Bennett On Academic Expectations
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 03/08/2010
March 8, 2010
3:18 p.m.

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- When Tony Bennett was men's basketball coach at Washington State, football players at that Pac-10 school were required to take forms to all their classes. Instructors would sign them to verify attendance, and the players would then turn the forms in to the coaching staff.

"And maybe that is something to consider," Bennett said Monday afternoon on the ACC coaches' teleconference.

"But maybe I'm too old school in my thinking, that if you expect and demand your players to work hard on the practice floor and expect them to be at class and perform, then you have to be able to take people at their word on those things."

Bennett is nearing the end of his first season at UVa. He's had a tumultuous year, to say the least, and the team he'll take to Greensboro, N.C., for the ACC tournament is smaller than the one he had when the school year began.

Senior forward Jamil Tucker was dismissed from the team in December for academic reasons, and sophomore swingman Sylven Landesberg was suspended Friday night for failure to live up to his academic obligations.

Landesberg, who was named second-team all-ACC on Monday, will miss the rest of the season, and his future at UVa is uncertain.

On the ACC teleconference, Bennett was asked about his policy on class attendance.

"First and foremost, the responsibility does fall to the student-athlete," Bennett said. "But we do random class checks. There's pretty clear guidelines with our players that we expect them to go to class."

Bennett said players meet regularly with UVa's Athletics Academic Affairs office and members of his staff. Players are asked how their classes are going and how they're doing in the classes.

It's made clear to the players, Bennett said, what is expected of them "regarding not only attendance, but participation and how you go about it."

There are random checks to see if players are attending class, Bennett said, "but the responsibility in the end has to come" from the players.

"With Sylven's situation, he was at a lot of his other classes," Bennett said. "With this one obviously it didn't happen, and it was unfortunate."

UVa plays in the ACC tourney's first game Thursday. Virginia, the No. 9 seed, meets No. 8 seed Boston College at noon. The winner meets top-seeded Duke at noon Friday in the first quarterfinal.

-- Jeff White

Absences behind suspension
Bennett: Absences behind suspension
By Whitey Reid
Published: March 8, 2010
Updated: March 8, 2010
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On the basketball court, Virginia sophomore Sylven Landesberg could be considered an artist of sorts.
Off the court? Well, not so much.
On Monday, sources told The Daily Progress the reason for Landesberg’s recent
season-ending suspension. He never attended a class — in art.
During his weekly teleconference on Monday, Virginia coach Tony Bennett delved into a little more detail regarding the sudden loss of his leading scorer, who was named to the All-ACC second team on Monday.
“Sylven’s situation was that he was at a lot of his other classes,” Bennett said. “This one, obviously, it didn’t happen, and it was unfortunate.”
Without Landesberg in the lineup, ninth-seeded Virginia will clearly be a big underdog when it takes on eighth-seeded Boston College in the first round of the ACC tournament on Thursday in Greensboro, N.C.
UVa, riding a nine-game losing streak, will also be without senior
captain Calvin Baker for the rest of the season. On Monday, the school announced that Baker has left the team.
“A member of his family is ill and he needs to be with his family,” Bennett said in a press release. “Calvin and his family have our best wishes.”
Baker, who had played sparingly of late, becomes the third Virginia player to leave the team since the start of the season, joining Jamil Tucker and Landesberg.
In light of the Landesberg situation, Bennett said he may have to reassess the way he monitors class attendance. When he coached at Washington State, Bennett said the football team had a policy whereby players were required to get the signature of their
professor as proof that they attended.
Bennett said he has always been “old school” in much of his thinking, choosing to rely on trust in many instances.
However, he said the football policy is something he may have to consider in the future.
“I think, first and foremost, the responsibility falls to the student-athletes,“ Bennett said. “But we do random class checks and there are pretty clear guidelines with our players that we expect them to go to class…
“We have meetings with players each week and [ask] how the class is going, ‘Talk to me about how you’re doing in the class and what’s going on.’ So there’s a lot of communication, random class checks and guidelines.”

UVa has random class checks
Tony Bennett, who suspended Sylven Landesberg, says the system has loopholes.
Doug Doughty

The suspension of Virginia scoring leader Sylven Landesberg has resurrected an ongoing debate about the need for schools or coaching staffs to monitor the academic activity of their student-athletes.

UVa announced Saturday that Landesberg had been suspended for the remainder of the season as the result of unacceptable class attendance.

In another news release distributed Monday, Virginia announced that fifth-year senior co-captain Calvin Baker also would miss the remainder of the season due to an illness in his family.

The Cavaliers' season could end Thursday in Greensboro, N.C., where ninth-seeded UVa (14-15, 5-11 ACC) will meet eighth-seeded Boston College (15-16. 6-10) at noon in the first round of the ACC Tournament.

