Springtime pass
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
April 24, 2005

It was not a real game and the final numbers on the scoreboard will not mean much in the grand scheme of things, but Virginia coach Al Groh was pleased with the end result of the spring football festival at Scott Stadium.

The end result included 33 points for the offense, a number of dazzling plays from the defensive end Chris Long and nothing major on the injury report.

The offensive gameplan on Saturday, which resembled that of the 15 practice sessions, was to pass the ball. And pass the ball they did.

Virginia quarterback Marques Hagans started the game under center and although his play was limited, he completed 6 of 11 passes for 81 yards.

Kevin McCabe passed for 94 yards, Christian Olsen amassed 74 yards through the air and redhsirt freshman Scott Deke added 32 yards.

Ten different players caught a pass for the Cavaliers.

“Coach Groh has stressed relentlessly to get the ball to the receivers,” said wideout Deyon Williams, who had two catches for 37 yards. “When we came into this spring game, the quarterbacks and the receivers, we all had to be on the same page and we had to be confident that we are going to get open and catch the ball.”

Hagans opened the scoring by tossing a 4-yard touchdown pass to Fontel Mines on the opening drive, which started at the defense’s 49-yard line.

On the play, Mines, a rising junior, slipped behind the coverage and made a leaping catch near the back of the end zone.
McCabe threw a touchdown pass on the offense’s second drive.

Facing a 4th-and-2, McCabe dumped the ball off to redshirt freshman Cedric Peerman and the rookie escaped a possible tackle from linebacker Devonta Brown and raced 28 yards untouched down the home sidelines for a touchdown.

“I didn’t know it was going to be that clean for me,” Peerman said. “I just went with it and it was there.”

Peerman, who led the offense with 37 rushing yards on seven carries, added another score on a six-yard TD run on the third possession.

“Coming into the game I felt like my legs were a little dead but I felt good today,” Peerman said. “I got that first carry, took a couple of licks and got used to it [and] I got a better feel for the game.”

The final touchdown for the offense came on a 4-yard pass from Olsen to Thierren Davis, who has emerged as a potential starter. Davis caught four passes for 64 yards.

“We are still going to be a running team,” said Davis, “but we wanted to open up the passing game and take more down-field shots.”

Defensively, Long was the standout thanks in part to his four sacks, one of which came on the final play of the game as he and Jon Copper tag-teamed Olsen behind the line of scrimmage.

The announced crowd was 6,124 for the event does not compare to the typical crowd of 60,000-plus fans during the regular season, but the players were vocal in their appreciation of those that did show up.

“There were die-hard fans out here and we love it as much as they do,” Deke said. “Everyone looked great today and I think the fans really appreciated that everyone is growing and doing real well on both sides of the ball. It was a lot of fun to get out here and play against everybody.”

Get a piece of the rock. Prior to the contest, the annual Rock Weir Awards were presented to the most improved players on offense and defense.

Offensive tackle Brad Butler and inside linebacker Jon Copper, were given the honors, respectively.

Steelers put the big money on Miller
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
April 24, 2005
 

Heath Miller was always baffled as to how he was given the nickname “Big Money.”

The former Virginia tight end has a new reason for the nickname now.

The Pittsburgh Steelers - using the 30th overall selection - took Miller on Saturday in the first round of the NFL draft.

“I always knew in the back of my mind [the Steelers] were an option,” Miller said. “I’m excited to be part of this team, with the history behind it.”

Miller was the lone Virginia player taken in the first or second round.

The Arizona Cardinals drafted Darryl Blackstock, an outside linebacker, in the third round with the 95th pick.

Miller, who is 6-foot-5 and 255 pounds, was a player that Pitts-burgh coach Bill Cowher coveted, and for many different reasons.

“He’s a guy who fits what we like to do. He can block and he can stretch the field,” Cowher said of Miller, who caught 144 passes in three seasons at UVa. “We don’t need to change the offense [for Miller], and that’s the good thing about a guy like that. He can enhance what we do and add an-other dimension.”

Miller was the first Virginia player drafted in the opening round since running back Thomas Jones was taken seventh overall by the Arizona Cardinals in 2000. Miller also becomes the 12th first-round selection in program history.

In his career at Virginia, Miller emerged as one of the most productive tight ends in Division I-A history.

