Finding the uprights
Redshirt freshman building his case for U.Va. kicking job
Sunday, Aug 17, 2008 - 12:07 AM Updated: 07:02 AM
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

Chris Hinkebein came to the University on Virginia on a football scholarship last year, a testament to the coaching staff's high regard for him.

Inconsistency has slowed Hinkebein's ascent at U.Va., but he showed yesterday morning why Al Groh was happy to spend a scholarship on him.

At the Cavaliers' final open practice of training camp, the redshirt freshman from Charlotte, N.C., went 5 for 5 on field goals, connecting from 26, 34, 37, 40 and 40 yards.

When he signed with Virginia, Hinkebein was expected to serve as senior Chris Gould's apprentice in 2007 and then take over as the starter this year. But Hinkebein struggled during spring practice, and since then two other kickers have joined the program: former U.Va. soccer star Yannick Reyering and freshman walk-on Robert Randolph.

"This is college football," Hinkebein. "You never have a guaranteed spot. So I just go out and I do my thing every day. I'm not doing anything different than I would do if they weren't here."

Reyering was 4 for 5 and Randolph 3 for 4 yesterday. His kickers' improved accuracy has Groh more optimistic about an operation that he recently described as having been "horrible" in the spring. The staff is now "hopeful" when it comes to the kicking game, Groh said.

Hinkebein has tinkered with his technique since spring practice ended, and he's generally been pleased with the results.

"I think I've gotten a lot better," he said. "The adjustments I made from spring to fall have definitely helped me stay more consistent."

At Providence High, Hinkebein scored a school-record 256 points and connected on field goals of 52 and 54 yards. The biggest challenge in the transition to college football?

"The game's so much quicker," Hinkebein. "It's just about getting comfortable with it."

 

Little-used receiver Koch could end up a good catch for Cavs
Posted to: College Football Sports
The Virginian-Pilot
© August 16, 2008
By Doug Doughty
CHARLOTTESVILLE

Although he didn't catch a pass in Virginia's final three games and had a total of nine receptions for the 2007 season, Cary Koch knew his time was coming.

So did the Cavaliers' receivers coach, Wayne Lineburg.

"First of all, he's really smart," Lineburg said. "He probably runs the best routes of the whole (receivers) group. And he's got tremendous hands. He might have the best hands in the whole group."

Koch's only problem last year was that he happened to be playing behind Tom Santi, though not at Santi's accustomed spot, tight end.

At midseason, the Cavaliers elected to move Santi to slot receiver, but he suffered a high ankle sprain early in an Oct. 6 game at Middle Tennessee State.

Santi missed only one full game, but he saw spot duty in an 18-17 U.Va. victory at Maryland. Koch had three receptions in that game and, one week later, caught a touchdown pass at North Carolina State.

At 6-feet and 192 pounds, Koch bears little physical resemblance to Santi, a 6-5, 250-pounder now in camp with the Indianapolis Colts, but he might be better suited to slot receiver.

"He's a little more nifty," Lineburg said. "You like to have guys who can maneuver around linebackers and get up under the safeties. He's got a knack for all that inside stuff that we're doing."

Koch was a running back at The Dunham School in Baton Rouge, La., before moving to receiver as a true freshman at Tulane in 2005.

Koch could play outside receiver, but his experience as a running back transfers more easily to the slot "because you've got the same reads; you're reading off the linebackers," he said.

Koch subsequently transferred to Virginia and was granted immediate eligibility by the NCAA in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. However, he played in only two games and had one reception in 2006.

Last season, Koch suffered a knee injury in the preseason and missed the first two games. He has not started a game for the Cavaliers and may not be listed as a starter this year, but he stands to receive significant playing time.

"It's definitely the best opportunity I've had so far at Virginia," said Koch, who accounted for 2,861 yards and 39 touchdowns as a senior in high school. "I was here all summer, working out and getting into reading coverages. It's all starting to pay off."

