UVa adds another talent to '07 class
Jenkins to bring toughness to London's defense
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
July 1, 2006

Big Nick Jenkins’ list of suitors read like a Who’s Who of college football: Florida, Michigan, Tennessee, Penn State ... on and on. More than 35 Division I-A programs offered scholarships to the physical tackle.

But they all made a big mistake. They allowed Jenkins to make his first unofficial visit to Virginia.

Game over.

“As soon as I went down to Virginia this spring, I knew that’s where I wanted to be,” said Jenkins on Friday night after he had returned home from a second trip to Charlottesville. This time he committed to coach Al Groh’s Cavaliers.

“I wanted to kind of stay close to home, and to get that kind of education and that caliber of football, I’m lucky that UVa was the first unofficial I took,” Jenkins said. “I didn’t really need to see anyone else.”

Jenkins is a 6-foot-3, 285-pound player, ranked a four-star prospect by Rivals. As a junior last season, he recorded 78 tackles, including six for losses, three sacks, and three fumble recoveries for Good Counsel High School in Damascus, Md., the same school that produced former UVa basketball standout Roger Mason Jr.

The big tackle, who was recruited as a nose tackle for Mike London’s defense, wasn’t the only family member impressed with Virginia.

“He got so many letters from schools, but most of them were so generic,” said Nick’s father, Alan Jenkins. “Coach Groh’s letters to Nick were personal and handwritten. Coach Groh was a first-class guy all the way around, just like Virginia’s program.”

Jenkins’ father accompanied on his trip in the spring, but his mother came down with him on Friday.

“I was 100 percent sure in my mind before we left home to go to Charlottesville that I would commit, but my mom went with me and so that was the go-ahead guarantee,” said Jenkins, who nearly committed upon meeting with Groh and London on Friday afternoon.

“I feel so at home at UVa,” Jenkins said. “Virginia was my No. 1 choice because they’re classy people. I also have an opportunity to contribute early if I do what I’m supposed to do.”

Junior Keenan Carter is the projected starter at the position this season for UVa, but will be a senior by the time Jenkins arrives. Also on the Cavaliers’ depth chart at the position are junior Allen Billyk and redshirt freshman Kevin Crawford.

“My freshman year there, I feel like I will be able to compete with those players or at least learn a lot from them,” Jenkins said. “All I can say is that I will come into the program with the mentality that I want to start and that’s how I approach practice every day.

“If I don’t play, or don’t start, then I’m willing to learn from those guys ahead of me who have more experience than me,” Jenkins said. “But I’m not going to be bashful about wanting to play.”

With his credentials, that likely won’t be a problem.

Groh and London both told Jenkins that they liked him not only because he was big and strong with good speed (4.9), but for yet another reason. He’s tough.

“Their big emphasis was on the point that I’m tough,” Jenkins said. “I don’t want to bash other schools that recruited me, but everything their coaches said to me was pretty general. Coach London and Coach Groh were very specific about pretty much everything.”

Jenkins is the 11th early commitment to UVa thus far for the recruiting class of 2007.

 

Duke scandal alters Clausen's plans
Recruit jumps to Virginia after Pressler's firing, happy to join Starsia's squad
By Whitelaw Reid / Daily Progress staff writer
July 2, 2006

Ken Clausen was in his dorm room at his boarding school in Pennsylvania when he received a phone call that changed everything.

On the line was Duke lacrosse coach Mike Pressler.

Clausen, an incoming recruit, listened as Pressler explained to him the events that would later become known as “The Duke Scandal.”

Pressler relayed the sordid details - the underage drinking, the allegations that members of his team raped an exotic dancer. He told Clausen that he would be granted his full release from his letter of intent, along with the six other Duke recruits. In essence, Clausen was free to choose another school if he so desired.

At first, Clausen - who had become smitten with Duke - was torn about what to do. But when Pressler resigned on April 5, Clausen, along with three recruits, decided to look elsewhere.

Clausen said that period of uncertainty - when he was trying to find another school - was difficult.

“It was more of a worry of, ‘Who’s going to be willing to take a Duke recruit? Is my image going to be stained or tainted from this whole incident?’” Clausen said.

It shouldn’t be a problem, Clausen quickly learned, after talking to Virginia coach Dom Starsia.

