Fitzgerald leaves UVa program
By Jay Jenkins / jjenkins@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
January 25, 2008

Virginia defensive end Jeffrey Fitzgerald informed teammates Thursday that he would be leaving the football program for unspecified reasons, multiple sources confirmed.

The loss comes at a bad time for the program. Chris Long, who started opposite Fitzgerald in Virginia's 3-4 defense, is expected to become one of the top five selections in the upcoming NFL Draft.

As a redshirt sophomore in 2007, Fitzgerald ranked fourth on the team with 73 tackles. Fitzgerald also had two interceptions, collected 11.5 tackles for a loss and registered seven sacks.

 

Cavs host Uzzi this weekend
By Jay Jenkins / jjenkins@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
January 25, 2008

After bringing in talent in quantity last weekend, Virginia’s football program shifts gears this weekend with a focus on quality through its recruiting efforts.

A pair of uncommitted targets and one verbal commitment are slated to visit UVa this weekend as National Signing Day inches closer.

One of the visitors, Omoregie Uzzi, could be the Cavaliers’ top uncommitted target.

The versatile lineman from Chamblee, Ga., plays guard on offense and tackle on defense. He has narrowed his suitors to three schools - Alabama, Georgia Tech and Virginia.

Having taken official visits to Alabama and Georgia Tech, Uzzi, a stellar student, could be ready to make his decision by the end of the weekend.

Uzzi’s lead recruiter at UVa was former defensive coordinator Mike London, who was officially named Richmond’s coach on Saturday, creating a hurdle. But the four-star said he has talked recently with defensive line coach Levern Belin and head coach Al Groh.

Another player gaining steam in his recruitment of late, Reid Evans, hopes to leave with an offer in hand.

Evans, a wideout and cornerback at Phoebus High in Hampton, will arrive late Saturday after he takes the SAT.

Evans, who had 12 touchdowns on offense and 11 interceptions on defense, has said he would commit on the spot if offered, but he currently lacks the necessary test scores.

The third known visitor this weekend, defensive lineman Klinton Ruff, committed to Virginia in August, becoming the first in-state player to join the class.

Ruff, a three-star recruit from Norview High in Norfolk, also attended Virginia’s lopsided win over Pittsburgh during the season.

Virginia is planning to entertain a host of players, including some that were previously off the radar for most analysts, sources confirmed.

The Cavaliers could certainly use a strong finish as their current recruiting class stands 11th in the ACC - ahead of only Duke - and 59th in the country.

Unfounded “speculation”

Having lost four players for at least the spring semester, panic has spread throughout Cavalier Nation about the possible departure of additional players.

That scuttlebutt included sophomore tailback Keith Payne, who was rumored to have withdrawn from school.

“That is purely speculation,” Payne’s father, also named Keith, said Wednesday night.

Despite failing to get multiple carries in seven of Virginia’s 13 games, Payne finished fourth on the team in rushing with 219 yards and scored two touchdowns.

 

U.VA. NOTES
Friday, Jan 25, 2008 - 12:07 AM

Holding pattern
U.Va. issued a press release Jan. 17 that said four football players -- quarterback Jameel Sewell, cornerback Chris Cook, linebacker Darnell Carter and wide receiver Chris Dalton -- would not be enrolled for the spring semester.

Eight days later, their plans remain unclear. Cook, who was a junior in 2007, never redshirted. He could treat the 2008 season as a redshirt year, then try to regain his academic eligibility for 2009. The other three have redshirted, so each would lose a year of athletic eligibility if they didn't play this coming season.

Even so, Sewell's father said yesterday that his son is not looking at transferring.

"That's not where he wants to be," Harry Sewell said. "He wants to be at the university. What matters to him is the credibility of the university once he gets that degree."

Jameel Sewell, a Hermitage High graduate, has started the Cavaliers' past 22 games. If his academic suspension lasted two semesters, as usually is the case at Virginia, the 2009 season would be his last if he were re-admitted to U.Va. next year. Sewell has been meeting with academic advisers at U.Va. to try to determine his best course of action.

Carter and Dalton each have three seasons of eligibility remaining.

