Return of top lineman could be a big plus for U.Va.
By ED MILLER, The Virginian-Pilot
© September 13, 2003
In an era in which college athletes make headlines for all the wrong reasons,
Virginia can take some pride in the way center Kevin Bailey re-injured his
surgically repaired left knee last December. Bailey, an environmental science
major, slipped on a wet spot at the library. The progress he made rehabilitating
his knee, injured in the second game of the 2002 season, was lost. Bailey,
considered the team’s best lineman before the injury, could return today against
Western Michigan. It would be welcome news for a squad that has had more
subtractions than additions lately. The biggest one, of course, was quarterback
Matt Schaub, who injured his right shoulder on the first series of the season
against Duke and is not expected to play today. Whether it was Schaub’s
shoulder, Bailey’s knee or receiver Billy McMullen’s elbow in the Continental
Tire Bowl last season, Virginia has prided itself on “not blinking an eye” as
coach Al Groh says, and “doing the job we had to do to help the team win.” “It’s
unfortunate for the person involved,” added tailback Alvin Pearman. “But as a
team we can never dwell on that and never use that as an excuse. We’ve got to go
out there and really make up for it.” Still, as Virginia discovered last week,
replacing a receiver or a lineman is one thing. Replacing Schaub, the 2002 ACC
Player of the Year, is another. The Cavaliers might not have blinked an eye
against South Carolina last week, but they were routed 31-7 and fell out of the
top 25. “This is not the first time this team has lost a game,” Groh said. “It’s
always had a good resolve afterwards. Whether that has resulted in winning or
not, it’s always had a good resolve. “These are a lot of the same players who
have been part of that resolve in the past.” Without a few pass completions,
resolve will take a team only so far. Anthony Martinez, starting in place of
Schaub last week, completed just six passes, none longer than 12 yards. If
Martinez falters again this week, he could be replaced early by receiver Marques
Hagans, a former quarterback who took snaps in practice this week. Hagans had
not practiced at quarterback since last December, and Virginia likely will limit
him to plays designed to showcase his strengths — as a rollout passer and
runner. “We’re not creating new plays for him,” Groh said. “We’re selecting from
those plays he feels most comfortable with.” A strong performance by Martinez
would make a call to the bullpen unnecessary. Groh bristled at criticism that he
should have played Hagans last week, before revealing that Hagans was
unavailable, because an injury had kept him out of practice. “Everybody always
wants the other quarterback, with the assumption that obviously, he’ll do
better” Groh said. Someone, either Martinez or Hagans, probably needs to do
better for Virginia to avoid another upset on the road. Unlike the Cavaliers,
the Broncos are fixed quite nicely at quarterback. Chad Munson has thrown for
783 yards, first in the NCAA. He torched William and Mary for 450 yards in a
56-24 win last week. Munson has a quick release and fast arm and throws a tight
spiral, Groh said. “A lot of guys who pile up a lot of numbers aren’t really
good deep-ball throwers, but this guy’s a real good deep ball thrower,” Groh
said. Virginia’s pass defense has been solid, but the Cavaliers have yet to face
a quarterback like Munson. “Whether it’s William and Mary, South Carolina or
Virginia, when a guy passes for 450 yards, that’s huge,” cornerback Almondo
Curry said. If the defense can limit Munson’s production, the offense could
benefit from the return of Bailey, a 6-foot-6, 293-pound senior who can play
either center or tackle. Virginia has used just seven offensive linemen this
year, and two of them are freshmen who have played sparingly. “It’s really been
just kind of inspiring to watch him,” Groh said of Bailey. “Short of having his
career ended, that was a pretty grievous setback. “To have it happen to him
twice, that’s what I’ve really marveled at. There’s never been the slightest
sense of any self-pity.” Bailey, now a graduate student, has learned much from
his ordeal. For one thing, he no longer studies in the library. “Bad karma,” he
said.
Tech, UVa vying for Hargrave forward
McGlothin, a redshirt freshmahn, is a second-team defensive tackle who played in each of the Volunteers' first two games and received credit for a tackle last week against Marshall.
Fork Union postgraduate coach John Shuman said McGlothin was so impressive at a December 2001 combine that he received approximately 20 scholarship offers, most from Division I-AA or low Division I-A. He decided to walk on at Tennessee after spending a weekend at the Knoxville, Tenn., home of Fork Union teammate Jason Chavis, younger son of Volunteeers' defensive coordinator John Chavis. John Chavis, himself, had walked on at Tennessee in the 1970s.
"Matt visited us in the spring of 2001 and was kinda out of shape, "Shuman said. "He needed to change his body. He said he wanted to go to Virginia Tech and play center and I told him, 'How about coming here and playing nose guard?'
