Virginia looking for heroes against high-flying Texas Tech
By Jay Jenkins / jjenkins@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
December 31, 2007

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - It was a golden opportunity to pat himself on the back.

With history on his side, having won three of four bowl games, Virginia coach Al Groh could have basked in the moment as a postseason genius.

Without hesitation, however, Groh shifted praise for claiming the title at the Continental Tire Bowl twice and once at the Music City Bowl.

“Obviously, just the first place to look is the performance of the players,” Groh said. “In all of those games that we won, we got some really stand-up performances from the players.”

Groh cited a long list of former Cavaliers, including Marques Hagans, Connor Hughes, Wali Lundy and Matt Schaub.

“I think it’s all about what the players are able to do,” Groh said.

Today at 1 p.m. inside Jacksonville Municipal Stadium, Groh is in search of another batch of heroes as Virginia plays on New Year’s Day for the first time since 1994.

As Groh confessed, the 21st-ranked Cavaliers (9-3) will need just that against Texas Tech (8-4) in the 63rd edition of the Gator Bowl.

The Red Raiders, from the Big 12 Conference, lead the nation in passing and average 537 yards of total offense and almost 42 points per game.

“We understand on a play-to-play basis, it’s going to be a challenge and it’s going to be a struggle,” Groh said. “We think over the years that Oklahoma and Texas have proven what kind of players they have on their team, yet they both have found it extremely difficult to slow this offense down.

“We understand the challenge it’s going to take and it will be interesting to see how we do with it. We’re anxious to see.”

Virginia, a six-point underdog, will face the Red Raiders’ aerial assault and the nation’s top wide receiver, redshirt freshman Michael Crabtree, without starting cornerback Chris Cook, who was ineligible to play in the contest.

“I don’t think I’ve ever designated [Cook] as our top defensive back. He’s one of our very good players, but it’s going to take more than one player to slow this particular offense down and this particular player,” Groh pointed out. “But our practice has gone well and any time we put anybody in the game, we feel real good that player’s ability to perform, otherwise we wouldn’t put them out there.

“And we feel the same way about the guys we’ll put out there [today].”

Virginia, which allowed only two teams to pass for more than 300 yards this season, plans to rotate a collection of players through its secondary.

“All of us have to answer the bell,” cornerback Vic Hall said. “Obviously, we are facing one of the best passing offenses in the nation so this is a time for us to step up and see what we can do.”

Texas Tech’s offense, which is buoyed by a massive offensive line that allowed on 15 sacks, relies on quick passes, which could help negate Virginia’s obvious defensive strength.

“It’s a challenge and it’s not only a challenge because of the scheme they run, but because they have good players running the scheme,” Virginia defensive end and All-American Chris Long said. “As a defensive lineman, I can’t say ‘Oh heck, they’re going to be getting rid of it quick, I’m not going to bring it.’

“You just have to keep coming like you would as a pass rusher in any game and be relentless. If you get back there once or twice in the game, you had a good day. You’ve got to keep bringing it.”

Given Texas Tech’s ability to score in bunches, it would appear that an added sense of pressure will be placed on Virginia’s offense to offer counter punches.

Virginia quarterback Jameel Sewell agrees.

“No matter how great our defense is, they are not going to be able to stop them every time. They are going to score,” said Sewell, who passed for 2,098 yards and 11 touchdowns. “We just have to make sure we have the defense’s back. They are going to have our back and they have all year.

“As long as the offense returns the favor and puts points on the board, we should be fine.”

The often maligned offensive unit did receive a boost earlier this week when late-arriving tailback Mikell Simpson returned to the team after missing a pair of practices due to some uncertainty with his academic situation.

“It was very relieving to get here,” Simpson said. “I was cleared but I just had to wait on certain things and it was great just to get back here with the guys that I have been going to war with for a long time.”

Simpson, who emerged in the eighth game of the season after starting running back Cedric Peerman was lost for the season with a Lisfranc injury, had 744 all-purpose yards during the Cavaliers’ final five contests and hopes to help make historic statement.

“I want to try to contribute as much as I can to getting our 10th win,” Simpson said. “Being the second team in school history to win 10 games is something great to be a part of.

“And we are playing on New Year’s so a lot of people get the chance to watch us and we feel like we haven’t gained a lot of people’s respect yet. We have the opportunity to wake people up in the world as to who Virginia is and who we are going to be.”

 

Albert still not talking future
By Jay Jenkins / jjenkins@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
December 31, 2007

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - After Sunday’s practice at Jacksonville University, Virginia’s seniors wrapped up the session by individually addressing the team.

Virginia left guard Branden Albert, a junior, did not address the team.

Could that be an indication for which way the 310-pound lineman is leaning for 2008?

“You should not read into that,” said Albert, who is debating whether to enter the NFL Draft. “I will only talk about Texas Tech.”

Albert said he was unsure when he would publicly announce his decision, but did not rule out making his plans known after today’s Gator Bowl.

“I actually don’t know,” he said.

His focus, for now, is trying to send the members of the senior class out with a win.

“I didn’t want the seniors to go out this year like the seniors went out last year,” Albert said. “I am going to play my hardest and I think other guys that are underclassmen will play their hardest to send them out with a final win.”

Back in a flash?

Unless sophomore Mikell Simpson runs for 186 yards, Cedric Peerman will finish the season as Virginia’s leading rusher.

Peerman, who has missed the past six games after suffering a season-ending injury at Middle Tennessee, said he progressing nicely from the Lisfranc surgery he had in November.

Walking now without the aid of crutches, Peerman, a junior, actually told a fan watching one of the Gator Bowl practices that he would be jogging in a week.

“I hope so,” he confirmed.

It is not known, Peerman said, if he would be available for spring practice, but Virginia coach Al Groh has said that it is not needed due to the tailback’s veteran status.

“I really don’t know right now,” Peerman said. “I am just trying to take it easy and let everything heal up first. We will see how things go from there. “If I am ready, I am ready. If I am not, I am not.”

Peerman rushed for 585 yards and five touchdowns before he suffered the foot injury.

“I am just ready to cheer on the team in the bowl game and ready to be a cheerleader on the sidelines,” he said with a smile.

Enjoy the fun

Virginia baseball coach Brian O’Connor can relax.

Tight end Tom Santi, a high school baseball standout, will not attempt to try out for the Cavaliers’ baseball squad.

During the festivities leading up to the Gator Bowl, Santi enjoyed a few minutes in a batting cage.

“I was just awful,” Santi joked.

Defensive end Chris Long had a completely different highlight from the days that led up to the contest.

“Going to the zoo,” Long chuckled. “That was a lot of fun. I got to see a lion. I got to see a giraffe.

