he chose the Cavaliers over home-state favorite Penn State.

"I didn't even think that Brent was going to take his visit there," said Pottsgrove High coach Rick Pennypacker. "His mom visited Virginia with him last weekend and they fell in love with it ... the community, the school, the atmosphere, the coaches and players."

Ranked the 18th-best running back in the country and the No. 35 overall prospect in the state of Pennsylvania by Rivals.com, Carter had plenty of scholarship offers: UVa, Penn State, BC, Louisville, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Minnesota, Syracuse, Rutgers and others. He's a big back at 6-foot-3, 205 pounds and has 4.55 speed in the 40.

"Virginia is getting a kid that is a very good football player and a potentially great college football player," said Pennypacker, who played for Bobby Bowden at West Virginia in the 1970s. "I've had some great ones to play for me and went on to the next level. Brent's upside is tremendous."

His running style has been compared to former Ohio State Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George, when George played high school ball within a stone's throw of UVa at Fork Union Military Academy.

"I don't want to put those kind of expectations on him, but that's what he's looked like," Pennypacker said. "He's going to put on 20 or 25 pounds once he concentrates on one sport and hits a college weightroom."

The Pottsgrove coach said that both he and Carter are relieved that the recruiting process is over. Each were getting 10 to 12 calls a night from college coaches. The running back, who rushed for more than 4,000 yards and about 50 touchdowns during his four-year career, can officially sign his national letter-of-intent on Feb. 1.

Described by Pennypacker as a durable back, the coach said he once rushed Carter 45 times in a single game this past season. In yet another game, he ran the ball on 29 consecutive plays.

"I had been waiting on this kid to come into my program since he was in the fifth grade," Pennypacker said. "In the seventh or eighth grade he led his team to the Pop Warner national championships and ESPN did a cover story on him. He's always been good."

A starter since his sophomore season, Carter rushed for 1,500 yards and 20 touchdowns as a senior, missing only one game due to injury. Although he played only seven games due to a high ankle sprain his junior year, Carter still managed to gain 1,200 yards and scored 17 TDs.

"There's some people up here who are a little upset that he's not going to Penn State," Pennypacker said. "He's only going to get bigger, stronger, and faster. He could have had a lot more statistics if we had been worried about that sort of thing. Several of our games were over at halftime or otherwise his numbers could have been even better."

Pennypacker, who coached in the Front Royal area before moving to Pottstown in 1989, said that Carter is a humble young man, a role model for kids in his area. He's a yes sir, no sir, kind of person. Also a starter on his school's basketball team, Carter is a strong athlete.

"Coach Al Groh and [assistant coach] Bob Price did a tremendous job of recruiting Brent," the Pottsgrove coach said. "But I think that another Pottstown kid played a big role in the process, too."

That kid is UVa defensive back Chris Gorham, who was a high school neighbor and good friend of Carter's back in Pottstown. Gorham served as Carter's host on his visit to UVa.

"Brent told me all along that with all the scholarship offers he had, that he would know where the right place was once he visited the right school," Pennypacker said. "Well, when he came back to high school here on Monday he was wearing a big smile. That told me all I needed to know."

Virginia now has 25 commitments but is still actively pursuing more recruits because it is anticipated that a couple of the commitments may not qualify academically and will likely enroll in prep school for the 2006 season.

U.VA. NOTES
Richmond Times-Dispatch Jan 26, 2006

FRONTCOURT HELP: Ryan Pettinella, who played basketball as a freshman and sophomore at Pennsylvania, has been accepted at Virginia and will join Dave Leitao's team in 2006-07. The 6-8, 235-pound power forward will be eligible immediately.

Pettinella, who is taking classes at Monroe Community College in Rochester, N.Y., averaged 4.8 points and three rebounds in about 12 minutes per game last season at Penn, which won the Ivy League title and advanced to the NCAA tournament.

Virginia has eight players on scholarship this season - five fewer than the NCAA limit - and none is a senior. Three recruits (Johnnie Lett, Jamil Tucker and Will Harris) signed letters of intent with U.Va. in November, and two others (Solomon Tat and Andy Ogide) have committed for 2006-07.

