For UVa, a win and an unexpected test
Cavaliers pad lead late against scrappy Western Michigan
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
September 4, 2005

Players and coaches always say it: the scoreboard didn't tell the whole story.

For a prime example of that, one could look at Virginia's season-opening win over Western Michigan on Saturday night.

Or should they?

Regardless, Virginia escaped with a 31-19 victory over the Broncos in front of 61,244 fans at Scott Stadium.

While many in the stands would have preferred an easier win, Virginia coach Al Groh said he was proud of his teams' effort throughout.

"I was pretty pleased with the way the team responded from start to finish," Groh said. "They got off to a fast start, they got challenged and they finished fast. I was pleased from start to finish."

Early on, the game appeared to be a blowout in the making - UVa raced out to a 24-3 lead - but WMU scored 16 unanswered points and had the Virginia faithful on the edges of its collective seat as the Broncos trimmed the lead to 24-19 with just more than 20 minutes left in the game.

Luckily for Virginia, redshirt freshman Cedric Peerman came to the rescue, long after starting tailback Wali Lundy left with a sprain in his left foot and both Jason Snelling and Michael Johnson had trouble hanging onto the football.

Peerman keyed a 12-play, 69-yard drive late with a 1-yard touchdown run with 5:38 remaining in the fourth quarter. The freshman accounted for the final 44 yards of the drive on seven consecutive rushing attempts, sealing what can truly be called "a hard-fought win."

Groh did, however, realize that his team struggled at times, turning the ball over three times (two interceptions and one fumble), getting called for six penalties for 50 yards, allowing four sacks and having a number of missed tackles on defense.

"Were there certain things within the game that could be better? That would certainly be the case but we went in realizing that everything wasn't going to be perfect," Groh said. "There were going to be a few things, as is the case in every game - forget about them [and] move on."

Virginia raced out to a comfortable lead as quarterback Marques Hagans threw for a touchdown - a 2-yard pass to Tom Santi - and ran for another, both of which came within the first 11:50 of the game.

The first touchdown was set up by a 57-yard pass from Hagans to wide receiver Ottowa Anderson, which was a designed play on UVa's first offensive snap. That play, in fact, was longer than any pass play that the Cavaliers completed in 2004.

Johnson pushed Virginia's lead to 24-3 with 12:25 left in the first half on a 7-yard touchdown run, which appeared to be enough breathing room against a Western Michigan team that went 1-10 a year ago, and lost 63-0 to Virginia Tech.

The Broncos, however, did not go down so easily.

Following Johnson's scoring run, WMU went on a 14-play, 66-yard drive that ultimately produced a 31-yard field goal by Nate Meyer, who finished the game perfect on his four attempts.

After both teams went four-and-out, Hagans threw his first interception of the game, a short attempt that was headed for Snelling on a screen but was picked off en route by Western Michigan's defensive end Anthony Belmonte and returned to the WMU 41-yard line.

Meyer trimmed the lead again, this time connecting on a 32-yard field goal, which capped a 44-yard drive. The key play of the drive came on the second snap, as WMU quarterback Robbie Haas hit wideout Greg Jennings with a short pass that turned into a 32-yard gain - the Broncos' longest gain of the night.

After completing three straight passes on Virginia's next drive, Hagans was picked off again, this time by defensive back C.J. Wilson, who raced

55 yards into the end zone untouched for WMU's first and only touchdown of the game.

Western Michigan scored its only points of the second half on its second drive, which started at its own 23-yard line after the Broncos defensive unit stopped Snelling on a carry on 4th-and-2.

The Broncos, who used short passes the entire game, marched 55 yards on 13 plays, with the longest play of the drive coming from a 12-yard pass. Meyer capped the scoring march with a 40-yard field goal with 6:12 remaining in the third.

The game remained scoreless until Peerman found the end zone for the first time in his Cavalier career in the fourth quarter. Peerman, who finished with 69 yards rushing, tallied 61 yards in the fourth quarter on 14 carries.

"We got more of what we wanted from him than we got from anybody else," said Groh, in reference to Peerman's production after Johnson and Snelling took turns at tailback. "[Peerman] has a good amount of firepower and he certainly has a good amount of toughness to go with it too. He certainly helped the team a great deal tonight."

For the game, Western Michigan finished with 357 yards of total offense, 271 of which came in the air.

Haas, starting at quarterback for the injured Ryan Cubit (shin splints), finished 33 for 49 through the air. Jennings paced the Broncos with 16 receptions, the most ever recorded against Virginia, and 156 yards receiving.

Groh, however, was only worried about the number of points allowed by his defensive unit, which was playing without linebacker Ahmad Brooks (recovering from knee surgery) and with five first-time starters.

"The only statistic that we look at on defense is points allowed," Groh said. "On defense, we allowed 12 points. That is a pretty darn good night."

Bill Cubit, coaching in his first game since taking over as the coach at Western Michigan, was also without a number of his starters, and said he was proud of his team.

"Basically, we just asked our kids to play as hard as you can for as long as you can, and do the right thing. And the kids played hard all the way through," the coach said. "We made some mistakes, but our kids played hard and they believed. I've just got to give credit to the kids and the coaching staff."

Virginia finished the game 440 yards of total offense - 188 rushing and 252 passing - and more importantly, a win, even if it was closer on the scoreboard than many expected.

"I think people have to be careful in looking at scores because it does not always tell the story of the game and obviously this was one of them," said UVa defensive end Chris Long. "I was really proud of the rest of the guys on defense - sometimes we had to close the door but that is the way things go.

"Some weeks the defense has to step it up. Some weeks the offense has to step it up."

The Cavaliers will have 13 days to prepare for its next game - a road game at Syracuse on Sept. 17 at Noon. That game will be televised by either ESPN or ESPN2.

 

RB Peerman comes up big for Virginia
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
September 4, 2005

On a sultry September night when Virginia had lost its most productive running back early in the game and other Cavalier backs had trouble holding onto the football, coach Al Groh called on unheralded Cedric Peerman to haul the mail.

The redshirt freshman tailback, listed third on the Wahoo depth chart, had impressed coaches in spring ball and training camp. But how would he perform under pressure?

