Hagans uses feet to keep UVa moving
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
September 30, 2005

Most coaches grimace when they watch the pocket collapse around their quarterback. Not Al Groh. He’s probably smiling in anticipation because that’s when the magic begins.

That’s when Marques Hagans relies on something deep within him to take control as he ducks and darts and jukes his way through a maze of bewildered defenders.

Playmaker

There is nothing quite as exciting as watching a quarterback who knows how to turn chicken feathers into chicken salad. Must be something in the water down in the Hampton area, because look at the list of dazzling quarterbacks produced from that hotspot in Virginia.

Let’s see there’s Hagans, Aaron Brooks, Ronald Curry, Bryan Randall, Marcus Vick, and, oh yes, Michael Vick.

Hmmm. No wonder most of the recruiting world rolls into that area on a regular basis.

Hagans, like the others, is a piece of work. Nicknamed Biscuit (He refuses to explain why), the Virginia senior carries a huge load on his ample shoulder pads. Critics believe that the Wahoos will only go as far this year as Hagans can take them. Biscuit hopes it’s for the whole breakfast buffet.

A lot like Joe

Love to watch that guy run. He reminds this columnist of some of the greats, but mostly of a quarterback who used to drive ACC defenses crazy - former Georgia Tech quarterback Joe Hamilton.

Hamilton was a double threat, just like Hagans. He rolled up 10,640 total yards in four years as leader of the Ramblin’ Wreck, including 1,758 yards rushing, the second-highest total ever by an ACC quarterback. Clemson’s Woody Dantzler had more, but everybody knows he was really a running back playing quarterback in Bowden’s spread offense.

Hagans hasn’t been playing QB long enough at UVa to compile those kinds of numbers, but when he takes off, it is a thing of beauty.

“To me [Hagans] is the mainstay in their offense,” said Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen, whose Terps host the Cavs this weekend. “He has tremendous evade ability and makes good plays out of bad ones. That’s where he’s most dangerous.”

I’m not the only one who thinks of Hamilton when Hagans tucks and runs.

“He kind of reminds me of Joe Hamilton,” the Fridge said. “He has the ability to run, throw and create. He’s a very dangerous player.”

Hagans prefers to be most dangerous with his arm, as evidenced last weekend when he tossed four touchdown passes against Duke. But still, the most exciting 15 seconds money can buy is when Hagans breaks loose.

He has several long runs to his credit, but he has several others where he has escaped from sure losses, and as big Ralph mentioned, turned them into big plays.

Hagans killed Syracuse when he romped across the Carrier Dome’s field turf for 110 yards on a career-high 14 carries, including a back-breaking 26-yard dash to the Orange 34 on the Wahoos’ winning drive. Afterward, he was so exhausted and dehydrated that he required an IV immediately after the game.

“Syracuse got pressure into the backfield a lot quicker, so they altered some of the timing I could use to go through my [passing] progressions,” Hagans said this week. “Coach says that, ‘If you’re going to make a decision, to go ahead and do it.’ My God-given ability just takes over and I was able to make some plays.”

Groh (both of them), head coach Al, and QBs coach Mike Groh, encourage Hagans to go with it.

Friedgen has taken notice.

“Watching the tape, Syracuse had a guy spying on [Hagans],” the Terps coach said. “You have to do some exceptional things to allow for his running ability, passing ability and his athletic ability. I think Virginia has more confidence in him now because they’re putting the ball in his hands and letting him get the job done.”

Hagans has noticed how his running can break open a game and keep defenses honest, much the way quarterbacks from those mentioned above to San Francisco 49ers quarterback Steve Young and Eagles’ QBs Donovan McNabb and Randall Cunningham used to do when defenses thought they had shut down those offensive attacks.

“Especially if it’s a second-and-long or a third-and-long,” Hagans said. “[A first down run] kind of takes the wind out of the defense’s sails. Then they’re more focused on you as to what you can do coming out of the pocket and that opens up more passing lanes.

“When second or third comes along again, they’re going to be more concerned about what the quarterback is going to do in there,” Hagans explained. “Maybe that’s less pressure for me to worry about and that gives me more time for my progressions or opens things up for a running back to get a first down.”

Heading into College Park this weekend, Hagans ranks fourth in the ACC in total offense with 223 yards per game and leads all quarterbacks in rushing yardage.

