Disciplined Monroe Prepares to Tackle the NFL
By Zach Berman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, February 9, 2009; E01

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Eugene Monroe surrendered anonymity a long time ago. At 6 feet 6 and 315 pounds, Monroe seldom walked the University of Virginia campus unnoticed during his four seasons as an offensive tackle. He could not fade into the back of a classroom, especially after he developed into one of the nation's finest players.

Even when his size isn't immediately noticeable, Monroe draws attention. Before he changed his privacy settings on Facebook, he received 30 to 40 friend requests every day -- from strangers. Some were from women who knew Monroe was months from becoming a multimillionaire.

"He's one of the top prospects at his position and one of the top prospects across the board," said an NFC personnel director, who added that he thinks Monroe will be selected in the first half of the first round of April's NFL draft.

Monroe accepts the attention but stops short of embracing it. During his senior season, when asked about his future in the NFL, he would often change the subject to something within his control -- the Cavaliers' next game.

Several months have passed since his final college game, but he would still rather talk about what's within his control -- preparing for this month's NFL scouting combine. Monroe focuses on that event because the bombardment of praise has just begun. Those who know Monroe want to tell him what they heard about him, and those who have only heard about Monroe want to find a way to know him.

"It's pretty unavoidable," Monroe said in his hushed baritone. "Every day, I'm hearing from one person or another. 'I saw your name on ESPN' or 'I saw you going top 10' or in the first round. I hear all that stuff.

"But I pretty much have the same mentality that I did during the season. The goal right now is preparing for the combine, because that's the next step for me. I can't dictate where I'm drafted. All I can do is to continue to position myself as the best player at my position. So hearing all those things, I pretty much let it go in one ear and out the other."

Those who are fanatical about Monroe actually have the least in common with him. By his own admission, Monroe did not grow up a football fan. He was involved in martial arts as a child and devoured video games. He watched football for the first time as a 9-year-old, witnessing Reggie White blow by an offensive tackle for three sacks when the Green Bay Packers won Super Bowl XXXI. Monroe considers himself a Packers fan because of that game, but he does not nestle in front of his television on Sunday afternoons.

"I've never really had a big interest," Monroe said. "If you asked me football history, I'd give you blank answers."

Yet he has been drawn to the game since participating in informal neighborhood football in Plainfield, N.J., when he was 10 years old. He wanted to join Pop Warner in fifth grade but was too big for his age group. He finally started organized football in middle school and immediately recognized his advantage.

By Monroe's freshman year of high school, he was 6-1, 250 pounds. By his sophomore year, he had grown three inches. In between, he attended football camps at Rutgers and Maryland and received scholarship offers from both schools. By his senior year of high school, he was the top offensive lineman in the nation and had his choice among just about every major program.

Monroe entered the starting lineup at Virginia by his sophomore year and was named second-team all-American last season. He is just as proud that he graduated from Virginia in December -- a semester earlier than scheduled -- and became the first member of his immediate family to earn a degree.

Monroe's personal growth followed the same timeline. His father died of multiple myeloma when Monroe was in the fifth grade. "It was right when you need your father the most," said Eugene Green, Monroe's uncle, who became a father figure to Monroe and helped raise him.

Monroe fell back on his large family -- he has one blood brother and 14 stepsiblings, and he lived at times with aunts, uncles and cousins -- but he needed to quickly develop personal responsibility after his father's death.

"It seemed like overnight he matured," said Stephanie Green, Monroe's mother.

Because of that, raising Monroe came without difficulties. He applies the same straightforward logic now when talking about the NFL draft that he used when he was a child.

"Finish your homework before you go outside," Stephanie Green would tell him.

"Mom," Monroe would reply, "I wouldn't go outside unless I already finished my homework."

Green laughs when recounting those frequent exchanges. It is her way of reminding herself that she does not need to worry about her son.

"I'm not afraid of him being by himself because he's not a troublemaker," said Susanne Green, Monroe's aunt, who also helped raise him. "If I say be home by 11:30, he'll be home by 11:15."

