U.VA. NOTES
Tuesday, May 13, 2008 - 12:06 AM

More trouble for Brown
Virginia football player Mike Brown is facing more criminal charges.

Brown, a cornerback who was charged Feb. 29 with three felonies and a misdemeanor, was arrested again April 24. This time Brown, 21, was charged with DWI and refusing to take a blood/breath test. Both are misdemeanors.

A resident of Newark, N.J., Brown is due back in Charlottesville General District Court on the latest charges June 26. He's scheduled to appear May 22 for his felony charges: one count each of grand larceny, possession of stolen property with intent to sell, and altering serial numbers. Brown also faces a misdemeanor charge of marijuana possession.

Brown, who has two seasons of athletic eligibility remaining, was a third-year student at U.Va. in 2007-08. He was held out of spring practice, and his status with the team hasn't changed, a U.Va. spokesman said yesterday. Virginia coach Al Groh is out of town at an ACC football meeting.

In April 2006, Brown pleaded guilty to one count of misdemeanor trespassing after a brawl at a U.Va. fraternity. He originally faced a felony charge in that incident.

Brown started three games for U.Va. as a true freshman in 2005. He started one game in 2006. Brown missed last season while recovering from a knee injury.

Draw tough for U.Va.
The selection committee for the NCAA men's lacrosse tournament did neither Virginia nor Maryland-Baltimore County any favors. U.Va., seeded No. 2 in the 16-team tourney, drew UMBC in the first round.

The Retrievers are considered one of the nation's top 10 teams, and Virginia barely beat them, 10-9, Sunday night at Klockner Stadium.

That America East champion UMBC proved formidable was no shock. In the U.S. Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association coaches' poll released last week, the Retrievers were ranked No. 6, ahead of such teams as Cornell (No. 7), Maryland (No. 8), and North Carolina (No. 9). UMBC beat Denver, Maryland and Ohio State (which ousted No. 8 seed Cornell on Saturday) during the regular season and entered the NCAAs on an 11-game winning streak.

Meanwhile, teams seeded worse than Virginia -- such as No. 3 Syracuse, No. 5 Johns Hopkins and No. 7 Maryland -- drew more favorable first-round matchups. Syracuse faced Canisius (unranked in last week's USILA poll), Hopkins played 16th-ranked Hofstra and Maryland met 17th-ranked Denver. It didn't hurt the Terrapins that their coach, Dave Cottle, was on the NCAA selection committee.

U.Va. to face Maryland
The NCAA quarterfinal doubleheader Saturday in Annapolis, Md., matches Virginia (13-3) and Maryland (10-5) at noon, and Hopkins (9-5) and Navy (10-5) at 3 p.m. ESPNU will televise both games.

Expect at least one record to fall Saturday. The NCAA record for paid attendance at a men's lacrosse quarterfinal is 12,289, set at Hofstra in 1999. Given the strong followings U.Va., Maryland, Hopkins and Navy have in the Baltimore and Washington areas, a crowd of 25,000 or more is realistic Saturday.

Duo staying at U.Va.
Graduation at U.Va. is Sunday, and lacrosse star Ben Rubeor, a fan of Flannery O'Connor's short stories, will receive a degree in English. Rubeor is almost out of athletic eligibility, but he'll be back at U.Va. in 2008-09 to pursue a master's in finance through the McIntire School of Commerce.

So will Mike Timms, the Cavaliers' starting long-stick midfielder, who'll graduate Sunday with a bachelor's in economics. Timms redshirted in 2005, however, so he'll be eligible to play for U.Va. again in 2009.

Cavs lure linebacker
The U.Va. football program has picked up its seventh commitment for 2009, and it's from a legacy: linebacker Tucker Windle, a 6-2, 225-pound junior at Charlotte (N.C.) Catholic High School.

His father, Al Windle, played for the Cavaliers in the '70s. The elder Windle, an attorney in Charlotte, received his law degree from Wake Forest.