A UVa loss basically would result in a six-day suspension for Landesberg. A bigger issue surrounds his return for a junior year in 2010-11.

Multiple calls to the Landesberg home in Flushing, N.Y., went unanswered.

Coach Tony Bennett shed some more light on the Landesberg issue in Monday's weekly ACC coaches' teleconference.

"We do have random class checks," Bennett said, "but there's always going to be loopholes. At my former school, the football team [at Washington State] made their players get something signed by the professor.

"Maybe that is something to consider. Maybe I'm too old-school in my thinking that, if you expect and demand your players to work hard on the practice floor and expect them to be at class and perform, then you have to able to take people on their word."

There was evidence that Landesberg was attending some classes regularly, "but, in one, it didn't happen," Bennett said, "and it was clear to the team that there was the potential for suspension or punishments."

Bennett said the players are asked to assess their academic progress on a weekly basis.

"Someone from my staff or the academic support staff asks them, 'How's the class going? Talk to me about how you're doing [and] what's going on,' " Bennett said. "There's a lot of communication, but ultimately the responsibility falls to the student-athlete."

Bennett added that "there's a lot of class checks early [in the] day," and that might have been the loophole to which he was referring. Landesberg may have been missing a class later in the day.

Regardless, Landesberg became the second UVa player to receive academic-related sanctions this season. Jamil Tucker, the top returning scorer from last season's junior class, was dismissed for academic reasons in December without playing in a game this season.

Al Skinner, the 13-year Boston College head coach whose Eagles will face UVa for the second time in 10 days, said that a representative of his staff checks on class attendance every day.

"I know we monitor and we check, but if a young man's not interested in getting his education, there's not a lot that you can do about it," Skinner said.

"There's an agreement between the university and the young man that, if he's going to participate in athletics, he's got to get an education.

"If he doesn't want to, I'm not sure there's a whole lot you can do about it, other than to not allow him to participate."

Note

Bennett clarified that the technical foul he received with 38 seconds left Saturday against Maryland was his first as a head coach, assistant coach or player at any level. "I've been close to getting one; I've been warned," said Bennett, who said his father received his share of technicals at multiple coaching stops.

Baker’s departure further depletes U.Va. roster
By Michael Phillips
Published: March 9, 2010
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CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Virginia's basketball team continued limping to the finish line with yesterday's announcement that senior guard Calvin Baker will not join the team in Greensboro for the ACC tournament.

The Cavaliers will play Thursday's noon game against Boston College without three of the players on the roster at the start of the season.

First, senior Jamil Tucker was dismissed from the team by coach Tony Bennett for academic reasons.

Then before Saturday's home finale against Maryland, Bennett announced that he was suspending star sophomore Sylven Landesberg for the rest of the season -- reportedly for not attending an art class.

Added to all that was yesterday's announcement regarding Baker.

"Calvin will miss the rest of the season for personal family reasons," Bennett said. "A member of his family is ill, and he needs to be with his family. Calvin and his family have our best wishes."

This obviously was something Bennett couldn't anticipate, but Baker had started 10 games this season and provided a veteran poise though the team's current nine-game losing streak, the longest since the 1960s.

Since transferring from William and Mary after the 2006 season, Baker had some tough breaks at Virginia, including a foot injury and a knee injury that kept him sidelined for significant amounts of time.

He also made his own trouble when Bennett suspended him for a game for poorly handling his demotion from a starting spot. By the end of the season, he had played himself back into the starting five.

Baker was a team captain in his junior and senior seasons. He's from the Tidewater area.

His departure means that another Tidewater player, freshman Jontel Evans, will see extended minutes in Greensboro.

Bennett spoke with reporters yesterday before the Baker announcement was made. During a teleconference, the main line of questioning regarded Landesberg and his academic suspension.

"He was at a lot of his other classes, but with this one obviously it didn't happen, and it was unfortunate," Bennett said.

Landesberg will have to decide in the coming weeks whether to declare for the NBA draft, where he is being pegged as a second-round selection, return to U.Va. for his junior season, or even play overseas for a season before entering next year's draft.
 

Wrestlers Savor View from Atop ACC
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 03/08/2010
By Jeff White

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- In the InterMat college rankings released before the ACC wrestling tournament, Maryland was No. 10 nationally, and Virginia Tech was No. 14.

Virginia?

No. 22.

That's nothing to apologize for, especially at a school without a rich tradition in wrestling, but UVa was a definite underdog when it arrived in Raleigh, N.C., for the ACC tournament.

The Cavaliers' fourth-year coach was more optimistic than most observers. Steve Garland likes his group. A lot.

On the eve of the ACC tourney, Garland addressed his wrestlers.

"I said, 'This is the team that I believe the most in since I've been here.' Now, that doesn't mean that we're going to win it, but as far as every single kid, when they go out there, I know exactly what I'm getting,'" Garland recalled Monday.