Negative trend
With national signing day (Feb. 6) for football approaching, Virginia's recruiting class is shrinking.

Ugo Uzodinma, a defensive end from Dunbar High in D.C., has reneged on the oral commitment he gave to U.Va. in October and plans to sign instead with Illinois. His defection leaves the Wahoos with 15 commitments for 2008.

Defensive coordinator Mike London was Virginia's point man in its recruitment of Uzodinma, and London's move to the University of Richmond, where he's head coach, prompted Uzodinma's change of heart.

Two of the Cavaliers' other targets -- offensive tackle R.J. Mattes and wide receiver A.J. Price -- recently committed to other schools. Mattes, whose father, Ron, starred at U.Va., picked N.C. State. Price chose Penn State.

Sad state of affairs
In football games played in Florida, U.Va. is 1-16. The Sunshine State hasn't treated the men's basketball team well, either.

The Cavaliers' losing streak in Florida is at eight games. Virginia extended its skid by blowing a 10-point second-half lead Wednesday night and losing 69-67 at Florida State. The defeat was U.Va.'s sixth consecutive in Tallahassee.

Junior forward Mamadi Diane, who scored 20 points in Virginia's win over Boston College on Saturday, had 21 against FSU. That marked the first time in Diane's college career that he's scored at least 20 points in back-to-back games. Diane's five 3-pointers vs. the Seminoles were a career high against an ACC foe.

To the mats
The wrestling teams from U.Va. and Virginia Tech will tangle in an ACC dual meet Sunday at Deep Run High in western Henrico County. The sixth annual Rumble on the River will start at 1 p.m. The cost is $6, or $5 with a canned-good donation to the Central Virginia Foodbank. Visit www.wrestling-rumble.com for more information.

In its second season under coach Steve Garland, U.Va. (13-3) has set a school record for dual-meet victories in a season. Virginia hosts ACC rival North Carolina tonight at 7 o'clock at Mem Gym.

Worthy cause
The fourth annual Hokies vs. Hoos Food Fight, which benefits the Central Virginia Foodbank, is under way. Two lunchboxes -- one signed by Tech coaches, including Frank Beamer and Bud Foster, and the other signed by Virginia coaches, including Dave Leitao and Al Groh -- are on display at The Jefferson Hotel in Richmond and will be auctioned on eBay. All proceeds from the auction will go to the foodbank.

The auction runs through Monday. Food donations will be accepted at all Ukrop's stores from Monday through Feb. 2. Online donations also can be made at www.hokiesvshoos.com. Also, fans can earn points for their respective schools by volunteering to work two-hour shifts at the foodbank.

 

Singletary keeps streak alive
By Whitelaw Reid / wreid@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
January 25, 2008

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - When Sean Singletary’s 3-pointer at the buzzer swished through the net on Wednesday night, there were no wild celebrations.

The shot just made Virginia’s loss look a little better in the boxscore. Instead of losing by five points to Florida State, UVa lost by two.

However, from a statistical standpoint, the shot had a lot of relevance.

Singletary, who finished with 11 points, kept his streak of scoring in double figures alive. The Virginia senior has now scored 10 or more points in 39 straight games -the longest active mark in the ACC.

But that was of little concern to Singletary. Clearly, he felt responsible for UVa’s 69-67 loss - a game in which the Cavaliers blew double-digit leads in both halves.

Singletary’s 3-pointer at the buzzer was his only one of the game. He was just 4 of 11 from the field, including 1 of 5 from 3-point range.

The Cavs’ captain had seven assists, but also committed five turnovers, including two costly ones in the final minutes.

Virginia coach Dave Leitao, whose team hosts Georgia Tech on Sunday, said Singletary wasn’t himself.

“Sean didn’t have his ‘A’ game,” Leitao said. “I thought Sean probably defended himself better than any player they had. No disrespect to [FSU]. I think they’re a very strong, good, athletic team that can guard and keep the ball in front of them, but Sean wasn’t Sean today.”

Singletary admitted to being bothered by a hip pointer that didn’t allow him to practice consistently leading into the game.