Tucker Windle also had scholarship offers from Wake, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin, N.C. State and Duke. -- Jeff White

 

Windle follows family footsteps to Virginia
By Jay Jenkins
Published: May 13, 2008

In baseball terminology, assistant coach Mike Groh would get the win and fellow assistant Wayne Lineburg would earn the save.
Virginia football fans are hopeful that the latest commitment landed translates into a complete game victory.
Over the weekend, rising senior Tucker Windle, from Charlotte Catholic (N.C.), picked Virginia over three other ACC schools and Wisconsin, electing to follow in his father’s footsteps as a Cavalier linebacker.
“I had it down to Wake Forest and UVa for the past two months and I went back and forth and finally I just decided it was time,” Windle said. “My heart told me to go with Virginia, so I said why not.”
In 1977, Windle’s dad, Al, lettered as a linebacker at Virginia, which added to the irony of the decision.
“Virginia has tradition,” Windle said. “They have been doing it for so long and since my dad went there and played linebacker, I thought it would be special if I went there and played that same position.”
Windle, who had 64 tackles and eight sacks last season, also plays tight end and could play there or even be moved into a backfield weapon for short-yardage situations. But he will get his first audition at outside linebacker.
He has drawn a lot of attention, including offers from North Carolina State and Virginia Tech, because of his speed and size — Windle ran a 4.6 40-yard dash despite standing at 6-foot-2 and 227 pounds.
“My dad has been working out with me since I was 8 or 9 years old. I think that is one of the advantages that I have on the field,” Windle said. “I am able to just overpower people.”
An excellent student, Windle has already qualified and maintains a 3.0 grade point average. That also played a part in the decision leave the Tar Heel State.
“Virginia’s academics are above and beyond everybody else,” he said. “It was an easy decision in that regard.”
The decision itself, however, would never have occurred without the legwork of Groh, the program’s offensive coordinator, and a deal-clinching visit last week from Lineburg.
“[Groh] is one of the coolest guys I have ever talked to. He is young, he knows how to relate to players and this whole situation can be stressful, but he told me to make it fun,” Windle said. “He’s the man. I can’t say anything bad about him at all.”

 

Cavs don beards for stretch run
By Jay Jenkins
Published: May 13, 2008

Hitting his 10th homer in just his 35th game Sunday did not ease the verbal jabs thrown in the direction of former Virginia standout Sean Doolittle’s direction.
Now with the Stockton Ports, the Class A team for the Oakland A’s, Doolittle tried unsuccessfully last year to bleach his pencil-thin playoff moustache to gain street cred inside Virginia’s clubhouse.
Virginia’s baseball players at back at it — for better or worse — and have tweaked the idea that was spoiled when eventual national champion Oregon State won the Charlottesville regional.
This year, the Cavaliers have decided to — or at least attempt to — grow beards.
“We are doing a little push for the postseason thing,” explained Virginia pitcher Pat McAnaney. “We are just trying something to get everybody fired up.”
Jeremy Farrell, who connected on a two-run game-winning bloop single Sunday to beat No. 2 UNC, 5-4, had some help with his from the team’s beard stylist, catcher Franco Valdes.
“I have to keep it classy,” Farrell joked. “Franco lined me up. Now, I have a little Latin flavor.”
The move is symbolic of a team facing the pressure of playing its way into the NCAA tournament, which it has played every year since 2004.
Virginia (34-17, 14-13 ACC) currently is in solid standing for the NCAA tournament with the 24th-best RPI and a ticket punched for the ACC Tournament next week as the fifth or sixth seed.
The Cavaliers’ fate could change with six games scheduled in the next 12 days, a stretch that starts tonight at home against VMI at 6 p.m. UVa also hosts Georgia Tech, which is ranked in several of the polls, on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
“I don’t think [the North Carolina win] plays a factor in that, quite frankly,” said Virginia coach Brian O’Connor said. “How we do against Georgia Tech and how we do in the ACC Tournament is going to determine this team’s fate. I really believe that. We have got three games with Georgia Tech next weekend and then we are going to have guaranteed three high-RPI games in our conference tournament.
“If we do not do the job in those six games — that doesn’t mean win all of them or win our share of those games — we could not like the news on NCAA selection day because of not having wins against high RPI teams. We just haven’t done it this year, but are going to have opportunities in the next six league games.”
Virginia and every other ACC team can take solace in the fact that from this point forward, baseball can become the top priority as final exams are completed.
“It’s kind of like being a pro player a little, I would imagine,” said pitcher Andrew Carraway. “You are done with school, you are done with all the distractions. It’s just baseball.
“I think it brings us closer together.”
Avoiding being known as the team that ended the NCAA tournament run is not something any of the players want to be classified as, according to Carraway.
“Nobody wants to end their career on that note. We have a lot of guys that don’t know what the next year holds for us, and you can tell with [Sunday’s] game that everybody is leaving it all on the field.
“That’s the only way to play the game. That’s the way everyone wants to be remembered.”
Inside the rotation
Jake Cowan, a rookie right-hander, will get the start tonight on the mound for Virginia against VMI.
A 14th-round draft pick last summer by the Boston Red Sox, Cowan is 2-1 on the season with a 2.77 ERA and is averaging almost a strikeout per inning.
The player that will follow Cowan on Thursday against Georgia Tech, however, remains a mystery.
On Monday during his weekly coach’s show, O’Connor said his rotation would have a new look for the series with the Yellow Jackets. The skipper did not elaborate, but said junior Jacob Thompson and senior Pat McAnaney would start a contest in the series.
Supporting the troops
It has not been uncommon for O’Connor to ask members of various branches of the military to speak to his players during his tenure.
With that as one of the driving forces, Virginia’s program has established Military Appreciation Night. For tonight’s contest, fans with a military ID may purchase up to four tickets at the reduced rate of $4 apiece. A limited number of hot dogs for $1 will also be available for fans in attendance.