“There’s some crazy stuff at the zoo.”

 

Gould a valuable commodity for Cavs
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
December 31, 2007

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. _ Somewhere this morning in this sprawling Southern city, you can bet that Virginia coach Al Groh has made sure that Chris Gould is getting his customary cup of hot chocolate.

You have to keep your kicker happy, just in case a close game comes down to a potential game-winning boot. Groh would be more than happy to see that scenario in today’s Gator Bowl contest against Texas Tech.

The Virginia coach would have to like his chances in a down-to-the-wire outcome. After all, his Cavaliers set the new NCAA standard for close calls this season, winning five games by two or fewer points.

No wonder Groh wants to keep Gould loosey-goosey for today’s game. If that means cooperating with superstition, so be it.

Hot chocolate? That’s one of Gould’s deals.

“I always have a cup of it before the game no matter the weather,” Gould said. “I just like hot chocolate. It calms you down.”

With marshmallows?

“You’ve gotta have marshmallows,” Gould said.

In these times of college football parity with Appalachian State knocking off the likes of Michigan and thriller-diller finishes dotting the landscape on a weekly basis, Groh knows that one of the best insurance policies a football team can have is a good field goal kicker.

While Gould, a senior, wasn’t a finalist for any of the national kicking awards, his value to Virginia has been immeasurable.

“With a reliable kicker, you can win two or three games that you might have lost,” Groh said. “Chris Gould was a new kicker because he changed his whole style of kicking.”

Such was the case with Gould this season when he switched from a three-step to a two-step approach and improved his accuracy and length. He booted two game-winning field goals against Middle Tennessee State and Connecticut, and his school record-tying fifth field goals helped the Cavs edge North Carolina, 22-20.

For Gould, that’s all the verification he needed to prove that he was a good kicker.

“I like to put it in this perspective: how valuable am I to the team if you take me out of the game?” Gould said. “And I really feel like, with my pooch punting and my kickoff ability and then the field goals, that I’m the right kicker for this team. There’s no doubt about it. You put another guy in this situation, maybe they don’t do as well. Like Cedric Peerman. He was the right running back for us at the beginning, and he got the tough yards. That’s the same way I think of myself.”

The kick at Middle Tennessee, his first game-winning kick of his career, was a real shot in the arm, or maybe in his case, the leg for Gould.

“That’s one of those things where it’s a make or break type kick,” he said. “You miss it, that could kill a player’s confidence. Here [your team] just lost to a mid-major, Middle Tennessee State, because you didn’t make the field goal. That could be really embarrassing.”

But the winning kick gave him confidence that he could make any kick within reason. Still, there’s tremendous pressure for the aforementioned reasons.

“I don’t really think about it too much. There’s some guys who put a lot of thought in it, but it doesn’t matter to me. Talk to me, fool around, doesn’t matter,” Gould said. “You just try to simplify things as much as possible. My first thing was, ‘Stand tall, swing through, follow through, and make sure it all goes toward the target.’

“I did some of those things pretty good in that situation [at MTSU],” he added. “I didn’t exactly follow through too well, but it went where it needed to go.”

Which helped win one of those five games by two or fewer points, which is why the Cavaliers are in this afternoon’s Gator Bowl.

Maybe Virginia ought to consider putting up a hot chocolate container on the sidelines alongside the other drinks. With marshmallows, of course.

 

Go time at last for Cavaliers
After weeks of overanalyzing, U.Va. takes aim at Texas Tech
Tuesday, Jan 01, 2008 - 12:05 AM Updated: 01:11 AM

Three keys for U.Va.

1. Hold Texas Tech to field goals. That the Red Raiders, who rank second nationally in total offense, will move the ball against U.Va.'s defense seems certain. But if the Cavaliers can consistently give up only three points, instead of seven, in the red zone, their chances of winning will improve dramatically.
2. Execute in the red zone. If the Wahoos have to rely on Chris Gould's right foot for their scoring, they'll be in trouble. U.Va. must come away with touchdowns whenever possible, because it's not going to shut out Texas Tech.
3. Keep Michael Crabree from dominating. Without Chris Cook, its best defensive back, U.Va. must try to stop the nation's top wide receiver. Crabtree, a redshirt freshman, has caught 125 passes for 1,861 yards and 21 touchdowns. Slowing him down will be a daunting task for a secondary that's the weakest part of U.Va.'s defense.
- Jeff White

Texas Tech (4-4 Big 12, 8-4 overall)
Sept. 3: at SMUW, 49-9
Sept. 8: UTEPW, 45-31
Sept. 15: at RiceW, 59-24
Sept. 22: at Okla. StateL, 49-45
Sept. 29: N'western StateW, 75-7
Oct. 6: Iowa StateW, 42-17
Oct. 13: Texas A&MW, 35-7
Oct. 20: at MissouriL, 41-10
Oct. 27: ColoradoL, 31-26
Nov. 3: at BaylorW, 38-7
Nov. 10: at TexasL, 59-43
Nov. 17: OklahomaW, 34-27


Virginia (6-2 ACC, 9-3 overall)
Sept. 1: at WyomingL, 23-3
Sept. 8: DukeW, 24-13
Sept. 15: at N. CarolinaW, 22-20
Sept. 22: Georgia TechW, 28-23
Sept. 29: PittsburghW, 44-14
Oct. 6: at Middle Tenn.W, 23-21
Oct. 13: ConnecticutW, 17-16
Oct. 20: at MarylandW, 18-17
Oct. 27: at N.C. StateL, 29-24
Nov. 3: Wake ForestW, 17-16
Nov. 10: at MiamiW, 48-0
Nov. 24: Virginia TechL, 33-21


Tale of the tape

Texas Tech Virginia
41.8 Scoring off. 24.1
25.8 Scoring def. 18.8
61.4 Rushing off. 126.2
171.0 Rushing def. 113.0
475.6 Passing off. 203.0
196.1 Passing def. 210.4
537.0 Total off. 329.2
367.1 Total def. 323.4
92-852 Penalties-yds. 59-507
25 Turnovers 18
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The Gator Bowl matchup was announced Dec. 2, which means University of Virginia football coach Al Groh and his players have spent more than four weeks discussing the challenge presented by the profilic passing game of Texas Tech.

"The game's been pretty well talked-out," Groh said yesterday.

Fortunately for all parties, the game is finally at hand. No.21 U.Va. (9-3), playing on New Year's Day for the first time in 14 years, meets Texas Tech (8-4) at 1 p.m., and CBS will televise the first football game between these schools.

The Cavaliers haven't played in the Gator since Dec. 29, 1991, when they lost to Oklahoma.