As a senior, he's running out of eligibility, but he's not unhappy with the turns his career has taken.

"When I got three passes at Maryland and caught all three, I think the coaches felt they could put some trust in me," he said. "Tom was a senior. He was a great player. When he came back, he was going to play."

Koch was rewarded for his perseverance when he was awarded a scholarship when the Cavaliers reported for camp Aug. 3.

That wasn't just a courtesy. Barring injury, Koch will play more than he has at any point in his U.Va. career.

"You could put him at any position," Lineburg said. "He knows every position which, on top of everything else, makes him even more valuable."

Notes: Staton Jobe, a starting outside receiver in 12 games last year, ambled into practice on crutches and was wearing a knee-length boot on one of his ankles. However, it is anticipated that Jobe will return to practice by the time the Cavaliers start preparing for their Aug. 30 opener against Southern Cal.... Second-team inside linebacker John Bivens, plagued by knee problems since his arrival at U.Va., was in street clothes at Saturday's open practice.

 

Monroe enters final season
By Jerry Ratcliffe
Published: August 16, 2008

The first thing big Eugene Monroe noticed when he sat down and looked around the meeting room as Virginia’s football team started training camp was the presence of a lot of fresh faces.
“I look back at the freshmen and I feel like I’m ancient around here,” Monroe said.
Is it really possible that the massive offensive tackle is already a senior? Seems as if he was one of those freshmen in the back of the room only yesterday.
The Cavaliers are delighted that Monroe is back for another year considering all the personnel losses from last season’s Gator Bowl squad. Considering he’s one of only two returning starters on the offensive line, the Cavaliers are overjoyed he’s back.
Monroe intends on making his last year his best and as far as he’s concerned nothing’s going to get in his way. If it does, it doesn’t stand much of a chance against this 6-foot-6, 315-pound steamroller of a man.
“I’m excited about my last year here,” Monroe said at an octave as deep as the voice of doom. “I just want to win games.”
Those who observe from the NFL ranks believe that the offensive left tackle, who didn’t give up a single sack during the regular season last year, is the next great Virginia lineman. Like those before him, D’Brickashaw Ferguson (Jets) and Branden Albert (Chiefs), Monroe projects as a strong candidate for All-American and as a first-round draft choice.
UVa coach Al Groh, a pretty good judge of talent, is one of those.
“Gene is a player that really caught people’s attention here early,” Groh said. “He finished at a high level last year and it looks like he’s already beyond that level. He had an awesome summer and it’s looking right now like he can have a season comparable to any of those who preceded him.”
An honorable mention All-ACC choice last season, Monroe may have been the most underrated player in the conference, much as his former teammate Albert was the year before. But Monroe isn’t worried about that stuff. Certainly he’d like to be an All-American, but he’s putting all that stuff behind him for now, choosing to focus more on the present.
“I’m only concerned about this season and whatever happens after that will take care of itself,” Monroe said.
He’s hoping that all the knowledge he accumulated from working behind Ferguson, alongside Albert and across the line from yet another All-American, defensive end Chris Long, will help him make Virginia’s offense just a little better this season.
Monroe will never forget walking into the weightroom at the McCue Center his freshman year and seeing Ferguson working out. To say the high school All-American was in awe would be an understatement. It was at that point he understood that college football required more work than perhaps he had realized.
Ranked the No. 1 high school lineman in the country by some recruiting services, and the No. 3 overall prospect in the country by yet another, the Plainfield, N.J., blue-chipper checked what little ego he had at the door when he walked into Virginia’s football program.
Surrounded by sportswriters at his freshman training camp, Monroe explained to them that what he had accomplished in high school no longer mattered, that he was starting fresh and had a lot to learn.
“That was probably the truest thing I’ve ever said,” Monroe pointed out during last weekend’s media chat. “It was just so different coming in and making the transition. Each year everything is new. Each year you renew yourself. There’s different challenges to be met, but I’ve loved my experience here.”
He took a lot from Ferguson, who always advised him that no matter what to keep working hard. Monroe has taken that to heart, although a series of injuries, including a dislocated kneecap, have caused him to miss some time along the way.
“Brick was a true leader,” said Monroe, whom teammates sometime refer to as ‘Brick Jr.’ “I could come to him if I needed help or he would just see me and just offer help. It was an incredible experience for my first year.”
That’s when Virginia’s coaches slowly moved the big lineman onto the special teams, then at right guard, then behind Brick at left tackle, Monroe’s future home. That’s when he was paired up alongside another mountainous figure in Albert, who became almost a brother to Monroe.
The two hung out together, even went Valentine’s Day shopping for their girlfriends together.
“I talk to Branden every week,” Monroe said of his pal, who is in Chiefs training camp.
Then there was Long, who credited some of his own development to going against Ferguson in practice early in his career. Long returned the favor by helping Monroe and Albert develop into better linemen.
How could it get any tougher for a lineman than to have to defend against Long?
“Obviously Chris was a phenomenal player and being able to go against him every rep in every practice helped me accelerate my game that much further, that much faster,” Monroe said.
Groh said that while folks attempt to compare Ferguson and Monroe, they’re really two different types of tackles. Ferguson was technique oriented from the start because he came to UVa as an undersized tackle who had to rely on technique and an incredible athletic ability to make up for the lack of size and power.
Meanwhile, Monroe came equipped with what many recruiting gurus described as an NFL body. However, the injuries slowed his development, causing him to miss nearly two springs and part of an August training camp. Brick never missed anything.
“But Gene’s catching up now,” Groh was quick to point out. “The most apparent thing with Gene right now is the big step up in his technique.”
That will have NFL scouts frothing at the mouth until next April.
But that’s a long way off in Monroe’s thinking. August 30 is the only date on his mind. That’s when Southern Cal comes to town in one of the biggest games ever in Scott Stadium.
Certainly the rest of the line will be looking to Big Gene The Blocking Machine for leadership just as Monroe looked upon the Brick a few years ago. If he can lead them the way Ferguson did, then this offense just might raise a few eyebrows.