"I'm not going to name names, but I couldn't say that about every kid in my lineup the last four years. I could walk into this tournament knowing that with all 10 guys, I really believed that. So that's why I was so calm going in. And that's what I told the kids.

"I said, 'That's the truth, guys. I'm not saying we're the best team we've ever had, or anything like that. What I'm saying is, I know the character and the heart and the determination of this team. I know you guys are not going to give up. I just believe in the way you guys are going to compete.'"

His wrestlers rewarded Garland's faith. With a remarkable team effort Saturday, UVa totaled 85 points to win the ACC championship for the first time since 1977.

Virginia was the only team to have a semifinalist in each of the 10 weight classes. Two Cavaliers were crowned: junior Chris Henrich at 174 pounds and redshirt freshman Mike Salopek at 184.

"I've been around this program for awhile, and to see where this program has come and to be a part of bringing home a title is really special," redshirt senior Brent Jones said in Raleigh.

"It's something you'll never forget and something you will always be a part of. It feels really good to leave your mark on history."

Maryland, which edged Virginia for the ACC crown in 2008 and '09, was second with 80.5 points.

Virginia Tech led UVa 78.5-77.5 with four finals remaining, but failed to pick up another point. The Hokies finished third.

Heading into Saturday night's finals, Virginia had 77.5 points, seven more than second-place Maryland. The Cavaliers had five wrestlers in the finals, but the first three lost: redshirt senior Ross Gitomer at 125, redshirt freshman Matt Snyder at 133 and redshirt sophomore Shawn Harris at 149.

Midway through the semifinals, with his team racking up points, Garland said, he'd thought, "This is it, man, this is ours."

His confidence grew as afternoon gave way to evening. "And then I'll be honest with you: Halfway through the finals, I started letting doubt creep in a little bit," Garland said, "and I was getting really nervous."

Henrich eased his coach's nerves. He destroyed North Carolina's Tommy Ferguson 20-5, a technical fall that earned Henrich a second straight ACC championship and pushed the Wahoos to the brink of the team title.

"He had the eye of the tiger, man," Garland said of Henrich, who improved his record to 30-2. "He had a look on his face that was scary. It was scary what he did to the kid. It looked like something out of The Matrix."

The 184-pound final matched Salopek against his nemesis, top-seeded Tommy Spellman of Virginia Tech.

This was their fourth clash of the season. Salopek had won the first, 2-0. In each of Tech's two dual-meet victories over UVa, however, Spellman had edged Salopek.

Each time, a Salopek victory would have reversed the dual meet's outcome. But the stakes were much higher when Salopek took the mat Saturday, and he delivered a championship performance.

His takedown of Spellman with 12 seconds left in the third period secured Salopek's 2-0 victory and set off a frenzied celebration among the 'Hoos.

"It's 100 times better than winning an individual championship right now," Henrich said after UVa clinched the team title. "To be honest, going into the tournament I would not have thought that, but to watch Salopek win that final match, it was amazing to be a part of it all."

Salopek said in Raleigh: "It's a great thing for the program. We've been a team on the rise for the past few years, and tonight we were able to take that step to the next level.

UVa's third-place winners were Jones at 197, sophomore Derek Valenti at 141, and redshirt junior Jack Danilkowicz at heavyweight. Finishing fourth were redshirt sophomore Dan Gonsor at 157 and senior Beau Fisher at 165.

Fisher entered the ACC tournament with a 7-10 record. He was unseeded in his weight class -- and unfazed by the stage on which he found himself. Fisher knocked off fourth-seeded Ray Ward of N.C. State in the first round and later beat Duke's Ben Wales.

Danilkowicz, seeded No. 4, edged second-seeded Patrick Gilmore of Maryland in the consolation semifinals, then beat N.C. State's Eloheim Palma for third place.

"Beau winning two matches," Garland said, "and Jack taking third, are you kidding me? Beating Gilmore and beating Palma the way he did? That might have won us the tournament right here. Beau and Jack are the guys I hope won't get lost in the shuffle, because they were two huge pieces."

Fisher finished his college career with a losing record, but long ago earned his coach's affection and respect.

"Beau's the quintessential team guy," Garland said. "He's the exact kid you want to coach. You walk in the room, he doesn't say anything, he's just working as hard as he always works.

"You say, 'Beau, we got a guy hurt, you're in.'

"'No problem, Coach.'

"'Beau, you gotta make weight.'

"'No problem, Coach.'

"'Beau, you lost the wrestle-off, but it's not over yet. You might be wrestling again, depending on how this guy performs.'

"'Well, you're the boss. Whatever you tell me to do.'"

Garland laughed.

"I mean, they don't make 'em like that anymore," he said. "No kid is like that."

Asked what the ACC championship means for his program, Garland paused for a moment before answering. He was the NCAA runner-up at 125 pounds as a UVa senior in 2000, and he demands much from his wrestlers.

