Brooks' status still uncertain
Groh's stance remains firm on UVa linebacker
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
September 14, 2005

It’s safe to say that Virginia coach Al Groh has answered more questions about linebacker Ahmad Brooks than any other player the past few years.
Much to his dismay, Groh was able to pad those stats on Tuesday as he met with reporters at University Hall for his weekly press conference.
Groh was peppered with a number of questions about Brooks, who had surgery on his right knee to correct a degenerative bone problem last March.
When asked if he expected Brooks to play for No. 25 Virginia (1-0) on Saturday at Syracuse (1-1), Groh replied with answers that compared to previous responses in August and September.
“It’s what I have been saying all along. We’re going day to day,” Groh said. “[I] find out his progress. When he seems ready, we’ll put him in [a game].”
While Brooks’ availability has remained a hot topic on message boards and in media outlets, Groh said he has “given it less thought than anybody else because months ago I made plans to go on without him.”
“When he comes back, it’s going to be like picking up a free agent at midseason. We’ll try to get him oriented to the system. Obviously he’ll help provide something we didn’t have the day before. Other than that, we might be going till December without him. I don’t think about it,” Groh added. “I never have a discussion about it until I’m talking to [members of the media]. Other than that, nobody else discusses it. My wife doesn’t ask me about it.”
Groh did say that his daily activities include asking Brooks how he feels.
“Sometimes he says it feels better than yesterday,” Groh said. “Sometimes he says it feels the same. Sometimes he says it doesn’t feel as good as yesterday.”
While sources have said that Brooks could be out for an extended period of time, Virginia redshirt freshman Clint Sintim, an outside linebacker, said he expects that Brooks “will be back soon enough. He is moving a lot. He is running around and he is being Ahmad.”
“As far as him coming back, we are just going to be even more ahead of the game because right now he has nothing more to do than rehab and just understand what we are doing - learning the defense. When he comes back I am sure he will be faster and better than before.”
Until Brooks does return, Sintim said the defense must move on and prepare for the upcoming challenges the 2005 schedule provides.
“One player doesn’t make a team - although Ahmad is a unique player [and] he is different from the rest - but we still have got to play as if we don’t know he is coming back or not,” Sintim added. “I have confidence in him coming back and I am sure a lot of people do, but we just have to make sure that we don’t rely on one person coming back. We have to play as if we never know if he is coming back or not.”

LUNDY TO PLAY? Virginia does not issue an injury report like NFL teams are mandated to do, but if they had one, tailback Wali Lundy would be on it with a sprained foot.
Groh said that Lundy’s playing time and availability for the Syracuse game would be determined by his performance in practice this week.
Virginia quarterback Marques Hagans said he was certain that Lundy would be in action against the Orange.
“He will be out there Saturday and ready to go,” Hagans predicted. “I expect to see Wali out there Saturday.”
Lundy had just three carries (for 29 yards) in the season opener before he left with the injury.
He returned to practice late last week, but even before he did Hagans said Lundy was playing the role of a practice cheerleader.
“Wali is a great team leader,” Hagans said of his fellow senior. “Even with him watching from the side early in the week, he still went out there and supported his team and provided a lot of energy.
“He is a great leader and it is good to have a guy like that on your team.”

DIVING INTO THE DEPTH CHART: There were only three changes on Virginia’s depth chart that was issued on Tuesday, and none of
those moves impact the starting lineup.
In the only move offensively, wide receiver Theirrien Davis, a sophomore, was listed ahead of true freshman Kevin Ogleetree as the backup to Deyon Williams at one of the wideout spots. Ogleetree did not play in the opener.
Defensively, Antonio Appleby, a freshman, emerged on the two-deep as the top reserve behind inside linebacker Mark Miller.
“[Appleby] is a player of significant promise,” Groh said.
Bryan White, who was listed as Miller’s backup, remains on the depth chart behind Kai Parham.
The final switch, at least on paper, involved Cedric Peerman. The redshirt freshman is now listed as the second option at kickoff returner, a spot he held in the opener. Peerman ranks among the national leaders with an average of 33.7 yards per kickoff return.

SOUNDING OFF: Syracuse first-year coach Greg Robinson was asked Tuesday during a teleconference about the differences in his team from their opening loss to West Virginia (15-9) and their win over Buffalo (35-0) last week.
“You struggled against West Virginia in the opener and then looked much better against Buffalo last week. What did you see as the biggest difference,” Robinson was asked.
The answer?
“The biggest difference is we played West Virginia in the opener and Buffalo in the second game,” the coach snapped.

EXTRA POINTS: Virginia has gone 6-2 following bye weeks under Groh. … Neither Virginia nor Syracuse has allowed a touchdown on defense this season. … Saturday’s game will be Virginia’s fourth-ever in a dome and the first since the 1995 Peach Bowl.

 

Cavs brace for Syracuse's version of the West Coast offense
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
September 14, 2005

Another week, another West Coast offense, or at least the Syracuse variety of the passing attack made famous by Bill Walsh more than two decades ago with the 49ers.