Didn’t take long to find out that Mr. Peerman is made of tough stuff.

A durable back that kept record-keepers at William Campbell High reaching for the White-Out during a storied prep career, Peerman bolted into the hearts of Wahoo fans with a memorable late-game performance in a 31-19 win over visiting Western Michigan.

To the rescue

Leading by a mere five points with 11 minutes remaining in the game, Virginia’s coaches called on Peerman to save the day. In his first college game, one in which his only touches were kickoff returns until late in the third quarter, hardly anyone else got their mitts on the ball on a 12-play, time-consuming, 70-yard drive that was enough to secure the win.

Peerman, a 5-foot-10, 185-pounder, carried the ball 10 times on that methodical march, including the last seven straight plays. A grinder for sure, he pounded out 47 yards, including the last 35 as offensive coordinator Ron Prince fed the visitors a steady dose of No. 37.

The final one-yard plunge to paydirt came with 5:38 remaining. Peerman did his job for the night. The defense did the rest.
And what did he get for his efforts? An immediate return to the game.

As Peerman trotted to the sidelines after the touchdown, running backs coach Anthony Poindexter, who had recruited the back from a school near Lynchburg, greeted him.

But after a quick celebration, Poindexter came running, grabbed Peerman by the shoulder pads and told him to go out on the kickoff team.

The numbers

For the game, Peerman rushed for 69 yards, all in the second half. In fact, 14 of his 16 carries came in the fourth quarter alone (61 yards). He also caught one pass for nine yards and returned three kickoffs for 104 yards.

After healthy runbacks on the first two kickoffs, Western paid him respect by pooch kicking the next two.

“Never in a million years could I have pictured my debut being like this,” Peerman said. “I just thank God and thank my teammates for being there for me.”

Wali Lundy, who has rushed for 2,619 yards and scored 41 touchdowns in his career for Virginia, left the game midway through the first quarter with a sprained left foot and did not return.

“When we lost Wali, we kind of looked at some different options there and finally worked our way down to Cedric,” said UVa coach Al Groh. “We got more of what we wanted from him than from anybody else.”

Both second-team tailback Michael Johnson and starting fullback Jason Snelling lost the ball during the game (the Cavs fumbled four times, but lost it only on Snelling’s drop). Nothing aggravates coaches more than turnovers, so with the game on the line, Groh looked for someone who could hold on.

On each carry, Peerman put a death grip on the ball, clutching it to his chest like a shipwrecked sailor would to a coconut.

“I just tried to keep my arms from sweating and focused on holding onto the rock and I thank God that I didn’t put it on the ground,” the rookie said.

“I gave myself a lot of confidence in that respect in training camp. The first week I had a few problems holding onto the football.”

When they kept calling his number as the final quarter wore on, it was exactly what Peerman had hoped for. Like any good back worth his salt, he got stronger as the game went on.

While Groh was impressed, he kept the freshman running back’s performance in perspective.

“He doesn’t deserve the Medal of Honor yet,” the coach said.

“He did what he was supposed to do. It seemed like a good opportunity to give Ced some carries and find out where he might fit into the mix.”

But Peerman did it when it counted, with a ton of pressure on his ample shoulder pads.

“It was a very positive break-in for him,” Groh said. “He’s got a good amount of firepower and he certainly has a sufficient amount of toughness.

He helped the team a great deal and that’s a positive thing for a player to do in his very first game, and helped his circumstances out, too.”

Peerman, admittedly nervous throughout game week, said the butterflies were the worst before the game. While he established himself as a threat as a kick returner, carrying the ball with the game on the line was a whole other matter.

Poindexter constantly preached to the young back during training camp to always be aware of the possibility of having to face that type of situation.

“You always have to be ready,” Peerman said. “Coming in as the third- or fourth-string tailback, you always have to be ready. One guy goes down and you could be in the fire.”

That said, the rookie’s baptism went without a hitch. Now he has two weeks to think about it before Virginia hits the road to Syracuse.

He probably won’t be third or fourth on the depth chart by then.

 

Broncos' plan doesn't fool young DBs
By Whitelaw Reid / Daily Progress staff writer
September 4, 2005

The way Western Michigan opened the game throwing the ball definitely had a few people scratching their heads.

Why? Many of the Broncos passes' were going backward.

However, laterals to wide receivers were all part of their plan. The idea was to try and slow down the UVa pass rush - and set up an inexperienced secondary for a big play.

The only problem? The Cavaliers didn't bite.

On their second possession of the game, the Broncos tried a double pass.

Receiver Greg Jennings took a toss from quarterback Robbie Haas behind the line of scrimmage and threw deep to fellow receiver Joe Chapple.

The Cavs' secondary, however, was all over the play and broke up the pass.

"We knew in games like this that teams will try anything," said UVa corner Mike Brown. "We were preparing for something like that in practice."

The reaction by the secondary belied their inexperience. Coming into the game, the secondary was a big question mark. Most people expected several young players, including Brown, to see time.

The expectations were correct.

Chris Gorham got the first start of his career opposite the veteran Marcus Hamilton. Tony Franklin started his first game at strong safety. Nate Lyles made his debut at free safety.

"They didn't do a lot of vertical stuff," Hamilton said. "We had to come up and make good tackles, and for the most part we did."

Cavalier coach Al Groh agreed. He said the Cavs did a good job of containing the speedy Jennings, despite his fat numbers - 16 catches for 156 yards (he set a record for the most receptions ever against Virginia).

"He's been playing in a 45-, 55-pass offense for three years," said Groh of Jennings. "He's a very wily, savvy receiver with size and speed. He looked just as good in the game as he did on film.

"Most of his [catches] were underneath, some of them we would have preferred to get him on the ground faster, but [the catches] weren't overly harmful to us. For all those catches, the ball never got in the red zone."

While some might be critical of the high efficiency of completions (33 of 50, 66-percent) for Western Michigan, the Cavs let the Broncos have all the underneath stuff. WMU's longest pass play of the game was 32 yards, and that came as a result of missed tackles.

"I was encouraged by the way [the secondary] fought back," said Cavs defensive end Chris Long. "They had some good offensive players out there like Jennings, but we stepped up."