 

Lacrosse quarterfinals have familiar feel
Ohio State only fresh face in round of eight as traditional powers hold serve
By Edward Lee | Sun reporter
4:04 PM EDT, May 12, 2008
 

So much for the upstarts.

Traditionalists can rejoice as storied men's lacrosse programs with a rich history in the NCAA tournament dominated the first-round games this past weekend.

Seven of the eight teams that advanced to the quarterfinals in Annapolis and Ithaca, N.Y., have been there before -- with fifth seed Johns Hopkins leading the way with 36 quarterfinal appearances.

In addition to the Blue Jays, seventh seed Maryland (28 quarterfinals), second seed Virginia (27), third seed Syracuse (27), Navy (18), top seed Duke (9) and sixth seed Notre Dame (four) advanced to the round of eight for the third time since 2000. Only Ohio State is breaking the seal with its first quarterfinal showing.

Colgate and UMBC posed the most promising challengers to tradition, but the Patriot League champion Raiders, who qualified for their first tournament, lost to Notre Dame in overtime, 8-7. The America East champion Retrievers' bid for only their second quarterfinal appearance could not escape Virginia, which won, 10-9.

The lack of upsets did not shock ESPN analyst and former Army coach Jack Emmer.

"I think the way the regular season goes, it's not very clear who should be the top-seeded teams," Emmer said, indirectly referring to the questions surrounding North Carolina's No. 4 seed. The Tar Heels were beaten by the Midshipmen, 8-7, on Saturday night.

"So when an unseeded team beats a seeded team, I don't think it's that much of an upset," Emmer continued. "Navy is a fine team. Same with Ohio State [which routed eighth seed Cornell, 15-7]. ... They're upsets by the seeding, but there's not much difference between those teams."

Here are some more observations about the quarterfinals:

Rematches are in vogue

Half of the bracket -- the four teams playing at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis on Saturday -- presents intriguing games involving teams that have met during the regular season.

At noon, Virginia (13-3) and Maryland (10-5) tangle to see who can win the rubber match in a series that was split earlier this spring. Three hours later, Johns Hopkins (9-5) will attempt to defeat Navy (10-5) for the 35th consecutive time in front of what will likely be a pro-Navy crowd.

"It's not lost on us where we're going, how well [the Midshipmen] are playing, how hard they played [Saturday] night against what I think is a pretty good North Carolina team," Blue Jays coach Dave Pietramala said. "We've got our work cut out for us."