The Cavaliers' coaching staff hopes to add all five next season, but, for various reasons, not all of them may be able to enroll for the 2006-07 academic year.

U.Va. aggressively recruited Pettinella, and if there's a scholarship available, he'll get one. If not, his family will pay his way in 2006-07.

After leaving Penn last spring, Pettinella planned to transfer to Cincinnati to play for coach Bob Huggins. After Huggins was forced out at Cincinnati last summer, however, Pettinella returned home to Pittsford, N.Y. He enrolled at Monroe, but he's not playing hoops there this season. He has two seasons of eligibility remaining.

THE LIST GROWS: Virginia's 25th football commitment for next season is from Brent Carter, a 6-3, 205-pound tailback from Pottstown, Pa. That's also the hometown of Chris Gorham, a rising junior who started eight games at cornerback for U.Va. in 2005.

Carter chose U.Va. over Penn State and Boston College and also had scholarship offers from Syracuse, Rutgers and West Virginia. He rushed for 20 touchdowns in nine games in 2005.

TWO IN A ROW: Laurynas Mikalauskas wasn't a one-game wonder. The 6-8, 241-pound freshman, who came off the bench to contribute 10 points and five rebounds in U.Va.'s upset of then-No. 24 North Carolina last week, sparkled again Tuesday night.

Mikalauskas, a graduate of Blue Ridge (a prep school near Front Royal), had 12 points and eight rebounds in Virginia's 71-51 romp over Miami at University Hall.

The Lithuanian's dramatic improvement started in the practices leading up to the UNC game.

"Something just went off inside of him that's allowed him to increase his aggressiveness while staying out of foul trouble," U.Va. coach Dave Leitao said. "Even the teaching part of it, I think he's getting it now, and that's maybe what freshmen do. It takes them a little while to get it. At times I'm impatient with him, but he's really stepped up and plays tough and plays physical and can score a little bit. So he becomes an offensive option that we can use."

No.11's hustle and spirit have made him a favorite at U-Hall.

"He knows that his energy is great for our team, and I think he really does know that the fans appreciate that as well," Leitao said.

Mikalauskas said: "I hope so. That's what I try to do. When the crowd's in the game, it's so much easier to play."

Miami coach Frank Haith said his team lost largely because the Cavaliers "were tougher than we were. They were physically tougher. The kid, 11, he played hard."

FAN APPRECIATION: Tuesday's game, which started at 9 p.m., didn't draw a sellout crowd to University Hall. But the fans who turned out made it loud and clear that they like the effort the Cavaliers have shown under their new coach. Picked to finish last in the ACC, Virginia is tied for second.

"One part of building a program is [trying to] play the kind of basketball that your players like and your fans appreciate," Leitao said. "I like to think, and I've heard it since we've started, that our guys are playing hard, and that's the first and most important part of being appreciated, that you play the game the right away."

STAYING PUT: U.Va. football coach Al Groh has lost four assistants since the end of the season, and he might have had to replace Evan Marcus, too. But Marcus is overseeing the Cavaliers' offseason program, which started this month, and will be back for a fifth season as head strength and conditioning coach.

Marcus recently was a finalist to become an NFL head strength coach. He interviewed with the Atlanta Falcons and New Orleans Saints.

Marcus, whose wife is from New Orleans, spent three seasons as the Saints' assistant strength coach before taking the job at U.Va. - Jeff White



 

Virginia football schedule revealed
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
January 26, 2006

There are a number of traditionalists that longed for Virginia and Virginia Tech to play in the final week of the football season.
They got their wish on Wednesday.

The Atlantic Coast Conference released the official 2006 schedule, which includes 97 games, 48 league match-ups and the second annual ACC Championship Game in Jacksonville, Fla., on Dec. 2.

For Virginia, the road to Jacksonville includes eight league games, five games against bowl teams, four nonconference contests and a tricky finish to the season.