Don't look for a defensive struggle to unfold this afternoon at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium. The Red Raiders, from the Big 12, rank first nationally in passing offense (475.6 yards per game), second in total offense (537 yards) and sixth in scoring offense (41.8 points).

"Clearly, we have to find a way to reduce this point total down from the average of 42 points per game," Groh said. "That's too much to ask just 11 players to do. We need 33 players to do that: 11 on defense, 11 on special teams and 11 on offense. Then we have to find ways to raise our point total."

Virginia ranks 100th nationally in total offense (329.2 yards) and 86th in scoring offense (24.1 points), though its late-game production often has been outstanding. The Cavaliers probably will need an above-average offensive effort if they're to improve their postseason record under Groh to 4-1.

"All year long our defense has held the opponents to under a certain amount of points, and we've been able to pull out games with 14 points and 16 points," said sophomore quarterback Jameel Sewell, a Hermitage High graduate. "Texas Tech is definitely going to score, no matter how great our defense plays, but as long as we maintain [and score touchdowns], I think we should come out on the upside."

All-ACC offensive guard Branden Albert said: "I don't know if we're going to run it down their throats, but we're going to have to keep the ball, make first downs, make completions . . . keep the clock on our side."

For such Wahoos as tight end Tom Santi, defensive end Chris Long, linebacker Jermaine Dias, safety Nate Lyles, kicker Chris Gould, center Jordy Lipsey and offensive guard Ian-Yates Cunningham, today's game will mark the end of their college careers. They have an opportunity to leave an impressive legacy. U.Va. can finish with 10 wins for only the second time in school history.

"It would be special," Albert said.

Virginia set an NCAA record during the regular season by winning five games by two points or fewer. Texas Tech, by contrast, has yet to play in a game decided by fewer than five points this season.

"Hopefully we avoid it," Red Raiders coach Mike Leach said. "Hopefully we're ahead."

At the heart of U.Va.'s success has been Long, a first-team All-American who recorded 14 sacks during the regular season. But the Red Raiders have allowed only 15 sacks, and junior quarterback Graham Harrell favors a three-step drop that allows him to get rid of the football before defenders can get near him.

"It's a challenge," Long said yesterday, "and it's not only a challenge because of the scheme they run, but because they have good players running the scheme. But as a defensive lineman I can't say, 'Oh, they're getting rid of it quick, I'm not going to bring it.'

"You've just got to keep coming and, like you would as a pass-rusher in any game, be relentless. You've just got to keep bringing it, and it might be the fourth quarter before you get back there."

The Cavaliers have encountered many obstacles since the end of last season. Their No. 1 wide receiver, Kevin Ogletree, tore his ACL during spring practice and hasn't played this season. Mike Brown, a potential starter at cornerback, hurt his knee in June and hasn't played, either.

Junior tailback Cedric Peerman was leading the ACC in rushing when he injured his right foot Oct. 6, and he's recovering from season-ending surgery. So is freshman linebacker John Bivens (Prince George High), who was expected to play a significant role on special teams. Just last week, junior Chris Cook, the Cavaliers' best defensive back, was ruled academically ineligible.

But through it all, U.Va. has persevered. This is an exceptionally close team, one that's embraced a "next-man-up" philosophy. When one player has gone down, another has risen to take his place. Now, one last challenge awaits the Cavaliers.

"It's going to have to be a total team game," Santi said. "You hear people say that, but it really is."

 

GATOR BOWL NOTES
Tuesday, Jan 01, 2008 - 12:00 AM Updated: 01:11 AM

End of an era
After Virginia's final pre-Gator Bowl practice late Sunday afternoon, the team stayed on the field at Jacksonville University. One by one, U.Va.'s seniors shared parting thoughts with their teammates and coaches.

"For me, it was just 'Thank you,'" All-America defensive end Chris Long said yesterday. "I couldn't thank everybody enough in this program."

Of practicing as a Cavalier for the last time, Long said, "It hits you. It's an emotional time. It's just good to be with your boys one last time out there. It really sinks in when you get on the bus and you hear your guys talk after practice. You don't take anything for granted."

Senior tight end Tom Santi said: "Through the practice, it was just a normal practice, and then when it was over, you hear guys kind of whispering back and forth, 'That was the last one. That was the last one.'"

Santi's message to the team?

"I told the guys I got everything I wanted out of coming here," he said. "Everything and more. As Chris said, we wanted to be part of taking Virginia to the next level. I guess we're kind of in the process of doing that right now."

Study in contrasts
Both teams attended a Gator Bowl luncheon yesterday at the Hyatt Regency. Virginia's players and coaches wore suits and ties. Texas Tech players wore their game jerseys, most with jeans, and many had on baseball caps.

Ahoy, matey!
Texas Tech coach Mike Leach is one of the great characters in college football, and he was in good form yesterday. After his formal press conference, he stuck around to talk to several reporters, and the conversation turned to his well-chronicled fascination with pirates.

"I've read about them and studied them and stuff like that," Leach said, "and that kind of took on a life of its own, as that New York Times article mentioned a speech that I gave regarding pirates and their rules and how they worked together.

"So from that, I guess they kind of tagged me the pirate guy, which I'm really not complaining about, because there's far worse."

Positive outlook
U.Va. linebacker John Bivens is on crutches these days as he recovers from the latest operation on his left knee. Still, he said Sunday, "I'm not discouraged. Things happen for a reason."

Of the freshmen who redshirted at Virginia in 2006, Bivens might have generated the most buzz among teammates and coaches, and the former Prince George High star was expected to be a special-teams standout and a key reserve at inside linebacker this season. But he needed arthroscopic surgery on his left knee after spring practice ended in April and never fully recovered.

Bivens appeared in only seven regular-season games, the last of which was Oct. 27 at N.C. State. He played almost exclusively on special teams.

Red Raiders punished
Two Texas Tech players - running back Shannon Woods and defensive end Brandon Sharpe - were sent home Sunday for violating team rules. Neither figured to play a prominent role in the game. Woods has been buried on the depth chart since late in the regular season, and Sharpe has an ankle injury that would have kept him out of the game. - Jeff White

 

Lyles has come back from edge
Tuesday, Jan 01, 2008 - 12:00 AM
By BOB LIPPER
TIMES-DISPATCH COLUMNIST

Nate Lyles remembers the incident like it was doomsday (potentially). He'd just been sledgehammered by 210 pounds of Georgia Tech running back. He was lying face down on Scott Stadium's grassy carpet. He couldn't move his arms or legs. He had no feeling in his body.

He was scared.

The date was Nov. 12, 2005, and Lyles' football season was over.

His career? He wondered if that was on the ropes as well.