Don’t expect the Syracuse version to resemble the Western Michigan offense from Virginia’s home opener. In the Cavaliers’ 31-19 win over the Broncos, UVa’s defense was faced with an opponent content with throwing three-step drop, quick passes for short yardage, which was designed to keep pressure off its quarterback.

Power football

Syracuse will be more run-oriented because its offensive coordinator, Brian Pariani, came from the Denver Broncos’ system where he labored for

10 years as tight ends coach. Yes, there will be some short passing game characteristics, but more vertical passes than Western Michigan featured.

But it’s more like the Denver offense than Walsh’s old San Francisco system that he developed as an assistant with the Cincinnati Bengals.

“The West Coast offense term has grown to where it’s almost like you’re referring to a soft drink,” Virginia coach Al Groh said Tuesday. “There’s so many varieties that you can get. Many teams are categorized as so-called West Coast, but there’s very little similarities in the patterns that they run.”

True test

Saturday’s game at Syracuse’s Carrier Dome should be a better indication of what a young Virginia defense is all about. While Western Michigan put it in the air 50 times, the Orange has only gone airborne 53 times in two games.

Still, the Cavaliers didn’t give up a touchdown to Western’s offense and prevented big plays in the process even though UVa’s tackling could have been better.

“I don’t think we were necessarily tested for our style against Western Michigan because of all those three-step passes,” said UVa senior defensive end Brennan Schmidt, who is also a co-captain. “Syracuse will be a better test because I believe we’re a tough defense and they’re a tough offense and they’re going to come right at us.”

It was apparent that some of Virginia’s defensive players became frustrated as the Western game rolled on because of the visitor’s game plan to negate the Cavaliers’ pass rush with designed short passes.

“We wanted to excite the crowd with big plays, but couldn’t,” said sophomore defensive end Chris Long, who admitted he became frustrated. “Their style makes you realize you just need to fit into the defense and do your part, secure your gap, get a pass rush if you can and focus on team defense.”

Schmidt said his role changed once the game began because of Western’s style.

“We weren’t going to get to their quarterback, so it became all about getting our hands up in his face and making it hard for him to throw the ball,” Schmidt said.

Western coach Bill Cubit wanted the ball in his quarterback’s hands as short a time as possible and threw specific short passes. There wasn’t

enough time to get a pass rush in most cases. Three steps and zip, the ball was gone, as opposed to the usual five- or seven-step drops some quarterbacks take.

There were a couple of things that Groh examined after the game: points allowed, yards per attempt and yards after the catch. If you break those down, Virginia’s defense did a solid job.

Of Western’s 50 pass attempts, only a handful of passes were more than eight yards down the field. The others were in the No Cover Zone, which is anywhere from five yards beyond the line of scrimmage to back behind the line of scrimmage.

“That means you’re not going to cover those guys because if you start covering the short guys in zone [pass defense], then they start throwing the ball over your head for deeper patterns, which is the reason you’re in zone in the first place,” Groh said. “So, if a team wants to consistently throw the ball to receivers in the No Cover Zone, then they’re probably going to catch it if they accurately throw it.”

That’s exactly what Western Michigan did, which gave the Broncs a high completion percentage (33 of 50), but only for an average of 5.4 yards per attempt.

“If you do a good job of converging on the ball and you don’t let the catchers become runners, then you end up with a low yards per catch,” Groh said

Walsh’s entire West Coast philosophy was predicated on YAC (yards after catch). It was all about throwing short passes and having great athletes use their play-making ability.

“One of the Walsh tenets that he says repeatedly in his book, is that in his offense 50 percent of all the passing yardage should come on yards after the catch,” said Groh, who studied it thoroughly when assigned the task of stopping the vaunted Niners offense when he was a defensive coach for Bill Parcell’s New York Giants. “So, if that’s what you’re banking on, if there’s not much yards after catch, then you have a lot of short throws, a lot of catches for minimal yardage that don’t amount to a great deal of production.”

Virginia’s defense went into that opener blind because it was Cubit’s debut as a head coach. No one knew exactly what kind of offense he was going to run, although it was a good guess it would be a passing offense.

What Western’s offense did was put a premium on good tackling by UVa’s defense, which could have been better.

Come Saturday, it will have to be better for a different reason.

“They’re going to line up and try to pound us,” Schmidt said. “That’s the kind of challenge we like.”

This time, it won’t be touch football.

 

Double Trouble
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
By Donnie Webb
Staff writer

Redshirt freshman safety Ben Maljovec popped in the scouting videotape of University of Virginia quarterback Marques Hagans and began his descent into wonder.

Within seconds, the ultimate test was running and passing and making defenses crazy. Maljovec was hit hard by the problem facing the Syracuse University football defense.

"Quite the quarterback," Maljovec said on Tuesday. "He makes a lot of great plays. There's more than one time when I've, uh, gasped. He's made some woo plays."

The senior Wahoo is King of the Woos when it comes to leading the Virginia offense. If the Orange hopes to upset the Cavaliers at the Carrier Dome on Saturday, it will have to unplug King Wahoo.