He stresses the importance "of living their lives a certain way off the mat," Garland said. "It finally paid off, and the way you live your life, and the way I want these guys to behave, on and off the mat, does matter, and it does pay off, and it is worth something.

"I think that was the biggest thing, to see the guys hugging each other and the genuine joy [after UVa won the title], just watching the guys all interact together. Once the initial adrenalin wore off. I just sat in my chair like a proud dad and just watched them all. That was really neat.

"That's why I think it means for the program, first and foremost, that this team is officially a family. They're not just a team that's quote-unquote on the rise, they're a good team now, they're a very good team, and hopefully we know we're going to put ourselves in a position to never go to this tournament and not be in a position to win."

Second, Garland said, the championship means a lot to former UVa wrestlers.

"They've been waiting for years for this," he said. "I feel like I did something for them, and I feel like the kids did too. They don't appreciate it because of their age, but they'll know some day how big a deal it is."

Finally, Garland said, the ACC title should resonate with UVa's "incoming recruits and anyone we go after from here on out. We've been able to get some great recruits with really nothing to go on. We just go in their houses and sell Virginia.

"Virginia sells itself, obviously, but I'm talking about the program. It's not like we have a long, storied history. I'm excited for this next recruiting cycle, to sit down [with prospects] and say, 'OK, now it's not Shoulda, coulda, woulda, or We were very close.'

"Now we actually did it. So, hey, I'm not just whistling Dixie. We can do some special things here."




 

No. 1 Virginia Hosts In-State Foe VMI on Tuesday
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com
Release: 03/08/2010

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - After defeating No. 1 Syracuse on Sunday, 11-10, the Cavaliers are this week's consensus No. 1 team in the nation, receiving all No. 1 votes in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse media poll and USILA coaches poll. UVa sees its first action as the nation's No. 1 team on Tuesday, when the VMI Keydets invade Klöckner Stadium. Faceoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. Live stats will be available at VirginiaSports.com
Since the USILA started its coaches' poll in 1973, UVa has been ranked in the Top 5 in 250 polls, including this week's No. 1 ranking. The No. 1 ranking serves as the first time UVa has been ranked No. 1 in both polls since the week of April 20, 2009. The Cavaliers spent seven weeks last season atop both polls, and 10 weeks as the No. 1 team in the Nike/Inside Lacrosse media poll.

Virginia enters Tuesday's contest with a 4-0 record, hosting the 2-3 Keydets in what has become an annual in-state rivalry. The Cavaliers own a 16-0 all-time record against the Keydets and 2010 is the fifth straight season the two programs have met in a series that started in 1949. Virginia head coach Dom Starsia is 9-0 all-time against VMI and Tuesday marks the 10th time in the Starsia era VMI and UVa have met. The Cavaliers' average victory margin in the series is 17.8 goals.

The last meeting between these two teams was UVa's first in Lexington, Va., since 1997 and much like this matchup was the Cavaliers' first contest as the nation's No. 1 team after defeating top-ranked Syracuse on Feb. 27, 2009. The Cavaliers scored the game's first six goals on the way to a 19-3 triumph over the Keydets on March 3, 2009. Danny Glading tallied five goals and four assists, while Steele Stanwick scored four times to pace the victory.

UVa enters Tuesday's contest after receiving a career-high four goals from Rhamel Bratton in the victory over Syracuse on Sunday. Bratton was awarded ACC Co-Player of the Week honors for his exploits. Stanwick and Brian Carroll each had two scores and an assist in a game where the UVa defense held Syracuse scoreless for 28:23 between the Orange scoring goals five and six, which spanned the second and third quarter.

The last four meetings between Syracuse and Virginia in the series each have been determined by one goal, with UVa holding the 3-1 advantage during the span. The victory is also UVa's second consecutive over Syracuse when the Orange are ranked No. 1 in the nation and the Cavaliers are No. 2. Syracuse has lost only five games since the start of the 2008 season on the way to back-to-back NCAA national championships. Three of those losses have come at the hands of the Cavaliers.

On the season Chris Bocklet leads UVa with 11 goals, while Stanwick is second with nine scores. Both sophomores share the team lead with 15 points. Bratton is third in both categories with eight scores and eight points. Adam Ghitelman is saving .516 of shots and holds an 8.00 GAA in the goal.

VMI enters the game with a 2-3 record and is coming off a 19-8 home setback at the hands of Robert Morris on Saturday. Colin Bosse scored three goals and Kelly McMinn had 15 saves, but it was not enough to overcome the attack of the top-scoring team in Division I going into the weekend. Tim Moran leads the VMI offense with 10 goals, seven assists for a team-high 17 points. Brett Leonard and Bosse are second with seven goals apiece. McMinn is saving .532 of shots and holds an 11.36 GAA between the pipes. VMI head coach Jeff Shirk enters his seventh year at the helm of the Keydets and returns 20 letterwinners and nine starters from 2009.