Virginia winds up its 2007 campaign today in the Gator Bowl. It'll be a curtain-closer for Nate Lyles, too. He's a senior by class and a free safety by position -- free to run stride for stride with Texas Tech receivers in this case, free to slam his body into traffic jams, free to play without fear.

Free to get a rush imagining what it's like to defend a team that puts it up 58 times a game.

"I'm really excited about this," Lyles said. "As a secondary, you look at it as a challenge. There's going to be so many passes thrown up in the air. For me, especially being my last game, it's going to be a really big opportunity."

He uses words like "blessed" and "grateful" to define his appreciation for such chances -- and he's not just paying lip service to good fortune. When you've once been stretchered and ambulanced from a stadium -- crowd hushed, parents hovering nearby -- you learn how fragile a body can be. You take nothing for granted.

The play was one he recognized from film sessions. Jackets tailback P.J. Daniels got the ball from quarterback Reggie Ball and came fourth-gearing around the corner. Lyles immediately moved forward to meet the play. He's always loved to hit people. Why, he can't exactly say. Some people do, some people don't. Nate Lyles has always liked contact.

He expected a collision with Daniels. What he didn't anticipate was Daniels hurdling him. The runner's right knee caught Lyles toward the top of the helmet. His head snapped back. Daniels proceeded toward a 12-yard gain. Lyles went down in a heap and stayed there until medical personnel turned him over.

Feeling in his limbs began to return after a few minutes. The dread he might not play again lasted for weeks.

"The whole time, that was the worst fear in the back of my mind," he said. "I was like, 'Please, don't let this . . . stop me.'"

It didn't. He had surgery in February to remove a bulging disc and fuse two vertebrae, sat out spring ball, returned with doctors' blessings in August 2006 for preseason workouts -- and quickly announced his presence.

"Here came some guy with the ball," remember U.Va. coach Al Groh, "and here came Nate with his inimitable style -- and whap! And you could see there was no trepidation. He just bounced up and went back to the huddle for the next defensive call."

That impulse ("I was trying to hit everybody -- I had missed the feeling so badly") ignites him still.

"There's got to be a few guys on every good defense who take that above the line," Groh said. "He certainly has been one of the players who, over the past two years, have established the personality of our defense and the team overall. That's his passion for the game and his passion for the team."

He's solid -- the youngest of four sons of Chicago public-school teachers, a good teammate, honest competitor. In September, when Georgia Tech returned to Charlottesville, one of its wideouts -- freshman Correy Earls -- took a fourth-quarter hit, was motionless on the field for a spell and had to be taken to the hospital for an overnight stay.

"It's a tough situation," Lyles said. "I went up to a couple of their receivers after the game. I told them, make sure you're there for that guy."

He knows. He's been there.

 

U.Va. aims for 10 wins, chases history
The Virginian-Pilot
© January 1, 2008
JACKSONVILLE, FLA.

Virginia defensive end Chris Long said Monday that he and tight end Tom Santi, a fellow senior, have spent a lot of time talking about how they want their class to be remembered.

"We just want to leave the program in better shape than we found it," Long said.

In 2003, the year before Long, Santi and the team's other fourth-year seniors arrived, Virginia went 8-5, with a win against Pittsburgh in the Continental Tire Bowl.

This year's team already has won nine games and is playing in a New Year's Day game - today in the Gator Bowl against Texas Tech - for the first time since 1993.

How is Long feeling about the state of the program now?

"I feel like we're taking steps in the right direction," he said.

With a win today, those steps could become a leap, legacy-wise. Beating Texas Tech would give the Cavaliers 10 wins for the second time in the University's 119-year football history. The 1989 team, coached by George Welsh and led by quarterback Shawn Moore, is the only team to win 10.

"That's exciting," said linebacker Clint Sintim, a fourth-year junior. "To know that we could be mentioned with some of those teams in school history.

"This has been a special year for us. With 10 wins, it could be even more special."

Particularly considering the way the season began, with a 23-3 loss to Wyoming that had fans calling for coach Al Groh to be fired. After that game, matching the 2006 total of five wins looked like an ambitious goal. Ten wins? A pipe dream.

But now Virginia sits on the brink of that mark with a team that has been anything but dominant, winning an NCAA record five games by two points or less, and six by six points or less. Virginia's offense ranks No. 100 in the nation. The Cavaliers don't have a wide receiver with more than 20 catches. Their longest pass play of the season is 45 yards.

Not the profile of a classic 10-win team.

Not that it matters, guard Branden Albert said.

"What do you consider classic? What do you consider great?" Albert said. "We're not blowing people out, but a great team could be winning games by 1 point."

If there's a defining trait to this team, it's that it has found ways to win, Groh said Monday. That's a talent, as much as speed or strength, he said.

It's a talent the team has been cultivating all year. Virginia's offense doesn't accumulate a lot of yards or points, but it has been at its best in late-game situations. The Cavaliers play sound defense and generally don't beat themselves with penalties and turnovers. Virginia is the least-penalized team in the ACC, and has committed just 18 turnovers, which ranks No. 24 in the nation.

"Whatever it's taken to win the game, all three of these units have been up to the task," Groh said.

Special teams, too. Groh said the improvement of kicker Chris Gould, who booted winners against Middle Tennessee and Connecticut, and kicked five field goals against North Carolina, has been as big a factor as any in the team's turnaround.

It all added up to a result few would have predicted Sept. 1, after the loss to Wyoming.

"Everybody said, 'There goes another bad Virginia season,' " Albert said.

Instead, it could be a historic one, characterized by razor-close wins. Not impressive statistically, except where it would count most.

"This team has embraced what's been necessary to win," Groh said. "It's been validating to all of us. We thought we could have a good team, and we were collectively going about it. Everybody stayed the course and had each other's back, and stuck together."

For Long, Santi and their classmates, win or lose, that could be the best legacy of all.

 

Bowls mean business, as U.Va. reminds fans
Posted to: Bob Molinaro Sports
The Virginian-Pilot
© January 1, 2008
JACKSONVILLE, Fla.

As the relevancy of college football's bowl season erodes, who wins and loses the postseason exhibitions is far less pertinent to the timeworn tradition than which schools sell the most from their allotment of tickets.

In this way, Virginia Tech is a big winner and a perennial favorite of bowl scouts. Tech fans snap up tickets as if a large part of their identity depends on being loved by the bowls - which it probably does.

As for Virginia fans, not so much.

On the eve of this afternoon's Gator Bowl game against Texas Tech, a U.Va. official told me that the school had sold 10,300 of the 13,500 tickets allotted to the university.

Orange Bowl-bound Virginia Tech, by comparison, reportedly sold 12,000 of its allotment of 17,500 in one day.