Three teams on Virginia's '06 schedule finished the season ranked in the top 25 and conveniently, the Cavaliers play all three to close out the season. After playing at Florida State on Nov. 4, UVa will host Miami on Nov. 18th and travel to Virginia Tech on Nov. 25 to finish the regular season. UVa's lone bye week falls between the FSU and Miami games.

Virginia's season opener will be played on Sept. 2 against Pittsburgh. The Panthers, a Big East foe, went 5-6 overall last season, but finished with a 5-1 mark in their home games, which are played at Heinz Field (also home to the NFL's Pittsburgh Steelers).

Virginia's ACC schedule opens at Georgia Tech (Sept. 21), in the first of two Thursday night games for the Cavaliers. UVa coach Al Groh and his team will also play on Thursday night at home against North Carolina (Oct. 19).

The NCAA passed legislation that allows Division I-A schools to play 12 regular-season games, giving UVa four nonconference games. In addition to playing at Pitt, the Cavaliers will host Wyoming (Sept. 9), Western Michigan (Sept. 16) and play at East Carolina (Oct. 7). In 2007, UVa will host Pitt and ECU, while traveling to Wyoming.

Virginia Tech's 12-game schedule includes eight home games and nonconference games with Northeastern (season opener, Sept. 2), Cincinnati (Sept. 23), Southern Miss (Oct. 21) and Kent State (Nov. 11).

In the ACC, the Hokies will host Duke (Sept. 16), Georgia Tech (Sept. 30), Clemson (Oct. 26) and UVa (Nov. 25) and travel to UNC (Sept. 9), Boston College (Oct. 12), Miami (Nov. 4) and Wake Forest (Nov. 18).

Like the Cavaliers, Virginia Tech plays two Thursday night games.

Virginia's complete schedule: at Pittsburgh (Sept. 2); Wyoming (Sept. 9), Western Michigan (Sept. 16), at Georgia Tech (Sept. 21), at Duke (Sept. 30), at East Carolina (Oct. 7), Maryland (Oct. 14), North Carolina (Oct. 19), N.C. State (Oct. 28), at Florida State (Nov. 4), Miami (Nov. 18), at Virginia Tech (Nov. 25).

Game times will be announced at a later date.

 

Mikalauskas stepping up for Cavaliers
By Whitelaw Reid / Daily Progress staff writer
January 26, 2006

Last week, North Carolina coach Roy Williams admitted he had no idea how to pronounce Laurynas Mikalauskas' name. On Tuesday night, Miami coach Frank Haith simply referred to Mikalauskas as No. 11.
This much is certain: If Mikalauskas keeps playing like he has the last two games, his name should be rolling off the tongues of coaches around the country before too long.

The University of Virginia freshman scored an ACC career-high 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the Cavaliers' 71-51 rout of Miami on Tuesday night. The Blue Ridge School product also snatched eight rebounds.

The Cavs (10-6, 4-2) are off to their best start in the ACC since they went 4-2 in the 2001-02 season.

After the game, Haith went out of his way to praise the hard work and hustle of Mikalauskas. He said the Cavs' 6-foot-8 big man was one of the main reasons his team was "out-toughed."

Like a Dennis Rodman used to do for the Bulls or a Charles Oakley did for the Knicks, Mikalauskas' effort seems to be contagious. It also gets fans extremely fired-up.

"That's what I try and do," said Mikalauskas, whose nickname is Lauris. "When the crowd's into the game, it's so much easier to play. I feel great when the crowd's in the game."

After scoring on a pretty jump hook that put the Cavs up by 11 points with less than 10 minutes to play, the Lithuanian waved his arms and exhorted fans while running back on defense.

"He's got his confidence now," Cav guard T.J. Bannister said. "I mean he always had his confidence and played hard, but he's just playing his game now. He's been real strong."

After losing to Virginia on Thursday, Williams was incredulous when he looked at the final stat sheet. The Tar Heels coach thought the Cavs had a lot more than 10 offensive rebounds.

Mikalauskas' lunch pail approach was probably the reason for that. Every time he grabs a rebound, the University Hall crowd goes bananas. One board probably feels like two or three to opponents.

