Cavs expecting first-team showdown
By Jay Jenkins / jjenkins@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
April 12, 2007

Monty Hall would have felt right at home inside the McCue Center on Wednesday.

For imagery, picture the legendary host of “Let’s Make a Deal” dangling two options in front of a collection of Virginia’s assistant football coaches.

One selection would land an offensive line suddenly boasting experience and confidence, coupled with a newfound 1-2, tailback-fullback punch.

The alternative, one that includes speed, power and leadership, could eventually translate into one of the nation’s top defensive units.

While the ultimate results hinged on Wednesday’s final practice, Virginia coach Al Groh said earlier in the day that he anticipated dividing the players and his staff in half to “have some fun” with the process of picking teams for Saturday’s annual spring game. The contest, which is free to the public, kicks off at Scott Stadium at 2 p.m.

After setting the rosters, Groh said he expected to “ask the staff that wins the coin flip to choose between door No. 1 and door No. 2. They get the team behind the door that they picked.”

Unfortunately for the coaches, it will be a potluck process.

“They don’t know how the teams are made up,” Groh said. “All they know is that this is Team 1 and this is Team 2, and they are getting the first offense or the first defense.

“The first offense will be basically in tact, as will the first defense.”

Expect a few exceptions to that policy since Groh said he would like see “certain matchups” that were unique to previous head-to-head battles during spring practice.

As is par for the course, Groh will be without several players.

Three of the biggest names that will be sidelined - wideout Kevin Ogletree (knee), quarterback Jameel Sewell (wrist) and linebacker Clint Sintim (shoulder) - were able to practice during the spring on a limited basis in drills.

That changed for Ogletree, who also had wrist surgery in December, when he tore his anterior cruciate ligament at the end of the first week of drills.

Groh also confirmed that defensive end John Roberts and linebacker Darren Childs would not play on Saturday.

“Roberts hurt his knee toward the end of last season and had knee surgery,” Groh said. “Darren had a severe sinus condition in late February, early March, which eventually required surgery to alleviate it, and the recovery of that has kept him out of spring practice.”

Under center

Although it was the 14th and final practice on Wednesday, Groh was still unwilling to name the No. 1 quarterback for the spring game.

The two candidates - junior Scott Deke and redshirt freshman Marc Verica - had one last opportunity to state their case on the practice field.

“This is the final test for which one gets it here,” Groh said. “Rather than say one thing and have it come out and be different, I will hold off on that and see which way it goes.”

 

Lineburg thrilled to be back
By Jerry Ratcliffe / jratcliffe@dailyprogress.com | 978-7251
April 12, 2007

When Al Groh was pouring over resumes for a new wide receivers coach, the CEO of Virginia football knew he had his man after spending time with Wayne Lineburg.

Lineburg, 33, was an up-and-comer in the assistant coaching ranks. He had worked under Jimmye Laycock at William & Mary and most recently served as offensive coordinator at the University of Richmond for Dave Clawson.

Certainly he had the right pedigree in that Lineburg is the son of legendary Radford High School coach Norm Lineburg.

A special job

All that certainly helped the young assistant coach impress Groh. But that’s not what won him the job.

“The one thing that Wayne had going for him that any other candidate didn’t, and it came through very clearly in our conversations, was that [Virginia] was a very special job for him,” Groh said.

Lineburg is a UVa grad (’96), played football for George Welsh and worked as a grad assistant here under Welsh.

“Coming back to his school to coach, well this is more than just a job advancement from I-AA to I-A football,” Groh said. “Even when he was at other places, he was most likely checking the scores quickly and rooting for Virginia. That’s not a negative on any other candidates, it’s just something he brought that nobody else could bring.”

Grasping it all

Lineburg, who succeeds John Garrett (who accepted a job with the Dallas Cowboys) as the Cavaliers’ wide receivers’ coach, was hired about five weeks ago and has been submerged into Wahoo football ever since, becoming familiar with personnel, learning UVa’s scheme, and - the hardest part - grasping the difference in terminology.

The quick transition didn’t give him much time to research Virginia’s system, something he can dedicate himself to over the remainder of the spring and summer. For the past few weeks he has been learning and teaching on the fly during spring drills, which culminate at Saturday’s spring game (2 p.m., Scott Stadium).