Those U.Va.'s sales figures, however, don't tell the whole story. Some

disgruntled boosters, unhappy that U.Va. asked for Gator Bowl ticket money without telling them where their seats would be located, reportedly declined to dip into the school's allocation. Instead, they bought their tickets directly from the bowl office.

Among U.Va. watchers, the strategy is also interpreted as a protest of the school's decision to re-seat fans at Scott Stadium for the 2008 season. The controversial plan requires the faithful to pony up larger donations in order to retain seats that have been in the family for years.

Fans that steadfastly supported U.Va. through bad times don't like having their arms twisted. Even recently, before the Cavaliers rebounded to 9-3, Al Groh's program wasn't exactly returning a lot of excitement on the boosters' investments.

At its core, the disagreement revolves around loyalty - many fans showed theirs through the lean years; in return, they'd like a little consideration from the university.

I wish them luck. U.Va., after all, is just doing what comes naturally. Colleges always have their hands out; which is especially true of schools with grand sports aspirations. Mostly, for them, loyalty is to the bottom line.

But as for the pressure on schools to sell bowl tickets - that's just the way the game is played. Given a choice between teams of relatively equal ability and reputation, bowl suitors will always choose the candidate with the most eager and mobile fan base.

In a letter he sent to U.Va. fans in December asking for their help (i.e. their money), director of athletics Craig Littlepage acknowledged that "a perception that Virginia fans didn't 'travel' well hurt us in the bowl selection process."

He went on to emphasize that "a school's ability to sell out its ticket allotment is an important factor in the selection process for future bowl games."

To that end, Groh tried to project a brawnier image for U.Va. when he said a few weeks ago that he'd like to see 30,000 Cavalier fans at the Gator Bowl. Groh's wishful thinking bordered on hallucination, and since then he's pulled back.

"We know (the crowd) will be very orange and very vocal," he said. "Beyond that, I'm not in the ticket business. I'm in the coach-the-team business."

We know what Groh means, but in truth, everybody involved in college football's great commercial - often grubby - enterprise is in the ticket business... in the raise-more-money business. Everybody has their hand out.

I'm not going to tell anybody how to spend their money and time. If a certain percentage of U.Va. grads aren't bowled over by bowls - if they resist the belief that a school's reputation revolves around athletics and are less likely to spring for airfare to a mid-level attraction in a nondescript city - that doesn't make them bad alumni.

As for U.Va.'s most devoted boosters - and there are plenty here - if it's loyalty they want, maybe they should buy a dog.

 

Special ending for Zidenberg
After starring for Poquoson, Josh Zidenberg has excelled for Virginia in the kicking game. Today is his finale.
BY MELINDA WALDROP

If no one ever knows Josh Zidenberg's name, that will be OK by him.

Zidenberg will play the final game of his Virginia career in today's Gator Bowl against Texas Tech. But after gaining nearly 6,000 all-purpose yards and scoring 78 touchdowns for Poquoson High School, Zidenberg has toiled mostly on special teams at U.Va., making tackles and throwing blocks in virtual anonymity for four years.

Zidenberg has become more visible in his senior season, making four catches and returning kicks for the Cavaliers. But his other contributions -- like his 16 special-teams tackles -- still go largely unseen.

"People are like, 'He's finally playing this year,' " Josh's mom, Kim Zidenberg, said. "I get so mad. I have to just bite my tongue, because they don't understand."

It doesn't bother Josh. In fact, he says he wouldn't mind ending up just like Isaiah Ekejiuba.

Who? For football fans who occasionally leave the house, Ekejiuba walked onto Virginia's team in 2002, carved out a special-teams niche and is now in his third season of under-the-radar play with the Oakland Raiders.

"When you hear of cases like that, you know anything can happen," Zidenberg said.

Even if no one else has noticed, Zidenberg has proven that, at least, to himself.

He had something to prove As a senior at Poquoson, Zidenberg rushed for 2,811 yards and 39 touchdowns. He also had 101 kick-return yards and 83 receiving yards for the Islanders.

"He would have been good at any position that I put him," said former Poquoson coach Don Ward.

Despite Zidenberg's numbers, only Division I-AA schools offered scholarships. Zidenberg thought he was a I-A player.

Cavs defensive coordinator Mike London, U.Va.'s leading recruiter in Hampton Roads, shared that opinion. Even though the Cavaliers had no scholarships left for 2004, London told Josh, " 'I know you can play here. Just come on the team and show everybody what you can do,' " Zidenberg said.

His first opportunity to do that as a walk-on came on Nov. 6 against Maryland.

"The person in front of me on the punt return got hurt," Zidenberg said. "I didn't even know where my helmet was."

From the Scott Stadium stands, his mom watched him scramble to find his gear.

"I never took my eyes off him," Kim Zidenberg said.

That's the way it's always been for mother and son.

Kim and Josh's father, Eric Zidenberg, separated when Josh was 3. Since then, it's been Kim and Josh, along with older sister Brooke, 23. (Six-year-old Max Barrett was a later, rambunctious family addition.)

"There was a time, probably around like (age) 15 or so, where I was real angry about how things were," Josh said. During a brief visit with his dad, Josh told him, " 'I don't want a relationship with you, blah, blah, blah.' There was a time period where I didn't really talk to him."

Slowly, that changed.

"He started to come to my games and stuff like that, and make a big effort to be involved, and a lot of dads don't even try to do that," Josh said. "... It'll never be one of those things where I'll be like, 'Oh, Dad,' you know, or, 'Father, I love you so much.' But as far as building a friendship and a relationship with him, that's not a problem for me."

Josh and his dad talk "a lot more than what we used to," Josh said, and Eric has come to most of his games at U.Va.

Josh said his home life caused him to grow up fast, but stopped short of saying he wanted to prove something to his dad on the football field.

"I kind of just feel like it was just my own personal drive to be successful, and no matter what I was doing, to try to be the best at what I was doing," he said. "I don't like to think that because he wasn't around at this time or this time, I used him as (motivation). I don't think that was the case at all."

Josh did, however, have something to prove at U.Va. In his sophomore season, he played in 12 games on almost every special-teams unit, but felt unfulfilled.

Though financial aid offset many of his college costs, "obviously I wanted to be on athletic scholarship for football and not other circumstances or other things," Josh said. "I knew that it was gonna come, as long as I didn't mess something up real bad or get hurt. That was the next step to happen."

After spring practice in 2006, Cavs coach Al Groh called him into his office to tell him that step had come.

"It was more just self-satisfaction," Josh said. "In high school, my main goal was, I wanted a full ride to play somewhere, and to finally attain it, it felt like just kind of a weight lifted off my shoulders -- like, finally, it's come."