“I felt a little slow, but you can’t make excuses,” Singletary said. “We had the game won. I just didn’t take care of the ball.”

Mo money

Mamadi Diane, who scored a game-high 21 points, notched 20 or more for his second straight game - the first time in his career he has done so. And the junior’s five 3-pointers against FSU was an ACC career-high.

For a player who has been maddeningly inconsistent, those have to be encouraging signs, right?

“If you want to say that, yeah, but we lost the game by two points, so I don’t look at it as encouraging,” Leitao said. “If you’re a good player, there is an expectation that you’re supposed to play well.”

Great Scott

The most embarrassing play from Wednesday’s game occurred in the first half when Virginia freshman Mike Scott missed a dunk. Scott, who was all alone on the fastbreak, missed by a mile.

The ball bounced off of Florida State and Virginia maintained possession, but the mishap seemed to spark the Seminoles and their fans.

“I thought he should have passed it,” Leitao said. “It’s hard for a big guy to dribble from half court and lay the ball up quickly. I thought he would have been better off passing the ball.”

Farrakhan staying positive

Freshman Mustapha Farrakhan was a DNP (coach’s decision) for the third game in a row.

Farrakhan has only played sparingly this season, but doesn’t seem to be pouting.

“I just continue to work hard,” Farrakhan said. “Hopefully it will pay off. I just have to keep working.”

Dunks

A game after committing a season-low six turnovers, Virginia coughed up the rock 15 times against FSU. … Singletary moved into fourth place on UVa’s career steals list with 497, passing Othell Wilson (493). … Sophomore Jerome Meyinsse’s four points were a career high against an ACC opponent.

 

Offering Evans make sense on a lot of fronts
UVa needs new Hampton-Newport News recruiter
By Doug Doughty

In recruiting, sometimes you’ve got to take a player to get a player.

Phoebus High School football coach Bill Dee doesn’t disagree with that premise, but he wants it known, Virginia wouldn’t be “taking” a player by making an offer to Reid Evans.

“He’s not a big kid and he’s not a blazer,” Dee said earlier this week, “but the kid can play. A lot of times, people get caught up in combine numbers, but he’s put up numbers on the field.

“I’d put his statistics up against anybody’s. He had as good a year as any receiver in the state and he plays both sides of the ball.”

Evans, a 5-foot-10, 170-pound wide receiver and defensive back, will be taking an official recruiting visit to Virginia this weekend. Dee concedes that part of the hold-up in Evans’ recruiting is academic-related, but the Cavaliers can’t afford to drag their heels, not after what happened with A.J. Price.

Virginia might have been able to get Price if it had offered him sooner, but, by the time the Cavaliers anted up, Penn State was already a player and the Nittany Lions got a commitment from the South Lakes Reston wideout before he could take an official visit to Virginia.

Evans, who is being recruited as a wide receiver, had 68 receptions for 1,135 yards and eight touchdowns this past season. He also intercepted 11 passes and has 18 interceptions over two seasons.

An assistant coach for one of Virginia’s rivals told me that Evans might be the best football player in the state.

Keep in mind, he didn’t say “best prospect,” but the Cavaliers can’t afford to quibble at this point. Their recruiting year is fizzling and they’ve commitments from only two in-state players (three, if you want to count Austin Paztor, a Canadian who played this year at Fork Union Military Academy).

Phoebus is one of the most prominent programs in the state and has been something of a Virginia Tech pipeline in recent years. Dee doesn’t discount the effect that an Evans commitment to Virginia would have on his younger players.

“If you take a chance on Evans, well, then, there you go,” Dee said. “We’ve got two of the top three or four prospects in the junior class [quarterback Tahj Boyd and defensive lineman Dominik Davenport]. I’d have to think that the state’s top quarterback would have to notice where his favorite receiver is going.

“People say, ‘Dee’s a Tech guy.’ I want good relations with Virginia also. I’d love to see a Virginia offer for this kid and I think he’d make a hell of a player for them. For either school to be successful, they need in-state kids.”

Dee compares Evans to D.J. Parker, an unheralded Phoebus quarterback who was lost in the recruiting hubbub surrounding teammate Xavier Adibi. Parker committed to the Hokies late in the recruiting process.