But as the Fridge aptly pointed out, Hagans isn’t a one-dimensional guy either. He’s third in the league in passing efficiency in spite of five interceptions in the first two games. That was a point of emphasis against Duke last week.

“Throwing for four TDs meant a lot, but the thing I was most proud of was that I didn’t throw any interceptions,” Hagans said. “Interceptions plague you somewhat. You hate to turn the ball over. It’s just like giving them the ball. Being a leader and the quarterback, when I turn the ball over it amplifies it that much more.”

The support he received from his teammates at Syracuse meant the most to him of anything he accomplished that day. Three interceptions could have caused doubt. It didn’t.

“It was great how my teammates and coaches kept rallying around me up there,” Hagans said. “They never pointed a finger and never got down on me. That shows how much this team has come together.”

It also shows how much faith everyone has in Hagans’ ability to get the job done.

Blessed with three emerging tight ends, all playmakers, some emerging wide receivers, particularly Deyon Williams, and a plethora of running backs now that Wali Lundy is healthy again, Hagans believes this is the most balanced Virginia offense in the Groh era, boasting the most weapons.

The Cavs are third in the ACC in scoring (32 ppg) and haven’t even clicked on all cylinders to this point. Hagans believes that will come at the right time, which could be this weekend.

He might have to be at his best at Byrd Stadium to keep the 19th-ranked Cavaliers undefeated. While he must throw, he may have to win this one with his legs. But he’s ready.

“I have to give credit to my strength and conditioning coach and to my quarterback coach for me being in good enough shape to run like that at the end of games,” Hagans said. “Coach Mike always makes me run after practice even though sometimes I get mad. But I appreciate it because it has paid dividends down the stretch.”

The biggest dividends are still out there.

 

Third down not a charm for Terrapins
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
September 30, 2005

There are some obvious similarities in the offensive statistics posted by the football teams at Maryland and Virginia.

Maryland ranks fourth in the ACC in total offense. Virginia is third.

The starting quarterbacks on both units are very resourceful, ranking among the top signal-callers in the ACC in passing efficiency.

There is, however, a glaring statistical difference and it may in turn produce a winner on Saturday at Maryland, as the 19th-ranked Cavaliers (3-0, 1-0 ACC) invade College Park, Md.

Virginia has made the most of its opportunities on third down, converting a league-best 51.2 percent of its chances (22 of 43). The Cavaliers are No. 14 in the nation at converting a first down when faced with a third-down situation.

Maryland (2-2, 1-1) on the other hand, well, they have been downright awful at converting on third downs.

Only five of the 117 Division I-A teams have been worse than the Terps at moving the chains on third down. That select group (North Texas, Syracuse, Mississippi, San Jose State and Louisiana Tech) has a combined record of 4-10.

"We're still not very good on third down," said Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen after beating Wake Forest last week. "We have a lot of work to do. We're not a finished product."

To Maryland's credit, they have been able to get first downs - just not on third down. The Terrapins have made 82 first downs in their four games, 44 through the air, 33 on the ground and five by penalty.

That has left Freidgen scratching his head a little bit.

"We have to get better [on third down]," Freidgen said. "It's amazing to me that we are one of the leaders in the conference in first downs, so just think where we'd be if we were converting on third downs.

"We're pretty good in 7-10 yard situations, it's 2-6 [yard situations] where we're having some problems."

Against Wake Forest, Maryland was 3 for 12 on third-down attempts and a number of those drives stalled inside the red zone and turned into field goals.

Quarterback Sam Hollenbach, who passed for 169 yards against Wake, was part of the reason, as the junior went 1 for 8 through the air for just seven yards on third down. He was 4-of-8 passing for 26 yards on third down against West Virginia on Sept. 17 and only two of those four completions went for a first down.

"We know we can make plays that, for whatever reason, didn't get made [against Wake Forest]," Hollenbach told reporters. "I know that sounds like an excuse, but it's better than 'We just didn't know what to do' or 'They shut us down.' We had plays there that we have to make.

"When we get in a close game, those plays need to be made."

Like Virginia has attempted to do this season, Maryland has made an emphasis to become a balanced offense. While the Cavaliers have focused on getting the passing game up to speed, Maryland has attempted to energize its rushing attack.

"I've been trying to establish the run because I think in the long run that will help us, but we have been throwing the ball very well," Friedgen said. "I think we could have thrown it more [against Wake Forest], but I like being really balanced on first down. I'm sure at the end of the season it will balance itself out."