Lyles snagged his first career interception on a deep ball down the sideline in the first quarter to halt a Broncos' drive.

With the game on the line in the fourth quarter, Franklin blanketed Bronco receiver Brandon Ledbetter on a fourth-and-4 play, tackling him for just a 1-yard gain.

"Tony can make plays no matter what position he's at," Hamilton said. "It always feels good knowing he's got my back."

Hamilton also gave props to Gorham, just a sophomore who barely saw the field last season.

"For his first college start, I thought he did great," said Hamilton, who made seven solo tackles and assisted on two more. "He kept his confidence and had fun."

Of course, the Cavs' next opponent - Syracuse - will probably pose a different kind of challenge for the secondary. For one thing, the Orange probably won't be throwing as many backward passes.

 

Cavalier Notebook
September 4, 2005

THE SERIES. Virginia won the first meeting 59-16 in 2003 and claimed the second meeting 31-19 Saturday. Western Michigan has played seven games against current ACC teams, failing to score in five of those contests. The Broncos' only points against the conference came in both losses to UVa.

QUICKLY INVOLVED. Virginia redshirt freshman Cedric Peerman didn't have to wait long to get his first taste of action in the opener. Peerman and fellow running back Michael Johnson were the returners for the opening kickoff, which went to Peerman.

He returned the ball 35 yards to the UVa 37. Peerman later entered the game at running back and revived the Virginia offense - he scored his first career touchdown with 5:38 to play in the game, a TD that pushed the margin back to two scores.

Receiver Ottowa Anderson jumped right back into the fray as well after missing last season due to an academic suspension. On the first play from scrimmage on the season, Anderson caught a 57-yard pass down the middle of the field from Marques Hagans. That pass play was longer than any completion made in 2004. The longest pass play last year was a 54-yarder against Syracuse.

FIRST TIMES. UVa tight end Tom Santi scored his first career touchdown on the Cavs' first possession, catching a two-yard scoring pass from Hagans. ? UVa sophomore corner Chris Gorham made his first career start at defensive back against WMU, and finished with three assisted tackles. ?

Sophomore Nate Lyles, who was one of 10 true freshmen to play in 2004, came up with his first career interception in the first quarter, and he also tallied six tackles (two solo, four assisted). Lyles rotated over on a pass play along the visiting sidelines and snared the pass around midfield.

True freshmen Branden Albert, Antonio Appleby, Mike Brown, Chris Cook, Olu Hall, Eugene Monroe and tight end John Phillips all saw game action.

PROVING HIMSELF. Kwakou Robinson, who Virginia coach Al Groh said during the preseason was running out of opportunities to prove himself, stepped up to the challenge Saturday. During the first quarter, Robinson broke the WMU line with linebacker Clint Sintim, who sacked the quarterback Robbie Haas and forced a fumble on the play, which Robinson recovered as he quickly scampered on all fours to recover the ball as well.

RECORD WATCH. Gene Mayer, the Cavs' all-time leading scorer with 293 points (46 TDs, 17 PATs in 31 games), set the record from 1912-1915. UVa's Connor Hughes and Wali Lundy are both climbing the charts toward Mayer's mark, though. Lundy started the game with 246 points, but left the game in the first quarter with an injury (foot sprain).

Hughes started the game with 233 points and now has 240 on his career, which move him into a tie for fourth on the all-time list with former tailback Thomas Jones.

ODDS AND ENDS. Fullback Jason Snelling had the longest run of his career in the first quarter, ripping off a 33-yard run. His previous long was 25 yards against North Carolina last season. ? Virginia's 17 first-quarter points matched the output from last year's season opener at Temple. UVa had not scored that many points in the first quarter since. ?
Hagans threw two interceptions in the first half, his first INTs in his last three games. The last time, and only time, Hagans had a multi-interception game was against Miami last season. ? Western Michigan's Ryan Cubit, whose availability due to injury was unknown, did not play. Haas played QB the entire game, though Greg Jennings did attempt one pass - it was incomplete.

HONORING STAMENICH. The Cavaliers honored the family of Ljubomir Stamenich prior to the game. Stamenich, who shares 13th place on the career sacks list (13) with Todd White, died last month after a short battle with lukemia.

WACHOVIA CUP WINNERS. The Virginia High School League Wachovia Cup winners were honored between the first and second quarters. Madison County was the winner in Group A for academics and Western Albemarle was the recipient in Group AA athletics for the second straight year.

NEW LOOKS. The fans in attendance Saturday got their first look at some new appearances around Scott Stadium. The Adventures of Cavman video was updated with some new features, including the delivery of a warning message from tailback Wali Lundy. Also, the post-Adventure video was a different style video montage from years past.

The team's entrance to the field also had some updates. The Cavalier marching band formed a large 'V' extending out from the end zone; the team ran out of the tunnel and through the band's letter to get on the field. The tunnel entrance also had machines blowing smoke again. The difference? It was orange and blue in addition to white.

Finally, the stairs in between sections in the 'old' Scott Stadium have been painted blue across the face giving the Orange-clad fans rows of blue between them.

PUNTER DUTIES. Chris Gould got the starting nod at punter for the Cavaliers. On his first attempt, he booted a 39-yard punt that was downed at the 1-yard line by Jason Snelling.

Gould and JUCO transfer Ryan Weigand were battling for the position throughout the preseason practice period. Gould took over the punting duties at Georgia Tech last season and finished the season with a 38.6-yard average on 18 attempts.

NFL PRESENCE. The NFL had scouts from six different teams planning to attend Saturday. The Arizona Cardinals, New England Patriots, Cleveland Browns, New York Giants, Houston Texans and Miami Dolphins were all listed. Seven UVa players were drafted last season, including two by the Cardinals.

UP NEXT. Virginia has a bye week before heading to Syracuse on Sept. 17 for a noon game that will be broadcast on either ESPN or ESPN2. Western Michigan heads to Toledo next Saturday at 7 p.m., a contest slated to appear on Comcast Sportsnet.