Facing the future On Nov. 9 this season, Kim Zidenberg drove 15 hours down I-95. Once she finally made it to the Orange Bowl for Josh's game the next day, she wasn't about to let rowdy Miami fans dampen her enthusiasm during Virginia's 48-0 win.

"She's always been a sports fanatic -- almost to a fault sometimes," Josh said. "But she always wanted me to be great and do great."

At Miami, Kim saw Josh block the third punt of his U.Va. career (two came last year) as he continued his most successful statistical season. Zidenberg's first collegiate catch, an 11-yarder, came Oct. 6 as Virginia rallied to beat Middle Tennessee State, and he's also returned 10 kicks for 230 yards after Cedric Peerman hurt his foot against MTSU.

"He's certainly had his moments this year. He's been very important to us," Groh said. "Josh really is who we are. He's kind of a self-made player. He's willing to grind it out from start to finish." In today's game, there's only one stat that matters to Josh.

"I don't really care if I play one play or 40 plays," he said. "If we win, I'm happy -- especially with it being my last game. I just want to be able to say that I was part of only the second team in U.Va. history to win 10 games."

Kim has cheered Josh on for 21 years, framing his Poquoson jersey and the football he carried for his 2,000th yard. On Nov. 24, Virginia's Senior Day, she fought back tears as she escorted him onto the field at Scott Stadium.

But today may be the last time she watches her son play.

"I can't believe it. It's really hard to fathom," she said. "It's gone by so quick."

"It's almost surreal, actually," Josh said. "It'll probably hit me like two or three weeks afterward, and I'll be like, 'Oh wow, that it was it.' I don't know. I'm not really looking forward to how it's gonna feel." Kim won't be surprised if she falls apart in the stands, where Josh's longtime girlfriend, Holly Witte, will be ready to console her.

They'll be watching the game with Ward, his wife, his son and his grandson. Josh gave Ward the tickets, just like he gave the coach the jersey from the 2005 Music City Bowl, the first bowl game he played in for U.Va.

During that Christmas Eve visit, Ward asked Josh, " 'What in the world are you doing at my house when a lot of your friends are out doing things?' " Ward said. "He said, 'Coach, a lot of my friends are doing things I don't want to be involved in and I'd just rather be here.' ... He just very seldom makes a bad decision. He's got his head screwed on right."

One of Josh's decisions is to work out at Virginia's upcoming pro day, to see what the scads of NFL scouts there to ogle U.Va. defensive end Chris Long think of him.

"I have nothing to lose," Josh said. "I don't want to be 50 years old one day and looking back and be like, 'Oh, man, I wondered what would have happened if I would have tried.' "

Josh knows he's probably too slow to return kicks in the NFL, and that he'll have to pack on about 20 pounds to play fullback. That leaves him eyeing a career as a gunner, an unheralded special-teams force like Ekejiuba.

If that doesn't happen, then maybe he'll become a coach, or an athletic director.

"I love the game so much that I can't see myself not being involved in it somehow," he said.

Even if no one ever knows his name.

The Zidenberg file Name: Josh Zidenberg Number: 21. Height, weight: 6 feet, 213 pounds. Noteworthy: Won the George Welsh award as Virginia's outstanding special-teams player in 2006, when he had nine tackles and blocked two punts. ... Has 16 tackles and a blocked punt on special teams this year. Also has four catches for 38 yards and has returned 10 kicks for 230 yards. ... Gained almost 6,000 all-purpose yards during his career at Poquoson. ... Movie buff who says Mark Wahlberg is his favorite actor.

 

Gator Bowl notebook: Long ready to 'bring it'
BY MELINDA WALDROP | 247-4634
7:38 PM EST, December 31, 2007
 

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell attempted 644 passes this season. He was sacked just 15 times.

That's a function of the Red Raiders' rapid-fire offense, Harrell's three-step drops and quick release and Texas Tech's massive offensive line. And it presents Virginia's defense with a big challenge.

"It's not only a challenge because of the scheme they run, but because they have good players running it," said U.Va. senior defensive lineman Chris Long, who led the ACC with 14 sacks and is third in the nation with 1.17 sacks per game.

"But as a defensive lineman, I can't say, 'Oh, because they're gonna get rid of it quick, I'm not gonna bring it.' You just gotta keep coming, and like you would as a pass rusher in any game, be relentless." Harrell is well aware of Long, and of the Cavaliers' 40 team sacks this season.

"Chris Long is kind of the face of that defensive line, but all of them have done a really good job this year, if you watch them on film," Harrell said. "But at the same time, our offensive line has done a great job, too. ... I'm hoping they can protect me one more time."

Long has racked up individual accolades, winning the Ted Hendricks Award as the country's best defensive end and earning unanimous All-America honors. But he's just as pleased with where his team ended up -- in a New Year's Day bowl game, its most prestigious postseason trip since an appearance in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl New Year's Eve in 1998.

"Me and (tight end) Tom Santi talk about this a lot," Long said. "As a senior class, what's the legacy you want to leave? You just want to leave your program in better shape than you found it, and I feel like we're taking steps in the right direction."

ANIMAL INSTINCT There's no doubt that Long's focus will be locked on Texas Tech in today's 1 p.m. game at Jacksonville Municipal Stadium. But in the days leading up to the game, he spared some time for other things.

His favorite activity since the team arrived in Jacksonville on Christmas night? A trip to the zoo.

"It was a lot of fun," said Long, whose appreciation of animal-themed shows on The Discovery Channel is well-known. "I got to see a lion, I got to see a giraffe. There was some crazy stuff at the zoo. It was sweet."

TEXAS TECH RB SENT PACKING Texas Tech junior running back Shannon Woods, who led the Red Raiders with 439 yards on 84 carries, was sent home for violating team rules on Saturday, Texas Tech coach Mike Leach said.

But Leach said Woods' absence won't have much affect on his team.

"We've been playing with Kobe (Lewis) and Aaron Crawford, so I think we're fine," Leach said.

Crawford has 185 yards on 46 carries, while Lewis has 156 yards on 42 carries.

 

Bring it every snap: The 2008 Gator Bowl
By Andy Bitter
abitter@newsadvance.com
December 31, 2007

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - By comeback standards, it was highly unusual. Texas Tech trailed Minnesota 38-7 in last year's Insight Bowl, seemingly too far out of reach to make a game of it.
Somehow, the Red Raiders did, but it wasn't with momentum-shifting plays like interceptions or kick returns. They simply ran their high-octane offense as it was intended, calmly and methodically gobbling up seven yards at a time on short passes and driving the length of the field to score every time they touched the ball.