Lacrosse track meet?

Don't be surprised if the contest between Duke (17-1) and Ohio State (11-5) turns into an offensive buffet.

The Blue Devils lead the country in scoring with 15.2 goals per game, while the Buckeyes are fourth with 13.1 goals per game.

But don't sleep on the defenses. Opponents are averaging just seven goals against Duke, while Ohio State is limiting opposing offenses to 8.2 goals per contest.

"I think everybody has conceded that Duke is the best team in the country, and I agree with that," Emmer said. "But if this Ohio State team can play at the level they played at last week, I think they can give Duke a great run. And that's going to be the most entertaining game because both teams are going to go at each other."

"X" marks the spot

Perhaps the most intriguing individual matchup involves the senior faceoff specialists in the game between Syracuse (13-2) and Notre Dame (14-2). The Orange's Danny Brennan ranks No. 1 in the country in win percentage (.673 on 165 of 245 faceoffs), and the Irish's Taylor Clagett is No. 2 (.645 on 198 of 307 faceoffs).

Brennan and Clagett have been instrumental for their teams. Syracuse ranks second in the country in scoring with 13.9 goals per game, while Notre Dame is fifth with 12.3 goals per game.

 

ACC MEETINGS NOTEBOOK
9-game conference football slate proposed
KEN TYSIAC
ktysiac@charlotteobserver.com

FERNANDINA BEACH, Fla. --ACC football coaches left their meeting rooms Monday with instructions to talk about a nine-game conference schedule with their athletics directors.

Officials will discuss the idea today as the ACC spring meetings continue. Currently, ACC teams play eight conference games -- five against divisional opponents and three against teams from the opposite division.

Wake Forest athletics director Ron Wellman favors a nine-game conference schedule because fans prefer games against league opponents to those against many nonconference foes.

But a nine-game schedule would require five ACC road games in some years, and that will be a difficult hurdle to overcome. Officials at many ACC schools count on having at least seven home dates in a 12-game season to pay their bills.

That makes a nine-game conference schedule difficult for Clemson, Georgia and Florida State, which are engaged in perpetual home-and-away series with in-state, SEC rivals.

Eye on BTN

ACC officials and their television partners continue to watch the Big Ten Network's emergence with interest.Launched in August, BTN has had difficulty wooing cable providers, though the Sports Business Journal has reported that Comcast could add BTN soon.

"Until there is some evidence that cable companies and satellite providers can make them successful, I think conferences will be very cautious about starting new channels," said Charlotte's Ken Haines, president and CEO of Raycom Sports.

Exec to promote ACC title games

Former Charlotte Bobcats executive Steve Swetoha is working out of Raycom's offices to promote sales for the ACC football championship games that are coming to Charlotte, Haines said.

The championship games are scheduled for Bank of America Stadium in 2010 and 2011. Swetoha was senior vice president of business operations for the Bobcats.
 

BCS futility hurts ACC's credibility
But NFL draft offers some 'validation'
Ken Tysiac, The Charlotte Observer

FERNANDINA BEACH, FLA. - The depth of ACC football has improved, particularly after coach Jim Grobe built Wake Forest into a conference championship contender. But the ACC hasn't played in the BCS championship game since the 2000 season, when Florida State lost to Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl.
ACC teams are 0-8 in BCS games over the past eight seasons. Meanwhile, the rival SEC has won two straight national titles with Florida and Louisiana State. Clemson coach Tommy Bowden, who recruits the SEC area heavily, said those titles benefit the SEC in recruiting.

"The balance [of the ACC] is important, but that's the objective, to play in that [championship] game," Bowden said. "That's why you get into coaching. You want somebody in your conference to get close to it. At least have somebody in your conference play for it. That gives your conference credibility."

The NFL draft is what gives the ACC credibility these days. Commissioner John Swofford spoke to the ACC's coaches Monday and told them that the ACC's 25 first-round picks the past three years are more than any other conference had over the same period.

"If you're looking for the validation of football and the quality of the conference, that's a pretty good statement," North Carolina coach Butch Davis said. "The draft pretty much tells you where the talent is."