Monroe spends his idle time wherever home is at that particular moment. He is hooked on his gadgets -- computer, video games, iPhone. During his freshman year at Virginia, Monroe camped out overnight outside a local electronics store to purchase an Xbox 360, earning the nickname "Best Buy" from his teammates.

Virginia guard B.J. Cabbell, one of Monroe's college roommates, marveled at the sound system Monroe installed at their off-campus house and counts on Monroe to fix whatever breaks. Monroe took an interest in Photoshop during his senior year and learned Web design even though it was not required for his sociology major. During off hours, as he trains for the combine in Bradenton, Fla., Monroe plays online video games against his cousins.

One of those cousins likely will move with Monroe to his future home -- according to online mock drafts, possible destinations include St. Louis, Oakland, Jacksonville, who pick second, seventh and eighth, respectively. He will be in a metropolis, and the Facebook friend requests will turn into requests for time and money. But Monroe insists he will not change, even though his life -- and bank account -- certainly will.

"I think, at least, that I have a pretty good idea how to discern someone's heart and their true intentions," Monroe said. "I'm not looking to make any new best friends, especially with these people I don't know."





U.Va. catches opponent on the rise
VIRGINIA AT NO. 25 FLORIDA STATE
Today:7 p.m.
On the air:TV -- CSN+, 6:30; radio -- WRVA (1140), 6:30
By Jeff White
Published: February 10, 2009

However rocky his tenure might have been at times, Pete Gillen never lost eight consecutive games as University of Virginia men's basketball coach.

That hasn't happened at U.Va. since 1997-98, Jeff Jones' final season as coach at his alma mater. But Gillen's successor, Dave Leitao, may achieve that dubious distinction tonight in Tallahassee, Fla. Virginia (1-7, 7-12) faces Florida State (5-3, 18-5) in an ACC game matching teams headed in opposite directions.

The No. 25 Seminoles yesterday entered The Associated Press rankings for the first time in 11 years. FSU is coming off an epic comeback victory over Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum.

"I thought Saturday's game was a significant step for our kids," Seminoles coach Leonard Hamilton said yesterday.

The Cavaliers lost Saturday at North Carolina. U.Va. stayed closer than many expected -- it was an eight-point game at halftime -- but never seriously threatened the No. 3 Tar Heels.

Like Virginia, which often starts three freshmen and a sophomore, FSU is young. At point guard, though, the Seminoles have a fifth-year senior. Toney Douglas is third among ACC players in scoring and steals and, equally important, has shown a deft touch as a leader.

"Toney has been very calm and very patient with our youngsters in his approach to communicating with them," Hamilton said. "Whenever there's an emotional moment, he seems to be the voice of reason."

Leitao's starting point guard for most of the season has been redshirt freshman Sammy Zeglinski. Leitao started junior Calvin Baker at point against UNC, but Zeglinski played 31 minutes off the bench and scored 11 points.

Virginia's other starters in Chapel Hill included 6-5 junior Solomon Tat. A backup swingman until this month, Tat played power forward against the Tar Heels. In his first college start, Tat posted modest numbers two points, two rebounds, one assist in 14 minutes -- but Leitao loves the spirit with which the native of Nigeria plays.

U.Va.'s leading scorer against UNC was sophomore guard Jeff Jones. In his first start of the season, Jones contributed 19 points, four rebounds and a career-high five assists, with only one turnover.

"I would say in practice, Jeff is the most consistent scorer and brings the most energy, day in and day out," U.Va. freshman Sylven Landesberg said after the game. "He just needed that one opportunity, and he got it today and just went off."

. . .

Note: Tonight's game will be carried live by CSN Plus. (Comcast SportsNet is showing the Washington Wizards.) CSN Plus is available on Comcast cable systems throughout Virginia and on DirecTV and Dish Network.





Virginia adds Indiana to 2009 football schedule
The 2009 Virginia football schedule will be announced today with a surprise replacement for an anticipated Mid-American Conference foe.

UVa was able to line up Indiana to come to Scott Stadium for what will be the first football meeting between the teams.