Miller made 41 catches last season as a junior, including five for touchdowns. In his sophomore season he had 70 receptions and he had a career-high nine TD catches as a freshman.

Pittsburgh’s coaching staff felt confident that Miller would be available at the 30th pick thanks in part to a trade that the New York Jets made on Thursday to get tight end Doug Jolley from Oak-land for the No. 26 pick in the draft.

Miller, who many experts have labeled as a candidate for the 2005 Offensive Rookie of the Year award, will have the opportunity to work with Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger.

“We want to put good players around our quarterback and not get away from what we do,” Cowher said. “We feel like we upgraded our football team today.”

While the day went as planned for Miller, Blackstock was not as fortunate.

Blackstock, who like Miller left UVa with a year of eligibility remaining, had to wait until the later stages of the third round to hear his name called.

Many draft experts projected Blackstock as a potential first round draft pick.

Instead, Blackstock was the fifth outside linebacker taken in the draft.

Blackstock was a second-team All-ACC honoree this past season and ranked seventh in the nation with 11 sacks.

In 39 career games at UVa, Blackstock started 38 times and 237 tackles and 27 sacks, an At-lantic Coast Conference record for a linebacker.

For defensive end Chris Canty and offensive lineman Elton Brown, the waiting game contin-ues.

Both players, who had been projected to be taken on the opening day of the draft, went undrafted.

Their fates will likely be sealed today when the draft restarts at 11 a.m. (ESPN).

Pittsburgh quick to grab Miller
By Doug Doughty
981-3129
The Roanoke Times

On a day when most teams used almost all of the 15 minutes allotted for their first-round picks, there were more than 10 minutes remaining when NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue stepped to the podium to announced Pittsburgh's selection in the NFL Draft.

Steelers fans in attendance roared in approval at the announcement of Virginia tight end Heath Miller.

Pittsburgh took Miller with the 30th pick overall, making him the Cavaliers' first first-round draft pick since running back Thomas Jones in 2000 and the first of coach Al Groh's four-year UVa coaching tenure.

"Two players really fell to teams that had to have their fingers crossed, [Oklahoma wide receiver] Mark Clayton falling to Baltimore at No.22, and Heath Miller," draft analyst Mel Kiper said on ESPN. "This was a player looked at and targeted as a Steeler two [or] three months ago."

Miller was the first tight end selected and might have gone higher if not for January surgery for a "sports hernia," a groin condition caused by persistent twisting. Miller did not participate in the NFL Draft Combine in Indianapolis and has not participated in individual workouts.

"Heath has been given a timetable that we feel very comfortable with," coach Bill Cowher said. "We feel that he will be ready to go, maybe not in the mini-camp we've got coming up, but certainly by training camp. The same doctor performed the same surgery on [Steelers' defensive back] Deshay Townsend and he's recovering very nicely."

Miller, the Group A state player of the year as a quarterback at Honaker High School, moved to tight end shortly after his arrival at Virginia in 2001 and became a two-time, first-team All-ACC selection.

Miller (6-foot-5, 255 pounds) this season joined former UVa offensive lineman Jim Dombrowski as one of two unanimous football All-Americans in school history and became the first ACC player to receive the John Mackey Award that goes to the nation's top tight end.

Miller, whose 144 receptions rank second in school history, was the fifth UVa player to turn pro before the end of his college eligibility and the second to be selected in the first round. Wide receiver Herman Moore, in 1990, was the first UVa underclassmen to be selected in the first round.

Miller gives the Steelers a large target that they lost when Plaxico Burress signed with the New York Giants as a free agent.

"Obviously, [ex-Steelers tight end] Eric Green was a big part of our passing game when he was here," Cowher said. "But Heath gives us the combination of a guy who can stretch the field - he caught a lot of balls - and a guy who, at 255, can get a lot bigger and block at the point of attack.

"We just feel he's a great fit for what we want to do."

Pittsburgh got 16 receptions from its tight ends last year.

When Kiper described Miller as an "adequate" blocker, host Chris Berman interrupted him and was joined in Miller's corner by Chris Mortensen.

"I've been told if you want to watch Heath Miller's highlight tape and Shawne Merriman's lowlight tape, just go watch the Maryland-Virginia game," Mortensen said. "Heath Miller, even though he may be just an adequate blocker, did a pretty good job in that game."