By the time the dust had settled, Texas Tech had completed its masterpiece, a 44-41 overtime victory in what was the biggest comeback in bowl history.

So to say Virginia's defense has its work cut out for it trying to stop the Red Raiders' top-ranked passing offense in today's Gator Bowl seems like stating the obvious.

"That's too much to ask just 11 players to do," UVa coach Al Groh said. "We need 33 players to do that. Eleven on defense, 11 on special teams and 11 on offense."

Groh has preached team play all year - a successful ploy, as Virginia (9-3) is on the cusp of winning 10 games in a season for just the second time in school history - and today's 63rd annual Gator Bowl would seem to require a total team effort.

To date, no defense has shut down Texas Tech's offense. Teams have found ways to get around it, though.

Oklahoma State simply out-scored the Red Raiders (8-4), racking up 610 yards. Missouri and Colorado gave up yardage but won the turnover battle, intercepting four passes apiece. Texas kept the ball out of Texas Tech's hands, grinding out over 40 minutes on the clock.

So the Cavaliers have a blueprint for how to win today - work the clock, force turnovers and, as last year proved, don't count the Red Raiders out of anything.

"We know it's going to be a 60-minute game," UVa defensive end Jeffrey Fitzgerald said.

Virginia's defense has some obstacles to overcome. The Cavaliers are without starting cornerback Chris Cook, an academic casualty, thrusting a pair of freshmen - Ras-I Dowling and Mike Parker - into the line of fire. They'll be charged with trying to stop Biletnikoff Award winner Michael Crabtree, who has put up video game numbers this season, with 125 catches, 1,861 yards and 21 touchdowns.

UVa fans will remember fondly the last time the Cavaliers had that kind of challenge heading into a bowl game, however. In the 2003 Continental Tire Bowl, Groh devised a successful defensive scheme to limit Heisman Trophy runner-up Larry Fitzgerald, who caught just five passes for 77 yards in a 23-16 loss, watching his 18-game touchdown streak come to an end.

Another problem is that Texas Tech's offense, which averages 41.8 points per game, seems to be suited to neutralize UVa defensive end Chris Long, who has 14 sacks this season.

The Red Raiders' passing scheme is based around short dropbacks and quick releases, minimizing the risk on the quarterback. Though quarterback Graham Harrell has thrown 694 passes this season, he's been sacked just 15 times. That's once every 46.3 attempts, the second best ratio in the country.

"As a defensive lineman, I can't say, 'Oh, they're going to be getting rid of it quick. I'm not going to bring it,'" Long said. "You've just got to keep coming like you would as a pass rusher in any other game."

"We seen Chris get a number of sacks this year just by being relentless," Groh noted.

Of course, the best way to prevent Texas Tech from scoring is to not let it get the ball. Groh has stressed to his offense the importance of sustaining drives and milking the clock, a task that should be made easier by tailback Mikell Simpson's return to the team after an academic scare last week.

Though the Cavaliers' offensive numbers aren't impressive - they're 100th nationally in total offense - they have been able to move the ball when they need to, especially in late-game situations.

It's reflective of the entire team, which has done just enough to win all season, pulling out five games by two points or less.

"To this point, whatever it's taken to win the game," Groh said, "all three of (our) units have been up to the task."

 

UVa Notebook - Peerman speaks about foot surgery
By Andy Bitter
abitter@newsadvance.com
December 31, 2007

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Virginia tailback Cedric Peerman spoke to reporters on Sunday for the first time since undergoing surgery on his right foot a month and a half ago and confirmed that it was a Lisfranc injury.
An increasingly common injury in football, Lisfranc is a fracture and dislocation of the joints in the mid-foot. Notable NFL running backs who made successful comebacks from it are Brian Westbrook of the Philadelphia Eagles and Kevin Jones of the Detroit Lions.

"It's not reassuring to see them have the injury," Peerman said, "but it's reassuring to see them come back and perform the way they have."

Peerman suffered the injury on Oct. 6 at Middle Tennessee. At the time he was leading the ACC in rushing. He was hopeful it would heal on its own, but he eventually had surgery on Nov. 14.

Virginia did not give any timetable for Peerman resuming football activities, but the tailback was walking without crutches at Gator Bowl practice over the weekend.

Work hard, play hard

Defensive end Chris Long has revealed in the past that he likes watching shows about polar bears on the Discovery Channel, so it's no surprise that his favorite team activity this week was a visit to the Jacksonville Zoo.

"I got to see a lion," he said Monday with a big grin. "There was some crazy stuff at the zoo."

Right guard Ian-Yates Cunningham preferred the trip the team took to Adventure Land, a hodgepodge of laser tag, putt-putt, Go-Karts and batting cages.

"I thought I was good at laser tag until I was like, 'Why isn't my laser working?'" Cunningham said. "I was shooting myself the whole time. I was like, 'Oh, I have to turn it around and shoot it.'"

It's always sunny

Virginia doesn't recruit Florida very hard, but it does have two Sunshine Staters on its roster - senior center Jordy Lipsey and redshirt freshman cornerback Mike Parker.

Parker, whose role in today's game will increase due to the absence of Chris Cook, went to Edgewater High in Orlando. Lipsey, a two-year starter, went to Lake Brantley High in Longwood, an Orlando suburb. The two actually drove from Charlottesville to Orlando together for winter break.

Lipsey expects a big family showing at the Gator Bowl, which is an hour and 45-minute drive from his family's home.

"I think it's perfect that my last experience with college football is in the state of Florida," he said.

Two Raiders sent home

Texas Tech sent home running back Shannon Woods and defensive end Brandon Sharpe for undisclosed violations of team rules on Sunday.

Neither was expected to play much. Sharpe, a junior, missed all but one game this season with an ankle injury. Woods, a former first-team all-Big 12 selection who leads the team with 439 rushing yards, started seven of the first eight games this year, but was replaced by Aaron Crawford for the last four games.

Extra points

Virginia sold roughly 10,300 tickets of its 13,500 allotment. ... Cunningham said he will play in the Hula Bowl, a postseason all-star game for seniors in Hawaii, on Jan. 12. ? Long said he met one Texas Tech fan while on his awards show circuit last month after the Gator Bowl matchup was announced. The fan and Long did the Red Raiders' "Guns Up" hand sign together in a picture. "I don't know where that picture is," Long said, "but I'd like to have a copy."

 

Long's journey comes to an end
Aaron McFarling

Too often, defensive linemen get lost in the scrum at the line of scrimmage. The only evidence of their existence comes right at the last, when a hand pops up and knocks down a pass or a body shoots through and wrestles a quarterback to the ground.

Often, that hand or that body belongs to Long, but we only confirm it on the replay. We miss the important stuff in between. We miss the journey.