Clausen’s bigger concern became whether the ACC would waive its rule that required lacrosse players who switched from one ACC school to another to sit out a season. When the ACC did, Clausen was ecstatic.

“Virginia was the only other place I really wanted to look at,” Clausen said. “I thought the world of Virginia. I was really hoping that it would work out.”

The UVa coaching staff probably had its fingers crossed, too. Clausen, a 6-foot-2, 195-pound defenseman from the Hill School in Pottstown, Pa., was one of the most sought-after players in the country before signing with Duke.

But after the events that transpired in Durham, N.C., it was Clausen who found himself doing much of the calling - mainly because it was so late in the recruiting game.

“He initiated most of the process and actually did a lot of the legwork on [coming to Virginia],” Starsia said. “I think at the time we all wanted Duke to come back and land on its feet, but all of these young men had the right to be able to look at their own opportunities.

“Certainly the one at Duke changed when the coach resigned and things like that. When it all worked out, we were pleased.”

Ditto for Clausen’s parents, who had worried about the stigma of being a Duke lacrosse player. They feared that their son would be “vilified” before he even stepped on campus.

“We didn’t want a part of that,” Clausen’s father, Jeff, said, “and that definitely played into our decision.

“At the time, they weren’t really sure if they would have a team. We had to make a move. Academically Duke was fine, but Ken also wanted to play lacrosse, so we had to make a move to cater to that.”

Clausen had already been recruited by Virginia - and by just about every other top lacrosse program - prior to signing with Duke. He knew UVa assistant Mark Van Arsdale pretty well. Van Arsdale and Ned Ide, Clausen’s coach at the Hill School, had run a summer camp together for a number of years. It was Van Arsdale who helped facilitate a meeting between the Clausens and Starsia.

“Dom was very straight-forward and told us what was up and what had to be done,” said Jeff Clausen, referring to the ACC waiver and a number of other obstacles. “We liked his whole approach, but it was certainly nerve-racking because it was getting very late in the year.”

“It was a tough situation,” Ken Clausen added, “because it was May and all the recruits had already been filled, so it was really hard to pull scholarship money together.”

Luckily for Clausen, who hopes to major in business, everything worked out. His family will have to pay more out of its own pocket than if he had gone to Duke, but that’s OK according to his father.

“I think UVa is a great place,” Jeff Clausen said. “Curriculum-wise I think it’s an even better fit for [Ken] with the business courses they offer as far as undergraduates.”

In May, the Clausens were on hand in Philadelphia when Virginia beat Massachusetts to win the National Championship. Watching UVa players celebrate in front of nearly 50,000 fans was slightly surreal, Ken Clausen said.

“I was kind of in awe sitting there watching them win that last game and thinking that I could be a part of that next year,” he said.

Many lacrosse pundits are looking forward to a Virginia-Duke matchup. The Blue Devils hammered Virginia, 17-2, in the 2005 season and came into the 2006 campaign as the team to beat.

But then the scandal unfolded, Duke’s season was canceled and the teams never got to play.

Recently, Duke announced that its lacrosse program will continue next season.

“I think it will be a little weird,” said Clausen, when asked about playing against Duke, “but right now I’m 100 percent a Cavalier. It will be different, but I think everybody will be understanding of [my] situation. I don’t think there will be any hard feelings. I’m definitely hoping to come out on top in that game.

“I think it’s unfortunate that [the Duke situation] happened, but I think things happen for a reason. I’m definitely looking forward to getting started at Virginia.”

Starsia is certainly glad to have Clausen in the fold.

“He’s a good kid, a very good student and a very good athlete,” Starsia said. “He’ll be somebody that I think can contribute quickly to our program.”

 

Cavs coach sticking around
O'Connor quells rumors that he's leaving for Notre Dame
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
June 29, 2006

Sean Doolittle, arguably UVa’s best baseball player, summed up the thoughts of many supporters of the Virginia baseball program with just two words.

When told on Wednesday that his coach, Brian O’Connor, announced publicly that he would not seek the vacant position at Notre Dame, Doolittle was ecstatic.

“Ah, sweet,” the All-American said.

The vacancy at Notre Dame, a school that O’Connor spent nine years at as an assistant coach (1995-2003), came open after longtime coach Paul Mainieri was officially named the new skipper at LSU at a press conference on Wednesday.