Merriman, a linebacker for the Terrapins, went to San Diego on the 12th pick of the first round.

Miller had been projected as a New York Jets pick in many mock drafts, but the Jets traded the 26th pick for Oakland tight end Doug Jolley.

Virginia Tech cornerback Eric Green was the first Hokie to be picked in this year's draft when the Arizona Cardinals selected him in the third round. He was the 15th cornerback taken.

Linebacker Darryl Blackstock, UVa's other underclassman who chose to leave early, was taken 95th overall, also by the Cardinals.

Long boosts Cavs' defense
By Doug Doughty
981-3129
The Roanoke Times

CHARLOTTESVILLE - By the time Chris Long hit his stride Saturday, quarterback Marques Hagans and most of Virginia's first offense had completed their day's work.

The pleasure was all his, Hagans said. Long and linebacker Jon Copper from Roanoke sacked Hagans on the first play of the day, and Long victimized two other quarterbacks for three solo sacks in the Cavaliers' final spring scrimmage.

"Pretty scary," Hagans called it. "I'm glad I got out of there when I did. The kid was pretty good to begin with, but he's transformed himself into a whole different player."

Long might have had another sack, but, on the day's last series, he attempted to strip the ball from backup quarterback Kevin McCabe, who slipped free for a 3-yard gain.

It took place in full view of head coach Al Groh, who was positioned behind the offensive huddle. Groh didn't need to say a thing. On the next place, Long was in the backfield again, slinging McCabe to the ground for a 6-yard loss.

"He's going to step into a prominent role," Groh said. "This past season, he was an emerging player, but it's all about performance for Chris as well as a number of our younger players."

Long showed flashes of promise last season as a redshirt freshman, but a midseason bout with mononucleosis left him trying to play defensive end at barely 250 pounds.

Long now weighs 272 but hasn't lost any of the agility that might remind some of his Hall of Famer father, longtime Oakland Raider Howie Long.

"Last year, I didn't think I'd play much," Long said. "I never thought I'd see the field. All of a sudden, somebody goes down, they need some help and you're in there."

Long was in for 67 plays in six games and never saw the field in the Cavaliers' season-ending MPC Computers Bowl, a 37-34 overtime loss to Fresno State.

"We had some seniors who had not been healthy when I had an opportunity to play earlier," Long said. "I'm not asking any questions. Those guys did a great job rushing the passer and that was my only role.

"I'm just waiting to be myself, the guy I felt I wasn't in the fall."

The Cavaliers are looking for a big-play threat after losing sack leader Darryl Blackstock, who passed up his final season of eligibility and was selected in the third round of the NFL Draft. Linebacker Ahmad Brooks, second on the team in sacks last year, was on crutches Saturday following a knee operation that was not as routine as billed.

Brooks did not experience knee pain until after the season, when it was determined that he had a degenerative bone in one of his knees. It is expected that he will be close to 100 percent by the fall, but it will be at least midsummer before he can undergo extensive conditioning.

Brooks was one of 10 scholarship players who were not in uniform Saturday, a situation that prevented the Cavaliers from holding a draft and playing an actual spring game. They ran approximately 70 offensive plays before Groh called the team together after 75 minutes.

The injuries created opportunities for players like Copper, who, along with senior offensive tackle Brad Butler, received the Robert "Rock" Weir Award that goes to the most improved offensive and defensive players during spring drills. Copper, a walk-on from Northside High School, took the field with the first defense Saturday.

"I've been reading the programs for the last four years," Copper said. "I'd been to two spring games before I got here. I knew what the award meant."

The offense had 49-yard touchdown drives on its first three possessions, including both series that Hagans played. McCabe and Christian Olsen both threw touchdown receptions before the defense stiffened and held the offense without a touchdown on its last five possessions.

Rushing: Peerman 7-37, Lescanec 6-22, Lundy 4-20, Olsen 3-12, Best 2-11, McCabe 3-(minus 12).

Passing: Hagans 6-11-0-81, McCabe 6-10-0-86, Olsen 7-10-0-75, Deke 5-7-1-32.