After today, Long will be off to make NFL millions. But for one more afternoon, he's in a UVa uniform as the Cavaliers take on Texas Tech in the Gator Bowl.

So do yourself a favor: Watch him.

Study the way he engages the blocker at the point of attack. Appreciate the methods he uses to fight through a double team.

See a sack develop from snap to stick -- provided there are any sacks.

And that's the key to today's game. As much as the Red Raiders throw the ball, more than any team in the nation, they've been aces at protecting the quarterback. Texas Tech QB Graham Harrell leads the country in total offense and passing yards but has been sacked only 15 times this season, the third-lowest sack rate per passing attempt in Division I-A.

This is part protection, part schematics. Texas Tech features an offensive line that averages 331 pounds and a quick-strike spread offense. The three-step drops by Harrell don't allow for much disruption in the backfield.

But if anyone can find a way, it's Long. And Virginia needs him to be super today.

UVa's defensive secondary was already the most suspect part of an otherwise outstanding defense. Concerns increased last week when starting cornerback Chris Cook was ruled ineligible for the game. That leaves the coverage duties to Ras-I Dowling and Vic Hall, with two freshmen and a walk-on backing them up.

It's fitting, then, that the final game of Long's career will provide him with one of his greatest challenges. Already he's posted 14 sacks this season, an enormous total in UVa's 3-4 system. It was enough to earn him unanimous All-America honors and round-trip tickets to award ceremonies throughout December.

Coach Al Groh has repeatedly said that Long's best attribute is his relentlessness. We'll see it today, whether he's clawing toward the quarterback or trying to chase down a receiver from behind.

Enjoy it. Because while there will be plenty of years to appreciate Long -- he's projected a lock for the first round in the April NFL Draft -- the opportunity to appreciate him as a Cavalier is fleeting. And even he knows it.

"It hits you," Long said. "It's an emotional time. It really hits you when you get on the bus, when you hear the guys talk after practice. For me it was just 'thank you,' thanking all my teammates, thanking everybody all around. Thank, thank, thank."

Thank the stars that we have another shot to watch him play. So growl with him as he drops into a three-point stance. Celebrate with him when he makes a tackle. Win or lose, watch him work.

Give yourself one last chance to remember.
 

Kings of rallies set to square off in Gator Bowl
UVa rallied in the fourth quarter to win five times in 2007. Texas Tech owns the largest bowl rally.
By Doug Doughty

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Nothing that happens in the first three quarters today should break the spirit of either Gator Bowl opponent, Virginia or Texas Tech.

One year ago, the Red Raiders posted the biggest comeback in bowl history when they rallied from a 38-7 third-quarter deficit to defeat Minnesota 44-41 in the Insight Bowl.

In the regular season this year, 23rd-ranked Virginia won five games in which it trailed in the fourth quarter, setting a Division I record with five victories by one or two points.

The Cavaliers (9-3) are bidding to win 10 games in a season for only the second time in school history but prepare for today's 1 p.m. kickoff as six-point underdogs.

Unranked Texas Tech (8-4) ranks first in Division I-A in passing offense and second in total offense, as opposed to Virginia, which is 100th.

Of course, it won't be Texas Tech's offense against Virginia's offense, but the onus doesn't fall completely on a Virginia defense that ranks in the top 25 nationally in four different categories.

"Any time you look at a team that's averaging 42 points a game, that's pretty daunting," Virginia head coach Al Groh said. "Obviously, we've got to get their points down. That's the first thing our team has to do.

"It takes 33 players, including the offense and special teams. We're relying on special teams to get field position for us and counting on the offense to do something with that field position, not only score points but also move it away from their goal line."

The matchup features a pair of national award winners in Virginia's Chris Long, winner of the Ted Hendricks Award as college football's top defensive end, and Texas Tech's Michael Crabtree, winner of the Biletnikoff Award as the nation's top wide receiver.

Crabtree, a 6-foot-3, 208-pound redshirt freshman, leads Division I-A in receptions (125) and touchdown catches (21). Another Red Raider wideout, Danny Amendola, has 103 receptions and ranks fourth in the country.

Junior quarterback Graham Harrell became only the sixth player in Division I-A history to pass for more than 5,000 yards in a season and he is one of five players to have consecutive seasons with 4,000 yards or more.

Texas Tech's quarterbacks, who have thrown 694 passes, have been sacked only 15 times.

"A lot of their plays feature the quarterback catching the ball and throwing," Groh said. "One of the rationales for putting a system like that in place is to neutralize pass-rushers."

The Cavaliers rank sixth in Division I-A in sacks with 39, including an ACC-high 14 by Long.

"Obviously, one of our challenges is how to keep one of our best players vitally involved in the game," Groh said.

Long doesn't plan on being a decoy.

"As a defensive lineman I can't say, 'Oh, they're getting rid of it quick, I'm not going to bring it,' " Long said. "You've just got to keep coming, like you would as a pass-rusher in any game. Be relentless. It might be the fourth quarter before you get back there, [but] you've just got to keep bringing it.

"They're not doing anything nobody's ever seen before. All year it's been chase, chase, chase. That's what you do as a defensive lineman: You turn and run."

Texas Tech has averaged fewer than 20 rushing attempts per game and that number could go down in the absence of leading rusher Shannon Woods. Red Raiders coach Mike Leach said that Woods, a junior, was sent back to Lubbock, Texas, after a violation of team rules.

Virginia, on the other hand, regained the services of tailback Mikell Simpson after he took care of an academic matter that had delayed his arrival in Jacksonville.

The Cavaliers are making their fifth bowl appearances in seven seasons under Groh, who has a 3-1 bowl record, including an overtime loss to Fresno State in the 2004 MPC Computers Bowl.

Leach, who is in his eighth year at Texas Tech, has enjoyed similar success in bowls. The Red Raiders, who haven't had a losing season since 1992, have won four of their last five bowl games and are 4-3 under Leach in postseason play.

Texas Tech hasn't played since Nov. 17, when the Red Raiders knocked off third-ranked Oklahoma 34-27 in Lubbock, Texas. Virginia ended its regular season one week later in a 33-21 home loss to Virginia Tech.

"I was talking to a guy from the [Jacksonville] Jaguars and told him, 'Imagine you won your first playoff game and then had to sit for 45 days till you played again,' " Leach said. "I think that's why you see so many surprises."

Leach doesn't profess to have any secrets on getting a team ready to play in the postseason and Groh probably won't make a fortune by marketing his postseason philosophy.

"Most of all, we try to be flexible," Groh said. "We've kept all of our practice plans from past [bowl] trips, but we didn't refer to them once."