Sources close to the situation confirmed that Notre Dame did in fact call to get permission to talk with O’Connor, but Virginia’s coach never let the process get that far.

“I’m proud to be the head coach at the University of Virginia, and I plan to be the Cavalier coach for many years to come,” O’Connor said in a lengthy press release issued by the school late Wednesday.

“I came to the University of Virginia to build one of the best baseball programs in the country. When I took the job here three years ago, that was my goal and that will continue to be my focus.”

In his three seasons at UVa, O’Connor has compiled a 132-52 overall record and a 53-29 mark in Atlantic Coast Conference games.

Virginia has also advanced to the NCAA Tournament in each of O’Connor’s first three seasons.

Executive Associate Athletics Director Jon Oliver said in the release that the school was pleased to have O’Connor and his staff remaining in Charlottesville.

“Brian O’Connor and his staff have built an incredible baseball program,” Oliver said. “We are extremely proud of the success that he and his staff have brought in developing one of the top programs in the country and producing some of the best student-athletes at the University of Virginia.”

O’Connor, 35, has three years remaining on his current contract.

“We look forward to him staying at Virginia for a long time and helping the department achieve its long-term goals,” Oliver added.

O’Connor said the timing of the release was needed on a number of fronts. Rumors had spread throughout the college baseball world linking O’Connor to the Notre Dame job before the position even became open.

Early Wednesday, O’Connor had to call a number of recruits to tell them he was staying put.

Current players, including Doolittle, who is playing for the USA National Team this summer, said they were keeping a close watch on the situation.

“I wasn’t too nervous,” Doolittle said. “What he’s done with this program and how much of an impact that he has had on everybody in the program, I really didn’t think that he would leave now that he is at the helm of a program that is on the rise.”

Virginia set the school record for wins (47) this season and welcomes back eight starting position players and two of the three starting top pitchers.

“I feel very good about the commitment that [Athletics Director] Craig Littlepage and the rest of our administration has made in the last three years and continues to make in helping our program reach our goal,” O’Connor said. “Their commitment will continue to help develop our program into one of the best in the nation.”

It was not the first time O’Connor has had to release a statement on his position at UVa. In 2004, Auburn contacted Virginia about the Cavaliers’ coach, but O’Connor quickly made it known that he was not interested.

Wednesday’s announcement that Mainieri, who O’Connor calls his best friend, was taking over at LSU had the coach smiling from ear to ear.

“I am so proud for him and his family,” O’Connor said of his former boss. “I have never worked with anyone in sports that has had more ethics and does things the right way than Paul Mainieri.

“He is a winner, and I know that he will be successful at LSU. I am just happy for his entire family, and I know that they got the right guy.”

So, should Virginia fans expect to see LSU on the schedule in the near future?

O’Connor answered that question quicker than Doolittle.

He only needed one word: “No.”

 

Cavs look to finish what they started
June 27, 2006

With Virginia football recruiting off to a good start with two Rivals Top 100 commitments in quarterback Peter Lalich and linebacker J’Courtney Williams, the Cavaliers could potentially land their best class ever.

So, where do they stand with some of the higher-profile prospects around the country? Here’s what we know:

Marvin Austin, 6-foot-3, 300 pounds, defensive tackle from Washington, D.C. (Coolidge High). The No. 2 player in the nation at any position, has narrowed his list of schools to 10, and Virginia is one of those along with USC, FSU, Miami, Notre Dame, Penn State, Tennessee, UNC, N.C. State and Maryland. Austin is a big fan of UVa defensive coordinator Mike London, and that could be the difference in the end if the Cavs land the talented star, who expects to cut his list to five before September.

Robert Hughes, running back, Chicago (Hubbard High). He’s a physical back and seems to like UVa (maybe Hubbard alum Nate Lyles can help) and likes Lalich. What a combo that could be in the Wahoos’ future. Hughes has offers from biggies like Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State. Can the Cavs wrestle him away from the Big Ten?

Mason Cloy, tight end, Columbia, S.C. Has more than a dozen offers and has visited most of those schools (unofficially).