Receiving: Davis 4-67, Peerman 3-35, Byers 3-31, Morton 3-31, Zidenberg 3-21, Williams 2-37, Mines 2-19, Lundy 1-8, Bradley 1-5, Lescanec 1-2.

Leitao hires assistant
DePaul aide joins UVa staff
By DOUG DOUGHTY
The Roanoke Times

Gene Cross, an assistant on Dave Leitao's staff for the past three years at DePaul, has accepted a position on Leitao's first men's basketball staff at Virginia.

Cross played at the University of Illinois from 1990-94 and coached for six seasons at the University of Illinois-Chicago before joining Leitao's first DePaul staff in 2002.

Upon leaving DePaul for his introduction as UVa coach, Leitao gave Cross the option of joining him. Cross had never been to Charlottesville before arriving for a visit Thursday.

He was in his new office Friday and was headed on the road to recruit this weekend.

Cross is president of the assistants' board of the Black Coaches' Association.

Leitao is looking at past Virginia players for other spots on his staff, including Salem's Richard Morgan, an assistant at Hampton University, and Boston University assistant Jason Williford.

New Cavalier attitude on buyouts?
Published April 24 2005
David Teel

Say what you will about Dave Leitao's contract to coach the University of Virginia's basketball team - A model of fiscal responsibility? The height of skewed priorities? A reasonable medium? Regardless, as we learned from Pete Gillen, the devil lurks in the details.

Introduced a week ago as Gillen's replacement, Leitao agreed to a five-year package that guarantees him $925,000 annually. Mirroring most lucrative college coaching contracts, a lion's share of the income is rooted in apparel endorsements and radio/television shows - "only" $215,000 is base salary.

The $925,000 is conveniently symbolic, sparing Virginia the cold faculty stares and arched alumni eyebrows that come when coaches make more than $1 million a year. But when you add incentives for the team's athletic and academic performance, Leitao has a chance to join ACC colleagues such as Duke's Mike Krzyzewski, North Carolina's Roy Williams, Maryland's Gary Williams and Georgia Tech's Paul Hewitt, not to mention Virginia Tech football coach Frank Beamer, in the seven-figure club.

Two quick asides: Virginia Tech basketball coach Seth Greenberg ought to be bucking for a serious pay bump. Despite a recent raise, the reigning ACC Coach of the Year makes about $500,000, barely half Leitao's guarantee.

Also, Leitao's contract figures to affect Virginia's extension negotiations with football coach Al Groh. Groh's original deal assures him of about $800,000 annually.

Leitao's incentives remain in the lawyers' hands, according to Virginia athletic director Craig Littlepage. Most important, buyout provisions have not been finalized, Littlepage said.

'Twas the buyout that bit Virginia last time.

In October 2001, Virginia revealed that it had rewarded Gillen a 10-year contract extension worth about $9 million. Given the program's revival in Gillen's first three seasons, and the market for top coaches, the dollars were not excessive.

The 10 years were, for which there is blame aplenty to share. Former athletic director Terry Holland began the negotiations, Littlepage completed them, and university lawyers did not object.

Yet 10 years notwithstanding, Virginia could have saved itself immeasurable angst and millions of bucks with sensible buyout terms. For example: If we fire you, we'll pay you base salary times the remaining years.

The Daily Press and other media outlets attempted to obtain the buyout clauses through the state's Freedom of Information Act, and the university declined, citing private personnel issues. But when Littlepage pondered Gillen's status after the 2003-04 season, clearly the substantial buyout was an issue. Moreover, when Littlepage elected to retain Gillen, the buyout was adjusted - Gillen received $2 million when he resigned March 14 with six years remaining on his contract.

Chances are, Virginia will dismiss similar FOIA requests for Leitao's buyout. But Littlepage sounds like a man who learned a lesson.

"Both parties," he said, "will be protected" in Leitao's contract.

Some Virginia faithful wonder if Leitao is the heir apparent at Connecticut, where he spent 14 seasons as an assistant coach under Hall of Famer Jim Calhoun. Time will tell, but according to Littlepage, there will be no job-specific escape clause allowing Leitao to bolt for UConn without financial obligation to Virginia.

"I've seen those (provisions) blow up on both sides," Littlepage said.