It has been a stunning awakening for Mikalauskas. Before his breakout against UNC, he looked a little lost. He had fouled out against Florida State and Virginia Tech - and was practically invisible on the offensive end.

Mikalauskas said he had a 45-minute conversation with coach Dave Leitao after the Tech game.

"He told me I was going to be needed to score more because you can't win ACC games solely with your guards," Mikalauskas said. "You need to have some presence inside."

Leitao said things started clicking for Mikalauskas a couple of practices before the UNC game.

"Something just went off inside of him," Leitao said. "It allowed him to increase his aggressiveness while staying out of foul trouble. Sometimes it takes freshmen a little longer to get it.

"He's really stepped up and played tough, played physical and has scored a little bit. He's become an offensive option that we can use."

After Mikalauskas and Tunji Soroye barely touched the ball against the Hokies, Leitao said he made some adjustments to the Cavs' offense.

"Teams were hedging really hard and trying to take away the catch and play of our perimeter people," Leitao explained. "That leaves one-on-one in the post. If we don't go to those guys, one: they'll get tired of screening, and two: we'll never increase the balance needed for us to continue to move forward.

"We talked about it a lot and tried to execute it in practice. In two games now we've been pretty good at it."

Mikalauskas, who had 10 points and five rebounds against UNC, said some tips from assistant coach Steve Seymour have helped him stay out of foul trouble.

"He's been showing me about illegal screens," Mikalauskas said, "and I think I'm just getting used to ACC basketball."

DUNK: J.R. Reynolds, who took a nasty spill and landed on his head - causing him to miss most of the second half of the win over Miami - said he was doing much better on Wednesday. Reynolds said the dizziness he felt following the game was gone. He said he's still not sure exactly what happened on the play. "I remember going in for the layup," he said. "I don't know if my legs got taken out from under me or what. I just remember hitting the floor and hitting my head." Reynolds sounded pretty confident about his status for Duke on Saturday. "I'll find a way if I'm not ready," he said.

 

Tech, U.Va. save best for last
2006 ACC football slate released; state rivals meet in season finale
Richmond Times-Dispatch Jan 26, 2006

Virginia and Virginia Tech meet Nov.25 in Blacksburg, the final game of the 2006 regular football season for both schools.

The ACC released its 2006 schedule yesterday. Virginia Tech will play eight home games in a 12-game schedule, Virginia six. Each team plays two Thursday night games.

Virginia opens its sixth season under coach Al Groh with a Sept.2 game at Pittsburgh. The Cavaliers' other nonconference opponents: Wyoming, Western Michigan and East Carolina.

The first of Virginia's Thursday games will be Sept.21 at Georgia Tech. The second will be Oct.19 against North Carolina in Charlottesville. U.Va. wasn't part of ESPN's Thursday night schedule in 2005.

November looms as a challenge for the Cavaliers, whose opponents that month are ACC powers Florida State (Nov.4), Miami (Nov.18) and Virginia Tech (Nov.25). Only the game against the Hurricanes is at Scott Stadium.

Tech's Thursday games will be Oct.12 at Boston College and Oct. 26 at home against Clemson. In between, Tech plays Southern Mississippi at home Oct.21.

Frank Beamer's 20th season in charge at his alma mater begins Sept.2 against Northeastern, a Division I-AA team that finished 2-9 in 2005. The Hokies' other nonconference foes: Southern Miss, Cincinnati and Kent State.

This year's ACC title game is Dec.2 in Jacksonville, Fla. - Mike Harris and Jeff White

VIRGINIA'S 2006 SCHEDULE

Sept. 2, at Pittsburgh; 9, Wyoming; 16, Western Michigan 21, at Georgia Tech; 30, at Duke

Oct. 7 at East Carolina; 14, Maryland; 19, North Carolina; 28, N.C. State

Nov. 4 at Florida State; 18, Miami; 25 at Virginia Tech


VIRGINIA TECH'S 2006 SCHEDULE

Sept. 2, Northeastern; 9, at North Carolina; 16, Duke; 23, Cincinnati; 30, Georgia Tech

Oct. 12, at Boston College; 21, Southern Mississippi; 26, Clemson

Nov. 4, at Miami; 11, Kent State; 18, at Wake Forest; 25, Virginia

 

Michael Vick defends brother
BY GEORGE HENRY
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Jan 26, 2006

ATLANTA - Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick believes Virginia Tech overreacted when the school dismissed his brother, Marcus, from the football team after he stomped on an opposing player in the Gator Bowl.