Andrew Szczerba, tight end, Wilmington, Del. He’s rated one of the top prospects on the East Coast at the position and has at least 10 offers, including Iowa and Penn State.

Emeka Nwankwo, 6-3, 285, offensive guard, Hollywood, Fla. Everybody wants him, but Nwankwo’s five favorites read like this: UVa and Notre Dame at the top, followed by Florida (which his sister attends), Georgia and Florida State.

Akeem Auguste, 5-11, 170, corner, Hollywood, Fla. He’s a teammate of Nwankwo’s and he also has more than 20 offers. The Cavaliers are recruiting him extremely hard and hope that the two Chaminade-Madonna High stars visit together this summer.

Anthony Davis, 6-5, 340, offensive tackle, Piscataway, N.J. Is rated the No. 3 player in the country at his position by Rivals. UVa will have to beat USC, Miami and about two dozen more schools for his services.

Nick Jenkins, 6-3, 285, offensive lineman, Good Counsel H.S. in Maryland. Has 30 offers, but London is in pursuit of this physical player.

Andrew Nuss, 6-5, 283, offensive lineman, Ashburn (Stone Bridge H.S.). He’s a Virginian, but many recruiting experts believe that Notre Dame leads for this star. UVa, Virginia Tech and Georgia are pushing hard.

William Alverez, 6-5, 305, Woodbridge (Hylton). Everybody wants this kid, who still has to qualify academically. He will be worth the wait.

Charlie Carmichael, 6-5, 295, Sherman Oaks, Calif. Had a bunch of early offers, but once UVa assistant coach Steve Bernstein visited and offered, UVa shot up into Carmichael’s top three along with Oregon and Arizona State.

Blake DeCristopher, 6-6, 300, offensive line, Clover Hill. Ohio State, UVa, Virginia Tech and N.C. State in a dogfight over this one.

Romale Tucker, 6-3, 207, linebacker, Coolidge High in D.C. Cavs lead for this standout player, and who knows, maybe if they can get Tucker, teammate Austin could come along for the ride?

C.J. Fleming, defensive back, Highland Springs. He’s a big-time player that could boost UVa’s secondary of the future.

Kris Burd, defensive back, Matoaca. UVa and Tech have offered, but Maryland is working hard on this player.

Chris Hill, wide receiver/ cornerback, Highland Springs. Michigan, Ohio State, Georgia, Tennessee, UVa and Tech have all battled for this kid.

Jay Smith, wide receiver, Kempsville. He’s a Rivals Top 100 player and, at 6-2 with speed to burn, everybody wants him. He has 28 offers, but has three schools that intrigue him at the moment, only revealing one of them: Miami. Can the Wahoos keep Smith at home?

Greg Little, 6-2, 214, wide receiver, Durham, N.C. (Hillside). Some believe he’s a potential Reggie Bush with his size and speed (4.5). He’s the No. 4 overall football athlete in the country according to Rivals. He’s well aware of Lalich and what Virginia is trying to build for the future, but there’s a long line of football factories after his services. Some believe Notre Dame and Florida are in the driver’s seat.

Sean Wiser, wide receiver, Westlake Village, Calif. He’s on the Left Coast, but he knows all about Lalich and likes what he hears. The Wahoos are in his top four along with Oregon, Stanford and Duke.

Virginia has 10 commitments, so the Cavs won’t be adding any more than

15 prospects during the coming months. Wahoo fans should be encouraged that the majority of the players UVa is pursuing are attached to big-time football powers.

Now, all Coach Al Groh and his staff have to do is close as strong as they started. If they get their share of the above talent, then Virginia could be building toward a run at the ACC Championship not too far down the road.

 

O'Connor places focus on creating top program
With Notre Dame out of picture, coach turns to improving the Cavs
BY JOHN R. IRBY
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Jun 30, 2006

Brian O'Connor wants to build one of the top college baseball programs in the country at the University of Virginia. That's what he told athletic department officials in Charlottesville when he decided not to pursue the possibility of becoming the head coach at Notre Dame.

His ultimate goal for the Cavaliers is consistency, believing that will result in a trip to Omaha, Neb., and the College World Series.

"I think we can win here and accomplish great things," he said yesterday.