"When he came back the next fall, he was in immaculate shape. The before-and-after pictures would have been unbelievable. Nobody could block him all year. All those other schools wanted to give him a full ride and he was like, 'Nope, I'm going to Tennessee.' "
At 6 feet and 280 pounds, McGlothin still wouldn't get much interest from Division I-A recruiters today, but he is continuing proof that heights and weights don't determine the quality of the player and that there are a host of McGlothins in Virginia and elsewhere who often get overlooked.
GEORGE WYTHE HIGH SCHOOL football coach Donnie Pruitt said earlier this week that running back Robert Barcliff, Timesland offensive player of the year as a junior, probably will need to go to prep school before beginning his college career.
Pruitt said Barcliff is "working hard" on his studies, but has considerable academic ground to make up after switching schools earlier in his career. Barcliff already has gone to games at Virginia Tech, Virginia and Miami with his adopted family.
>>Pruitt thinks that senior Jared Horton, a 6-4, 275-pound offensive lineman has the ability to play at the Division I-AA level, if not higher. James Madison and William and Mary are two of the programs that are looking at Horton, who is a good student.
>>A player who has not made many lists of the top prospects in Virginia but may merit greater consideration is Kendall Langford, a 6-6, 244-pound defensive end from Petersburg High School who had 95 tackles and 12 sacks as a junior. Langford told rivals.com he would be inclined to go to Virginia Tech if offered.
>>Wide receiver Jeremy Gilchrist, rated the No. 15 prospect in the state on the list published on roanoke.com, had a monster game last Friday for Landstown High School in Virginia Beach. Gilchrist had eight receptions for 197 yards and two touchdowns. Landstown quarterback Terry Mitchell passed for a Beach District-record 462 yards.
TECH AND UVA are two of the men's basketball programs looking at Emanuel Willis, a 6-8 forward from Mendenhall, Miss., who signed with Southern Missisiipi last year but enrolled at Hargrave Military Academy when he did not meet NCAA eligibility standards.
The ACC Sports Journal did not include Tech and UVa on a list of schools (N.C. State, Clemson, Alabama, Georgia Tech, Cincinnati and Michigan State ) that Willis is considering but he already has been to Tech and UVa unofficially to watch football games with his teammates.
Virginia has visits lined up later in the fall for Willis; 6-10 Joakim Noah from Lawrenceville, N.J.; 6-7 Adrian Joseph from Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, N.H.; 6-10 Tungi Soroye from Montrose Christian in Kensington, Md., and 6-9 Davis Nwanko from Georgetown Prep in Bethesda, Md.
Noah is the son of one-time French tennis star Yannick Noah. Joseph is from Trinidad, Soroye and Nwanko are Nigerian, and 6-9 Cornelio Guibunda, visiting this weekend, is from Mozambique by way of Stamford, Conn. The Cavaliers are also bringing 6-8 Kevin Langford from Fort Worth, Texas, to campus this weekend.
NOBODY SHOULD BE surprised that Roy Williams has been well-received on the recruiting trail after leaving Kansas for his alma mater, North Carolina. Last week, the Tar Heels entertained 6-6 point guard Shaun Livingston from Peoria, Ill.
Livingston is rated among the top five prospects in the country by virtually every service and also is consdering Illinois, Duke and Arizona. Carolina already had three commitments, the most recent from 6-6 J.R., Smith, a wing player from St. Benedict's in Newark, N.J., who is rated the No. 11 prospect in the country by Prep Stars.
I CAN'T SAY I knew Jim Phillips well, but I feel privileged to have heard his last Clemson football broadcast Saturday night while driving between Columbia, Md., and Charlotte, N.C. Clemson was playing Furman and when I later picked up the NASCAR race from Richmond, it occured to me that Phillips also had done auto-racing play-by-play for some time. As usual, while listening to the Clemson-Furman game, I was struck by Phillips professional manner and the absence of boosterism that is common throughout the South.
KALAMAZOO, Mich.
The only thing Al Groh had to do in order to get his team’s attention about
today’s opponent, Western Michigan, was mention one name ... Chad Munson.
Western’s senior quarterback is for real. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound, pass
slinger from Long Beach, Calif., leads the nation in passing with 783 yards
and eight touchdowns after two games.
After throwing for 333 yards (30 for 50) in a tight loss at Michigan State,
Munson came back and cut William & Mary’s secondary to ribbons when he threw
for 300 yards in the first half. He ended with a Western Michigan record 450.
“While watching film the other morning, I was trying to remember the last time
I saw a quarterback throw for 450 yards,” Groh said. “These weren’t on
catch-and-run plays. This guy is very good.”
Munson’s passing yardage often comes in big chunks, the ball sometimes hanging
in the air for 55 yards, hitting a sprinting receiver in stride.
“Now that’s a well thrown ball in any league,” Groh said.