Marcus Vick later claimed the incident was accidental and that he apologized to Louisville's Elvis Dumervil, but the All-American defensive end denied receiving an apology.

Michael Vick, who led Virginia Tech to the 1999 national title game as a redshirt freshman, was at the Gator Bowl and saw his brother step on Dumervil.

"Sometimes your emotions just take over," Michael Vick said at halftime of last night's NBA game between the Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers. "I know Marcus. He's not the kind of kid that's going to do something like that on purpose. That's just something he's got to live with, and now it's just time to move on."

Marcus Vick's Gator Bowl antics came after he received a speeding ticket Dec. 17 in Hampton, Va. He also was ticketed at the time for driving with a suspended license.

He had been under a "zero tolerance" policy at Virginia Tech following his suspension from the university for the 2004 season after several legal problems.

Earlier this month, just three days after being kicked off the football team, Vick was arrested and charged with pulling a gun on three teenagers in Virginia.

The 21-year-old is free on $10,000 bond until he makes a March court appearance in Suffolk, Va., to face three misdemeanor counts of brandishing a firearm.

The brothers are living together in Michael Vick's home in Duluth, Ga.

Michael said he believes Marcus will be exonerated.

"No, I ain't mad," Michael Vick said. "He didn't do anything wrong. The world will all know when the truth comes out."
 

Cavs ride the wave of success, but who gets the credit?
Sean McLernon, Cavalier Daily Sports Columnist

Virginia fans are riding high right now. We're talking Keith Jenifer high.

And who can blame them? The Cavaliers already have equaled their ACC win total from last year after a mere six games. All they have to do is go 1-9 over the next 10 ACC contests, and they will arguably have a more successful season than last year.

It's clear that the Tor-Leitao has touched down, and the rest of the ACC is looking for shelter. Tuesday's 20-point win over Miami was Virginia's largest margin of victory in an ACC contest since 2001. Somebody put out a wind advisory, this is some serious stuff.

Of course, Virginia fans shouldn't get too far ahead of themselves. Last year's team was impressive enough early in the season to earn the Cavaliers a No. 19 ranking in both the Associated Press and the ESPN/USA Today National Polls in mid-December, and we all know how that team turned out. Virginia's 4-2 ACC record is impressive, but the Cavaliers have yet to face Duke, N.C. State, Boston College or Maryland -- possibly the top four teams in the conference.

Nonetheless, you can't argue with the numbers. Virginia has started 4-2 after ending last ACC season 4-12. This is clearly good news and reflects well on Leitao. But the coach that fans should really be thanking for this year's early success is the much-maligned Pete Gillen.

After all, Gillen is the one that brought Sean Singletary to Charlottesville. And it has been Singletary's super-human performances that have propelled the Cavaliers to victory so often this season.

I believe that Leitao's tutelage has turned Jason Cain from an absolute joke into one of the ACC's top rebounders. Adrian Joseph has looked better than ever with Leitao at the helm, and even Tunji Soroye has emerged as a defensive force in the paint. The Cavaliers are rebounding better and playing stingier defense. Leitao clearly has established the necessary principles for turning Virginia into a successful program in the long term.

But as far as the wins over the last few weeks, none of them would have happened without Singletary.

When teammate J.R. Reynolds went down with an injury only five minutes into the second half, Singletary picked up the slack and then some. Racking up 20 points in 15 minutes, Singletary turned a two-point lead at the time Reynolds went down into a 20-point blowout victory.

On the road against Virginia Tech last week, with the Hokies up 49-44 with less than four minutes left, Singletary came to the rescue. He drained a three-pointer from the top of the key and drained another bucket to tie the score at 49. When the Virginia Tech defense keyed in on him with 45 seconds left and with the Cavs in possession of the ball, Adrian Joseph was left wide open in the corner to sink a game-winning trey.