 

Rather sloppy start
Virginia holds off Western Michigan to avoid an embarrassing season-opening upset.
BY DARRYL SLATER
247-4641
September 4, 2005

 
CHARLOTTESVILLE -- There certainly was a measure of happiness at Scott Stadium on Saturday night, though not the chest-inflating ego boost many Virginia football fans expected.

The No. 25 Cavaliers avoided one of their most embarrassing first-game losses, beating 32-point underdog Western Michigan 31-19 - while relying on an unexpected backfield tandem that sealed the victory and an inexperienced defense that allowed no touchdowns.

"If you're not happy with this win, you've got a problem with your ego," U.Va. coach Al Groh said.

Virginia led 24-3 in the second quarter before the Broncos (0-1) scored 16 straight points to pull within 24-19 with 6:12 left in the third. Western Michigan stayed that close until 5:38 remained in the game and redshirt freshman running back Cedric Peerman scored a 1-yard touchdown.

The Cavaliers relied on Peerman after starter Wali Lundy left the game in the first half with a sprained left foot. Lundy carried three times, all in the first quarter, for 29 yards. Also, second-stringer Michael Johnson, a Heritage High grad, fumbled twice and didn't touch the ball in the second half.

Peerman carried the ball on 10 of 12 plays during U.Va.'s final 69-yard scoring drive - including the final seven plays.

"Clearly, he looks like he fits into the mix," Groh said.

As would be expected, senior quarterback Marques Hagans scurried his way into the mix on that final drive. On third down and 8 at the Virginia 44-yard line, the Hampton High grad scrambled 12 yards and put the Cavaliers into Broncos territory.

"Another typical Marques play," Groh said.

Nine of 11 players on U.Va.'s defensive, meanwhile, started at new positions. Though the unit allowed 357 yards against a team that went 1-10 last season, the Broncos' only touchdown came with 37 seconds left in the first half, when C.J. Wilson picked off Hagans and ran 55 yards into the end zone.

Western Michigan kicker Nate Meyer supplied the rest of the points with field goals of 42, 31, 32 and 40 yards.

"That's the hallmark of a good defense," sophomore defensive end Chris Long said.

"I'm not saying we're there yet, but that's something to be encouraged by."

Said inside linebacker Bryan White: "We'll have a lot of work this week."

Virginia dominated the game for the first quarter and the start of the second. For the first two plays, the Cavaliers' season opener even showed signs of a potential blowout.

Peerman returned the opening kickoff 35 yards to the U.Va. 37-yard line. Then Hagans hit wide receiver Ottowa Anderson for a 57-yard pass, moving the Cavs to the Western Michigan 3. The Cavs scored three plays later when Hagans found new tight end Tom Santi for a 2-yard touchdown.

Western Michigan responded with Meyer's 42-yard field goal, but the Broncos turned over the ball on their next two drives. The Cavaliers converted one for a touchdown and the other for a field goal to make it 17-3. Johnson rushed 7 yards for a touchdown on the Cavs' first second-quarter drive, making it 24-3 left with 12:25 left.

But Western Michigan stuck with the Cavs, as Meyer kicked a 31-yard field goal with 7:07 left in the first half.

The Cavs had a chance to pull away, getting the ball on Western Michigan's 27 after the Broncos turned the ball over on downs. The opportunity soured when Belmonte intercepted Hagans on the first play of U.Va.'s possession. Five players later, Meyer hit a 32-yard field goal to cut the score to 24-9 with 1:41 left. Wilson's interception return for a touchdown and Meyer's fourth field goal, with 6:12 left in the third quarter, pulled the Broncos within five before Peerman took over.

U.Va is off next week before traveling to Syracuse on Sept. 17.

"When you see things you need to work on," Anderson said, "it's great to have a week to work on them."

Quite a farcical affair
Published September 4 2005

David Teel

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Texas Christian had astonished Oklahoma, while Alabama Birmingham had given Tennessee fits. That's two top-10 squads on the ropes, at home, against three-plus-touchdown underdogs.

No way Western Michigan could replicate those performances Saturday at No. 25 Virginia, right? After all, TCU and UAB earned bowl bids last season. Western Michigan was 1-10, canned its coach and endured its fourth consecutive losing season.

Oops.

What should have been a mindless, season-opening blowout, as alluring as an Ashlee Simpson concert, and was for nearly two quarters, became an honest-to-goodness contest.

No countless and annoying refrains of the Good Ol' Song. No early exit to recapture that tailgate buzz. No hey-Mom-look-at-me playing time for the walk-ons.

Instead, the 26-point 'dogs from the Mid-American Conference, starting a senior quarterback with nine career passes, extended the Cavaliers deep into the night before falling 31-19.

Despite his team's obvious shortcomings, Virginia coach Al Groh refused to concede disappointment.

"I'm not going to let my ego or the ego of the team get in the way of this," he said.

Fine, spin positive. The Cavaliers, newcomers throughout the lineup, didn't allow a defensive touchdown and responded to a fourth-quarter challenge.

But after racing to a 24-3 second-quarter lead, Virginia should have buried Western Michigan.

Why, the competition was so lifeless that one pressbox television was tuned to "Jeopardy!" rather than the action on the field.

But the Cavaliers got sloppy, and the game turned farcical.

Marques Hagans threw two brain-lock interceptions, the second of which C.J. Wilson returned 55 yards for a touchdown.

The secondary, a perpetual issue for this program, appeared flatfooted as All-MAC receiver Greg Jennings jitterbugged for 156 yards on 16 catches.

The Cavaliers couldn't even celebrate properly. Nose tackle Kwakou Robinson clutched his right shoulder in pain after high-fiving defensive end Brennan Schmidt.

But they weren't nearly as red-faced as Bill Cubit, Western Michigan's rookie head coach. Late in the second quarter, Cubit, the Broncos' sideline and perhaps game officials lost track of downs, and rather than punting on fourth-and-1 from its own 27, Western Michigan lost 3 yards on a botched lateral by quarterback Robbie Haas.

A chance to pad a 24-6 lead giftwrapped, Virginia promptly turned the ball over as Hagans threw an attempted screen into the arms of defensive end Anthony Belmonte.