Athletic director Craig Littlepage said he feels confident that UVa will play the first of four home games against MAC teams in 2010.

Virginia lived up to its end of a 4-for-1 arrangement when it played at Middle Tennessee State in 2007. The Cavaliers took the place of Temple, which needed to get out of a contracted game with MTSU in order to play a full MAC schedule that year.

Littlepage said part of the difficulty in finding a MAC opponent for 2009 was a calendar that will require teams to play 12 games in a 13-week spam.

"Ideally, we would have slotted the game in September," said Littlepage, who admitted that Virginia had issues of its own later in the season. "As the clock was ticking, it became increasingly difficult to match things up."

Also, Littlepage said, several MAC schools have changed athletic directors and were unfamiliar with the Virginia arrangement.

Indiana will join a UVa non-conference schedule that includes other home games with Texas Christian and William and Mary, as well as a road trip to Southern Mississippi.

"I'm very pleased with the composition of our schedule," said Littlepage, who could not have been sure that a team from a Bowl Championship Series conference would be willing to come to Charlottesville on such short notice.

The Hoosiers lost nine of their last 10 games to finish 3-9 in 2008.

A Virginia trip to Bloomington, Ind., might take place in 2011. The Cavaliers already have a non-conference game set with Southern Cal for 2010.

-- Doug Doughty





No guarantees: 'Noles are on a roll, but Virginia is a threat
By Corey Clark
DEMOCRAT STAFF Writer

The Florida State men are coming off an instantly legendary comeback win over the No. 10 Clemson Tigers on Saturday night. They are ranked in the AP Top 25 for the first time in a decade. They are tied for third in the ACC, with a monumental showdown with No. 7 Wake Forest looming on Saturday.

But first, the No. 25 Seminoles (18-5 overall, 5-3 ACC) tonight play host to a Virginia team that has dropped seven straight conference games and is currently 7-12 on the season and 1-7 in the ACC. It's the same Virginia team the Seminoles beat decisively in Charlottesville on Jan. 24

If ever there was a chance for a letdown.

"Our players are very aware of that," FSU head coach Leonard Hamilton said. "They won't be fooled. We have a lot of examples for us to point to, to keep them focused. And we have not accomplished anything yet, other than we've won five games in the ACC. We have eight more games to go. And if we want this to be a special year for us, we have to keep that in mind."

It's natural for the Seminoles to feel good about themselves. They just pulled off one of the best comebacks in the history of the program, overcoming a 19-point deficit with less than 15 minutes remaining. On the road. Against Clemson, a team that had just ripped Duke by 27 points.

But there is no doubt that much of the shine of that stunning upset would be muddied if FSU turned around and lost to the Cavaliers tonight.

"We understand that," Hamilton said. "Nothing is guaranteed. You're not guaranteed to win any games. But I do know that, regardless of how we play, we do understand the importance of each game."

Said freshman guard Luke Loucks of the Cavaliers: "They have great players. They just haven't put it all together yet. We can't be the team that they put it together on. ... Every team in the ACC is going to be talented, regardless of their record. You can't take any team lightly."

On Monday, Virginia head coach Dave Leitao was asked about Florida State's suffocating defense, which held his team without a field goal for more than 12 minutes in the first half in their first meeting. The Cavaliers hit just 3 of 30 shots in the first 20 minutes.

"There were a number of cases where they played really good defense," Leitao said of the Seminoles. "And I think defensively they're structured great because at the top of it they have a fifth-year guy (Toney Douglas) who is a tremendous defender. On the ball, off the ball, he anticipates very well.

"And the back line of it ... they are very long and active — with (Solomon) Alabi and (Uche) Echefu and others."

Statistically, Florida State is one of the top defensive teams in the conference and in the country. The Seminoles are currently 10th in the nation (out of 330 teams) in field-goal percentage, 14th in steals and ninth in blocked shots.

Hamilton hopes that trend continues tonight, of course. He also hopes his team receives the type of home-crowd atmosphere that the Clemson Tigers enjoyed Saturday night.