Virginia has a 21-game winning streak going back to 2001 in regular-season mid-week games, including a 15-7 triumph at Mount St. Mary's on Feb. 23.

No. 1 Virginia travels to No. 8 Cornell on Saturday for a noon tilt before returning to Klöckner Stadium on March 16 for a matchup with Vermont.


 

Bratton Named ACC Co-Player of the Week After Career Day
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com Release: 03/08/2010

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. - Virginia junior midfielder Rhamel Bratton was named Atlantic Coast Conference Men's Lacrosse Co-Player of the Week for the period ending on March 7. Bratton shared the honor with Maryland's Grant Catalino.
The Huntington Station, N.Y., native scored a career-high four goals in No. 2 Virginia's 11-10 victory in front of 7,501 fans at Klöckner Stadium over top-ranked Syracuse. Bratton's goal at 5:46 in the second quarter helped erase an early 5-2 Orange lead and gave UVa the lead for good, 6-5. Bratton scored three of his goals unassisted on All-American goalie John Galloway and added two groundballs for the winning effort.
The last four meetings between Syracuse and Virginia in the series each have been determined by one goal, with UVa holding the 3-1 advantage during the span. The victory is also UVa's second consecutive over Syracuse when the Orange are ranked No. 1 in the nation and the Cavaliers are No. 2. Syracuse has lost only five games since the start of the 2008 season on the way to back-to-back NCAA national championships. Three of those losses have come at the hands of the Cavaliers.
Catalino also had a career best with goals, including the game-winner, one assist and four groundballs in the No. 7 Terrapins' 11-10 overtime victory over No. 9 Duke at the Konica Minolta Face-Off Classic at M&T Bank Stadium.
The honor is Bratton's first of his career and he is the second Cavalier to be honored with ACC Player of the Week honors this season. Steele Stanwick was named ACC Player of the Week on Feb. 22 after scoring three goals at Drexel in the season opener.
No. 1 Virginia returns to action on Tuesday when they host in-state foe VMI. Faceoff is at 7 p.m., inside Klöckner Stadium.

Women’s Tennis Wins 6-1 at No. 28 Marshall
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com Release: 03/08/2010

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. – The No. 27 Virginia women’s tennis team recorded its sixth ranked win of the season, topping No. 28 Marshall 6-1 Monday afternoon at the Huntington Tennis Center. The Cavaliers improve to 9-3 overall, while the Thundering Herd falls to 11-2.

Virginia took a 1-0 lead by winning the doubles point. At No. 1, Emily Fraser (Rye, N.Y.) and Jennifer Stevens (Miami, Fla.) upset 30th-ranked Michaela Kissell and Dominika Zarrazna 8-4. Lindsey Hardenbergh (Fairfax Station, Va.) and Erin Vierra (Norwell, Mass.) clinched the opening point for UVa with an 8-4 win at No. 2 over Kara Kucin and Isabell Raich.

The Cavaliers doubled their lead early in singles as Fraser cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 win over Zaprazna at No. 2. Stevens made the score 3-0 with her 7-5, 6-1 win at No. 5 over Deanna Bailey. Vierra clinched the win at No. 3 with her 6-2, 7-5 win over Raich. First-years Hana Tomljanovic (Boca Raton, Fla.) and Maria Fuccillo (Rockville, Md.) also added singles wins for the Cavaliers.

“I am proud of the girls and their play today,” said head coach Mark Guilbeau. “This match was a tough match despite the final score. I was pleased to see that in most of the close matches and sets we found a way to win. We look forward to getting back into ACC play in couple weeks after spring break.”

Virginia returns to action on March 21 when it visits in-state rival Virginia Tech.

No. 27 Virginia 6, No. 28 Marshall 1

Doubles:
1. Fraser/Stevens (UVa) def. #30 Kissell/Zaprazna (Mar) 8-4
2. #35 Hardenbergh/Vierra (UVa) def. Kucin/Raich (Mar) 8-4
3. Bailey/Lock (Mar) def. Tomljanovic/Fuccillo (UVa) 8-5

Singles:
1. #33 Michaela Kissell (Mar) def. #43 Lindsey Hardenbergh (UVa) 7-6, 6-1
2. Emily Fraser (UVa) def. Dominika Zaprazna (Mar) 6-1, 6-1
3. Erin Vierra (UVa) def. Isabell Raich (Mar) 6-2, 7-5
4. Hana Tomljanovic (UVa) def. Catherine Kellner (Mar) 6-0, 4-6, 6-2
5. Jennifer Stevens (UVa) def. Deanna Bailey (Mar) 7-5, 6-1
6. Maria Fuccillo (UVa) def. Kristina Koprcina (Mar) 6-0, 6-4

Order of Finish:
Doubles: 1,2,3
Singles: 2,5,3,1,4,6

U.Va. football coming to Norfolk for spring scrimmage
Posted to: College Football Norfolk Sports
By Rich Radford
The Virginian-Pilot
© March 6, 2010
NORFOLK

The Virginia Cavaliers will hold an intra-squad football scrimmage later this month at Old Dominion University's Foreman Field.