Against Wake Forest, Maryland ran the ball 26 times on first down for 75 yards and they passed it six times, five of which came in the first half as the Terps built a 13-3 halftime lead.

A TESTING SESSION: Speculation surfaced earlier this week that Virginia linebacker Ahmad Brooks would make his season debut on Saturday at Maryland.

While that may be true, Virginia coach Al Groh said on Thursday that the final decision on Brooks' availability could and would not be made until after a practice session, which came later in the day.

"We are going to get a few more looks at him," Groh said of Thursday's practice. "That's been the case each Thursday - we make a determination if it is reasonable to go forward or not."

Brooks has been tested in previous Thursday sessions (prior to games) in hopes of seeing enough out of the junior, but Groh said, "so far we haven't passed through that stage yet."

Brooks, a junior, has been sidelined from game competition since offseason surgery to correct a degenerative condition in his right knee. He was cleared by doctors in August to return to practice but has not dressed for a game.

Groh did not offer any new insight on the injuries to left tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson (knee) or center Brian Barthelmes (ankle), and it could likely be a game-time decision for both offensive linemen, like it was last week for right tackle Brad Butler (shoulder).

 

Groh provides nuggets on Brooks
Hargrave wing likes UVa
By Doug Doughty
THE ROANOKE TIMES

Maryland football coach Ralph Friedgen said earlier this week that the Terrapins would prepare as if Ahmad Brooks would play for Virginia.

Maybe that’s a good idea.

In a teleconference Thursday, Virginia coach Al Groh didn’t say Brooks would play Saturday against the Terps, but he didn’t say Brooks wouldn’t.

“We’re going to get a few more looks at him today — that’s been the case each Thursday — and make a determination if it’s reasonable to go forward or not,” Groh said.

As to whether Brooks’ availability has been an issue until this point, Groh said, “We’ve gotten to some Thursdays where we had hoped that would be the case, but so far we haven’t passed through that stage yet.”

Groh offered little insight into the status of two other injured players, offensive tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson and center Brian Barthelmes, and did not field any questions about outside linebacker Jermaine Dias.

Dias had an icepack on one of his knees when he left the field Saturday, but it was unclear if an injury had ended his afternoon prematurely. Dias played the same number of plays, 43, as the other outside linebacker, Clint Sintim.

True freshman Olu Hall is listed as Dias’ back-up and has played 50 plays in the first three games, but Hall is viewed as a pass-rushing specialist and plays mostly in nickel situations. If one of the back-ups were needed as an every-down outside linebacker, it’s more likely that another freshman, Aaron Clark, would get the call.

Groh would not say if Ferguson and Barthelmes would take any snaps Thursday in practice and said he is willing to wait as late as pre-game warm-ups, which is when he said he made a decision last week on right offensive tackle Brad Butler.

All Butler did during practice last week was ride a stationary bike and watch.

“We’ve done that on a number of occasions here,” Groh said. “If [not practicing] is what it takes to get the guy to the game, that’s what we do. Then, he’s got to go out on the field and try some things and then give us a reading on his capability at that moment.”

WITH SOLOMON TAT preparing to visit Charlottesville this weekend and Jamin Tucker on his way home to Gary, Ind., Virginia will have had five men’s basketball prospects on campus by the end of the weekend.

Two of them already have committed to other schools, guard Kelvin Lewis (TCU) and postman Brad Sheehan (Georgia Tech). The others are 6-6 Jonathan Mitchell from Mount Vernon, N.Y.; Tucker, a 6-8 forward; and Tat, a 6-5, 220-pound guard from Nigeria by way of Stockbridge, Ga.

Hargrave Military Academy coach Kevin Keatts said Thursday that one of his players, 6-7 Tyler Smith from Pulaski, Tenn., is in the process of setting up visits to Miami and Virginia, probably over the consecutive weekends Oct. 14-16 and Oct. 21-23.

Smith originally signed with Tennessee but did not meet NCAA eligibility standards and eliminated the Volunteers after a decision was made not to retain coach Buzz Peterson.

“UVa is very involved,” said Hargrave coach Kevin Keatts, who said that most of his contact has been with new Cavaliers’ head coach Dave Leitao.

Other schools involved with Smith are Arkansas, Memphis, Iowa and Nebraska. Keatts doesn’t think Smith will have any difficulty obtaining the required score on the SAT or ACT.