Except, instead of bright orange, Hamilton is asking everyone in the stands to wear garnet to show their support.

"There is no doubt that Clemson has done a tremendous job in their school spirit and the way they have their cheerleaders and band and all their pep groups working in unison," Hamilton said. "That was as good as I have witnessed in college basketball in my entire career.

"And you have to compliment them, they have created a very fun atmosphere that the students, and the faculty and everyone who goes, enjoys. And we're not quite there yet. Our fans are supportive. We just need to keep giving our fans something to cheer about."





UVa looks to stop Sunshine State skid
By Whitey Reid
Published: February 10, 2009

As Virginia looks to snap a seven-game losing streak tonight against Florida State in Tallahassee, recent history is certainly not on its side.

The Sunshine State — or just about any warm-weather locale, for that matter — has been a house of horrors.

During the Dave Leitao era, the Cavaliers have a 1-8 record in games played in Florida, California and Puerto Rico. The lone win was a squeaker over Division II University of Puerto Rico-Mayaguez during the San Juan Shootout in 2006-07.

Virginia (7-12, 1-7 ACC) hasn’t won in Tallahassee since the 2000-01 season when Pete Gillen was coach. In that game, UVa needed a last-second 3-pointer from current San Antonio Spur Roger Mason Jr. to seal the win.

Virginia’s visit to Tallahassee last season certainly isn’t a fond memory. The Cavaliers blew a 10-point lead with nine minutes to play before losing, 69-67.

Of course, that performance looks downright Picasso-like in comparison to the Cavs’ 73-62 loss a little over two weeks ago at John Paul Jones Arena. In that game, Virginia managed just three first-half field goals in one of the worst offensive performances in school history.

FSU’s defense certainly had a lot to do with that. The Seminoles suffocated Virginia early, forcing the Wahoos into nearly as many turnovers in the first half as points.

“Defensively, they’re structured great because at the top of it, they have a fifth-year guy [Toney Douglas] who is a tremendous defender on and off the ball,” Leitao said, “and then the backline — they’re very long and athletic.”

Leitao believes his team can improve a bunch from the first meeting.

“We have a lot of correctable issues offensively — waiting for our screens, setting our screens, timing, working better and more together as a five-man unit,” he said. “If we can clean a lot of those things up in our adjustment, then obviously we stand a better chance to right what was wrong.”

Making matters tougher this time around will be the fact that FSU (18-5, 5-3) seems to be playing some of its best ball of the season. On Saturday, the Seminoles overcame a 19-point second-half deficit and won on the road at No. 10 Clemson, which was just coming off an upset victory over Duke.

FSU coach Leonard Hamilton, whose team features six freshmen, doesn’t expect his team to have any letdown against Virginia.

“There have been a lot of situations that we can point to throughout the year where teams have not performed well after getting a certain level of recognition,” Hamilton said. “We’ll point those out.

“We still, in some ways, are considered the underdog and are still trying to earn a certain level of respect — not in only in our conference, but on a national basis. We don’t have any room right now to take any bows. We realize that not many people have ever made the NCAA Tournament winning five [ACC] games. If we don’t keep winning, there won’t be any opportunity at the end of the season. We’re very much aware of it.”

Dunks

Virginia leads the all-time series, 17-15. … Leitao said sophomore forward Mike Scott, who hasn’t had more than four rebounds in his last four games, needs to do a better job of going after rebounds instead of just watching. “It’s something we need and haven’t been getting as much of,” he said. … Leitao didn’t rule out offseason thumb surgery for freshman center Assane Sene, who has been playing with a heavy wrap.






Cavs take on surging Seminoles in Tallahassee skirmish tonight
Senior star Douglas leads Florida State’s offense; Leitao skeptical that change in defensive scheme from man-to-man to zone will cure team’s protection problems
Matt Diton, Cavalier Daily Staff Writer
Published: Tuesday, February 10 2009

Junior guard Calvin Baker has started 13 of Virginia’s 19 games this season, including the Cavaliers Basketball experts often say one mark of a good team is the ability to go into hostile, enemy territory and return home victorious. If that is true, the Virginia men’s team will be attempting to prove it is better than its current 1-7 conference record would otherwise indicate when it travels to Tallahassee to take on Florida State (16-5, 3-3 ACC) tonight.