Syracuse head coach Greg Robinson called Hagans "one of

the great competitors in the country" and a primary problem facing his defense. Robinson said if the 5-foot-10, 211-pound Hagans was a three inches taller, the nation would be talking about him as a Heisman Trophy candidate.

"I'm not big on talking strategy and tactics," Robinson said Tuesday. "What we're going to do, and it's worked before in the past, when you play with 13 men on the field, two of them spy, OK. It works normally if you've got the right kind of athletes. We might go to the 13 unit and see what we can get done with that."

Hagans pretty much ruined Syracuse last year in Virginia's 31-10 victory over the Orange in Charlottesville. Hagans completed 11-of-12 passes for 202 yards. He rushed six times for 81 yards and scored two touchdowns including a 59-yard bolt on a broken play in the first quarter.

Syracuse defensive end Ryan LaCasse said the long touchdown run by Hagans in the first quarter was particularly frustrating.

"He is a nimble guy, very athletic, makes a lot of guys miss," LaCasse said. "He's almost like a shorter version of Michael Vick out there. Just when you thought you had him all wrapped up, you miss a gap and he sprung us for 60 yards. Just stuff like that is really a little bit demoralizing to a defense."

Hagans creates the awful dilemma because of his dual threat as a runner and passer. His speed and elusiveness helped him rush, either by design or escape, for almost 400 yards last season. That stresses defensive linemen who must decide whether to stay in their lanes or suffer the loss of contain.

On top of that, Hagans is an underrated passer. He competed 63 percent of his throws a year ago. That was the fourth-most accurate season in school history.

Robinson said he saw a pass in Virginia's opener against Western Michigan that left him stunned.

"I saw him throw, sliding to his right with his shoulders turned to the sideline, throw a ball 55 yards dead on the money and I mean, just fire it down the field," Robinson said. "And without his whole body to give him momentum. And he's very accurate when he throws. He can fire it or he can take something off it. We still haven't talked about his legs yet. You've all seen him maneuver and run around. That's what he did last year. He does it all the time.

"He threatens you in a lot of ways. He also threatens you in the way he competes. We have to emphasize to our team don't think that any moment this guy is done because there are plays. There's a play against Georgia Tech where he's hemmed in on the sideline and you think it's all said and done and all of a sudden, he pops up and loses about 10 more yards, comes all the way around the whole length of the field and completes a ball for a 25-yard gain. He does things like that all the time."

On Sunday, Virginia coach Al Groh got into a playful verbal joust with sports writers on a conference call. Groh was asked about the four sacks recorded by Western Michigan and Groh reminded the writers about how many times Hagans launched deep passes.

LaCasse, who was named to the Big East Conference honor roll for his performance against Buffalo, said Hagans makes every mistake hurt because of his big-play abilities. He said Western Michigan blitzed a great deal and made the tough decision to send more than Virginia could block.

For what it's worth, Hagans was sacked four times and intercepted twice. Robinson has yet to unleash the Orange blitz in two games, but it's probably coming.

Robinson said Hagans is not going to be sacked often. He said if Hagans gets in trouble, he has exceptional lower body strength to break tackles.

"You can see the way he can shrug people off," Robinson said. "He reminds me in some ways of Mark Brunell. The way just with torquing his lower body, he can throw people off. He does that very well. He has a lot of qualities about him that are difficult to defend."

Notes:Starting offensive tackle Kurt Falke was on crutches Tuesday. His left foot is in a cast and his left knee is wrapped. Robinson called him doubtful ... Freshman Nick Chestnut continues to practice as a wide receiver ... No decision has been made on a starting place-kicker. Robinson said walk-on John Barker is back in the rotation getting live snaps this week in practice.
 

U.Va. Report
The Virginian-Pilot
© September 14, 2005

Return of Brooks a mystery, but Groh isn’t overly concerned

CHARLOTTESVILLE — Virginia coach Al Groh insists he is not losing sleep wondering when All-American linebacker Ahmad Brooks will be ready to play.

“I give it less thought than anybody else,” Groh said Tuesday. “I’m really being honest when I say that months ago, I made plans to go on without him.”

Virginia was without Brooks, 1 of 3 finalists for the Butkus Award last season, in its season opener against Western Michigan Sept. 3. And Brooks is not listed on the depth chart for Saturday’s game at Syracuse.

Does that mean Brooks definitely won’t play against the Orange? Groh, always reluctant to discuss injuries, would not say at his weekly press conference.

“We go from day to day; we find out his progress,” Groh said. “When he’s game ready, he’s going to play.”

Brooks, a junior from Woodbridge, underwent surgery last December to stimulate bone growth and repair a degenerative condition in his right knee. He returned to practice before the season opener, and his status has been a hot topic among fans and the media.

But not around the Virginia team, Groh said.

“Nobody else discusses it,” Groh said. “My wife doesn’t ask me. The coaches don’t ask me.”

Players have learned not to ask as well. Bryan White, 1 of 2 players who filled in for Brooks against Western Michigan, said Brooks has looked great in practice. But he said he had no idea when Brooks will play.