Old Dominion saw it differently when it agreed to extend basketball coach Blaine Taylor's deal. Depending on timing, Taylor would owe Old Dominion $200,000 or $300,000 if he accepted another job - unless that job was in the NBA, at Stanford or at any major Division I school that employs Bill Moos as athletic director or president.

Taylor calls it his "loyalty clause." He worked as an assistant coach at Stanford; Moos gave him his first head-coaching job, at Montana; and his mentor, Mike Montgomery, coaches in the NBA.

Old Dominion released those terms in response to a Virginian-Pilot FOIA filing, and to date, Gibraltar has not crumbled.

Take note, U.Va., Dave Leitao's buyout need not be the sporting equivalent of nuclear missile codes and the secret ingredient in Granny's pound cake.
 

Blackstock plays it cool with hot climate in future
After the party atmosphere subsides, former U.Va. and Heritage standout Darryl Blackstock is chosen by the Arizona Cardinals late in the third round.
BY DAVE FAIRBANK
247-4637
Published April 24, 2005

NEWPORT NEWS -- When the phone call finally came at 10:25 p.m., to inform him that he had been drafted, 14 hours after he awoke, after all of the chicken and burgers had been consumed, after the crowd of friends and relatives had thinned, here's what Darryl Blackstock, the newest member of the Arizona Cardinals, did: Nothing.

Blackstock hung up the phone and quietly sat back down on the sofa. No fist-pumping. No high-fiving. No primal scream on the front stoop.

It wasn't until a few minutes later, when ESPN2 returned from a commercial break during wall-to-wall coverage of the NFL draft and flashed his name up on the TV screen, that everyone suddenly began buzzing and gathered around for hugs and handshakes and camcorder moments.

"I didn't want everybody screaming and hollering," Blackstock said a few minutes later with a sly grin. "I just want to go play ball."

Blackstock, the former Heritage High and University of Virginia standout, was the 95th player chosen. Though he wasn't picked until several hours after plenty of draftniks predicted, he said the same thing at 10:30 that he did at 2:30.

"It's a blessing," he said. "As long as I get the chance to play ball, that's all I can ask for."

Indeed, Blackstock was the tranquil eye of a small hurricane of activity at his family's two-story home in midtown Newport News.

Relatives were in from North Carolina. Friends and neighbors dropped in and out all afternoon and evening.

At any one time, as many as a dozen people were in the living room and nearly two dozen people were at various spots around the house and in the yard.

"He's always been a calm kid," his mother, Linda Williams, said earlier in the day. "He can take a lot and he doesn't get stressed out. If there's a thousand people here, or just him and me, he's always the same."

Blackstock killed some time Saturday afternoon dribbling and dunking on the basketball hoop in the driveway. He brought a second TV into the living room so that he and his buddies could play Madden 2005 football on the PlayStation while watching the draft on the regular television.

Just before he got the phone call from the Cardinals, he and his girlfriend, Ericka Whitaker, made a Slurpee run so that he could get some air and stretch his legs.

"If everybody's cool, I'm cool," Blackstock said. "If everybody wasn't excited or smiling, I'd probably be nervous."

Don't mistake Blackstock's easygoing demeanor for indifference. He is ultra-competitive and focused, qualities that his stepfather, LeGrant Williams, has seen since his days playing peewee football in Denbigh and Oyster Point.

"He said he wanted to play pro football and I thought he could," Williams said, tending to the nearly 100 pieces of chicken and 10 pounds of ground beef on the big grill in the yard. "I saw the work ethic he put into it. Just going through drills, he was always trying to better himself, even at an early age."

After everyone ate, a temporary food coma quieted the day's excitement in the late afternoon. As the evening wore on, some friends and relatives began to get anxious when the picks rolled on and Blackstock wasn't chosen.

But Blackstock took the pulse of his guests periodically, walking around asking people: "You cool?"

Many mock drafts had Blackstock being selected anywhere from the end of the first round to the middle of the second round. He has a couple of theories about why he wasn't chosen until the end of the third round, but he declined to elaborate.

"That doesn't matter at this point," he said. "What matters is getting a chance to go ballin'. All I need is a helmet, a visor and a jersey and I'll be fine."