If most basketball seasons are like roller coasters, one could make the argument that the Cavaliers have been — oddly enough — on a permanent downslope. Despite starting the ACC campaign on a high note with a road victory against Georgia Tech, Virginia (7-12, 1-7) quickly plummeted back to earth and has lost seven straight conference games.

In the past two games, however, the Cavaliers have shown signs of perhaps reaching the bottom of the drop and beginning an ascent, partly thanks to their recent switch to a 3-2 zone on the defensive side of the ball. Against the heavily favored Tar Heels last Saturday, the Cavaliers managed to keep the game close throughout the first half before letting it slip away in the second, eventually succumbing 76-61 in Chapel Hill. Virginia will now test its new defense against a Seminole team that has performed better than expected, averaging nearly 70 points per game at home and currently riding a wave of momentum.

A big reason for Florida State’s success this season can be attributed to the sparkling play of senior point guard Toney Douglas. An offensive catalyst, Douglas leads the Seminoles in scoring, averaging more than twenty points per game this season. He also tops the team in assists per game and ranks fourth on the squad in rebounds.

Although the Cavaliers have appeared to play better in the zone recently, Virginia coach Dave Leitao believes that this tiny switch will not solve all of Virginia’s well-documented defensive woes.

“We’ve got to get committed to what will work for us,” Leitao said. “Ideally, I’d like to mix it up — play some full-court pressure, man-to-man, zone — kind of keep a team off-balance with your energy and your aggression and changing your defense.”

Despite Leitao’s reservations, at least one Virginia player believes sticking with the zone could be the key to saving what has been a disappointing season for the Cavaliers.

“We’re a big, long team, so we can get out to shooters quick,” freshman guard Sylven Landesberg said. “With extended arms, we make it hard for passing lanes to open up.”

Regardless of Virginia’s ability to execute on defense, the Seminoles may possess a psychological edge against the Cavaliers. In addition to defeating Virginia 73-62 in Charlottesville earlier this season, Florida State hasn’t lost to the Cavaliers since the 2006-07 season, when a Sean Singletary-led Virginia team narrowly pulled out a 73-70 victory. Virginia also has been dreadful on the road this season, compiling a less than stellar 1-6 record outside John Paul Jones Arena.

Leitao knows his squad must learn, and learn quickly, to win on the road if the Cavaliers wish to salvage what is left of their season.
“Obviously you play a great team on their court,” Leitao said. “You have to play, as we’ve been talking about, relatively mistake-free. You can miss a couple of shots, you can make a few fouls, but you’re going to have to make the plays that are available to you constantly.”

Time is running out for Virginia this season if it still wants to prove itself. If the Cavaliers wish to turn their season around, the upturn must begin with a strong defensive performance against the Seminoles.





A Midwinter Sports Ritual
Conor Wakeman
Published: Tuesday, February 10 2009

For this sports fan, January is the cruellest month, dashing hopes against the hardwood, brooding losses beyond expectations, mixing memory and desire into one tough highball that brushes me back from the metaphorical plate.

Driving home mid-December on Interstate-64 East, the trees without leaves like rows upon rows of silenced spectators, Virginia football’s four straight losses to end the season tasted sour in the mouth — like shocking yourself as a kid, that metallic smoothness coating something not quite right.

The fall semester had not gone as expected — in part because of the football team’s off-field sideshow last January — and after our last tailgate, cleaning the heap of beer cans and plastic cups and plates into a deep, black trash bag, I told myself, ‘You’re not just a football fan anymore; now, there’s basketball season.’ Pulling down last season’s football calendar, the tides of each churning season — what team except the Cavaliers would win their fourth-straight game on the road at Georgia Tech in October as a prelude to collapse — all dropped together suddenly into the din of pins collecting on the floor. I packed through the evening, rolling my ties for probably the last time, and headed east through a dimming blue light splashed against streaking orange and purple clouds.