“We don’t know much about the situation,” White said. “We can’t wait to have him back, but like any injury, you’ve got to move on.”

Lundy ''day to day’’ but is working at full speed

Not surprisingly, Groh also offered little information on the status of tailback Wali Lundy, who sprained his foot against Western Michigan, other than to say the senior is also “day to day.”

Lundy is listed as the starter on the depth chart, which is compiled by the school’s sports information staff.

Quarterback Marques Hagans said Lundy has been going full speed in practice.

“I expect to see Wali out there Saturday,” Hagans said.

Freshman from Beach moving up on the chart
One player who appears to have benefited from Brooks’ absence is Antonio Appleby, a true freshman from Virginia Beach’s Salem High. Appleby, who played on special teams against Western Michigan, has moved up to the second team at inside linebacker, where he’s listed behind senior Mark Miller at Brooks’ position.

“We’re trying to step it up a little bit with him,” said Groh, who called Appleby a player of “significant promise.”

White agreed.

“It takes most of us a year to get the defense,” he said. “He’s picked up the defense remarkably well.”

Groh turning up volume to get the Cavs ready

Groh planned to pump music onto the practice field to try to simulate the noise at Syracuse’s Carrier Dome, known as one of the louder venues in college football.

A fan of classic rock, Groh, 61, said he would not impose his tastes on the team.

Good thing, said Hagans, who imagined Groh playing “country music” or “ Celine Dion.”

“I’d like to throw some rap on there,” Hagans said.


— ED MILLER

 

Farm talent harvests
Cedric Peerman has gone from working his family's farm and playing Group A football to scoring a touchdown in his first game at Virginia in two years.
BY DARRYL SLATER
247-4641
September 14, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- The tobacco goes into the ground every May out in Gladys, and for 70 years, the Peerman men have crouched around the small plants, working up the soil with their fingers.

It's a delicate process, nurturing this crop. Make sure the leaves turn just yellow enough. Pick them and store them in the barn with the temperate at 90 degrees. Wait for them to yellow some more. Then dry them, but don't let them blacken. Never let them blacken. You want 'em brown now, just the right shade of tan.

Cedric Peerman grew up watching this summer ritual. His dad, Stanley, ran the farm - just like his dad, Samuel, and his dad, George, who bought the land in the 1930s. They'd grow eight acres of tobacco in a good summer and, early every September, truck the leaves down to market in South Boston.

Cedric took to the practice early. By age 8, he was driving the tractor, spraying insecticide around the plants to kill worms. During summers in high school, he worked nine-hour days on the farm.

Just as he caught on quickly then, Peerman has adjusted well to Division I-A college football as a redshirt freshman running back for Virginia. In his first game two weeks ago against Western Michigan, he replaced injured starter Wali Lundy and fumbling second-stringers Michael Johnson and Jason Snelling. Peerman carried the ball 16 times for 69 yards and scored a 1-yard touchdown that clinched the Cavaliers' 31-19 win.

"I don't think it was ever a doubt in my mind that I could do it," Peerman said. "Football is football wherever you go."

Peerman played at Group A William Campbell High and was the group's 2003 Player of the Year. He arrived at U.Va. last fall motivated by two other former Group A running backs, brothers Thomas and Julius Jones of Powell Valley High. Thomas is U.Va.'s all-time leading rusher, and Julius played at Notre Dame. Both are now in the NFL.

The 5-foot-10, 185-pound Peerman figured he was at least strong enough to compete at U.Va. All those years on the farm ensured that. Plus, he started lifting weights as a ninth grader.

U.Va. quarterback Marques Hagans, Peerman's lifting partner, said Peerman is, pound for pound, one of the Cavaliers' strongest players. Peerman bench-presses 375 pounds, power cleans 352, squats 535 and incline-presses 305.

"It was kinda delightful to see he got the opportunity to play for as much hard work as he did," Hagans said.

But Peerman still is playing behind Lundy, a proven senior. U.Va. head coach Al Groh was pleased with Peerman's first-game performance, but ...

"I don't think he deserves the Medal of Honor here yet, either," he said.

Down Route 501 in Gladys, Peerman's grandpa, Samuel, sat in his living room and listened to some of the Western Michigan game on the radio. Samuel is 85 now, retired from tobacco farming for about 20 years.

The Peermans still own the farm, but they stopped planting tobacco last year. Just some corn and a few pigs out there now. "We didn't have enough tobacco to continue to fool with it after the government started messin' around with it," Samuel said, referring to subsidies that discourage tobacco farming.

After the market closed in South Boston a few years back, they had to drive to Danville to sell the stuff. Then the price went down, hurting small farmers like them. So Peerman's dad took a job as a mechanic at the Georgia-Pacific paper mill down the road in Brookneal.

But it still is early September, and while a fourth-generation Peerman starts a promising football career, there is also hope - at least by ritual - out on the old tobacco fields in Gladys.

"Still got a barn full of it left over," Samuel said. "Some of it's probably got some mold on it. But we're gonna try to sell it this year."