“There’s no question that this is where I wanted to be,” Lineburg said. “Not only do you want to win in any job, but it takes on more of a personal meaning when it’s where you went to school and played and was a grad assistant. This is the perfect job to come back home to where I started.”

Ultimately a coach

To say that Lineburg was born to coach wouldn’t be totally accurate, although he confesses that the profession has always been in his mind.

His dad, one of only a handful of high school coaches in the state to surpass the 300-wins plateau, used to tell that maybe he ought to do something else for a living.

‘Why don’t you go to law school or look into something else,’ advised the elder Lineburg.

“But I always knew in the back of my mind that I wanted to get into coaching,” young Lineburg stated. “Danny Wilmer recruited me here. I always talked to him during my time here about what I need to do to get into coaching and he was real good about helping me out in those things. The chance to be here for four years with coaches like George Welsh, Tom O’Brien, Gary Tranquill, Sparky Woods, Andre Powell, Danny Wilmer, Bob Price and several others was an invaluable experience.”

While he was around football all his life as a Radford Bobcat, certainly he picked up plenty about X’s and O’s. But the he learned from his father about being a coach that he’s most proud of might surprise you.

“The biggest thing with him is that he always showed his players that he cared about them,” Wayne Lineburg said. “They, in turn, really cared about him and played hard for him.

“At the college level it’s a little bit more of a business, but they still have to know that you’re there to help them and push them to get better,” he continued. “How to deal with people is something I learned from my father. He’s been an incredible role model for me, his passion for the game. It’s amazing how many of his players have come back to see him over the years and thanked him not only for making them better football players, but better people.”

That’s what Wayne Lineburg wants out of the coaching profession.

Of course, he wants to win and help Virginia reach the sky. But don’t expect him to forget where he came from along the way.

He wanted back in Charlottesville so much that as soon as he heard about the opening (and believe me, coaching gossip puts housewife gossip to shame, particularly in the speed of news) he called UVa offensive coordinator Mike Groh to express his interest.

This guy can coach. At William & Mary, he worked with every position on offense and had to do it the hard way. The first year, as a volunteer assistant, which means working for no pay.

But he worked with wide receivers that year, then was bumped up to tight ends the next year and got paid. Well, sort of.

“They called it a ‘restricted-earnings position,’ which means you work a lot and don’t get paid much,” Lineburg chuckled.

Then he returned to UVa as a grad assistant from 1998-99, then went back to work for Laycock for four years, serving as running backs coach and recruiting coordinator before moving to Richmond as Clawson’s offensive coordinator.

“Just like Coach Laycock, Dave Clawson was great to me,” Lineburg said. “He called the plays, but I was kind of his right-hand man in terms of how we game-planned, how we schemed things.

“During games, I was in the press box telling them what to look for, and I organized practice and was more involved with the offensive structure than I was at William & Mary.”

Not only did he coach, but he recruited and is already a familiar face around the state, particularly in Tidewater and in western Virginia. There’s not a high school coach in the state that doesn’t know of Wayne’s father, and now many of them know all about Wayne.

“Recruiting is all about relationships, developing them with coaches, administrators and other people at the high schools,” he said. “A big part of recruiting is how you interact with people. As long as you’re good to them, they’re good to you.”

Because of W&M’s and UR’s academic standards, Lineburg is well acquainted with the pursuit of players who place value on an education, which will help him at UVa.

For now, he wants to take the next step in his coaching career in just becoming the best assistant he can. Groh believes that will be a quick process.

“Wayne is very similar to, but actually a little more advanced, than some of our coaches that we saw a bright future in because they had intelligence, ambition, competitiveness and could connect with people. They had all the right stuff,” Groh said.

“Corwin Brown (an assistant on Groh’s first staff here) is now the coordinator at Notre Dame. Anthony Poindexter has done a great job here,” Groh said. “Neither had ever coached. Michael Groh had one year of limited coaching.

Wayne came in with several years behind him even though he’s still a very young coach.”

Mainly he’s a Virginia coach. Don’t ever forget that.
 

Yellow Jackets boast talented combo duo
By Todd Merchant / tmerchant@dailyprogress.com | 978-7236
April 12, 2007

Anyone who follows Virginia baseball knows how valuable a player such as Sean Doolittle or Joe Koshansky can be - guys who are not only talented in the field and at the plate, but also strong on the mound.