California gold
Western Michigan coach Gary Darnell, who has coached all over the country
since the ’70s, knows talent when he sees it. Western’s style of play, wide
open, attracts golden arms from all over, particularly the glitter junior
college quarterbacks from California.
That’s where Munson hailed from, Compton Jr. College. A year at Long Beach
City College followed by a year at Compton, he combined for more than 6,000
yards passing. Last season, the Southern California product was in a
quarterback battle most of the season at Western before winning the job early
this year.
Darnell’s offense, as Groh will quickly point out, features a sophisticated
passing game. So sophisticated in fact that he said there was no way Virginia
could practice against all that Western does in one week of preparation.
“The volume of what [Western] does on offense and defense is tremendous,” Groh
said. “I don’t think we would be capable of carrying this amount of volume in
schemes or in looks.”
Ol’ Cowboys style
The genesis of the Western offense is derived from the old Dallas Cowboys
system in the days of Tom Landry and Roger Staubach. Darnell’s Broncos are
more “one-back” than the old Cowpokes used to be and features more passing
than Landry would have tolerated, but the attitude of throwing the ball has
become ingrained here in Kalamazoo.
“This is more of a vertical passing game,” Darnell said.
He’s got the personnel to run it. He is well-stocked in skilled athletes who
can beat defensive backs downfield and catch the ball. Munson is the perfect
trigger man.
“Chad’s arm strength is way, way above average,” Darnell said. “It’s the same
as the baseball pitcher who can throw 100 mph fastballs as opposed to 88,
which is still pretty good. Chad is the 100 mph guy.”
The Western coach believes Munson has as strong an arm as he’s ever been
around, including at Notre Dame, Florida and Texas, all stops in his career.
“Receivers want balls coming in at a certain angle and a certain speed and
Chad knows that. There’s an intimacy between good quarterbacks and their
receivers like that,” Munson said. “It’s my opinion that Chad has better days
ahead of him.”
Groh said that he can see on film where Munson has a very quick release, a
fast arm, a real tight spiral on this throws.
“A lot of guys who pile up a lot of numbers aren’t real good deep ball
throwers, but he is,” Groh said.
Virginia junior safety Jermaine Hardy said that the Cavaliers must be alert at
all times against Munson’s deep threat.
“Four hundred fifty yards is 450 yards,” Hardy said. “It doesn’t matter who he
threw those against. That’s a lot of passing yards.”
Redshirt freshman corner Marcus Hamilton, who backs up Muffin Curry, said he
believes one key is getting a good pass rush on Munson and make him throw
passes that he doesn’t want to throw. Meanwhile, it’s up to the secondary to
battle Western’s receivers all game long.
By the way, the last time Groh saw a quarterback throw for 450 yards, it was
his own. Gary Schofield passed for 527 in 1981 when Groh’s Wake team lost to
Maryland’s Boomer Esiason, 49-42 in Winston-Salem.
“Generally when you throw for those kinds of numbers, those are losing
numbers,” Groh said.
That’s what he’s hoping for today.
Cavs can't afford to take WMU lightly
Hagans could see time at QB
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Sep 13, 2003
Several hours after losing 31-7 at South Carolina, Virginia's football team flew
back into Charlottesville last Saturday night. Defensive captain Almondo Curry
didn't leave his house the rest of the weekend.
"I didn't want to be out in the open," Curry said Monday.
If the Cavaliers felt bad after stumbling at South Carolina - a defeat that
knocked them out of the Top 25 - they'll feel worse if they lose again today.
U.Va. (1-1) plays Mid-American Conference member Western Michigan (1-1) at 2
p.m. in Kalamazoo.
"This game means a lot for our season," said Curry, a senior cornerback. "A loss
would hinder our season tremendously."
For the second straight game, Virginia will start someone other than Matt Schaub
at quarterback. Schaub, the reigning ACC player of the year, separated his
shoulder Aug. 30 and is expected back no earlier than Sept. 27, when Wake Forest
visits Scott Stadium. U.Va. is idle next weekend.
Redshirt freshman Anthony Martinez started - and struggled - against the
Gamecocks, throwing two interceptions and passing for only 54 yards. Martinez
may start again today, but another option for U.Va. coach Al Groh is sophomore
Marques Hagans, who backed up Schaub last season before switching to wideout
during the winter.
Hagans, who didn't play QB against USC, practiced extensively at that position
this week. The former Hampton High star is only 5-10, but he has a strong arm
and is far and away the best runner of Virginia's quarterbacks.
"I'm anxious to see what I can do back out there," Hagans said Monday.
Whom the Broncos will play at quarterback is no mystery. Senior Chad Munson
leads Division I-A in passing yards (783) and is tied for the lead in touchdown
passes (eight). In Western Michigan's 56-24 rout of Division I-AA William and
Mary last weekend, Munson completed 24 of 35 passes for 450 yards and six TDs.