Just days ago there was growing speculation that O'Connor would be a likely replacement for Notre Dame coach Paul Mainieri if O'Connor's best friend was selected as the new coach at Louisiana State University. That happened Wednesday and O'Connor announced later in the day he was staying with the Cavs. O'Connor coached with Mainieri at Notre Dame for nine years and helped the Fighting Irish to a 399-160-1 record while he was in South Bend.

"I talked with our athletic director and assistant athletic director through the day [Wednesday]," he said, indicating there were several factors in wanting to stay at Virginia. "I came to the University of Virginia to build one of the best baseball programs in the country," he said in a news release. "When I took the job here three years ago, that was my goal and that will continue to be my focus."

How soon the Cavs get to Omaha is another matter.

"I've never set any timetable," O'Connor said. "It took North Carolina 17 years. Consistency in the program will give us a chance. But it's too much pressure to set a timetable."

O'Connor and the Cavs have gained national respect and recognition. In three years at U.Va., the Cavs coach has compiled a 132-52 record. His team has played in three regional NCAA tournaments and have often been ranked, with a high poll nod in 2006 at No. 5. O'Connor was named 2004 ACC coach of the year and was selected one of three College Baseball Foundation coaches of the year in 2006.

"I'm proud to be the head coach at the University of Virginia and I plan to be the Cavalier coach for many years to come," O'Connor said in the release.
 

Covering the draft a novel experience
Hokies' Cavanaugh goes high-tech with recruits
Doug Doughty

I can't remember covering a sporting event at which I knew as few media people as I did Wednesday at the NBA Draft in New York . However, as I approach my 32nd anniversary at The Roanoke Times, I'm glad to be able to say I've covered the draft one time.

Even for a fan, it certainly would have been worth the price of the $15 tickets, which no doubt sold out in a matter of minutes after they went on sale Tuesday at Madison Square Garden .

IMPOSSIBLE NBA DRAFT/Virginia Tech trivia question: In the 31 years that the NBA has allowed underclassmen to enter the draft, who has been the Hokies' only early-eligibility candidate?

What struck me about this year's draft was the number of college seniors – eight – who went in the first round, not surprising given the age limit imposed by the NBA after the 2005 season but still a good sign for the well-being of the college game.

College seniors selected in the first round included Duke's Shelden Williams with the No. 5 pick ( Atlanta ), Washington 's Brandon Roy at No. 6 (Minnesota/traded to Portland), Villanova's Randy Foye at No. 7 (Boston/traded to Minnesota), Duke's J.J. Redick at No. 11 (Orlando), Connecticut's Hilton Armstrong at No. 12 (New Orleans), Memphis' Rodney Carney at No. 16 (Chicago), Michigan State's Maurice Ager at No. 28 (Dallas) and Temple's Mardy Collins at No. 29 (Knicks).

On further review, there were more college seniors than you would think – nine – selected in the first round of the 2005 draft, headed by Arizona 's Channing Frye at No. 7. The others were Joey Graham, Danny Granger, Hakeem Warrick and Julius Hodge (four out of five picks No. 16-20) before Luther Head, Jason Maxiell, Wayne Simien and David Lee rounded out the list.

IMPOSSIBLE VA. TECH TRIVIA ANSWER: Russell Pierre applied for the 1987 draft, basically because he was no longer welcome in Blacksburg . “Was he even eligible?” Charleston ( W.Va. ) Daily Mail columnist Jack “Pops” Bogaczyk asked Friday.

Bogaczyk covered the Hokies for The Roanoke Times during that era and his first guess was that ex-Hokie Johnny Fort had made an early jump to the NBA. Like Fort, who had played one season at Iowa, Pierre had begun his career at another school ( N.C. State ) and figured into an NCAA investigation into illegal inducements at Tech.

Pierre played only three games for Tech during the 1986-87 but an unauthorized car loan he received may have had as much to do as anything with the demise of then-coach Charlie Moir as anything.

HARGRAVE MILITARY ACADEMY basketball coach Kevin Keatts says he has “a very good relationship” with Virginia 's basketball staff, as underscored by the recent oral commitment to UVa by Hargrave-bound Eric Wallace.

So, what happened with Johnnie Lett?

Lett, a 6-foot-8 post player from Mobile, Ala., signed a letter-of-intent with Virginia during the fall but did not qualify for freshman eligibility and will head to Okaloosa-Walton Junior College in Niceville, Fla.