“D.J. Parker had one scholarship and what was he for Tech, a three-year starter who has a chance to play in the NFL? I’m not from the state but I’ve been here for 30 years. Now, more than ever, I like to see my kids stay in state.”

Media gadfly Jeff White likes to point out the wise move that Virginia Tech made when it took a commitment from Kevin Lewis, seen as a marginal Division I-A prospect when he signed with the Hokies out of Varina. By taking Kevin Lewis, Tech was almost assured of getting his younger brother, Jonathan, and both turned out to be effective players for the Hokies.

There’s no telling how history might have changed if Virginia had made an early offer to Sean Glennon, a quarterback from Westfield High School in Fairfax County. Glennon went to Tech, where he was joined by wide receiver Eddie Royal, and the Westfield assembly line has since turned out such national-caliber prospects as Evan Royster and Mike Glennon, all of whom have rejected the Cavaliers.

OBVIOUSLY, WITH the departure of defensive coordinator Mike London to Richmond, where he will be the head coach, Virginia will need an assistant capable of competing in the Hampton-Newport News area that was London’s recruiting territory.

I asked Dee what he thought about former Cavalier Chris Slade, who played for Al Groh with the New England Patriots and was a schoolboy star at Tabb High School.

“I don’t know if Chris has any coaching or recruiting background or whether he would be interested, but, if you’re talking about a guy who would give them instant credibility down here, it would be Chris,” Dee said. “He certainly has the personality for it.”

In an e-mail exchange this week, Slade indicated that he would at least listen to a Cavalier overture.
 

Cavs ready to bounce back after ACC loss
Virginia anxious to play as Georgia Tech rolls into Charlottesville Sunday
Paul Montana, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor

After dropping its fourth game in its last five on the road against Florida State Wednesday, the Virginia men's basketball team returns to Charlottesville Sunday afternoon for a matchup with Georgia Tech.

For the second time in three games, Virginia (11-6, 1-3 ACC) was unable to close after it opened up a double-digit lead in the second half against the Seminoles. With the Cavaliers leading 60-53 late in regulation, Virginia went cold, and Florida State went on a 9-0 run to take its first lead since early in the second half on its way to a 69-67 victory.

The game against Florida State "is a very typical game in this league where it comes down to a certain precious few possessions," Virginia coach Dave Leitao said. "We just had to hold the fort defensively, and rebound, and execute. We didn't do that obviously."

Senior Sean Singletary, meanwhile, had one of his poorest performances of the season. The point guard ended with 11 points, three of which came on a meaningless 3-point field goal as time expired. His 11-point total was his lowest since Dec. 5, when he scored just 10 while battling the flu in a home game against Syracuse.

In addition, Singletary had two costly turnovers -- both steals near the mid-court stripe as the Cavaliers got in their half-court set -- in the final three minutes, which led to 7 Florida State points.

After the game, Singletary was the first to admit the severity of the damage caused by his two late turnovers.

"I was careless with the ball," Singletary said. "That was the story of the game."

Before this game, Singletary had been playing arguably the best basketball of his career. In the three games before Wednesday night's contest, the senior averaged 23.6 points per game, including a season-high 34 in a losing effort to Virginia Tech, and recorded two double-doubles.

Even with Singletary at the top of his game, however, the Cavaliers only managed one win in these three contests due to a lack of support from the team's next three most prominent scorers: senior Adrian Joseph, junior Mamadi Diane and sophomore Calvin Baker. Throughout Virginia's young conference season, Singletary and his supporting cast have not been able to complement each other -- only once have Singletary and the supporting threesome produced good numbers offensively on the same night, when all four players scored at least 15 points in an 84-66 win against Boston College.

In the Cavaliers' three ACC losses, however, either Singletary or his supporting cast has put up good numbers, but not both. In Virginia's most recent loss to the Seminoles, with Singletary playing poorly, the threesome put up a combined 45 of the team's 67 points. In losses to Duke and Virginia Tech, however, with Singletary at his peak, the three averaged a combined 25.5 points per game.