His favorite target is sophomore wideout Greg Jennings, who has 13 catches for
233 yards and four TDs this season.
"They can throw and they can catch," W&M coach Jimmy Laycock said.
The Broncos are averaging only 77.5 yards rushing, and their game plan isn't
likely to change today. U.Va. will play without starting safety Willie Davis,
who hurt his left arm against South Carolina.
"I think you've got to expect this guy to throw the ball as soon as they turn
the lights on," Virginia coach Al Groh said of Munson.
U.Va. allowed a 99-yard touchdown on a short slant pattern in the second
quarter, but it was still a three-point game late in the third period at South
Carolina. Then came a turnover that set up a USC touchdown, and the Cavaliers'
defense grew progressively weaker in the final quarter.
"I think we slacked off at the end," said junior safety Jermaine Hardy, who
leads U.Va. with 20 tackles. "South Carolina really pounded us."
Groh was especially disappointed in the second-half play of his linemen. The
Cavaliers' young offensive line - three sophomores and two juniors start - will
have to contend today with Broncos end Jason Babin, the MAC's defensive player
of the year in 2002.
Babin, a 6-4, 276-pound senior from Paw Paw, Mich., had 26 tackles for losses
last season, including 15 sacks. Against William and Mary, he recorded 12
tackles and had a sack for the second straight game.
Today's contest marks the 100th anniversary of WMU's founding. It also opens a
three-game series that will send the Broncos to Charlottesville in 2005 and'06.
Western Michigan's Gary Darnell and Groh are longtime friends who coached
together at North Carolina and Wake Forest.
"It was a win-win for both of us," Darnell said. "We were in need of a marquee
team coming in here for the Centennial Game, and Al was working on his
schedule."
Virginia’s football players have had a full week to chew on last
Saturday’s loss at South Carolina. It hasn’t been fine dining.
“We’ve got a bad taste in our mouths,” said junior safety Jay Dorsey. “We want
to get it out as soon as possible.”
Today the Cavaliers (1-1) will get that chance. But will Western Michigan
(1-1) be the mouthwash they need, or another bad meal?
UVa’s first and probably last trip to Waldo Stadium in Kalamazoo, Mich.,
figures to be a good test of the team’s resilience. Virginia went into last
week’s game ranked No. 15 and with realistic hopes of moving into the top 10
by the end of the month.
But the subsequent 31-7 defeat sent the Cavaliers plummeting out of the polls.
A short list of their disappointments that day would have to include the
423-170 discrepancy in total yards, the 99-yard touchdown pass by the
Gamecocks, the seven first downs and three turnovers.
Some players even questioned the overall effort, something that has rarely
been a problem in Al Groh’s three years at Virginia.
“I think we played more at like a seven or eight level instead of a 10,” said
sophomore linebacker Darryl Blackstock. “Everything Coach has preached to us
happened to us. We didn’t play physically enough. We didn’t play hard enough.
Basically we just learned the hard way.”
Whether they can apply those lessons against the Broncos of the Mid-American
Conference remains to be seen. Groh said the intensity level has been high
during practice this week. He helped make sure of that by putting the players
in pads Monday, usually a light day of work.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Anthony Martinez, who had a long afternoon
against South Carolina, will make his second start, though sophomore Marques
Hagans also is expected to take some snaps.
Most likely, the Cavaliers will try to take pressure off their quarterbacks by
running frequently against Western Michigan’s undersized defense. The Broncos
have six defensive starters who weigh 210 pounds or less.
“Their running backs are probably as good as any we’re going to see this
season,” said WMU defensive line coach J.C. Harper. “All their backs are great
athletes. They have a huge offensive line and their tight ends are big and
physical and can run. It’s hard for our scout team to simulate that.”
Defensively, Virginia must deal with a Western Michigan passing game that has
produced 783 yards and eight touchdowns in two games. Senior quarterback Chad
Munson is experienced and confident, something Martinez may not be after
throwing two interceptions last week.
“I can’t get down on myself,” said Martinez, who completed 10 of 20 passes for
54 yards against South Carolina. “I just have to try to play better next
time.”
What looked like an easy Virginia victory before the season — after all, the
Broncos returned just nine starters from last year’s 4-8 team — no longer has
an air of inevitability for the Cavaliers.
After today’s game, UVa has a bye week before facing Wake Forest at home on
Sept. 27. Senior quarterback Matt Schaub, the 2002 ACC player of the year, may
be sufficiently recovered from his separated shoulder to play in that game.
That means the Cavaliers will have two weeks to chew on this one, whatever the
result.
“You just don’t know. People handle things different ways,” said WMU coach
Gary Darnell, asked what he expected from Virginia after its ugly loss. “All I
know right now is they’re a different football team than Coach Groh would have
anticipated at this time.
“How they handle this week will certainly be interesting for all of us.”