At one point, it was thought that Lett would spend a year at Hargrave, but Keatts was not in a position where he could make any promises.

“We did not want to put Johnnie Lett in a position where he would have to wait,” Keatts said this week.

Finances entered into the equation, but Keatts wasn't sure if there would be enough playing time for Lett in a frontcourt that was going to include Jeff Allen and possibly Marreese Speights.

Allen has been targeted for Hargrave for more than a year – since he left DeMatha after his junior year and enrolled at Oak Hill Academy, where he was unlikely to meet NCAA eligibility requirements.

Speights, a 6-10 post player, came to Hargrave after his junior year of high school in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and signed with Florida during the fall. However, it was understood from the beginning that Speights might need to spend two years at Hargrave.

Speights eventually met requirements for freshman eligibility, pending certification from the NCAA Clearinghouse, but official word came too late for Lett, who is no certainty to re-sign with the Cavaliers after two seasons in junior college.

I'LL BE KIND TO Virginia Tech assistant football coach Jim Cavanaugh and not look up his age for this item, but, suffice to say, there was reason to wonder if he had entered the 21 st century.

That was before our conversation Friday morning, when Cavanaugh, the Hokies' recruiting coordinator, proudly informed me that he has been introduced to text-messaging.

I did not receive that news via text message because I'm not sure that my cell phone has text-messaging capacity. To check that, I would have to be able to locate my cell phone, which has been missing since mid-Thursday afternoon.

Among his coaching colleagues, Cavanaugh was among the latest to try text-messaging, but he's already a convert. He still prefers to speak with recruits via telephone, but text-messaging enables him to set up a time for his calls, which are limited by the NCAA.

Text-messages are not limited by the NCAA, but some say they should be. Cavanaugh said he does not send text-messages at meal times or during school “although I can imagine there are coaches that do,” he said.

Ultimately, Cavanaugh thinks the NCAA will attempt to regulate the hours during which the text-messages can be sent because of the potential for distraction during school hours.

FROM THE MOMENT I heard that Osbourn High School quarterback Brandon Hogan had received an offer from Virginia Tech, I was skeptical – and not just because Hogan had committed to West Virginia.

Although Osbourn coach Steve Schultze said that Hogan had an offer from the Hokies, I can't imagine that Tech would do anything to plant a seed of doubt in the mind of Hampton High School quarterback Tyrod Taylor. He is the only quarterback on Tech's list.

West Virginia has taken commitments from a pair of Virginia quarterbacks, Hogan and Orange 's Bradley Starks, and said they would get a look at quarterback. But, how likely is it that they will remain at quarterback, where the Mountaineers have sophomore Pat White, seen as a potential Heisman Trophy contender?

For Tech to take Hogan or Starks, quarterback would have to be out of the question, at least until Taylor makes up his mind. There was a similar situation at Virginia , located 30-35 minutes from Orange. Starks, as talented as he may be, wasn't going to endanger UVa's pursuit of Peter Lalich.

AS I PREPARE to have this posted, I have become aware of reports that Virginia football signee Gavin Smith has not been admitted to school and may enroll at North Carolina State in his hometown of Raleigh. As updated information becomes available, it will be available in print editions of The Roanoke Times.
 

From lacrosse to Redick to boat accident, Duke's woes continue
AARON BEARD
Associated Press
DURHAM, N.C. - Duke spent the spring wrestling with a steady stream of image-mangling press following rape allegations against three men's lacrosse players.

And as spring turns to summer, things aren't getting any better for the school and its once-squeaky clean reputation.

The rape case is still making news as it inches its way through the court system. And now, embarrassing incidents involving two of the university's most prominent sports figures - graduated basketball star J.J. Redick and athletics director Joe Alleva - have joined the case in the national headlines, adding to the misery for one of the nation's most prestigious universities.

These days, Duke just can't seem to get out of its own way.

"Any of these issues taken by themselves, taken without the lacrosse scandal, are non-issues," said Ronn Torossian, president and chief executive officer of New York-based 5W Public Relations, which lists rapper Ice Cube and GQ magazine as clients.

"Because of the rape scandal, you're now in the eye of the storm and you're going to be watched ... and you're being held to a different standard."