Such players are somewhat rare at the college level and coaches consider themselves fortunate whenever one comes along. Which is why Georgia Tech coach Danny Hall must be thanking his lucky stars, because he’s been blessed with two combo players.

Matt Wieters and Danny Payne are the Yellow Jackets’ starting catcher and center fielder, respectively, but they also do a little relief pitching on the side. In fact, at one point in their careers, each has been considered Tech’s top closer.

“I think it is unusual. I think it’s rare that you find someone talented enough to do both things,” Hall said. “Both these guys are very talented and are willing to do it. Both guys are pro prospects as position players, but they’re willing to help us out with pitching. And I think that says a lot about their character.”

Wieters came to Atlanta knowing he wanted to pitch. He’d been a reliever since his freshman year of high school and became a starter as a senior.

As a freshman at Tech, he quickly established himself as the team’s stopper. He tallied six saves to go with a 3-3 record and 2.85 ERA. Also strong at the plate, the switch-hitting Wieters cranked out 10 home runs and 68 RBI - a school record for freshman - and was named Freshman All-America while also earning ACC Rookie of the Year honors.

Last season, he picked up seven more saves and increased his power numbers (15 HR, 71 RBI) while being named first-team All-America by Baseball America.

Such numbers have led some to compare Wieters to another great Yellow Jackets backstop - Jason Varitek, who is now in his 11th season in the major leagues.

“[Wieters] has got similar tools. Jason could obviously really hit and was a great catcher, and from a catcher standpoint, [Wieters] is in that mold,” said Hall, who also coached Varitek. “Jason has played at the major league level and proven how strong he is, and I definitely think Matt could do that as well.”

The obvious edge Wieters has over Varitek is his pitching prowess. So far this year, Wieters has pitched in eight games and picked up three more saves, placing him seventh all-time in school history with 16. But he’ll be the first one to say that he’d rather be catching pitches instead of throwing them.

“I like being able to be in the lineup and getting to hit every day,” Wieters said. “I like the mental side of catching, but I like the competitive side of pitching - it’s you versus the hitter.

“I like catching more, because you’re in every play”

As Wieters’ importance as a catcher and hitter has grown, Hall has lessened his load on the mound. Wieters generally only pitches during mid-week games and has passed on the title of closer to Payne.

After starring both at the plate and on the mound in high school, Payne came to Georgia Tech focused squarely on becoming the team’s everyday center fielder and leadoff hitter.

He quickly fulfilled both goals by the time his freshman season began and has remained in both spots ever since. After not pitching at all as a freshman, however, the allure of being on the mound proved too great last season.

“It was nice in the aspect that it gave my arm some rest,” Payne said of the yearlong hiatus, “but at the same time it was something that realized I missed. I didn’t think I’d miss it as much as I did.”

He made seven appearances early in the season and was beginning to take on a bigger pitching role, before sustaining a should injury in late April that sidelined him for the rest of the season, including Tech’s run to the College World Series.

The layoff gave Payne time to reflect on the game and adjusted his mindset, especially about pitching.

“Sometimes guys get caught up in stats too much,” Payne said. “It just made me appreciate it more, having to watch my teammates play in the World Series and not being a part of that.

“With the whole pitching thing, I just have fun out there. If they call me to pitch, I’m more than happy to come in there.”

Payne has been summoned to the mound more frequently this season, especially with the ACC season in full swing. He has three saves in eight appearances.

“I think it’s more of just an adrenaline rush,” Payne said of running in from the outfield to pitch. “I get bored sitting in center field all day. Some days I don’t even see a ball hit to me.

“On the mound, I can control the tempo of the game. Nothing goes until I say so.”

Whether or not Payne gets called into action this weekend will depend upon how he, Wieters and the rest of the Yellow Jackets can contend with Virginia’s strong pitching staff.

UVa coach Brian O’Connor knows firsthand how important such combo players can be, and he is well aware of Payne’s and Wieters’ abilities.

“Two-way players of that magnitude are great for your team because they can help you in so many areas,” O’Connor said. “They are two of the marquee players in our league for a reason.”
 

Kalkstein steals show from seniors
By Whitelaw Reid / wreid@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
April 12, 2007

Brittany Kalkstein had already won four draws in a row against Georgetown All-America Coco Stanwick. With just 31 seconds remaining in the half, she prepared for another.