When the Cavaliers failed to convert a third-quarter fourth-and-2 at Western Michigan's 24 (Jason Snelling was stuffed for 1 yard), and the Broncos countered with Nate Meyer's 40-yard field goal, the lead was a precarious 24-19.

If you took the Broncos and 26 points, you were golden. If you wore orange and blue, you were not happy, especially when Snelling fumbled the ball away to Western Michigan late in the third quarter.

Snelling became the workhorse because starting tailback Wali Lundy was sidelined during the first quarter with a sprained left foot, and backup Michael Johnson (Heritage High) fumbled twice. No matter that teammates recovered both of Johnson's drops, the fumbles trumped his 7-yard, second-quarter touchdown run.

Let's put it this way: Those two fingers Groh wagged in Johnson's face after the second fumble were not intended as a peace sign. Moreover, it was not coincidence that Johnson did not carry the ball thereafter.

Following Snelling's lost fumble, Groh turned to Plan D: Cedric Peerman. A redshirt freshman, Peerman not only held on to the ball, but also logged seven consecutive fourth-quarter carries, the last of which produced a 1-yard touchdown and a 31-19 lead with 5:28 remaining.

Peerman netted 69 yards on 16 rushes, returned three kickoffs for 104 yards and caught a pass for 9 yards to help Virginia overcome four fumbles (one lost), two interceptions, four sacks of Hagans and several missed tackles. Again, Groh refused to take the bait as he contemplated two weeks of practice before a Sept. 17 game at Syracuse.

"We've got one more win than Oklahoma's got," he said, "and that feels pretty good."
 

Virginia struggles to beat inferior Western Michigan
By Andy Bitter
Lynchburg News & Advance
September 4, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE - With its starters playing up to the very end, its defense rallying for a fourth quarter stop and its fourth option at running back carrying the load, this was not the opener Virginia had in mind.

Nevertheless, the mistake-prone Cavaliers held on for a 31-19 win to open the season in front of 61,244 thoroughly confused fans who showed up at Scott Stadium expecting a blowout.

Against a stronger opponent, the Cavaliers’ mistakes might have done them in.

Quarterback Marques Hagans, despite throwing for 252 yards, threw two interceptions, the second of which was returned for a touchdown. UVa tailbacks fumbled four times, though they were fortunate enough to maintain possession on three of them. The defense gave up 357 yards.

But it was telling that UVa didn’t fold.

For all of Western Michigan’s yards, the Broncos didn’t score an offensive touchdown, settling for four field goals instead. Hagans looked sharp early, connecting on 40-yard plus passes to both Ottowa Anderson and Deyon Williams.

But most impressive was Cedric Peerman, a redshirt freshman out of William Campbell, who when called upon in the second half carried - and secured - the ball 16 times for 69 yards, scoring a touchdown after a clock-killing drive that locked up the game.

For all Virginia did wrong, it still managed to come out with a win.

“If you’re not happy with this win, you’ve got a problem with your ego,” Virginia coach Al Groh said. “I’m happy to win. It’s been nine months since we’ve won. … Now we’ve got one more win than Oklahoma’s got.

“Can we do some things better? We’d better do some things better. But I’m real happy about tonight. I’m not going to let my ego or the ego of the team get in the way.”

Virginia (1-0) jumped out to a 24-3 lead early in the second quarter and appeared to be on its way to an easy victory, despite playing without All-American linebacker Ahmad Brooks, who is still recovering from offseason knee surgery, and losing tailback Wali Lundy for the game because of a foot sprain suffered on the second series.

But Western Michigan (0-1) rallied thank to UVa mistakes. Kicker Dan Meyer connected on his second and third field goals of the first half to make it 24-9. The Cavaliers looked like they would threaten to score before the break, but Broncos safety C.J. Wilson stepped in front of one of Hagans’ passes for an interception and returned it 55 yards for a touchdown to trim UVa’s lead to 24-16 at halftime.

“(Wilson) did a really good job of baiting him into the throw,” Groh said.

Western Michigan cut the lead to 24-19 when Meyer connected on his fourth field goal, a 40-yarder with 6:12 left in the third.

That’s when Virginia fed the ball to Peerman, who saw his first collegiate action earlier in the game when he returned the opening kickoff. Second string tailback Michael Johnson and fullback Jason Snelling had problems holding onto the ball, each fumbling twice.

Surprisingly, Groh wasn’t yelling at Peerman to make sure he had a tight grip on the ball.

“But everybody else was, it seemed like,” Peerman said.

With the game in the balance, Peerman carried the ball 10 times on a 12-play, 69-yard drive that was kept alive by a nifty Hagans scramble on third-and-eight from the UVa 44. Peerman eventually bulldozed his way in for a 1-yard touchdown run to give the Cavaliers some breathing room at 31-19.

“We got more from him than we got from anyone else,” Groh said of Peerman and the rest of the tailbacks. “It was a very positive break-in for him. We can see that he has got a good amount of firepower and he has sufficient toughness to go with it too.”

The Broncos dinked and dunked against the UVa defense. Wide receiver Greg Jennings had 16 catches for 156 yards and quarterback Robbie Haas completed 33 of 49 passes for 271 yards, but Western Michigan couldn’t put the ball in the end zone.

“I’m very satisfied with how we played,” cornerback Marcus Hamilton said of the defense. “When they got close or were moving the ball, we stuck together and hung in there.”

On the whole, it wasn’t a perfect night, but it was a win nonetheless.

“We’ve just got to clean it up,” Virginia offensive tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson said. “We’ve just to be a little bit more crisp for the next game. It’s a win, man. We got a win.”

 

Frustrated Cavs call on Peerman
Andy Bitter
Lynchburg News & Advance
September 4, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Cedric Peerman never expected to have such a prominent role in his first action at the college level.

But when Wali Lundy went down with a left foot sprain and backups Michael Johnson and Jason Snelling couldn’t hold onto the ball, Peerman, a William Campbell product, took center stage in Virginia’s 31-19 season-opening win over Western Michigan on Saturday.

“I never in a million years could have pictured that my debut would be like this,” said Peerman, who ran 16 times for 69 yards and a touchdown.