 

Cavs’ Cabbell gets his chance after two-year wait
By Liz Keller
Published: August 16, 2008

In just a few years B.J. Cabbell has gone from small town to big time — football, that is.
The Nelson County product is competing for the starting position at right guard on Virginia’s offensive line.
Last year, Cabbell saw his first action in a Cavaliers’ uniform, playing as a backup guard and on special teams. But what Cabbell lacks in experience, he makes up for with his competitiveness.
“Each day is a competition — you go out there, you work hard and try to better yourself,” Cabbell said. “Competition makes people better. Your spot is not guaranteed, so every day you’ve got to bust your tail and go out there and work.”
And work he has. The 6-foot-6, 305-pounder has also done quite a bit of learning from his teammates.
“All of us are one big family — we’re all trying to help each other get better,” Cabbell said. “That’s what it’s all about.”
Cabbell couldn’t have asked for better tutors than last year’s starter at right guard, Ian Yates-Cunningham and right tackle Will Barker.
“It’s unbelievable how much you can learn,” said Cabbell, a sociology major. “Ian is very, very smart. The way he knew the offense was crazy — he knew each position and the concept of each play. Hopefully one day I’ll get that same experience and the savviness that he had.”
Cabbell appeared in four games for UVa last season, which coach Al Groh said helped adjust to playing in a Division-I program.
“I don’t think it did much to help his game as a guard, but it helped his mental approach to be in games,” Groh said.
Added Cabbell: “I know I don’t have the really big game experience, but being in there, you feel the pace of the game,” he said. “Everything is much faster, it’s another level.”
Cabbell was a standout on both sides of the line for the Governors, earning all-district and all-region honors in high school. In fact, he is the first football player from Nelson County to earn a scholarship from a Division I school in over 25 years.
Since then, Cabbell has made great strides, and there is no doubt UVa is where he wants to be.
“I love [UVa]. I love being able to work here and go home [on] weekends. There’s a lot of Nelson County fans supporting UVa right now.”