Yet you ask — what better way to cure the college sports blues than Bowl Season? What dry spell cannot be quenched within the rhythm and regeneration of that festival of sponsored delights? Here, beer drips across the floor without apparent concern; early season losses and conference rivalry wins blur in meaning within the anxious fist of crushed potato chips.

Fight on State
Fight on State
Strike your gait and win
Victory we predict for thee
We’re ever true to you, dear old White and Blue —

‘You watch this; you have better luck.’

‘They play better when I iron upstairs.’

Unfriendly Pasadena, Misters Corso and Herbstreit have a bad case of Trojan gold and crimson, though they broadcast as the wisest men in Media America with a mascot. Here, they find the Rose Parade red, and the California Boys golden. Here, Mark Sanchez finds Everyone Over the Middle. Here is Ronald Johnson Wide Open. Here is a Big Ten Team built against the Run. Fear defeat through the air. Thank you, Joe Paterno; you must be careful these days. Afterward each Lion fixes his eyes before his feet, as so many have done before him. ‘Young Fellow, have you read about the new recruit? Or have we lost him already Brother!’

The couch presses toward the television performing the same SportsCenter for the fourth time this February night. Seven straight ACC losses in men’s basketball argue against the natural fit of the Hoo Crew T-shirt, framed against the navy blue of the couch, surrendering underneath the soft white flag of the comforter. Ticket stubs and coupons now unredeemable scatter across the dirty glass table; the roll-out banner has lost its tension and reflects the rest of the room at a slant. The scroll line of the screen repeats the score alert: North Carolina 76, Virginia 61. He expects less now, still holding up four fingers on each hand whenever a Cavalier stands at the free throw line.

‘Leitao needs more time. You cannot build a program in four years. How can success wax and wane so quickly? Can the women’s team pick up the slack? Is this a down year? What is that noise?’

The sound of the ball hitting nothing but net. Have you forgotten that already? What it felt like to compete in the ACC? To win on the road?

‘Georgia Tech gives us less and less to stand on the more and more they give away. But our play at Syracuse!’

I remember waiting for the page to reload after each foul, time out, precious second-chance shot, as Tennessee yielded on the road. The women understand this: Win the games you should and huddle, like children on Christmas morning, waiting for your name on Selection Sunday.

When we went to Raising Cane’s without the buy-one-get-one-free coupon, I said I could not decide what I wanted.

Hurry up please, it’s time.

The line grew behind me, and I said what I always thought.

You should try something else, he said.

If you don’t like it you can get on with it, I said.

Hurry up please, it’s time.

I can’t help it, I said, pulling a long face.

Just because you have always gotten that, he said, does not mean something else will not work.

Hurry up please, it’s time.

I don’t want to eat any of it, I said.

Don’t ruin a good night because of this team, he said.

The lights of Scott Stadium sulk: the chants and furies have faded; the grass grows in rampant splotches; there are no more airport bottles, no more sundresses. Police loiter about in the parking lot, and new construction keeps the merely curious from wandering past and grasping at something missing. Sweet bleachers; run clean routes deep into the hearts of the young, until the last “Good Ol’ Song” has been sung.

The Forgetful Fan drags his fingers along your tall, metal bars; your voices ring in his ears with the dull satisfaction of a bell. The rain slickens his jacket, and, dressed for your occasions in soft blue shirt and a subtle orange in the belt, he darkens into the hush between buildings. Grounds spreads out oblivious to the spectacle of National Signing Day: I, enshrined, Jefferson, hold Groh’s truths to be self-evident. All recruits are not created equal: Morgan Moses and Tucker Windle may have been endowed with extraordinary gifts, but Jameel Sewell just cannot make the deep pass. I, blessed with muted foresight, endure your drunken pleas for Mikell Simpson to find his swagger; however, let me tell you an obvious secret: Sean Singletary was an aberration. Well now that’s done, and I’m glad it’s over.