Cavaliers unleash the bomb
Virginia has played just one game, but the Cavaliers look like a different team from last year.
BY DARRYL SLATER
247-4641
September 13, 2005
 

First play of the game, and away the ball went, out of quarterback Marques Hagans' right hand, toward the end zone. Wide receiver Ottowa Anderson caught it before going down at the Western Michigan 6-yard line. Silence for a moment - disbelief perhaps - among the 61,000-strong at Scott Stadium.

Sixteen seconds and that 57-yard pass was all it took for Hagans, Anderson and the Virginia football offense to show that these Cavaliers have the potential to be very different from last year's run-oriented group.

Granted, the pass came in U.Va.'s season opener two weeks ago against Western Michigan, which lost to Toledo 56-23 last Saturday. And who knows if Hagans can replicate his opening-night performance, a college-high 252 passing yards, on Saturday at Syracuse?

But U.Va. coach Al Groh thinks Hagans is more qualified now to complete deep passes. Hagans might have to throw more often if running back Wali Lundy misses the game with a sprained left foot he suffered in the opener. Backups Michael Johnson and Jason Snelling, a fullback, both fumbled twice after replacing Lundy, and Cedric Peerman is just a redshirt freshman.

LUNDY'S STATUS IS STILL QUESTIONABLE. HERE ARE FIVE MORE QUESTIONS AS THE CAVALIERS PREPARE TO FACE THE ORANGE IN THE CARRIER DOME FOR THE FIRST TIME. SO IS THIS THE BEGINNING OF MARQUES HAGANS, POCKET PASSER?

"He can launch it 80 yards any time, anywhere," said Bill Musgrave, the Washington Redskins' quarterbacks coach who held the same position at U.Va. during Hagans' first two years. "He can throw it like very few people on the face of the earth can."

OK, so that might be a stretch. But Hagans in the opener completed three passes for at least 40 yards: the 57-yarder to Anderson, a 40-yarder to Deyon Williams later in the first quarter and a 46-yarder to Anderson in the second. Hagans' previous career-long pass was 54 yards last year against Syracuse.

Don't peg the Cavs as a passing team just yet. Hagans threw 25 passes against Western Michigan, and U.Va. ran 41 times. Last year's averages: 23.7 passing attempts per game, 45.8 rushing.

WHO ARE THESE GUYS PLAYING RECEIVER FOR VIRGINIA?

Believe it or not, they are, indeed, U.Va. wideouts.

Anderson led the group in the opener with 109 yards - the first time in 29 games that a Virginia wide receiver had at least 100 yards. Groh faced questions about the receivers' abilities throughout the preseason. And at least against Western Michigan - 1-10 a year ago - the Cavs' wideouts appeared able.

Kevin Ogletree is one of three true freshman receivers who didn't line up in Week 1. But Groh indicated that, with some progress, Ogletree would play.

WILL THE CAVALIERS EVEN NEED AHMAD BROOKS ON SATURDAY?

When the curtain went up on the Greg Robinson Era two weeks ago in the Carrier Dome, the Orange offense flopped. Syracuse had 103 yards of total offense - its lowest since 1976. The Orange is struggling as it adjusts to the West Coast offense Robinson has installed in his first season. (Dismiss the 487 yards Syracuse gained Saturday against garbage opponent Buffalo.)

Brooks, an inside linebacker and U.Va.'s best defensive player, has been MIA so far as he recovers from offseason knee surgery. Conservative thinking says to let Brooks recuperate more. Cynical minds know that, if the Cavs lose, they'd regret keeping Brooks out when he could play - even at less than 100 percent.

IF LUNDY IS OUT, WHO IS IN AT RUNNING BACK?

Peerman seems like the logical choice, if only because he showed in limited duty that he can actually hold onto the ball. But it's hard to bench Johnson's speed. He ran 4.2 seconds in the 40-yard dash last year, Lundy said.

Unless Peerman keeps up his first-game success (16 carries for 69 yards and a touchdown) and Johnson stops fumbling, it's clear - and obvious - that U.Va.'s running game hinges on Lundy's presence.

WHAT KIND OF WEST COAST OFFENSE IS THIS?

Syracuse quarterback Perry Patterson played pitifully against West Virginia: 15 of 31 for 85 yards and two interceptions. Against Buffalo, the Orange passed 22 times and ran 55 times - numbers reminiscent of the previous regime, which, under Paul Pasqualoni, favored rushing and often displayed aerial impotence.

Whatever happened to the West Coast offense relying on short passes rather than runs? Well, Syracuse's players were recruited for Pasqualoni's system, not Robinson's. Which explains why the starting receivers, sophomore Rice Moss and junior Tim Lane, entered the season with four combined catches.

Injuries create uncertainties for Cavs
Condition of junior linebacker Brooks, senior running back Lundy still unclear for Saturday
Bayless Parsley, Cavalier Daily Senior Associate Editor

If you're planning on tuning into ESPN2 this Saturday to see Virginia play under the roof at Syracuse, make sure you've got your media guide handy. You'll need it to match names and faces to some of the numbers you'll see running around the field -- numbers you won't find on display behind the glass at Mincer's.