Peerman actually saw his first action on the opening kickoff, returning the ball 35 yards. He had other returns of 36 and 33 yards, prompting Western Michigan to sky its kickoffs high and short instead of kicking it deep to Peerman.

“They kind of acknowledged the danger of his returns and bloop kicked the ball,” UVa head coach Al Groh said. “That gave us a first down at the 30-yard line, which was not to far from where we were returning it in the first place.”

As for Peerman’s ballcarrying skills, the results speak for themselves.

“He’s a dynamic runner,” offensive tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson said. “He always puts that second effort in. I’m real impressed with his play. He’s just a great runner.”

Quick impact

Senior wide receiver Ottowa Anderson didn’t waste any time making his presence felt after returning from a yearlong academic suspension.

On Virginia’s first offensive play, he streaked down the middle and caught a 57-yard pass from Marques Hagans that set up UVa’s first touchdown of the game.

“We pretty much decided last night that it was a sure thing that’s how we were going to start the game,” Anderson said. “It worked perfect.”

Anderson was part of a successful night all around by UVa’s wide receivers, catching three passes for 109 yards for his first 100-yard receiving game. Fellow wideout Deyon Williams caught five balls for 79 yards and tight end Tom Santi caught his first career touchdown pass.

Working out the kinks

There were two strange calls made by the officials in the first half that reaffirmed it was the opening week of the season.

Western Michigan ran three plays deep in its own territory in the second quarter, ending up in what should have been a fourth-and-1 situation. Instead, the marker on the field said it was third down. The Broncos ran a play and lost yardage, bringing up what they thought was fourth down. After a conference, the officials gave Virginia possession.

In another bizarre play right before halftime, Hagans was nearly dragged down from behind for a sack. He managed to keep his balance, propping himself up with his hand before his backside hit the ground. He bounced up and scrambled to the right, thinking the play was still live. As Hagans rolled out, he ran over a referee running in to whistle the play dead. Virginia lost nine yards on what was ruled a sack.

Extra points

Chris Gould beat out Ryan Weigand for the starting punter position. On his first punt, Gould killed the ball at the Western Michigan 1-yard line. He averaged 37.7 yards on three punts. … Offensive guard Ian-Yates Cunningham did not dress for the game, though Groh did not specify why. … Two freshmen - guard Branden Albert and linebacker Clint Sintim - made their first career starts. Sintim had a sack that forced a fumble. … Eight other players played in their first game, including freshman Chris Cook, a former Heritage star. Cook saw action on the punt return team.
 

UVA: Not-so-great escape
Redshirt freshman Peerman helps Cavs overcome Broncos
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Sep 4, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Five minutes into the game, Wali Lundy limped off with a sprained left foot and didn't return. His replacement, Michael Johnson, fumbled twice. So did the third player to line up at tailback for the University of Virginia football team last night, Jason Snelling. And so Al Groh turned to Cedric Peerman. The redshirt freshman from little William Campbell High School didn't let his coach or his teammates down.

Peerman's 1-yard touchdown run with 5:38 left capped a 12-play drive on which he carried 10 times, including the final seven plays. His TD ended a scoring drought of more than 35 minutes for the 25th-ranked Cavaliers and helped them escape with a 31-19 victory over unheralded Western Michigan in the season opener for both teams.

"He came in and did his job," Snelling said of Peerman. "He had a job to do, and he did it."

Peerman finished with 69 yards on 16 carries. He also returned three kickoffs for 104 yards, and his prowess in that area convinced the Broncos' coaches that pooch kicks were a better option than kicking to Peerman.

A subdued crowd of 61,244 filed out of Scott Stadium afterward. But if the fans left concerned about U.Va.'s myriad mistakes and sloppy play, Groh viewed the proceedings differently - at least publicly.

"If you're not happy with this win, fellows, you got a problem with your ego," Groh said. "I'm happy to win. It's been nine months since we won a game. I'm real happy to win. I told the players that . . . We won. That's a pretty good feeling. Now we got one more win than Oklahoma's got, and that feels pretty good, too."

Virginia doesn't play again until its Sept. 17 game at Syracuse. Lundy's status for that game is uncertain.

Virginia couldn't have started the game much more impressively. After Peerman returned the opening kickoff 35 yards to U.Va.'s 37, senior quarterback Marques Hagans and senior wideout Ottowa Anderson teamed on a 57-yard pass play. That gave the Cavaliers a first down at the WMU 3, and three plays later, Hagans passed to sophomore tight end Tom Santi for a touchdown.

Western Michigan answered with a drive that ended with Nate Meyer's 42-yard field goal, but even without Lundy, the Cavaliers steadily pulled away. Hagans' 1-yard run made it 14-3 with 3:40 left in the first quarter. Hughes booted a 36-yard field goal about two minutes later, and then Johnson ran 7 yards for a TD to make it 24-3 with 12:25 left in the half.

But U.Va. let its guest back in the game, Hagans throwing two interceptions late in the second quarter. His second turnover was significantly more damaging than his first, which the Broncos had parlayed into Nate Meyer's third field goal.

With less than a minute remaining, on first and 10 from midfield, Hagans tried to hit Anderson on a slant pattern. Safety C.J. Wilson stepped in front of Anderson, picked off the pass and raced 55 yards for a TD that pulled the Broncos to 24-16 at the break.

Western Michigan closed to 24-19 on Meyer's fourth field goal, a 40-yarder with 6:12 left in the third quarter. U.Va.'s next possession ended when Snelling, after a 24-yard gain, fumbled away the ball. After forcing the Broncos to punt, the Cavaliers drove to the 20, only to see Hughes' 37-yard field goal attempt sail wide right.

When U.Va. finally got the ball back, with 11:02 remaining, after stopping WMU on downs, Peerman took over. But give a huge assist from Hagans, who scrambled 12 yards for a first down on third and 6 from the Virginia 44.

"It was a typical Marques play," Groh said.

Hagans, who was sacked four times, completed 17 of 25 passes last night for a career-best 252 yards and one TD. His favorite targets were wideouts Deyon Williams (five catches for 79 yards) and Anderson (3 for 109).