Sunday, Singletary and company will face a Georgia Tech team that has been exceptional of late. The Yellow Jackets have won each of their last two contests, including a 77-74 road win at N.C. State Wednesday. Even in the game before the two-game win streak, Georgia Tech nearly upset then-No. 1 North Carolina in an 83-82 nail-biter.

Though the Yellow Jackets lost their two top scorers from last year in Javaris Crittendon and Thaddeus Young, coach Paul Hewitt has another athletic group this season, led by seniors Anthony Morrow and Jeremis Smith and junior Lewis Clinch, all of whom average double figures in scoring. Smith, a 6-foot-8 forward, also leads Georgia Tech in rebounds per game (7.2) and is second in assists per game (2.2).

 

Garland energizes wrestling program
By Jay Jenkins / jjenkins@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
January 25, 2008

At a national event, Craig Littlepage was offered a dose of congratulations from a colleague.

Virginia’s athletic director, intrigued by the gesture, inquired further. The pat on the back was in reference to Virginia’s wrestling team, a program quickly garnering national attention.

“The message was that people around the country are taking notice to what our wrestling program is doing and the strides that have been made in UVa wrestling,” Littlepage said.

On Thursday, Littlepage relayed the story to Virginia’s wrestlers and the program’s coaching staff.

Virginia’s second-year coach Steve Garland was blown away by the account.

“That is crazy,” Garland said. “Not just guys in our little, small culture of wrestling, in this community, but outside of that and other schools and universities, and especially administrators, are noticing it.

“That’s when you know it is something special.”

Setting the school record for dual victories in a season before the ACC schedule opened is certainly “special.”

The Cavaliers (13-3, 0-0 ACC) start their next quest - to win the league regular-season title - this weekend. UVa entertains North Carolina (5-3, 1-1) tonight at Memorial Gymnasium at 7 p.m. and travels to Richmond on Sunday to tangle with Virginia Tech (4-4, 0-1).

Garland said setting the school record for dual-match wins was “a little milestone,” but the coaching staff has taken more pride in other accomplishments.

“We are proud of the wins,” Garland said, “but at the same time, the coaching staff, I think, is most proud of the attitude that the kids have.”

That attitude was apparent last weekend at UNC Greensboro in the third and final match of the weekend.

After falling behind 12-0 early, the Cavaliers calmly rebounded, breaking the previous season-best win total that was matched in 1975, 2003 and 2006.

“We are officially a team as of last weekend when we sucked it up and got that win against UNC Greensboro,” Garland said. “I tell you what, man, I was so proud how our kids stuck with it. The older guys stepped up and got the younger guys fired up.

“I am on the bench freaking out and all my guys are as cool as cucumbers. There is something to be said about that.”

It was one of the benchmarks that Garland, a former Cavalier wrestler, set out to accomplish when he took over the program two years ago.

“We needed to get everybody on the same page, thinking alike, acting alike, drilling alike, training alike, and I think, officially, we are there,” Garland said.

Rocco Caponi, a junior who is ranked No. 9 in the country in one poll in the 184-pound weight class, said the credit goes to Garland and his staff.

“They do a great job of keeping that respect that you have to have for a coach but also coming down to a very human level and connecting with every wrestler one-on-one,” said Caponi, who is 29-1 on the season with seven falls. “They do that so perfectly.”

Caponi and Garland are hopeful that the program’s success will encourage Cavalier fans to turn out for their upcoming home matches in droves.

What will the crowd see?

“That is a great question,” Garland said. “Hopefully, the first thing they see is a crowd getting into the match, a really big crowd that is knowledgeable about the sport and knowledgeable about our guys. Hopefully, we have guys out there that, no matter what happens, are going to go hard for seven minutes and they are going to make it exciting for the crowd, win or lose.

“But at the end of the day, I really don’t care about the end result as much as I care about the way that these guys wrestle. As big as this match is, as big as this UNC match is for us, it is still just a means to an end. Everything that we have done, the 16 dual meets, the crazy schedule, all the double sessions, everything we have done is just to prepare us for the ACC’s and the nationals.”