“He has a chance to be really, really good,” Keatts said. “He’s probably a Top 50 kid in the country. He’s super athletic, a run-and-jump kid who can finish around the basket and step out and shoot.

“I think he likes those guys [at Virginia] and certainly, by him saying he wants to take a visit, I think that’s a big thing for them. He shoots it well. He’s not lights-out, but if he were, maybe he wouldn’t be as athletic as he is.”
 

U.Va.'s Brooks may play
Richmond Times-Dispatch Sep 29, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Ahmad Brooks has been practicing in pads with the University of Virginia football team this week and, sources said, his right knee has held up well.

Al Groh stopped short Thursday of saying Brooks would play Saturday against Maryland at Byrd Stadium, but the Cavaliers' fifth-year coach didn't rule out that possibility.

"We're going to get a few more looks at him today," Groh told reporters on an early-afternoon teleconference. "As is the case each Thursday, we'll make a determination if [it is] reasonable to go forward or not."

Brooks, a 6-4, 265-pound junior, plays inside linebacker in the Cavaliers' 3-4 defense. He led U.Va. in tackles as a true freshman in 2003 and again in'04, when he made the all-ACC first team and was a finalist for the Butkus Award. The Woodbridge resident had knee surgery in March and has yet to play this season.

"We've gotten to some Thursdays where we hoped [Brooks would be cleared to play]," Groh said, "but so far we haven't passed through that stage yet."

No.19 Virginia (1-0, 3-0) meets Maryland (1-1, 2-2) Saturday at noon.

 

UVa linebacker Brooks not ruled out to play
Andy Bitter
Lynchburg News & Advance
September 30, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Virginia head coach Al Groh still isn’t saying whether or not linebacker Ahmad Brooks will play Saturday. Then again, he didn’t completely rule it out, as he has in past weeks.

“We’re going to get a few more looks at him today,” Groh said during Thursday’s teleconference, “as has been the case each Thursday, to try to make a determination of if it was reasonable to go forward or not.”

Brooks is still recovering from offseason knee surgery and has slowly been worked back into practice. Early in the season, Groh told reporters at the same stage of the week that Brooks would not play.

When asked if Brooks has been in good enough condition on Thursdays in the past few weeks for coaches to make a determination on whether or not he would play, Groh said, “We’ve gotten to some Thursdays where we hoped … that would prove to be the case, but so far we haven’t passed through that stage yet.”

Bulked up

Defensive end Brennan Schmidt has never had that much time away from football. So when he had offseason surgery to repair a torn labrum, the first time he’s had to be held out of workouts and practice in eight years, he watched his weight plummet from 273 pounds to 257.

He’s bulked up since. Schmidt is playing at 291 pounds and can notice a difference.

“On the field, I definitely don’t feel as much of a mismatch going up against 350-pound offensive tackles like I have in the past,” said Schmidt, who has made 14 tackles this season (two for a loss) and one sack. “I also feel like I have more power and more base.”

Schmidt is from McLean but attended DeMatha Catholic High, less than a mile from Maryland’s Byrd Stadium, though he said he was never a Terrapins fan. Maryland was his first official visit when he was being recruited, so Saturday’s game will be a homecoming of sorts.

“I get all types of text messages from my friends talking crap about this game,” Schmidt said. “So I have something to show to my friends at home talking trash.”

Status uncertain

Groh said left tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson (left knee sprain) and center Brian Barthelmes (leg) might be game-time decisions Saturday. Groh didn’t indicate the amount of work either has had this week during practice.

Right tackle Brad Butler was in a similar circumstance last week. After not practicing because of a shoulder bruise, coaches decided that Bulter would play just before kickoff of the Duke game. Butler earned a game ball after playing both tackle positions in the contest.

“We’ve done that on a number of occasions here,” Groh said. “If that’s what it takes to get a guy to the game, that’s what we do. He’s got to go out on the field and try some things and then give us a reading on his capability at that moment.”

Ferguson has started 42 straight games, tied with Schmidt for the longest current streak on the team.

Extra points

Freshman Aaron Clark will be the backup at both outside linebacker positions when UVa is in a regular defense. Fellow freshman Olu Hall has worked with sub defenses such as the nickel. “Together we have one backup player there or one participating player there of the two,” Groh said. … Groh, a linebacker guru, had good things to say about Maryland’s D’Qwell Jackson, who leads the ACC with 14.5 tackles per game. “If you like to watch linebackers, and you don’t care that they might be hitting your guys in a couple of days, he’s fun to watch,” Groh said.
 