Just as the referee blew the whistle, Kalkstein flung the ball backward to teammate Blair Weymouth.

Weymouth wound up earning a free-position shot, which she capitalized on to give Virginia a commanding six-goal lead.

It may have been Senior Night at Klockner Stadium on Wednesday, but it was the play of the freshman Kalkstein that made all the difference.

The Baltimore native dominated Stanwick on draws. Kalkstein had nine draw controls - a freshmen record - to help propel Virginia to a 14-7 win over Georgetown on a cold, dreary night in Charlottesville.

“That was our main focus all week,” Kalkstein said. “We knew she was an incredible player. We knew she was going to be trying to draw to herself, and so we were just reacting to the ball.

“[Coach Julie Myers] told me to react to the ball and try and box her out, so I did that - and then my teammates were right there.”

Kate Breslin led the way on offense for Virginia (11-2, 2-2). The senior bounced back from an off game at Old Dominion, scoring four goals and three assists.

Weymouth added three goals for UVa, which plays at Johns Hopkins on Saturday.

Stanwick, who came into the game ranked third in the nation in draw controls and seventh in points, had three goals and an assist. However, much of her damage came when the game was already out of reach.

“It was not the type of game that she’s used to having,” said Myers, who turned 39 on Wednesday. “I think we frustrated her, and that’s a credit to all of our players. I think they unraveled a little because she wasn’t having her usual game.”

Virginia held a 17-6 edge in draw controls and outshot Georgetown, 33-20.

“[Kalkstein] was really good,” said senior Jessy Morgan. “We practiced [draw controls] all week because we had been so bad in that against Duke [on March 31]. Georgetown is one of the best teams in the country in that. Brittany came up huge.”

When Stanwick did have possession of the ball in the Virginia zone, she was defended well by Morgan, Jen Holden and Claire Bordley.

In the first half, Virginia came out strong, taking a quick 4-1 lead on goals by Kalkstein, Breslin, Jess Wasilewski and Weymouth.

Georgetown (7-5) tried to hang tight. The Hoyas made it 6-3 on Stanwick’s first goal of the game with 5:53 left in the half, but Virginia - buoyed by Kalkstein’s prowess on draws - scored the final three goals of the stanza to take a 9-3 lead into the locker room.

Less than four minutes into the second half, Stanwick scored to make it 9-4, but that was as close as Georgetown ever got. Virginia led by as many as eight and cruised to its second straight victory.

Morgan, a senior, was happy to get a win in her last regular-season game at Klockner.

“Hopefully we can go into the ACC Tournament and then the [NCAA Tournament] on a high note,” she said.

Myers, whose team has three road games left, said her game plan on Stanwick worked as well as she could have ever hoped.

“We disguised the slide, so she wouldn’t know where it was coming from,” she said. “Jessy and Jen did a great job on Coco, and Jen was great on groundballs.”

But it was Kalkstein who set the tone with her success on draws against Stanwick.

“To see her do that against a fourth-year,” Myers said, “was truly amazing.”

 

U.Va. finishes on festive note
Sewell out; Groh says selection of first-team QB hasn't been made
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Apr 12, 2007
U.VA. SPRING GAME
WHEN: 2 p.m. WHERE: Scott Stadium, Charlottesville ADMISSION: Free

The game won't start until 2 p.m., but what the University of Virginia calls its Spring Football Festival will get under way two hours earlier Saturday.

Fans at Scott Stadium can take part in a football combine, which will include the 40-yard dash and field goal kicks, from noon to 1 p.m. Other games and activities will run from noon to 1:45 p.m.

From 1 to 1:30 p.m., former U.Va. players, including Matt Schaub, Jim Dombrowski, Wali Rainer and Aaron Brooks, will talk about their experiences in college and in the NFL.

All the activities are free, as is parking in the lots around Scott Stadium.

Cavaliers coach Al Groh said he would wait until after yesterday afternoon's practice to split his roster into two teams. Groh said most of his first-team offense would probably remain intact for the spring game, with the same true for the starting defense.

On a teleconference with reporters yesterday morning, Groh said he hadn't decided who would be the first-team quarterback Saturday. With returning starter Ja- meel Sewell not cleared for contact while recovering from a wrist injury, the candidates are rising junior Scott Deke and freshman Marc Verica, who redshirted last season.