 

Cavs’ Cain takes the wheel
By Jay Jenkins
Published: August 16, 2008

En route to Virginia’s annual Meet the Team Day festivities last week, offensive line coach Dave Borbely looked to his left in amazement.
In surprising fashion, offensive lineman Isaac Cain had jumped behind the wheel of one of the buses designated to haul the players from the McCue Center to Scott Stadium.
“Sure enough, Isaac Cain was driving the bus,” Borbely chuckled. “I couldn’t believe it.”
Yes, Cain certainly knows that the wheels on a bus go round and round.
Last summer, when the walk-on was in search of a small financial boost, a job posting for an opening as a driver with the University Transit Service caught his eye.
“I needed a summer job and they were out there advertising so I signed up,” Cain said. “It’s fun. It’s not that straining and it doesn’t put that much work on my legs.”
After a tutorial, one that included a minor fender bender, Cain was at home in his lofty perch.
Many of his teammates have been a passenger on Cain’s routes.
“I have driven around campus with him before and wherever you need to go, he gets you there quick and safe,” said wide receiver Cary Koch. “Obviously, he gets some strange looks because he is one of the biggest bus drivers there is.”
Others have only witnessed Cain’s maneuvering from a far.
“I have never been in his bus with him but I see him all the time and I wave at him and he honks the horn,” said tight end John Phillips. “He always has his shades on and is looking sweet in there.
“He is obviously just trying to get paid and make some money.”
But when Cain elected to drive his teammates to the meet and greet festivities, it forced several players to do a double take.
“That was funny,” said wide receiver Jared Green. “I didn’t even know he was driving because there was another driver in there, but we were goofing around and all of a sudden the [regular] driver sat next to me.
“I said, ‘Woah.’ That was hilarious. I had no idea he was going to drive in his football uniform, but he is a seasoned vet at driving that bus.”
Cain said it was just a spontaneous action.
“I didn’t have to,” he said with a grin. “It was just for a little bit of fun. None of the guys said anything to my face, but they all told me that they thought I was joking.
“I just hopped on the bus and drove through Central Grounds.”
Cain has given his teammates and coaches another reason to take notice. After emerging as a virtual unknown in recruiting circles, Cain has risen up the depth chart and is working with the second team at right tackle behind starter Will Barker.
Oddly enough, it was not until his junior year that Cain traded in his tuba in Hampton High’s marching band to join the football team.
“I wanted to play football but my mom was iffy about it,” he explained. “My junior year she let me play and I guess I had a knack for it.”
In his senior season in 2005, Cain was named to the All-Peninsula District team as a member of Hampton’s state championship squad.
Former Virginia defensive coordinator Mike London stumbled across Cain late in the recruiting process and invited the 298-pound lineman to Charlottesville for an official visit. After helping Cain gain admissions to the school, he elected to bypass a roster spot at Norfolk State to become a Cavalier.
“I would say that I always had a goal like [playing at UVa], but this was actually a last minute thing,” Cain said, “and I just took it and ran with it.”
After working on the scout team in 2006, the hiring of strength and conditioning coach Matt Balis opened a new world for Cain.
“When he got here, he changed everyone’s mindset,” Cain said. “We have all had tremendous body fat drops and muscle gains. I certainly did. Coach Balis is a great guy and he has helped me so much.”
It was also during that timeframe in ‘07 that Cain and others bought into the company line of “we, us and ours.”
“Honestly, that is just how we think,” he said.
That team concept, whether he is on the field or behind the wheel, pushes Cain to strive for greatness.
“Every role on this team is important,” he added. “Everybody has a job and I am just trying to do my part.”