Pritchard keeps UVa. well grounded
On the Front Row
Chris Graham
chris@augustafreepress.com

Jesse Pritchard is ready for the worst that Mother Nature has in store.

But what about the Rolling Stones?

"I've got messages in to the groundskeepers at Fenway Park and Soldier Field in Chicago. They both had those same Rolling Stones concerts, and they weren't in October," said Pritchard, the sports-turf manager at the University of Virginia, where the Stones will perform in concert at Scott Stadium on Oct. 6 - nine days before the 'Hoos are to kick off at Scott Stadium against Florida State in what could be the Virginia football program's game of the year.

Pritchard said he is "confident" that his crew will have the field ready for the big game.

"The athletics department has a mission - uncompromised excellence. I don't believe that our administration would do anything to compromise the athletic fields and compromise the safety, aesthetics and playability of that field for a football game such as Florida State. I don't think we have anything to worry about. With some hard work and the right tools, everything will be fine," Pritchard said.

Pritchard, a 2001 graduate of the University of Tennessee and a former groundskeeper at his alma mater, is a busy guy basically year-round.

"I have a crew of three full time and two part time during the spring, summer and fall, and we go full blast from the middle of February until the end of football season, every day, a lot of times 12 to 14 hours a day," Pritchard said.

Most of the school's athletics fields are mowed five and even six times a week, Pritchard said.

"There's constant attention with top dressing and fertilization and aerification. A lot of different fields set up for individual games. Painting happens probably every four days during season. The grass is growing very fast right now, so it keeps us all pretty busy," Pritchard said.

Football gets the attention of most fans when it comes to talking and thinking turf - because of the wear and tear that the gridiron sport puts on a field. But Pritchard said the toughest sport for a groundskeeper to keep up with is baseball, "by far."

"There are so many more factors of managing the field. You have the dirt. You have the skinned areas. The mounds. The home plate. As well as the grass and the warning track. Keeping individual players happy is a challenge. Certain pitchers like certain things. Keeping in constant contact with coaches and players and trying to keep them happy keeps you on your toes," Pritchard said.

In addition to everything else, a groundskeeper has to also be a bit of an amateur meteorologist, Pritchard said.

"Weather is a huge significant part of my job," Pritchard said. "I have to manage the moisture in the root zones. Too much rain leaches out nutrients, so I have to cut back irrigation, or maybe apply more fertilizer, or maybe cut back on fertilizer, based on rain. And soil temperatures play a huge role in grass development, too.

"Until the soil temperatures reach a certain point, a warm-season grass like Bermuda grass, which is what we'll play on at the beginning of the season, is really not going to grow really well," Pritchard said.

Pritchard didn't want to give away his profession's deepest secret - regarding how groundskeepers are able to mow lines and designs and the like into playing fields.

"Now, if I told you that secret, you might take my job," Pritchard said.

Then came the bad news - because no, you won't be able to do this at home.

"We have specific mowers that you can't buy at Home Depot, the mowers that push the grass when they mow it in certain directions. The way the lines get on the field is the way the light catches the blades of grass pointed in different directions," Pritchard said.

 

Cavaliers' line buster might try filibusters
Pol position: From the left or the right, Brad Butler is a standout offensive tackle
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Sep 30, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE Republican or Democrat?

The University of Virginia's biggest -- literally -- political junkie smiled at the question.

"I don't know. We'll wait and see one day when I run for office," said senior Brad Butler, who stands 6-8 and weighs a meal or two less than 300 pounds. "That's one of my plans later on in life."

When the political science major from Lynchburg isn't watching "Hardball with Chris Matthews" or "Imus in the Morning" or serving as an intern at U.Va.'s Center for Politics, he finds time to play a little football. Butler has started 29 consecutive games at right offensive tackle for 19th-ranked Virginia, though he may line up on the left side tomorrow against Maryland, depending on D'Brickashaw Ferguson's health.

In U.Va.'s win over Duke at Scott Sta- dium last weekend, Butler, who had missed the previous week of practice because of a shoulder injury, shifted to left tackle after Ferguson sprained his left knee in the first half.
Left or right -- it doesn't matter to a guy who says that politically he doesn't "really lean a certain way. I like it all."