In all, the Cavaliers scored four touchdowns. The Broncos' offense totaled 22 first downs - to 20 for Virginia - and 357 yards but could muster no TDs.

"The only statistic we look at on defense is points allowed," Groh said, "and we allowed 12. And that's a pretty good night."

Of the 11 defenders who started for U.Va., only end Brennan Schmidt and cornerback Marcus Hamilton had started in that position before. The Broncos, 1-10 in 2004, capitalized on Virginia's inexperience. Western Michigan came in without its No. 1 quarterback or its No. 1 tailback but got plenty of production at both positions.

And then there was senior wideout Greg Jennings, WMU's best player. Jennings caught 16 passes - the most receptions ever by a player against U.Va. - for 156 yards and broke countless tackles.

"He was impressive on the tape, and he was impressive tonight," Groh said, "and that's what good players do. But most of his plays were underneath plays. There were some plays that I would have preferred that we could have gotten him on the ground faster, but in the long run, they weren't overly harmful to us."

 

U.VA. NOTES
Richmond Times-Dispatch Sep 4, 2005

NEW GUY IN TOWN: For Levern Belin, last night's game was his first as a member of Virginia coach Al Groh's staff.

Belin, 36, coaches the Cavaliers' defensive linemen. He took over for Mike London, who left after last season to join the Houston Texans' staff.

A native of Marshville, N.C., Belin has been an assistant at numerous schools, including Maryland (1999 and 2000), William and Mary (2001-03) and Northern Illinois (2004). When Groh was coach at Wake Forest in the '80s, his players included Warren Belin, Levern's older brother. Levern Belin played at Wake after Groh, who'd recruited him, left in 1987 to become an assistant with the Atlanta Falcons.

Not only was Belin familiar with Groh before coming to Charlottesville, he knew several U.Va. assistants, including Danny Rocco, Ron Prince and Mike Groh.

Soft-spoken off the field, Belin was hard to miss during U.Va.'s open practices last month. Whether he was correcting a lineman's mistake, or praising one of his charges, Belin got his point across, usually at full volume.

"I feel like if I can put pressure on a kid throughout the course of the week, then when game day comes, he won't feel any pressure," Belin said of his coaching style.

AND THEN THERE WERE TWO: By starting last night, Marques Hagans earned a distinction shared by only one other player in U.Va. history. Hagans and Scott Gardner are the only U.Va. quarterbacks to have started at least one game in four seasons.

Gardner finished his career in 1975 as Virginia's all-time leading in passing. He started three games as a true freshman in 1973, all 11 in '73, seven in '74 and 11 in '75.

Hagans started one game in 2002 (at Florida State) and one in '03 (at Western Michigan). He started all 12 games last season.

HE'S BACK: Ottowa Anderson, a starting wideout in 2003, was out of school last season while serving an academic suspension. On the first play from scrimmage last night, Anderson ran a post pattern and hauled in a long pass from Hagans for a 57-yard gain. That was the longest reception of Anderson's career. By halftime, he had three catches for a career-best 109 yards.

WELCOME TO DIVISION I-A: U.Va. played six true freshmen in the first half: outside linebacker Olu Hall, cornerback Mike Brown, offensive guards Branden Albert and Eugene Monroe, inside linebacker Antonio Appleby and cornerback Chris Cook. Appleby and Cook played on special teams.

REMEMBERING "LUBE": In a ceremony before the game, U.Va. honored the memory of football player Ljubomir Stamenich. A three-year starter at defensive end, Stamenich died last month of leukemia. He was 26.

OUT OF COMMISSION: Ian-Yates Cunningham's bad back has helped Albert rise to the top of the depth chart at left offensive guard. Cunningham, who as a true freshman started the final five games of the 2003 season at left guard, took a medical redshirt last year after having back surgery. He participated in training camp last month, first at center and then at guard, but his back problems have sidelined him again.

Cunningham wasn't in uniform for last night's game.

"We just have to see, long term, if this can be overcome or not," Groh said last week.

THE MUSIC MAN: Bill Pease, director of U.Va.'s marching band, previously worked at Western Michigan. A graduate of Virginia Beach's Princess Anne High, Pease was WMU's director of athletic bands from 1998 to 2003, when U.Va. hired him to start a marching band.

SCHOLAR-ATHLETES: Four Cavaliers are competing as graduate students this season: Hagans, center Brian Barthelmes, kicker Kurt Smith and linebacker Bryan White. Their degrees: anthropology (Hagans), sociology (Barthelmes), economics (Smith) and religious studies (White).

BYE, BYE: Virginia is off next weekend. The Cavaliers don't play again until Sept. 17, when they visit Syracuse. The Orange opens its first season under coach Greg Robinson this afternoon against Big East rival West Virginia at the Carrier Dome. A season ago, when they met at Scott Stadium, U.Va. hammered the 'Cuse 31-10. - Jeff White

 

U.VA. NOTES
Richmond Times-Dispatch Sep 4, 2005

BAPTISM BY FIRE: Seven true freshmen played for Virginia last night in the season opener against Western Michigan, including Branden Albert, who started at left offensive guard.

His classmates who also saw action were linebacker Antonio Appleby (special teams only), cornerback Mike Brown, defensive back Chris Cook (special teams only), linebacker Olu Hall, offensive guard Eugene Monroe and tight end John Phillips (special teams only).

Redshirt freshmen who made their college debuts were linebackers Clint Sintim and linebacker Jon Copper (special teams only) and tailback Cedric Peerman. Sintim started at outside linebacker and forced a fumble with a first-quarter sack that led to U.Va.'s second touchdown.

OUT OF COMMISSION: Ian-Yates Cunningham's bad back has helped Albert rise to the top of the depth chart at left offensive guard. Cunningham, who as a true freshman started the final five games of the 2003 season at left guard, took a medical redshirt last year after having back surgery. He participated in training camp last month, first at center and then at guard, but his back problems have sidelined him again.

"We just have to see, long term, if this can be overcome or not," Groh said last week.

Cunningham was one of four U.Va. players in street clothes on the sideline when the game began last night. Joining him were defensive end Chris Johnson, safety Lance Evans and, wearing a Tracy McGrady jersey, linebacker Ahmad Brooks. Johnson and Evans are reserves. Brooks is a returning All-American, and he was sorely missed against the Broncos.