After the lights on the buses no longer read ‘Private,’ after the beat of slow feet across Emmet fade, after the last hot dogs simmer in the dumpster, there is not even solitude in the empty gymnasium. Where now is the second who spotted you? Where are those extra weights? There is exhaustion in the old pipes in Mem Gym; there are chairs holding down the floor of an empty pool; U-Hall echoes and echoes until, cracking, the unreal, old glory of Sampson and Staples breaks loose in jerseys hung high before their time is told.

What have we given; received; controlled? The passing surrender to feeling more than ourselves.

That Good Ol’ Song of Wahoo-Wa, we’ll sing it o’er and o’er ...





Good grades hard to come by for Cavs
By Whitey Reid
Published: February 9, 2009

If Virginia’s lone ACC victory at Georgia Tech seemed like a long time ago, well, it was.
The season-opening win over the Yellow Jackets came in 2008 — just a few days before the New Year.
Since then, Virginia has lost seven straight league games. With the exception of the Virginia Tech game on Jan. 10, none of the games have been remotely close. UVa has been so non-competitive that a Raleigh columnist recently referred to the program as “pitiful.”
Sure, nobody expected Virginia to whoop up on the ACC this season after losing its best player (Sean Singletary) to the NBA, but nobody thought UVa would lie down and play dead, either.
If Wahoo fans have to hear about their team not “coming out with energy” or not “playing with passion” one more time, they’re liable to shoot themselves.
For such a “young” team, how is this possible? Virginia players are in one of the best college basketball conferences in the country and are playing in some of the most famed venues in the sport.
If anything, UVa coach Dave Leitao should have to be ratcheting them down a notch, not begging them to flip the ignition switch.
Clearly, there is a major disconnect somewhere.
Following a 76-61 loss to North Carolina on Saturday, Virginia is halfway through its ACC schedule. With the last-place Cavaliers (7-12, 1-7) set to play at Florida State on Tuesday night, here is the team’s mid-season report card.