Larry Sabato, the U.Va. professor who directs the Center for Politics, calls Butler "a classic scholar-athlete." Such students were more common at the university, Sa- bato said, "back when U.Va. used to lose every game" in football.

"He excels in both sectors, and he loves politics," Sabato said. "There really aren't that many football players -- or, for that matter, nonfootball players -- who get up for 'Imus in the Morning' or watch the Sunday morning talk shows."

It wouldn't surprise Sabato, a passionate U.Va. football fan, to see Butler hold public office one day. "He knows all the names and has some ideas of where the bodies are buried," Sabato said with a laugh. "So in one sense he's halfway there."

Butler, whose father played football at Liberty University, is a graduate of E.C. Glass High. Baseball was Butler's favorite sport when he was growing up, and he didn't play organized football until he was a 10th-grader. Two years later, he committed to U.Va., the only school to offer him a scholarship.

At Virginia, Butler's arrival coincided with that of Ferguson. A heralded recruit from Long Island, N.Y., Ferguson moved immediately into the starting lineup at left tackle and now is widely considered the nation's best at his position. That his close friend's accomplishments on the field have overshadowed his, Butler said, doesn't bother him in the slightest.

Any time Ferguson "gets awards or anything like that, I'm happy for him," Butler said. "I don't mind being behind the scenes and just doing my job. In fact, I prefer it."

Make no mistake, though, Butler is a talented tackle, too, and he'll almost certainly draw an NFL paycheck before he gets around to running for office.

"He definitely doesn't get as much recognition as I think he should," said Cavaliers defensive end Brennan Schmidt, who battles Butler in practice. "I go against some of the best offensive tackles in the country in this conference, and I promise you I don't have as much trouble with them as I do with Brad in a lot of respects."

As a true freshman in 2002, Butler made his first start in the Continental Tire Bowl, in place of the injured Mike Mullins. Back then, neither he nor Ferguson weighed more than 260 pounds -- "Which is absurd," Butler noted this week -- but their work under strength coach Evan Marcus has paid huge dividends.

The weight room is still a constant in Butler's life, but he manages to spend six to eight hours a week at the Center for Politics. His football obligations don't leave him much time for outside interests, but working with Sabato is "something I enjoy and I love," Butler said.

"It's the same thing with football. I don't mind being over here six hours a day."

 

Terps full at fullback
Deese, Cesa, Dickerson give running game 1-2-3 blocking punch
By Heather A. Dinich
Sun reporter
Originally published September 30, 2005
College Football

College Park // Noises eerily similar to growls escaped from the practice field Wednesday as three burly Maryland fullbacks plowed into their teammates.

They stayed low, hunched over as they practiced smashing their shoulders and helmets into the outside number of the opponent's jersey, hoping to drive him back and spring a block for somebody else to make the big play.

Last weekend, somebody did.

In a 22-12 win over Wake Forest on Saturday, fullbacks Ricardo Dickerson, Tim Cesa and Matt Deese were all healthy enough to rotate in the game for the first time this season. Led by Keon Lattimore's career day, Maryland racked up more yards on the ground than they had in the previous two games combined.

And while their physical toughness helped an otherwise flat running game to finally take shape, the three also provided a gritty, smash-mouth attitude the Terps' offense had been missing.

"If sticking my nose in there and taking some blows to the head is what I've got to do to get on the field to contribute, I'm more than happy to do that," said Cesa, who was diagnosed with mononucleosis at the beginning of preseason camp.

Deese, who got his first collegiate action Saturday after undergoing arthroscopic surgery to remove cartilage from his knee in August, said: "If they ask me to come in here and block, I'll come here and put my head through this wall if I can."

Added Dickerson: "Fullback is a dirty position. ... All we're doing is basically sacrificing our bodies for Mario [Merrills], Keon and Lance [Ball] to look good. But I've always been the type of person that I'd rather see other people do well. As long as I have something to do with it, I'm happy."

With Cesa and Deese out for the start of the season, Dickerson carried the load for 15 to 20 plays a game, each play a full-speed collision. He did, with both shoulders. Dickerson sprained his right shoulder, then his left. He said he also is having problems with his trapezoid muscles and has to get a shot just to play each game.

"When it was just 'Cardo by himself, he was getting 20-some plays, and your body gets beat up when you go through a whole week of practice," Deese said. "Now me and Tim are in there to give him a break during the week.