As of yesterday, five players have been ruled out of the spring game for medical reasons: Sewell, wide receiver Kevin Ogletree (knee), linebackers Clint Sintim (shoulder) and Darren Childs (sinus) and defensive end John Roberts (knee).
 

UVa seeks a receiver to replace Ogletree's numbers
By Andy Bitter
Lynchburg News & Advance
April 11, 2007

CHARLOTTESVILLE - It was cold, but Staton Jobe and Cary Koch weren't going to stray from their post-practice routine.
As the rest of Virginia's football players made a beeline for the warm confines of the locker room after last Saturday's practice, the two receivers walked to the other side of the field, where a team manager set up a JUGS machine.

They normally take 60 or so passes from the machine, but it ran out of gas after 25 on this particular afternoon.

Jobe and Koch have no such problem. They get enough fuel from the skeptics, the non-believers who rush to message boards to lament UVa's wide receiver situation in the wake of Kevin Ogletree's ACL tear.

"I know a lot of people have some doubts," Koch said. "They're talking about how the receivers are the weak point of the team right now. But when it comes down to it, we're going to make the plays. We're a strong group right now. People might not think that, but we're going to come through."

They'll have to in order to replace the production of Ogletree, who, despite having surgery after injuring his knee in the first week of spring practice, has not yet ruled out playing in 2007. He caught 52 passes for 582 yards and four touchdowns last season, essentially filling the void of injured wideout Deyon Williams, whose senior season was all but lost due to a stress fracture.

There is no ready-made replacement on Virginia's roster for Ogletree, however. UVa's returning wide receivers have combined for 35 career catches, 23 of which were by Koch when he played for Tulane in 2005. Maurice Covington had six catches last season, the most of any returning receiver.

"I think we have a lot to prove," Jobe said.

The Cavaliers aren't lacking in bodies. Jobe, converted cornerback Chris Gorham and former lacrosse player Simon Manka have worked at the 'X' receiver position that Ogletree occupied. Covington, Koch and speedster Chris Dalton have worked at the 'Z' receiver position vacated by Fontel Mines.

Tom Santi, a nimble, 6-foot-5, 250-pound tight end who has lined up as a fullback in the past, is working in the slot in place of Emmanuel Byers, who did not return for his fifth year of eligibility. In three years, Santi has 61 career receptions and 766 receiving yards.

"What we see him as (is) a guy like Dallas Clark for Indianapolis," Virginia head coach Al Groh said. "Now he's a tight end, but he'll line up in the backfield, on the wing, in the slot. They do a lot of versatile things with him. That would be a quick definition of some of the things Tom can do."

This spring, Jobe and Covington have worked with the first team at the two receiver spots.

Unlike Covington, who at 6-foot-4, 215 pounds is a Mines clone, Jobe is undersized at 6 feet, 177 pounds. The recruited walk-on from Austin, Texas, who turned down offers from smaller schools and the service academies to attend Virginia, makes up for it in other ways. Namely, he's quick - both at running and in applying instruction from the coaching staff.

"Walk-on, walk-out, walk-in, whatever category they came from, which doesn't make any difference to us at this stage, (Staton's) doing as good a job as anybody," Groh said.

Koch, who like Jobe stands just six feet tall, has similar positive traits.

"He's a hard worker, very diligent," Groh said. "At that position it ultimately comes down to what guys stress and impact a defense most."

They are not alone at having a height disadvantage. Manka and Gorham stand six feet tall as well, hardly imposing by receiver standards and, coupled with the group's inexperience, unimpressive to those predicting doom for the Cavaliers' passing game this season.

"It gets us motivated because people are looking down on us a little bit," Koch said. "At the spring game, I think we're going to open up some eyes to how deep the receivers are as a group."


 

Women's Lacrosse: Seniors lead Virginia to victory over Hoyas
Virginia defense frustrates Georgetown star Stanwick; Breslin adds four goals, three assists to finish off Hoyas
Ben Gibson, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor

It may have been raining, but that did not stop the Class of 2007 from shining as the Virginia women's lacrosse team defeated Georgetown last night 14-7 at Klöckner Stadium.

The Cavaliers got off to a fast start, scoring in the second minute and never looking back as they held the lead for the entire game. Virginia extended its lead to as much as eight with 9:10 left in the game.