U.Va. doesn't have to wait for Long
Sophomore end racks up four sacks as his dad looks on at spring game
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER
Apr 24, 2005

VIRGINIA SPRING GAME
NEW FACES: The Cavaliers have to replace a lot of talent, according to Bob Lipper, Page C2

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- The crowd at Scott Stadium for Virginia's spring game yesterday included a certain Pro Football Hall of Famer from nearby Ivy. He undoubtedly liked what he saw from No. 91. U.Va.'s coaches probably liked it even more.
Click Here.

Chris Long, the eldest of Howie and Diane Long's three sons, may never match his father's feats as a player. How many defensive linemen have, after all? But there's every reason to believe Long will be a standout for the Cavaliers.

"He's a monster," cornerback Marcus Hamilton said.

U.Va. fans saw flashes of Long's considerable talent in 2004, when as a true freshman he appeared in six games at defensive end. The crowd of 6,124 saw more than flashes yesterday. Long impressed throughout a 65-minute scrimmage that matched the Cavaliers' offense against their defense.

This season, Virginia coach Al Groh said, Long is "going to step into a prominent role, as opposed to last year he was an emerging player and a role player."

On the game's first play, Long teamed with linebacker Jon Copper to sack quarterback Marques Hagans. The 6-4, 272-pound Long added three more sacks -- all unassisted -- before Groh signaled an end to the spring game. Long's final sack came one play after he'd blown a clear opportunity to bring down reserve QB Kevin McCabe in the backfield.

"I was going for the ball and missed," Long said sheepishly.

In a season in which U.Va. lost its best defensive end, Chris Canty, to a serious knee injury Sept. 25, Long had health issues, too. Mononucleosis cost him five regular-season games. He gained valuable experience, but Long struggled to adjust mentally to the demands of Division I-A football.

"I just didn't have it in the fall," said Long, who finished the season with two tackles for loss, including one sack.

Defensive end Brennan Schmidt missed spring drills while recovering from shoulder surgery, but he's expected to start for the fourth straight season in Virginia's 3-4. Rising sophomore Allen Billyk and Long were the first-team ends yesterday. Don't be surprised if Long starts with Schmidt come fall.

"We're looking for somebody to step up and get some pressure on the quarterback," Long said. "I think that's obvious for any team, but you know especially for us, running the 3-4. Some people think you can't get pressure out of the 3-4, and we're trying to do that."

Schmidt, a team captain, has six career sacks. Long, with his speed and explosiveness, provides more big-play potential.

"That really raises the scheme to another level," Groh said. "In this defense, the linebackers make a lot of plays. Of course, that isn't different from any other defense . . . but if you can get a few home runs from your down guys, too, you got a little bit more powerful lineup out there."

"Chris Canty was a guy who could do that for us last year. Today [Long] made some plays for the defense, and that obviously lifted them up."

 

U.VA. NOTES
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Apr 24, 2005

PASSING FANCY: In a spring game that consisted of about 75 plays, Virginia's offense battled its defense yesterday at Scott Stadium. The offense produced 33 points on four touchdowns - one PAT failed - and two field goals.

The Cavaliers led the ACC in rushing offense in 2004, and they're likely to emphasize the run again this season. But fifth-year coach Al Groh was especially interested in evaluating his quarterbacks, receivers and defensive backs yesterday, so passes flew early and often.

Starting QB Marques Hagans spent most of the scrimmage on the sideline, but in his brief appearance the senior from Hampton completed 6 of 11 passes for 81 yards and one touchdown. The first QB off the bench, rising sophomore Kevin McCabe, was 7 for 11 for 94 yards and one TD. Christian Olsen, a rising junior, connected on 7 of 10 attempts for 74 yards and one TD. Scott Deke, a freshman who redshirted last fall, threw the scrimmage's only interception, but he completed 5 of his other 6 passes for 32 yards.

Ten Cavaliers caught at least one pass. The touchdowns went to freshman tailback Cedric Peerman, who took a screen pass from McCabe and raced 28 yards; wideout Fontel Mines, who leaped to snare a 4-yard pass from Hagans; and Theirrien Davis, who caught a 3-yard toss from Olsen.

Five scholarship receivers went through spring drills, and each played well yesterday. Davis, a rising sophomore, had four catches for 66 yards. Emmanuel Byers, a rising sophomore, caught three passes for 46 yards. Then there were the rising juniors: Mines (two catches for 19 yards), Deyon Williams (2-37) and Ron Morton (4-34).