When North Carolina visited U-Hall only days ago, Singletary was the team's leading scorer with 18 points, eight of which came during a pivotal 13-2 Virginia run that gave the Cavaliers a 55-46 lead with under nine minutes remaining.

Remember the one game Singletary didn't play this season? That was in December when the Cavaliers played A-10 doormat Fordham and lost. At home, no less. When Fordham coach Dereck Whittenburg saw Singletary in street clothes before the game, he said he "almost had a heart attack" and that Singletary's absence was "the big reason why we had a chance to win tonight."

Try the only reason. If Singletary had played, he would have never let Fordham beat the Cavaliers at home. It would have been scientifically impossible for Fordham to win. Call it the fourth law of thermodynamics: A crappy non-conference team cannot maintain enough heat to beat Virginia with Singletary on the floor.

While Leitao is slowly laying the foundation for a successful program, Singletary is single-handedly improving his former coach's legacy, and Virginia fans are reaping the benefits. Luring Singletary to Charlottesville may quite possibly go down as Gillen's greatest contribution to the Virginia program.

Forget about the wasted timeouts. Forget about the lack of defense. Forget about Elton Brown.

Okay, maybe I got a little ahead of myself with that last one...

 

Groh might not hire offensive chief

In early December, faced by the loss of his offensive and defensive coordinators in a five-day span, Virginia football coach Al Groh consulted with New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who had experienced a similar situation one year earlier.

Belichick did not hire an offensive coordinator to replace Charlie Weis, and Groh hasn't named a successor for his offensive coordinator, Ron Prince, the new head coach at Kansas State.

"I'm not sure if we will," Groh said Wednesday by cell phone.

It should be noted that Belichick, whose bid for a third straight NFL championship ended in the AFC semifinals, announced last week that he has elevated 29-year-old quarterbacks coach Josh McDaniels to offensive coordinator.

Does that mean that Belichick regretted his decision to go without a coordinator this year?

"I happen to know that that's not the way that he feels," Groh said.

If Groh chose an offensive coordinator from his current staff, the most likely candidates would be John Garrett, the UVa receivers coach, and quarterbacks coach Mike Groh, the head coach's son.

Al Groh did not name a coordinator for the bowl and while it is widely believed that Garrett called plays, Groh has not confirmed that.

"This whole concept of who the coordinator is, it's so different on so many different teams," Groh said. "There are certain leadership functions that need to be performed and you have to make sure that those are well-defined."

Groh did announce that Mike London would replace new Temple coach Al Golden as the Cavaliers' new defensive coordinator, but he has not chosen a replacement for Golden as secondary coach and isn't sure if he will name an assistant head coach, a role previously filled by Danny Rocco, the new head coach at Liberty.

"There are some guys who are assistant head coaches and that's where it ends," Groh said. "It's like a merit badge. When Danny was here, his was really a functional position."

n Groh said he had known new offensive-line coach Dave Borbely for only three weeks before hiring him, comparing Borbely's selection to the process under which he originally found Prince, recommended by people Groh respects in the business.

Even if Groh had wanted to hire James Madison assistant Curt Newsome, the window probably had closed. Coaches at other schools are saying that Newsome will be joining Virginia Tech's staff after the national letter-of-intent day next Wednesday.

Recruiting

Nebraska and Virginia have stopped recruiting Greg Davis, a defensive back at the Blue Ridge School who has narrowed his choices to North Carolina State, West Virginia and Tennessee. Davis, rated the No. 17 prospect in Virginia by The Roanoke Times, is the lone uncommitted member of The Roanoke Times' Top 25.

In the past week, Penn State has received an oral commitment from the No. 5 player on that list, running back Evan Royster from Westfield High School in Chantilly. No. 10 Brandon Minor, a running back from Varina High School, has said he will go to Michigan. Only 10 of the top 25 players will be staying in state, compared to 19 last year.

As of Wednesday, the current Tech recruiting class was ranked 30th by rivals.com and Virginia's class was 34th.