The lead was secure thanks to a stellar performance by Virginia's five senior players. The group combined for eight goals, including one by senior attacker Kaitlin Swagart in just her seventh game of the season.

The best senior performance however, came from Kate Breslin. Already leading the team in goals and assists, Breslin added fourgoals and three assists to herlofty career totals in defeating the Hoyas for the first time in the teams' last three meetings.

"That was definitely something [the seniors] covered," freshman midfielder Brittany Kalkstein said. "They said 'Guys, we've lost to them the past two years.' Their motivation spread, it's contagious."

One senior, however, did not have the all-star performance most expected, Georgetown's attacker Coco Stanwick. Stanwick is one of the top scorers in the country, but against Virginia senior defender Jessy Morgan, simply could not get into a rhythm. With her lackluster performance, it is little surprise Georgetown was just one goal away from tying its lowest total all season.

"She had a pretty frustrating night," Virginia coach Julie Myers said. "I credit our team for really frustrating [her] from the beginning."

It is also hard to score with limited possession of the ball, and Virginia dominated possession. Draw control cost the Cavaliers dearly against Duke the last time Virginia played at home. Despite a two-goal lead with 1:36 to go against Duke, Virginia could not secure the critical draw to hold the ball and coast to a victory. This time, however, Virginia did not repeat its mistake. The Cavaliers won draw control 10-3 in the first half alone, en route to a comfortable 9-3 advantage at half. The lead would never fall below six for the remainder of the contest.

"At halftime what we said was we lost that Duke game for a reason and that was to win this one," Myers said. "We just knew we had to just gut it out and be really tough."

Kalkstein set a freshman record for draw control with nine, which stands out even more because the accomplishment came against a Tewaaraton Trophy candidate in Stanwick.

"We know she's an incredible player, especially with the draws," Kalkstein said. "We just concentrated on her drawing to herself, maybe my size helped, but we just reacted to the ball wherever it went."

Kalkstein was not the only underclassman to steal the show on senior night; sophomore attacker Blair Weymouth notched a hat trick in the first half, giving her 33 goals for the year. Her size and speed posed too many problems for the Hoya defense, as many of her goals came off of fast breaks and broken plays.

Virginia must now prepare for a long series of road trips, beginning at Johns Hopkins (7-5) Saturday.

 

Early bird gets the worm
Kevin Zdancewicz, Cavalier Daily Sports Columnist

If you make it out to the spring football game Saturday, you'll see a preliminary preview of this fall's squad, the official 2007 orange T-shirt and probably more Aquafina and Alltel ads than anyone should have to witness. One of the things you won't see is this fall's incoming recruiting class practicing with the team. This is because U.Va. does not permit early enrollment for athletes.

Big-time college football fans are no doubt familiar with this practice, but even if you only follow the sport casually, chances are you've heard the term before. Basically, early enrollment allows student-athletes who have graduated from high school to become full-time college students in the spring rather than the fall, a semester earlier than usual. Players adjust to being away from home and are also permitted to work out and practice with the team, giving them a jump on learning the program's offensive or defensive systems and allowing them to battle for starting positions or playing time earlier than they otherwise would have been able to.

But this is not the case at U.Va. Did you know Virginia is the only school in the 12-team ACC that does not offer an early enrollment program? Could this be one of the reasons Virginia hasn't been able to really contend in the league and recently hasn't emerged from the middle of the pack?

Although some college football experts believe QB Jameel Sewell's dynamic ability will be enough to turn around Virginia's recent misfortune, wouldn't it be intriguing to have star recruit Peter Lalich in camp learning the offense and potentially challenging Sewell, especially with his lightened workload following wrist surgery?

With the devastating loss of top receiver Kevin Ogletree, wouldn't you feel a little better about the upcoming season if some of the new receivers were getting reps in camp now, in hopes that someone could step up along with now first-string returning WR Maurice Covington (6 catches, 45 yards last season ... yikes)?

Why doesn't U.Va. allow early enrollment? Bearing in mind that Virginia strives to be the country's top public university, I don't think having an early admission program would do anything to take away from the school's national academic reputation.

First and foremost, players who were admitted early would still be held to the same high academic standards as all other U.Va. athletes. Virginia would not admit students who did not meet these standards, which are significantly higher than those of some rival schools that lower admission requirements to allow talented athletes to matriculate. In this sense, the academic integrity of the University athletic program would still be preserved even with an early enrollment program.