The Cavaliers, under new head coach Mike London, brokered a deal with ODU to hold their final open-to-public practice in Norfolk rather than in Charlottesville in an attempt to foster goodwill in the region.

Virginia will hold its scrimmage at 19,782-seat Foreman Field on March 27. Times of the scrimmage and other activities have yet to be released, but ODU officials said Friday that the Monarchs would likely hold an open-to-public practice at Foreman Field on the heels of Virginia's scrimmage. The schools' two coaching staffs are expected to conduct a clinic for area coaches that morning.

"We are reaching out to area coaches, fans, and alumni to come see us in action," London said. "It's a let's-see-if-it-works idea. I had to ask our NCAA compliance people if we could actually do it and they said yes."

London had to ask because it's something that hasn't been done before. But with the changing of the guard from former head coach Al Groh to London and with Virginia regularly losing out on recruiting battles with Virginia Tech, particularly in the Southeastern Virginia region, the dramatic move made sense. Virginia went 3-9 last season.

"The '757' area is very important to us in many aspects," London said. "This is something we will continue to look at."

Virginia begins its spring football practice program March 15. College teams are allowed 14 practices and a spring game. Virginia's spring game is April 10 in Charlottesville.

Virginia and ODU had been working on a deal for a little over a month and Monarchs coach Bobby Wilder signed off on it, saying, "We think it's a great opportunity to showcase one of the finest FCS facilities in the country in Foreman Field and expose a different set of fans and potential recruits to our venue. It's an excellent chance for us to partner with U.Va."

ODU begins its spring drills March 26 and will hold its spring game April 24 at Foreman Field.

 

Men’s and Women’s Cross Country Squads Selected as USTFCCCA All-Academic Teams
Courtesy: VirginiaSports.com Release: 03/08/2010

NEW ORLEANS, La. - The Virginia men’s and women’s cross country teams have been honored as a 2009 NCAA Division I USTFCCCA All-Academic Team, as announced by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. Junior All-American Catherine White and sophomore Morgane Gay were also honored as USTFCCCA All-Academic honorees.

The 104 women’s USTFCCCA All-Academic individual honorees represent 57 schools around the country and include seven regional champions and three who finished in the nation’s top-10 at the 2009 NCAA Cross Country Championships. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must carry a minimum 3.25 cumulative grade point average and must finish among the top 15 finishers (or top 10 percent) of the field at their respective NCAA regional meet.

White, a biology major from Roanoke, Va., is among those seven regional champions and top-10 finishers at NCAAs. Finishing fourth overall at the national championships, White earned her first cross country All-America honor and became the highest individual finisher for the Cavaliers since Lesley Welch won the national title in 1982. She also won the 2009 NCAA Southeast Region Title - becoming the program's first-ever individual regional champion - and earned Southeast Region Athlete of the Year honors for her accomplishments, another first for Virginia. At the ACC Championships, White finished runner-up to earn her first All-ACC honor.

Gay, hailing from Bethesda, Md., hasn’t declared a major yet. Finishing fourth at the ACC Championships, Gay earned all-conference honors, before garnering all-region honors with an eighth place finish at Regionals.

As a team, Virginia’s women’s squad was named an all-academic team for compiling an overall 3.39 team cumulative GPA. Finishing runner-up at the NCAA Southeast Regional Championships, the Cavaliers earned an automatic berth to the NCAA Championships for a second-straight season, where UVa finished 15th overall.

The Cavalier men were also honored as an all-academic team. Finishing fifth at regionals and 15th at nationals, Virginia compiled an overall 3.08 team cumulative GPA.

For a program to be considered for the USTFCCCA All-Academic Team award, it must have competed and compiled a team score at an NCAA Regional meet. The team must also have a minimum 3.00 team cumulative grade point average.


 

Seton Hall’s Bobby Gonzalez Is a Divisive Figure in the Big East
Seton Hall extended Bobby Gonzalez’s contract through 2015 despite his frequent blow-ups.
By KEVIN ARMSTRONG and PETE THAMEL
Published: March 7, 2010

SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. — In Bobby Gonzalez’s first season as Seton Hall’s men’s basketball coach, he likened his loyalty to his players to a scene from “A Bronx Tale,” in which a local crime boss galvanizes his neighborhood cohort to defend his bar from a motorcycle gang. After showing the bloody sequence on a television in the locker room before a game, Gonzalez smiled.