NEW GUY IN TOWN: For Levern Belin, last night's game was his first as a member of Virginia coach Al Groh's staff. Belin, 36, coaches the Cavaliers' defensive linemen. He took over for Mike London, who left after last season to join the Houston Texans' staff.

Belin has been an assistant at numerous schools, including William and Mary (2001-03) and Northern Illinois (2004). When Groh was coach at Wake Forest in the '80s, his players included Warren Belin, Levern's older brother. Levern Belin played at Wake after Groh, who'd recruited him, left in 1987 to become an assistant with the Atlanta Falcons.

Not only was Belin familiar with Groh before coming to Charlottesville, he knew U.Va. assistants Danny Rocco, Ron Prince and Mike Groh.

Belin was hard to miss during U.Va.'s open practices last month. When he made a point to his charges, it was often at full volume.

"I feel like if I can put pressure on a kid throughout the course of the week, then when game day comes, he won't feel any pressure," Belin said.

CLASS OF HIS OWN: Until last night, no opposing player had ever caught more than 13 passes in a game against U.Va., with Duke's Corey Thomas (1995) and Georgia Tech's Will Glover (2001) tied for the record. But Western Michigan senior wideout Greg Jennings finished with 16 catches for 156 yards.

AND THEN THERE WERE TWO: By starting last night, Marques Hagans earned a distinction shared by only one other player in U.Va. history. Hagans and Scott Gardner are the only U.Va. quarterbacks to have started at least one game in four seasons.

Gardner finished his career in 1975 as Virginia's all-time leader in passing. He started three games as a true freshman in 1973, all 11 in '73, seven in '74 and 11 in '75.

Hagans started one game in 2002 (at Florida State) and one in '03 (at Western Michigan). He started all 12 games last season.

HE'S BACK: Ottowa Anderson, a starting wideout in 2003, was out of school last season while serving an academic suspension. On the first play from scrimmage last night, Anderson ran a post pattern and hauled in a long pass from Hagans for a 57-yard gain. That was the longest reception of Anderson's career. He finished with three catches for a career-best 109 yards, all in the first half, and also played well on special teams.

REMEMBERING "LUBE": In a ceremony before the game, U.Va. recognized the passing of football player Ljubomir Stamenich. A three-year starter at defensive end, Stamenich died last month of leukemia. He was 26 years old. Virginia players wore stickers on their helmets in Stamenich's memory.

BYE, BYE: Virginia (1-0) is off next weekend. The Cavaliers don't play again until Sept. 17, when they visit Syracuse. The Orange opens its first season under coach Greg Robinson this afternoon against Big East rival West Virginia at the Carrier Dome. A season ago, when they met at Scott Stadium, U.Va. hammered the 'Cuse 31-10. - Jeff White

 

A win that was nothing to gloat over
BOB LIPPER
POINT OF VIEW Sep 4, 2005

This was nervous and fumbly and bumbly and not what you'd call highlight-reel material.

This was heavy-favorite Virgin- ia scrambling to hold off bottom-feeder Western Michigan in a 31-19 verdict that wasn't settled till deep into the fourth quarter.

Read into the numbers, film clips and omens what you will.

Al Groh read into it 1-0. Period. You're entitled to see the commas and semi-colons. U.Va.'s coach insisted he saw only the W.

"If you're not happy with this win, you've got a problem with your ego," he said. "I'm happy to win. We've got one more win than Oklahoma."

Western Michigan had one win last season. Period. The Broncos also brought a two-deep to town that included 28 freshmen and sophomores. But they rallied from an early deficit. And were down only 24-19 when their last threat died at U.Va.'s 31 with 11 minutes to go.

"It wasn't perfect," conceded Groh.

He's got two weeks to smooth the rough edges before his squad next suits up.

The Cavs rode a roller coaster all night. They lost starting tailback Wali Lundy to injury early and found Cedric Peerman late (this after Michael Johnson and Jason Snelling developed butterfingers). They got the sort of erratic performance from QB Marques Hagans (electric plays, crushing interceptions WMU turned into 10 points) they can't afford at Boston College or against Florida State.

They struggled. They escaped. Yeah, they're not Oklahoma. But they're not coming out of the blocks like Maurice Greene, either.

Bizarre doesn't begin to describe a game Virginia always seemed about to tuck into a hip pocket with an ever-shredding hole at the bottom.

Consider the first half alone. It lasted longer than "War and Peace" and a Grateful Dead concert combined. It featured long balls and botched calls. It ended with U.Va. up 24-16. Groh probably used intermission to tell his troops they looked as together as a high school sophomore getting ready for his first date.

He would've been right.

The Cavs rang up gainers of 57, 28, 39 and 33 yards in the first period. They led 24-3 one series into the next quarter. They'd forced two turnovers. They'd gotten nice welcome-back plays from 2004 sitout Ottowa Anderson. They'd shaken Johnson loose for healthy pickups and a touchdown.

All good, right?

Not exactly.

Peer beneath the surface, and you would've seen a dropped pass here, a dopey penalty there, two sacks surrendered, trouble handling Broncs wideout Greg Jennings and bulldozing runner Mark Bonds, the first of two fumbles by Johnson (U.Va. recovered both of them). And then it really got dicey.

Not even Western Michigan's pattern of settling for field goals instead of cashing in opportunities for touchdowns could give U.Va. a leg up. Not even the Broncs' bonehead move of losing track of downs and turning the ball over at its 28 could gift-wrap a Cavs score (Hagans immediately threw his first interception). Not even two shanked punts by WMU's Jim Laney in his territory could provide an opening (U.Va. lost the ball on downs and on a wide-right field goal).

Virginia remained locked at 24.

And Western took heart.

Heart wasn't enough in the end. And the fact is, U.Va. had some of that commodity, too - stopping Western's last surge and crunching to the Peerman touchdown that wrapped this baby up.

"In the beginning, we might've thought we would've won by more," said defensive end Brennan Schmidt. "But a win's a win, and we're happy with it."

That's the party line. Minus the noisemakers and confetti.