Also, only a handful of student-athletes would be allowed to participate in the early enrollment program -- most likely those with good academic reputations and the obvious ability to adapt to college life if thrown into the mix early. Many football players are going to stay for five years and/or attend multiple summer sessions anyway, so why is it such a big deal to have players arrive a semester early?

Some fans contend the lack of early admission hurts Groh's recruiting allures, and surely that is the case for a few recruits. I am not convinced, however, that most players make that a point of emphasis in their search for a school. It seems that this is more the case with players who need an extra semester at a prep school or have some other extenuating situation. The aforementioned higher academic standards that the University places on its student-athletes would seem to be a bigger problem in recruiting.

Rendering much of this conversation moot is the fact that recruiting has been one of Groh's strong suits. As evidenced by the high national rankings of recent recruiting classes and the recent flurry of Hoos taken on draft day, the area where the program seems to have fallen behind in the league is the actual team play in Groh's system (a column for another day), which is something that could be helped by additional workouts via early enrollment.

As I said, all of the other ACC schools have early admission programs. If last year's conference finalists Wake Forest and Georgia Tech are any indication, in the ACC there exists the possibility of almost any team (sorry, Duke) winning its division, playing in the championship game and potentially receiving a BCS bowl bid.

I'm just thinking that having early enrollment might help Virginia football get there.

 

Men's Lacrosse: Clausen shows promise on field
Former No. 1 defenseman recruit, Ken Clausen has quickly become strong addition to defense; leads Cavaliers with 49 ground balls so far this season
Paul Montana, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor

The Virginia men's lacrosse team has proven so far that its defense is strong enough to protect last year's national championship. In 11 games the Cavaliers have dominated groundballs, controlling 504 to opponents' 405; have caused 108 turnovers to opponents' 76; and have allowed only 76 goals.

Without a doubt, these statistics reflect an entire team effort. Freshman defenseman Ken Clausen, however, has become one of the team's primary contributors.

The No. 1 defenseman recruit in the nation according to Inside Lacrosse, Clausen is one of only two first-line freshmen for Virginia. Coaches and teammates alike have been mesmerized by the maturity Clausen has shown beyond his rookie status.

"He's got poise and he has a sense of attentiveness in the field game that's a little uncanny for a first-year player," Virginia coach Dom Starsia said. "He does some things that are indicative of an upperclassman, somebody with more experience, and that's probably what got him on the field as much as anything else."

The area that Clausen has excelled in the most is groundballs. He leads the team with 49 groundballs on the season, which is nearly unheard of for a freshman defenseman.

"Everyone on our defense brings something to the game, and I really wanted to figure out something I could contribute to the players that we have," Clausen said. "The groundballs are something that I really take pride in and something I hope I can continue to do for the rest of the season."

Clausen has also shown his ability to be outspoken on the field. Communication is one of the most important aspects of any team defense, and Clausen has already established himself as a vocal leader for Virginia.

"He's very talkative off the ball, and that's a very strange thing coming from a rookie," senior goalkeeper Kip Turner said. "You usually learn that by your third or fourth year, but he picked it up very quickly."

Although Clausen was highly touted as a high school senior, the Virginia coaching staff had not seen much of him before this year. After initially committing to Duke, Clausen made a last-minute decision to attend Virginia following a scandal in which several Duke players were arrested on rape charges. As a result, the Virginia coaching staff did not know what to expect from Clausen as the year began.

"The freshmen and upperclassmen were all battling [for] what was one spot in the starting rotation," Starsia said. "Because he was going to Duke, I really hadn't paid that much attention to him at the beginning of the year playing-wise."

As the fall progressed, however, it became clear that Clausen was going to live up to the preseason hype.

"At first when you come here you want to just be able to hang with the players you're around," Clausen said. "Once you start getting more comfortable, I think it's everyone's goal to get playing time."

Players like Clausen will have the responsibility of maintaining the winning tradition of men's lacrosse. The way he has performed this season, it appears that Virginia's future is in safe hands.

"Ken Clausen is somebody who's going to be a leader at the defensive end of the field," Starsia said. "He's going to be one of the outstanding defenders in the country without a doubt, but he's also going to be a leader on this team throughout his career."