“It didn’t matter if the house was burning down, his focus was on us winning together,” said Grant Billmeier, a senior captain that season, 2006-7.

Billmeier’s former teammate Kashif Pratt laughed in recalling Gonzalez’s street-fighter temperament.

“There’s no calm with him; I’d hate to see him try sitting still in a church,” said Pratt, a shooting guard from the Bronx who transferred to Iona after that season, then gave up basketball. “If you put a video together of all his own blow-ups, you could sell more tickets than ‘Avatar.’ ”

Seton Hall’s success is another matter. The Pirates are 18-11 and have not made the N.C.A.A. tournament since 2006, after which Louis Orr was fired and replaced by Gonzalez.

After reaching the N.C.A.A. tournament twice and the National Invitation Tournament once in five years under Orr, Seton Hall will probably make its first N.I.T. appearance in four years under Gonzalez. The Pirates enter the Big East Conference tournament this week as the 10th seed and one of the most intriguing teams.

Much of that is because Gonzalez has emerged as one of the most divisive and volatile characters in the conference. Gonzalez, 46, is the only coach in the conference’s history to be suspended for sideline misbehavior and for criticizing officials. He has openly sparred with rival Big East coaches. Despite his frequent blow-ups, the university extended his contract through 2015.

“Seton Hall made a bad decision,” Jhony Garcia said after Gonzalez attributed a recent Senior Night loss partly to the two minutes his son, John Garcia, played.

Gonzalez’s combativeness extends to his relations with the news media. Few journalists who report on Seton Hall have been spared Gonzalez’s tirades. His sister, Linda Gonzalez, and Richard J. Codey, the president of the New Jersey Senate, frequently make calls to complain about negative coverage.

“He has a tremendous skill for being able to alienate himself from everyone,” said Emanuel Richardson, an assistant at the University of Arizona who has known Gonzalez since his days as a high school assistant 20 years ago. “He uses that as a mechanism to act the way he does. It’s his gift and curse. When I’d recruit against him he’d tell me, ‘You’re a shark, but I’m a great white.’ ”

A High-Risk Team

At Seton Hall, a small Catholic university that recently cut its track and field programs, men’s basketball is the athletic department’s flagship. Although Gonzalez’s teams have improved each season while playing in perhaps the nation’s toughest conference, the program has not evolved as administrators envisioned. When Seton Hall fired Orr, it cited his struggles in recruiting and running a program. Gonzalez has built his team around high-risk, second-chance transfers.

Keon Lawrence, a junior guard who transferred from Missouri, was arrested by the New Jersey State Police before he played his first game for Seton Hall. He drove the wrong way on the Garden State Parkway and caused a two-car accident Nov. 9. Lawrence was charged with assault by auto (which involves causing serious bodily injury while operating a vehicle under the influence) and driving with a suspended license. Gonzalez suspended Lawrence for more than a month. Athletic Director Joe Quinlan declined to go into further detail because Lawrence’s case is pending.

“I’m not trying to be like Coach Tarkanian at U.N.L.V. and taking in all the runaway kids,” Gonzalez said, referring to the former coach Jerry Tarkanian. “And I’m not saying they can’t screw up tomorrow. But they’ve been good people here. Hopefully counseling has cooled Keon’s butt down. Drinking and driving is like a cardinal sin.”

Forward Herb Pope, a transfer from New Mexico State who leads the Pirates in rebounding, was also arrested for driving under the influence and under-age drinking two years ago.

None of the three players who have committed to play for Seton Hall next season have qualified academically, continuing a pattern of questionable recruiting.

Gonzalez has brought top local players to campus to raise the program’s profile. In March 2008, a period when coaches could not have in-person contact with prospects, he was seen ushering the former St. Anthony High star Dominic Cheek of Jersey City, a McDonald’s all-American now playing at Villanova, into his office during an Adidas-sponsored workout on campus. Gonzalez has repeatedly denied he did anything wrong, but he was seen with his arm around Cheek that day. “He just told me I had the key to Jersey City,” Cheek said after the meeting.

Gonzalez nearly had a fistfight with his former assistant Steve Masiello, who is now at Louisville, during a visit to St. Benedict’s Prep in Newark. Their altercation was caught on a security camera.

“I’m not entirely proud of that,” said Gonzalez, who describes himself as a workaholic but does much of his recruiting over the phone.

“If Bobby gets you on the phone, you can look down at your wristwatch and know that the next hour is gone,” said Bob Hurley, the coach at St. Anthony High School in Jersey City, who has known Gonzalez more than 20 years. “It’s almost all monologue. He never comes up for air, and I try to get a word in, but it’s no use.”

At Paterson Catholic, a favorite to win a state title this season, Gonzalez has cultivated a relationship with Coach Damon Wright and landed two of his players. Although Gonzalez has rarely been to the Paterson Catholic gym, Wright said that Jordan Theodore, now a Seton Hall sophomore, and Fuquan Edwin, a star senior at Paterson Catholic, were familiar with Gonzalez’s style and personality.