The latest bad news came Tuesday, when it was learned that Alleva needed 42 stitches to his head after a boating accident Friday on a Person County lake. His son, former Duke baseball player J.D. Alleva, was charged with operating a boat while impaired.

Authorities said the younger Alleva refused to give officers a breath or blood sample, but three officers smelled alcohol on him several hours after the accident.

That came less than two weeks after Redick was arrested on charges of drunken driving. Redick was The Associated Press national player of the year last season, finished as the Atlantic Coast Conference's career leading scorer and was a first-round pick of the Orlando Magic in Wednesday's NBA draft.

He was arrested early on the morning of June 13 with a blood-alcohol level of 0.11 percent - the legal limit in North Carolina is 0.08 - and was released on $1,000 bond.

More than anything, it is the ongoing lacrosse scandal that has subjected all aspects of life at elite Duke - where tuition and fees run in excess of $32,000 annually - to unprecedented levels of scrutiny.

The lacrosse case began when a woman told police she was raped by three players at a March 13 team party where she was hired to perform as an exotic dancer.

The allegations led to rape and kidnapping charges against Reade Seligmann, 20, of Essex Fells, N.J.; Collin Finnerty, 19, of Garden City, N.Y.; and David Evans, 23, of Bethesda, Md. School officials cancelled the highly ranked team's season and accepted the resignation of longtime coach Mike Pressler.

The decision to cancel the season came the same day authorities unsealed documents stating that hours after the alleged rape, player Ryan McFadyen apparently sent an e-mail saying he wanted to invite more strippers to his dorm room, kill them and skin them. Duke suspended McFadyen, saying it wanted to investigate the e-mail, then reinstated him as a student in early June.

More recently, rising senior midfielder Matthew Wilson was indefinitely suspended from the team after being charged with drug possession and driving while impaired. Police said they found marijuana in the vehicle and that Wilson registered a blood-alcohol level of 0.21 percent during a traffic stop on May 24.

All of it has led to plenty of unwanted attention for Duke, its 6,347 students and its alumni network.

John Burness, Duke's vice president for public affairs, noted that the number of stories about the university in the national media went from 3,700 in February to 7,300 in March to 33,000 in April when the lacrosse case was at its peak.

School officials also say the lacrosse case may be to blame for an expected drop in the percentage of incoming students who accepted the school's offer to attend starting this fall. Undergraduate dean of admissions Christoph Guttentag said in May that about 40 percent of admitted students are expected to accept a spot at Duke this year, compared to 43 percent who accepted in 2005.

In April, when the lacrosse frenzy was at its most intense, some Duke boosters and lacrosse families hired Washington attorney Bob Bennett, once the personal lawyer to President Clinton, to lead a PR effort in defense of the team and school. The group, which was not school-sponsored, called itself the Committee for Fairness to Duke Families, but little has been heard from it since.

The school has commissioned several internal reports aimed at addressing concerns about alcohol, athlete behavior and the university's handling of the lacrosse case. But Duke has chosen not to mount an aggressive public relations campaign to try to shape opinion regarding the incident.

"I think the general public understands this is a great institution and it's going through a tough period in a media frenzy," Burness said. "Our reputation isn't built on any one program. It's built on a slew of programs. When you have trouble in one, there's some spillover effect. But it's pretty much temporary.

"The ultimate test of Duke is how people perceive six months or a year from now in how we dealt with this saga and how we handled it."

Meanwhile, though, the hits keep coming. Alleva's accident was just the latest fodder for the creators of Deadspin.com, a Gawker Media sports blog known for its biting and sarcastic commentaries. After word of the Alleva incident got out, Deadspin editor Will Leitch opined that "it really hasn't been a good few months for Duke athletics."

"Just reporting the facts, folks," he wrote. "And they are starting to pile up."

Sean Cassidy, president of public relations firm DKC, which lists Sean "P-Diddy" Combs and Jay Leno as its clients, compared Duke's recent troubles to those of a major-market professional sports franchise undergoing a string of off-court problems.

"It could have (happened anywhere), but it doesn't excuse it," Cassidy said of the recent line of incidents. "The best-case scenario is it's pretty unappealing. But that said, is the timing a lousy break for Duke? Sure it is."