The Players
Junior guard Calvin Baker
Analysis: Fans can moan all they want to about Baker. Yes, his shot selection is often poor and he’s not a good passer. But the reality is that Baker is one of the few players on this team who doesn’t play scared. If the former walk-on doesn’t hit the game-winning 3-pointer at Georgia Tech last season, Virginia likely finishes in the ACC basement. If Baker doesn’t drill the big shot against the Yellow Jackets this season, UVa is winless in the league.
Grade: C+
Freshman center John Brandenburg
Analysis: The 6-foot-11 St. Louis native hasn’t played as much as most people expected him to. In his brief time on the court, Brandenburg has shown a nice hook shot. He’s certainly a lot further along at this stage than previous Virginia big men. Expect Brandenburg to get more minutes in the second half of the season since the team doesn’t really have anything to lose.
Grade: Incomplete
Senior guard/forward Mamadi Diane
Analysis: One of the biggest enigmas of the entire college basketball season. Can you think of another player in the country who is on the cover of his school’s media guide but no longer plays? Diane, a DNP vs. North Carolina, has gone from a double-digit scorer to a benchwarmer over night. Off-season foot surgery, the new 3-point line and no Sean Singletary have been factors, but it seems that Diane, mainly, has just gotten worn out emotionally.
Grade: D
Sophomore guard Mustapha Farrakhan
Analysis: Farrakhan, like so many of his teammates, has shown nice flashes. His 17-point outburst at Virginia Tech was impressive. However, since then, Farrakhan hasn’t been hitting very much. Of course, yo-yoing in and out of the lineup with Jeff Jones hasn’t helped. On the plus side, he’s drilled all 18 of his free-throw attempts this season.
Grade: C-
Sophomore guard Jeff Jones
Analysis: Coming out of high school, Jones was the all-time leading scorer in the famed Philadelphia Catholic League. Since arriving at UVa, Jones hasn’t given any indication that he can replicate that kind of success. However, he is clearly one of the hardest-working players, especially on the defensive end. If his jumper can ever become more consistent, Virginia might have itself a serviceable ACC player.
Grade: C
Freshman guard Sylven Landesberg
Analysis: Can you imagine what Virginia would be like without its star freshman? Unwatchable. Leitao clearly hit a homerun when he beat out Georgia Tech and St. John’s for Landesberg’s services. The New Yorker, who is averaging a team-leading 18.9 points, has had one of the best freshmen seasons in school history. He’s already been named ACC Rookie of the Week five times.
Grade: A
Junior center Jerome Meyinsse
Analysis: With the departure of Lars Mikalauskas in the offseason, this was supposed to be the year that Meyinsse really stepped up. It hasn’t happened. The weird thing is that Meyinsse never really seems to play poorly when given a chance. His 10-point, eight-rebound effort at Syracuse showed promise, but he hasn’t received consistent minutes since.
Grade: D+
Sophomore center/forward Mike Scott
Analysis: With Virginia’s dearth of big men, Scott should be posting double-doubles regularly, but he has just six. Clearly an ACC-caliber player, Scott has all of the offensive tools to be successful. Leitao’s motion offense and herky-jerky substitution patterns just don’t seem to be a good fit for him. Plus, getting the ball inside to Scott almost never seems to be a priority.
Grade: C
Freshman center Assane Sene
Analysis: After Landesberg, the second most pleasant surprise. Sene hasn’t been nearly as raw as advertised. Already, the 7-footer is a major factor on the defensive end (1.9 blocks per game), and he has more offensive skills than a lot of people expected. An injured thumb has affected his shooting of late, but Sene clearly has the most upside of any Virginia player.
Grade: B
Senior center Tunji Soroye
Analysis: Soroye, after being granted a medical redshirt, returned for a fifth year with the hopes of erasing an injury-plagued 2007-08 season. Unfortunately, this season has been just as disappointing. “Tunji Time” has been nearly non-existent. Soroye has appeared in just nine games.
Grade: D
Junior guard/forward Solomon Tat
Analysis: Well, he tries really hard and is a great kid. Those are the best things you can say about Tat. Clearly, Tat hasn’t been what Leitao and staff thought he would be when they recruited him. The 6-foot-5 Nigerian is one of the team’s better defensive players, but has no real offensive skills, which makes him a liability when he is in the game.
Grade: C
Junior forward Jamil Tucker
Analysis: One of the team’s best outside shooters, but doesn’t really do much else. Tucker’s game hasn’t developed the way Leitao hoped that it would. Tucker, part of Leitao’s first recruiting class, came in as gunner. That’s still really all he is. At least, he does that fairly well, connecting at a 41-percent clip from downtown.
Grade: C
Redshirt freshman guard Sammy Zeglinski
Analysis: Zeglinski, replacing Virginia icon Sean Singletary, has had huge shoes to fill. When you consider that Singletary averaged 10.5 points and 3.9 assists as a freshman, Zeglinski’s numbers (9.5 points and 3.4 assists) certainly stack up. His play has been erratic of late, but that’s to be expected from a first-year point guard in the ACC.
Grade: B-
The Coach
Dave Leitao, fourth year
Analysis: If Virginia loses its eighth straight game to Florida State on Tuesday, it will be 1-8 in ACC play and on pace to match last year’s 1-9 start. As bad as this season has gone, people tend to forget that the 2007-08 campaign — even with Singletary — wasn’t that much better. Virginia was only able to finish 5-11 after winning four of its last six games. The CBI farce saved UVa from its first losing record of the Leitao era. This season, barring a remarkable turn-around, there won’t be any postseason festivities, and Leitao — whose first couple of recruiting classes were not up to ACC snuff — should take most of the heat for that. The reaction from out-of-town sportswriters is that Virginia just seems poorly coached. When you see UVa lose repeatedly in almost identical fashion, game after game, it’s hard to argue. Leitao’s squad is young, but so are a lot of other teams in the league. Leitao’s coaching style doesn’t seem to inspire his players or give them any kind of confidence. The team has no discernible identity on offense or defense. And, with apologies to the late Jerry Falwell, no Virginia team should ever lose at home to Liberty.
Grade: F.