"We really spread the ball out today," said Mines, a Hermitage High graduate. "That's a good confidence-builder for us and for our quarterbacks also."

STRONG DEBUTS: Peerman, who got extensive work this spring because of an injury to Michael Johnson, the projected backup to Wali Lundy, caught four passes for 43 yards and one TD. He also was the leading rusher, running seven times for 37 yards and another TD.

"Coming into the game, I was real nervous," said Peerman, who redshirted last fall. "But I got that first carry, took a couple of licks and got used to it, got a better feel for the game."

Also impressive was Peerman's classmate Clint Sintim, who redshirted last year, too. Sintim started at outside linebacker and had a sack.

TEAM LEADERS: The players' choices for captains were announced to the crowd before the game. Selected from the offense were Hagans and senior tailback Wali Lundy. The other captains are senior defensive end Brennan Schmidt and junior Tony Franklin.

Schmidt is a repeat selection. He's U.Va.'s first two-time captain since linebacker Byron Thweatt, a Matoaca High graduate, in 1999 and 2000.

INTERESTED OBSERVERS: Neither of Virginia's starting inside linebackers was in uniform. Kai Parham, who's recovering from shoulder surgery, participated in most drills this spring but was held out yesterday as a precaution. All-American Ahmad Brooks was on crutches, his right leg in a brace. Brooks had a degenerative bone problem that required surgery, and he's expected to be sidelined several more months.

SIGNIFICANT STRIDES: Before the game, Rock Weir Awards were presented to offensive tackle Brad Butler and inside linebacker Jon Copper, the most improved players this spring on offense and defense, respectively.

Butler, a rising senior from Lynchburg, is heading into his third season as a full-time starter at right tackle. Copper, a walk-on from Roanoke, is a freshman who redshirted last fall.

RECRUITING UPDATE: Twenty-two players signed letters of intent with Virginia in February. The class recently added a 23rd member: Darren Childs, a 6-0, 225-pound inside linebacker from Mission Bay High in San Diego.

Childs, who visited U.Va. last weekend, has cleared admissions. He had planned to sign with Utah in February, but that school's coaching change left him "high and dry," said Mission Bay assistant coach Rolando Garcia.

After Urban Meyer left to become coach at Florida, Utah stopped recruiting Childs, and no other Division I-A schools seemed interested.

"I was starting to lose hope, to be honest," Childs said.

He had offers from Division I-AA schools but wanted to play in Division I-A. That became possible after Garcia sent a highlight tape to U.Va.'s coaching staff. The Cavaliers' coaches liked what they saw, invited Childs to visit and, ultimately, offered him a scholarship.

Virginia's incoming class also includes offensive tackle Branden Albert and linebacker Olu Hall, who are attending Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham. Hargrave's postgraduate coach, Robert Prunty, said yesterday that he expects both to have qualified academically by the end of the school year. - Jeff White

New-Look Cavaliers
Relative unknowns key to U.Va.
BOB LIPPER
POINT OF VIEW
Apr 24, 2005

There were 6,100 and some spectators at Scott Stadium yesterday. Marshal Ausberry was maybe the heftiest among them. Ausberry goes 6-5 and 324 pounds, and he would've been wearing jersey No. 78 in what loosely passed for Virginia's spring game except he got hurt a couple of weeks ago. He figures to be healthy and attacking blocking sleds with gusto come August.

How good he is at replacing world-class road-graders, we'll find out soon enough.

Ausberry is the next Elton Brown. No, check that. He's U.Va.'s next right guard - or at least, that's where he's been penciled in on the depth chart. Which means he's succeeding Elton Brown. Which means he has some large footprints to fill.

"I think for anybody, it'd be a daunting task," Ausberry conceded yesterday. "Elton was such a great athlete. He brought a lot to the table. Whoever replaces him has to replace the priceless things, I guess you could say - how he carried himself, basically being a leader. That's what Elton was to this team. He was a leader."

And that's the rub for this mystery-guest team. See, U.Va. didn't lose a boatload of players off last season's 8-4 crew. But what it did lose was a motherlode of difference-makers.

Start with Brown, who demolished rival defenses and was every cornerback's worst nightmare come true when he pulled to lead a power sweep. Consensus All-America. Proceed to Heath Miller, the perpetually open tight end whose three seasons on the varsity produced 144 catches and 20 touchdowns. Consensus All-America.