“Bobby has yet to show me the craziness, but Jordan’s told me all about it,” said Edwin, one of the prospects who has not yet fulfilled the academic qualifications to play in college.

Establishing a Style

Gonzalez, who grew up in Binghamton, N.Y., was a point guard in high school and then at Buffalo State.

“He got to give the orders as point guard, and I think he really liked that,” said Tom Corgel, Gonzalez’s high school coach in Binghamton.

While a counselor at a Syracuse University summer camp in the late 1980s, Gonzalez met Orange Coach Jim Boeheim, who eventually helped land him a job as the junior varsity coach at St. Nicholas of Tolentine High School in the Bronx.

“Bobby didn’t know his way out of a brown paper bag when he got here, but he learned,” said Bob Mackey, then the varsity coach at Tolentine.

One afternoon, Gonzalez was chided by Sister Rose Ellen Gorman, the school’s principal, for placing his hands around a student’s neck.

“Yes sister, yes sister,” Mackey heard Gonzalez say.

Gonzalez established his style at Manhattan College, where he took his first head coaching job in 1999. Some former players recalled endless practices and pregame meals eaten in silence.

Gonzalez’s teams went 129-77 in his seven-year run at Manhattan, including two trips to the N.C.A.A. tournament.

Numerous players from Gonzalez’s time at Manhattan said he had instilled a culture so intense that it sapped their spirit. It drove at least one player to quit the team. Mike Konovelchick chose to go on spring break with his friends as a senior rather than play in the 2006 National Invitation Tournament.

Manhattan’s athletic director, Bob Byrnes, said: “The thing about this grind was that it didn’t need to be as laborious as it was. It was made laborious by unprofessional or selfish behavior. He made things larger than they were.”

Others described a culture in which the players’ main bond was their dislike of Gonzalez.

“I don’t know how he coached guys who wanted to strangle him and then went out there and played lights-out for him,” said Mike Bramucci, a former assistant to Gonzalez at Manhattan. “It’s a gift. I don’t know what kind of gift, but it’s an absolute gift.”

The former Jasper Kenny Minor called Gonzalez “the craziest person I’ve ever met in my life, by far.” Minor added: “If I were to ever become a coach, I learned a lot of things I wouldn’t do. Even though we won, it was hard to enjoy basketball.”

He and others said that Gonzalez consistently broke the N.C.A.A.’s rules on practice hours. Byrnes confirmed that players “on more than one occasion” anonymously complained about Gonzalez going over practice limits. Byrnes said he had dealt with it by having an associate athletic director attend every practice to monitor the time.

Minor and other players felt the team goals were focused toward promoting Gonzalez’s career. They said Gonzalez relished any attention he received, especially in the New York newspapers, and had assistants cut out the articles and highlight his name.

“When I went to Manhattan, I learned how to win for someone’s career path,” Noah Coughlin, a former Jasper, said. “I learned how to win for the benefit of Gonzo.”

Feeding Off the Chaos

On Thursday night, Gonzalez was in his element in a game at Rutgers. The Pirates pushed the pace behind the star transfers Pope and Jeff Robinson. Tensions rose to the point that Gonzalez rushed onto the court to separate his player from a potential fight, and he exchanged words with two Rutgers assistants in the handshake line. Afterward, Gonzalez suggested the chaos as a source of energy.

“I think that resolve comes from all that we’ve weathered,” Gonzalez said.

Msgr. Robert Sheeran, the university president, is set to step down at the end of the academic year. The athletic department situation is muddled; Quinlan, a bookish type who has clashed with Gonzalez, is working without a contract. (Byrnes said Sheeran and Quinlan did not call him for a background check before they hired Gonzalez.)

Dean Patrick E. Hobbs of Seton Hall Law School has been running the athletic department since last summer. And then there is Codey, who has also served as Acting Governor. Codey said he had no official role at Seton Hall, but he helped Gonzalez negotiate his contract extension last summer.

A university official with knowledge of the contract said that despite the extension through 2015, the university’s financial obligation is identical to the prior contract, so the university extended Gonzalez’s contract without offering him any more guaranteed money.

When asked if Gonzalez had matured at Seton Hall, Codey said, “It’s not easy to change a lifetime of conduct in a short period.” He added, “But the light is much brighter at the end of the tunnel than it was before Bobby.”

Still, Gonzalez never appears settled. Sonny Vaccaro, who mentored Gonzalez since his days as a high school assistant, called him this season after a big win. Vaccaro said he had left this voice mail message: “Gonzie, great win, great job. You’re doing a great job. Just stay humble.”

Gonzalez called back, and Vaccaro recalled that he said: “Sonny, you know me, I can’t help myself. I work too hard. I was never one of the chosen ones.”