Thanks to a series of injuries, Virginia's projected starting lineups this season have been, to use one of Al Groh's most-recited responses as of late, "day-to-day."

The most glaring absence -- to fans and media alike -- has been that of first-team All-American inside linebacker Ahmad Brooks.

The most frustrating thing about Brooks' status is that it remains completely unknown. Groh maintains a firm policy within the program regarding injured players -- they aren't discussed. As a result, rumors about Brooks' surgically-repaired knee are still rumors. And for each day they aren't confirmed, the whispers of concern grow louder.

"When he's ready, we're ready" is Groh's automatic response to queries about injured players. When it comes to his star linebacker, you'll hear more of the same.

As game week reaches its hump day, he still doesn't appear to be ready. Even if Brooks were to wake up tomorrow morning and proclaim himself 100 percent, it would make little difference. The amount of rust that has undoubtedly accumulated after months of rehab and sporadic practice sessions would most likely keep him out of the starting lineup for the second time in two chances this year.

"As with most players who have had surgery, it will be a while until what was normal is normal again -- play or not play," Groh said about Brooks -- hardly an encouraging sign for a player who relies on instinct and his unrivaled athleticism to make the plays which Virginia fans have grown accustomed to seeing the last two years.

When Brooks showed up to Scott Stadium two weeks ago wearing a Tracy McGrady throwback instead of a No. 34 jersey, the assumption was that his return to the field was simply being put on hold. A two-week layover before Syracuse and a less-than-stellar opponent in Western Michigan caused many to view the delay as a way to shore up strength in the knee for the long road ahead.

Now, those assumptions are tenuous at best. Knowing he doesn't have a crystal ball, Groh is prepared for a season without the star of his defense.

"I'm being honest when I say that, months ago, I made plans to go on without [Brooks]," Groh said. "When he comes back, it's going to be like picking up a free agent at mid-season."

Of far less immediate concern is the sprained foot of starting tailback Wali Lundy. He pulled up limping on a 28-yard run in the first quarter against Western Michigan and did not return. Although he ran off the field gingerly, Lundy did not appear to be overcome with pain -- a good indication that a two-week rest will have Lundy ready to roll on Saturday.

But while the senior hasn't been officially ruled out of playing at Syracuse, he hasn't officially been cleared to go, either.

Coded language among players and coaches doesn't do anything to clarify Lundy's status.

"We don't talk about injuries around here," freshman tailback Cedric Peerman said.

"We're just going day-to-day," Groh said in a concise reply to questions about Lundy's foot.

But as opposed to Brooks, who has participated in practices in a limited fashion, Lundy did return to the first team in preparation for the Orange this week. That was enough to convince quarterback Marques Hagans of Lundy's ability to contribute in the Carrier Dome.

"[Coach Groh] doesn't really talk about injuries, but I expect to see Wali out there on Saturday," Hagans said.

When he's ready, we're ready.

 

Sound performance Groh's practice goal
Coach has music blaring to prepare the Cavaliers for noise in Carrier Dome
Richmond Times-Dispatch Sep 14, 2005
U.VA. AT SYRACUSE
SATURDAY: Noon ON THE AIR: TV - ESPN2; Radio - WRVA (1140), 11:30 a.m.

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Crank it up.

That's what University of Virginia football coach Al Groh planned to do at practice yesterday. No. 25-ranked U.Va. (1-0) plays Syracuse (1-1) at the Carrier Dome on Saturday afternoon, and indoor football will be a new experience for Groh's players.

To give them a sense of what to expect at the 49,252-seat Dome, which should be close to filled Saturday, Groh wanted music blaring at practice.

The Carrier Dome isn't the largest indoor football stadium in the United States, but "I'm told it's as loud as or louder than any of them," Groh said.

Later this season, the Cavaliers expect to encounter significant crowd noise at Maryland and Miami, and Groh said they "try to work on those things early enough in the year so that it's not a novel thing when you get to a stage like this."

As for yesterday's playlist, Groh, a classic-rock fan, said he planned to consult with the team captains and "ask them if they have anything that they'd like to put on there. Then I'll fill in the blanks."

Senior quarterback Marques Hagans is one of those captains.

"I hope they throw in some rap, some Young Jeezy," Hagans said.

Whatever works for his players, Groh said - to a point.

"We can't have too many F-bombs in there and so forth," he said.

The Cavs haven't played indoors since the 1998 Peach Bowl, in which they lost 35-33 to Georgia in the Georgia Dome at Atlanta. - Jeff White

 

U.VA. NOTES
Richmond Times-Dispatch Sep 14, 2005

ONE DAY AT A TIME: No question-and-answer session with football coach Al Groh these days would be complete without multiple queries about all-ACC linebacker Ahmad Brooks' status. Yesterday's news conference at University Hall was no exception.

Brooks, a 6-4, 260-pound junior, hasn't played since having surgery in late March to correct a degenerative bone problem in his right knee. Might his 2005 debut come Saturday when 25th-ranked Virginia (1-0) plays at Syracuse (1-1)?