Continue with tailback Alvin Pearman, who was good for beaucoups versatility and 161.5 all-purpose yards per game. First-team all-ACC. And outside linebacker Darryl Blackstock, the edge rusher whose 15 tackles for losses included 10 sacks.

Get the drift? Virginia is missing some very significant pieces as it chugs toward Al Groh's fifth year at the helm. The list includes up-the-middle stalwarts on offense (center Zac Yarbrough) and defense (nose tackle Andrew Hoffman). And bookend outside linebacker Dennis Haley, the squad's fourth-leading tackler as a senior. And both safeties. And - counting Miller, Pearman and wideout Michael McGrew - the top three receivers.

Look, that's college football. Miami sometimes loses that many guys to the first round. Virginias, on the other hand, aren't historically as well-stocked.

No question, there's still talent on the roster. Inside linebackers Ahmad Brooks and Kai Parham are top-shelf wrecking balls. Tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson is world-class. Quarterback Marques Hagans can make plays. Wali Lundy is no consolation prize at tailback.

But there's much replenishing to do. This is where the Marshal Ausberrys and Jonathan Stupars and Ian-Yates Cunninghams and Keenan Carters and Clint Sintims and Jamaal Jacksons come in. You haven't heard much from them. Groh hopes they'll begin making noise this summer.

Cunningham and Jordy Lipsey are the candidates to replace Yarbrough at center. Stupar and Tom Santi are the tight end hopefuls. Carter might get the nod at nose tackle. Sintim, Jermaine Dias and Vince Redd are your most likelies at outside linebacker. Jackson, Lance Evans and Nate Lyles are their equivilants at safety.

"Every good team loses good players," said Cunningham. "Every good team has good players who are going to step up. When you lose a guy like Zac Yarbrough, who was a three-year starter and who you'd say was the quarterback of the offensive line, you need someone to step up. That's what I'm trying to do right now."

He's got company on these Cavs. Lots of company. How quickly he and his fellow replacement parts get up to speed will determine a season's ceiling.

Miller Appears to Be a Good Fit for Steelers
By Ivan Carter
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, April 24, 2005; Page E13

The tight end position has grown in importance in recent seasons thanks to an infusion of athletic pass receivers such as Kansas City's Tony Gonzalez, Baltimore's Todd Heap and San Diego's Antonio Gates.

Keeping with that trend, Virginia's Heath Miller was selected with the 30th pick of the first round yesterday by the Pittsburgh Steelers, who have not had a consistent pass catching threat at tight end in recent seasons.

Like Maryland defensive end-linebacker Shawne Merriman, who was picked by a San Diego team that runs a 3-4 defense suited to his versatility, Miller appears to be in a good situation. Pittsburgh has a solid offensive line, a budding star at quarterback in Ben Roethlisberger and an elite wide receiver in Hines Ward.

The Steelers haven't had a tight end catch 20 passes in a season since 1995, and a tight end hasn't led Pittsburgh in receiving since 1993, when Eric Green caught 63 passes.

Getting the tight end more involved in the offense is something the Steelers will have to do since Plaxico Burress departed via free agency.

The 6-foot-5, 254-pound Miller was a highly productive player at Virginia, catching 111 passes for 1,376 yards and 11 touchdowns during his junior and senior seasons, but he was hampered by a hernia that limited his ability to work out leading up to the draft.

The injury combined with a lack of teams looking for tight ends allowed Miller to slip to the Steelers, who were delighted to take him.

"He's the guy who kinda fits what we like to do," Steelers Coach Bill Cowher told reporters. "I think he fits our system well."

A pair of local cornerbacks, Howard's Ronald Bartell and Virginia Tech's Eric Green, were snapped up on a day when cornerback was among the most drafted positions. Bartell went in the second round to St. Louis, and Green was selected in the third round by Arizona. Virginia linebacker Darryl Blackstock went to the Cardinals in the third round at 95th overall.

Several other local players, including Maryland's Chris Kelley and C.J. Brooks, Virginia's Elton Brown and Chris Canty and Virginia Tech's Jim Davis, Jon Dunn and Vincent Fuller could be drafted today in rounds four through seven.