 

Who will get Logan Thomas' nice hands, big feet?
RECRUITING - Norm Wood | Inside Recruiting
August 17, 2008
BLACKSBURG

If the huge, soft hands and tall, muscular frame aren't the first characteristics that draw your attention to Logan Thomas, maybe his feet will catch your eye.

Size 18s. That's about double the average male shoe size. Though Thomas has aspirations of making a big splash at tight end or wide receiver at some college next year (where is a mystery right now), he could have a nice fallback if he ever decides to hit the slopes.

"You look down and it looks like he's standing on skis," said Jeff Woody, Thomas' coach at Brookville High in Lynchburg.

Of course, Thomas probably can put the slalom career on hold for a while. Even before he was elevated to elite five-star status this week by the Rivals.com recruiting Web site, Thomas was considering scholarship offers from Virginia, Virginia Tech, Clemson, West Virginia, Tennessee, Wake Forest and North Carolina.

At 6-foot-6 and 235 pounds, Thomas is doing a lot more than just catching passes at Brookville. He was the starting quarterback on Brookville's junior-varsity team as a freshman. As a sophomore, he had 60 catches for almost 1,000 yards and eight touchdowns.

Last season, he was moved back to quarterback and had 1,121 yards passing and nine touchdowns to go along with 859 yards rushing and eight touchdowns. He'll play quarterback in his senior season, too.

No wonder he's considered one of the nation's top 25 recruits by many analysts, and perhaps the nation's top tight-end prospect. Oh … and academic concerns? Not with this guy. He carries a 3.5 grade-point average.

"He can run and he can throw," Woody said. "He can make good decisions at the line. I know he's being recruited as a wide receiver or a tight end, but we decided as good an athlete as he is, he needs to be touching the ball every play. At quarterback, he'll touch the ball every play."

So, which school leads for Thomas, who may challenge Meadowbrook offensive tackle Morgan Moses for the unofficial title of state's top recruit? Woody said Thomas is visiting UVa on the weekend of Aug. 29 for the game against Southern California. Woody added Thomas plans to go to Tech, Clemson and possibly West Virginia for games at some point this fall. He'll also go to Knoxville on the weekend of Sept. 19 to see Tennessee host Florida.

Yeah … but what about a favorite? Is he going to be yet another big in-state recruit to leave the state? Don't ask Woody.

"Nobody has a clue what Logan Thomas is going to do," Woody said. "Not even me."

In keeping with that theme, Thomas didn't return a phone call requesting an interview, so it's hard to get a read for where he stands on the issue. If the trend continues as it has with many of this year's top recruits in Virginia (including the West Virginia-bound trio of Phoebus' Tajh Boyd, Shawne Alston and Dominik Davenport), he could be headed out-of-state.

Thomas, who has been clocked at 4.61 seconds in the 40-yard dash and could add 15 to 20 more pounds to his lean frame, could be affected by the college prospects of his cousin, Zach McCray, a 6-5, 230-pound junior tight end at Brookville. McCray already has verbal offers from UVa, Tech, West Virginia, UNC, Boston College and Maryland.

If you think UVa or Tech could use a tight-end recruit such as Thomas, you'd be right.

UVa, which has recently proven to be a great place for tight ends to spend four or five years (Billy Baber, Chris Luzar, Heath Miller, Patrick Estes and Tom Santi all drafted since 2001), may be inexperienced at tight end when John Phillips is done after this season.

Tech tight ends Greg Boone and Sam Wheeler would both be seniors in 2009, which would be Thomas' freshman season. Tech's Andre Smith will only be a junior in '09, and would likely be Thomas main competition in '10, but that's getting way ahead of ourselves.

UVa hasn't signed a Rivals.com five-star recruit since '05 when Eugene Monroe came to Charlottesville. Tech picked up its most recent Rivals.com five star recruit in '07 with the addition of Tyrod Taylor, a Hampton High graduate.

Frankly, who cares about stars? At this stage in his career, Thomas seems to be as close to a can't-miss talent as you'll find in this state. It doesn't take stars to figure that out.