If Groh knew, he wasn't saying yesterday. Brooks' health may be the hot topic among U.Va. fans, but Groh's mind, he said, is on other matters.

"I give it less thought than anybody else," Groh said, "because I'm really being honest when I say [that] months ago I made plans to go on without him. When he comes back, it's going to be like picking up a free agent at midseason. We'll try to get him oriented into the system, and obviously it'll help provide something that we didn't have the day before."

Other than that, Groh said, "we might be going till December without him, and I don't think about it. . . . The only time I have a discussion about it is when I'm talking with you guys."

Brooks has been practicing with the team, but to what extent, Groh has declined to disclose. Every day, Groh said, he asks Brooks for a progress report.

"Sometimes he says it feels better than yesterday," Groh said. "Sometimes he says it feels the same. Sometimes he says it doesn't feel as good as yesterday."

Defensive end Chris Long said Brooks' teammates will "be ecstatic when he comes back." The Cavaliers' coaching staff won't be unhappy, either. Brooks led U.Va. in tackles in 2003 and '04.

"When he's ready, we're ready," Groh said.

ROAD WARRIOR: Syracuse's Carrier Dome can a difficult place for visiting teams to play, but Long is undeterred. As a true freshman last season, Long said, he especially enjoyed playing at Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech, "because you kind of feed off the energy from the opposing crowd."

Long, a first-year starter, had seven tackles, including three for loss, in U.Va.'s season-opening victory over Western Michigan on Sept. 3.

RUNNING PAST THE BULLS: One of U.Va.'s goals Saturday will be to slow down Syracuse tailback Damien Rhodes, the reigning Big East offensive player of the week. Rhodes, a 6-0 211-pound senior, rushed 28 times for 236 yards and four touchdowns in the Orange's 31-0 rout of Buffalo at the Carrier Dome last weekend.

Finding room to run against Virginia figures to be more challenging for Rhodes, who rushed 10 times for 34 yards in Syracuse's loss at Scott Stadium last season.

"Damien would be the first to tell you there were a couple holes there that I could have run through [against Buffalo]," Syracuse's first-year coach, Greg Robinson, said on the Big East teleconference Monday.

ALL IN GOOD TIME: U.Va.'s starting center, graduate student Brian Barthelmes, has been at that position for only about a month. That's one reason quarterback Marques Hagans never lined up in the shotgun against WMU.

"We hadn't taken many reps at it yet." said Barthelmes, a converted offensive guard. "That's something you don't want to mess around with - ball security - if you're not ready for it. So when I'm ready and Marques is ready and the coaches feel safe, we'll get going on it."

THE NEXT GENERATION: Making his first appearance on U.Va.'s depth chart is Antonio Appleby, a 6-4, 240-pound true freshman from Virginia Beach. Appleby is listed as the backup to senior Mark Miller at one inside linebacker spot. Should Brooks leave for the NFL after this season, as expected, Appleby could well start alongside Kai Parham in 2006.

"He is a player of significant promise," Groh said of Appleby, who saw limited special-teams action in the opener.

REGIONAL RIVALS: Syracuse defensive tackle Tony Jenkins and U.Va. offensive guard Marshal Ausberry were teammates at West Springfield High School. Also, three other Orange players - Andrew Lewis and brothers Daniel and Derek Bailey - are graduates of Centreville High. So is Marcus Hamilton, who starts at cornerback for U.Va.

In all, Syracuse has seven players on its roster from Virginia.

BOUND FOR THE A-10: Former U.Va. basketball standout Gary Forbes told The Times-Dispatch on Friday that he was likely headed to the University of Massachusetts, and that is indeed his destination.

Forbes, a 6-6 swingman, plans to begin classes at UMass this semester. After sitting out the 2005-06 season as a transfer, he'll have two years of eligibility. - Jeff White

 

No timetable for Brooks' return
By Andy Bitter
Lynchburg News & Advance
September 14, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE - The ongoing saga of Ahmad Brooks' surgically repaired right knee continues to draw the interest of Virginia fans and media. That doesn't mean UVa head coach Al Groh is ready to declare when the junior linebacker will return to the playing field.
The injury news was the same at Groh's Tuesday press conference as it has been since the beginning of training camp: the Cavaliers don't know when they're getting their star linebacker back.

Brooks, 6-foot-4, 249-pound All-American, is not listed on the team's depth chart for Saturday's game at Syracuse. Senior Mark Miller will again start in his place alongside Kai Parham at middle linebacker.

Groh reiterated his position that he honestly doesn't know when Brooks will return.

"That's what I've been saying all along," he said. "We go from day-to-day, we find out his progress and when he's game ready, he's going to play.

"I give it less thought than anyone else because I'm really being honest when I say months ago, I made plans to go on without him. When he comes back, it's going to be like picking up a free agent at midseason. We'll try to get him oriented into the system. Obviously, he'll help provide something that we didn't have the day before. Other than that, we might be going to December without him, and I don't think about it."

Brooks' absence does not appear to be affecting the team, however.

"We don't talk about it," sophomore defensive end Chris Long said. "We see Ahmad and we're supportive like we'd be of anyone else.

"Frankly, it hasn't been a distraction. I think we're going to be ecstatic when he comes back."

When or if he comes back?

Said Long: "I'd say when."

Lundy likely to play

Though Groh would not say, it appears tailback Wali Lundy will be ready to play after suffering a left foot sprain in first quarter of the season opener against Western Michigan. Lundy carried the ball just three times for 29 yards before leaving the game.

"We're just going day-to-day," Groh said of Lundy, echoing his statement on Brooks.

However, Lundy is listed as the starting tailback on the depth chart, ahead of Michael Johnson, who remains No. 2 despite fumbling twice in the opener, and Cedric Peerman (William Campbell), who ran for 69 yards on 16 carries and put the game away with a fourth-quarter touchdown.

Peerman said Lundy will be ready to go against Syracuse.

Moving on up

Antonio Appleby is listed as a backup middle linebacker behind Miller. Appleby, a 6-foot-4, 240-pound freshman from Salem High in Virginia Beach, went in for one special teams play in the opener and could help the depth at middle linebacker with Brooks' status uncertain.

"He's shown a lot of progress," senior middle linebacker Bryan White said. "He's a young guy, but he's not acting like it. He's playing real strong and he's learning the defense real well. I think he's doing a good job."

Turn up the volume

To prepare for the difficult acoustics of the Carrier Dome, generally considered one of the louder stadiums in the country, UVa plans to practice with different music blaring in the background this week.

"We've got some lively stuff coming here today," Groh said. "It's going to be a pretty diverse choice."

Diverse yet monitored.

"Obviously, in dealing with the neighborhood situation and representative of the high standards of this institution, we are monitoring the verbal content of some of the (music)," Groh joked.

Extra points

The Cavaliers dropped two spots to No. 25 in the Associated Press poll this week despite being idle last weekend. ? With Groh as head coach, UVa is 6-2 coming out of bye weeks. ? Kickoff for Virginia's home game against Duke on Sept. 24 has been set for 3:30 p.m. The game will not be televised, but will be shown as a Web cast on ESPN360.com.

- Andy Bitter

 

Lundy Likely Back, But Brooks Is Not

By Mark Schlabach
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, September 14, 2005; Page E03

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Sept. 13 -- Virginia starting tailback Wali Lundy should be back for Saturday's game at Syracuse, but all-American linebacker Ahmad Brooks will probably remain sidelined. And Coach Al Groh isn't saying when he expects Brooks to return.

Brooks, from Hylton High, didn't play in the No. 23 Cavaliers' 31-19 win over Western Michigan on Sept. 3. The junior is still recovering from surgery in March to regenerate bone growth in his right knee and was limited to running and lifting weights during training camp.

Groh indicated Tuesday that Brooks is still limited in practice, but declined to say if the inside linebacker will play against the Orange at the Carrier Dome. Brooks was not listed on the two-deep depth chart released by the school Tuesday.

"I've given it less thought than anybody else because months ago I made plans to go on without him," Groh said. "When he comes back, it's going to be like picking up a free agent at midseason. We'll try to get him oriented to the system. Obviously, he'll help provide something we didn't have the day before. Other than that, we might be going until December without him. I don't think about it."

The Cavaliers might wait until after Saturday's game for Brooks's return because of the FieldTurf playing surface in the Carrier Dome. Brooks, the team's leading tackler the past two seasons and considered a possible high-round choice in April's NFL draft, could be eyeing a return before the Oct. 1 game at Maryland. The Cavaliers will play struggling Duke at Scott Stadium on Sept. 24.

"Sometimes he says it feels better than yesterday, sometimes he says it feels the same and sometimes he says it doesn't feel better than yesterday," Groh said. "As with most players who go through surgery, it will be awhile before what was normal is normal again."

Senior Bryan White, who has played more at inside linebacker because of Brooks's absence, said Brooks has looked better the past two weeks.

"He looks great to me," White said. "He's been working out and looks good. It's just a matter of time" before Brooks is back.

Lundy, a senior from Willingboro, N.J., sprained his left foot during the first quarter against Western Michigan. Lundy, who ran for more than 2,600 yards and 33 touchdowns during his first three seasons at Virginia, had 29 yards on three carries against the Broncos.

Groh said Lundy had a limited role in practices during the team's off week, and he was listed as the number one tailback on the depth chart, ahead of Michael Johnson and Cedric Peerman.

Peerman, from Gladys, Va., ran 16 times for 69 yards and one touchdown against Western Michigan, after Johnson and fullback Jason Snelling were benched for fumbling twice each.

Game-Time Decision

The Duke game is scheduled to kick off at 3:30 p.m. . . . Linebacker Darnell Carter of Morrow High in Englewood, N.J., became the 16th player to orally commit to play for the Cavaliers in 2006. He is the sixth prospect from New Jersey to choose Virginia. . . . Virginia basketball player Gary Forbes, who averaged 9.4 points and 4.1 rebounds last season, is close to transferring to Massachusetts. Virginia announced last week that Forbes, a 6-foot-6 swingman, was leaving the team.