"When they have their starting linebackers in there the whole game, we just continue to wear them down, like we did in Wake Forest," Deese added. "Fourth quarter came, they were just diving at our feet. They didn't want to get hit anymore."

It was in the fourth quarter when Lattimore barreled his way 3 yards into the end zone for the Terps' only offensive touchdown of the game. Deese, a redshirt freshman, is primarily used in short-yardage situations, so he doesn't have to learn the entire offensive package yet.

He went the wrong way on the scoring play Saturday, but Lattimore was still able to score. "I owe Keon one from last week," Deese said with a chuckle. "I owe him six. I'll get it back to him."

Lattimore, who had 76 yards and one touchdown on 15 carries, said all three have given Maryland's running game a boost. The Terps finished with 162 rushing yards Saturday, compared to 56 and 50 in two previous losses.

"It's like our running back situation," said Lattimore, who has been competing with Merrills for the starting job this week. "It's versatile, and we can switch it up a lot. All three of the guys, they go hard, man. When they go up in there, they really pound the opposing players."

All three bring something different to the game. Cesa, a product of a power-I offense at a Class 5A school in Georgia, is probably the most physical of the three. Dickerson said he is the best route runner, and Deese is the only natural fullback, and, at 5 feet 11, has some of the best technique.

Cesa and Dickerson, both former linebackers, approached coach Ralph Friedgen in the offseason and asked to switch to fullback.

"Both of them said they felt we needed a fullback to be good on offense," Friedgen said. "We didn't have a true fullback last year. In the spring, I think they were right. They gave us a hard-nosed dimension we've had in the past. Now they're back healthy and I think it adds a little more toughness to our offense."

The question, remains, though: Who can add the most?

"They really put the competition back in it," Cesa said. "That's what it boils down to. Are three fullbacks going to be playing the rest of the year? I don't think so. Somebody is going to pull ahead. We'll have to wait and see how it all sorts out."

 

It's a Stately Endeavor
Terps, Cavs Vying For Area Reign
By Dan Steinberg
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, September 30, 2005; E01

In Ralph Friedgen's first four years at Maryland, his teams won 36 games and an ACC title, played in three bowl games and won two. And yet the Terps enter tomorrow's game against Virginia with a 2-2 record and their toughest tests still to come, and a loss this weekend would raise the specter of a second straight losing season.

In Al Groh's first four years at Virginia, his teams won 30 games, landed one of the best recruiting classes in school history, played in three bowl games and won two. And yet the Cavs enter tomorrow's game in College Park never having claimed an ACC title or played in a New Year's Day bowl under Groh, and a loss this weekend would point toward a continuation of that trend.

Add the fact that, as border-state rivals, the programs are in perpetual competition for media attention and area recruits, and it's easy to characterize tomorrow's game as something more than just one of eight conference matchups in just another 11-game season.

"I think [this season] is hugely important," said ABC Sports analyst Ed Cunningham, who grew up in Alexandria and graduated from Mount Vernon High before winning a national championship as a player at the University of Washington. "For Ralph, this season's a big deal because if you go two years in a row with a losing record, then the recruits are going to start saying, 'Wait a minute. . . . ' Because no one wants to lose.

"I think maybe even more for U-Va., this is a huge year. They always beat the teams they should. But they need to take that next step, where they start knocking off people in the top 10 and putting themselves in a position to play for an ACC championship."

The coaches were hired almost one month apart in late 2000, and both have taken considerable strides with their alma maters over the past five years. Friedgen has a record of 38-16, Groh 33-21. Maryland has sold a record number of season tickets for four straight years, with more than 32,000 this season; Virginia sold its entire allotment of 39,123 for the second year in a row and is expected to set a season attendance record this year.

Both coaches have been rewarded with contract extensions; Friedgen's deal, signed last summer, runs through 2012 and guarantees him approximately $1.5 million a year, while Groh signed a five-year contract last month that boosted his total annual compensation to $1.7 million. And both schools reeled in recruiting classes last year that were ranked in the top 20 nationally according to Rivals.com and in the top 25 according to Tom Lemming of College Sports TV.

"I'm proud for one of my players to go to either school," said DeMatha Coach Bill McGregor, who has former players starting for each school. "You have two outstanding programs, two outstanding head coaches."

While both coaches reject the idea that one game or even one season has particular import, it's hard to ignore the potential implications of a loss tomorrow for either program.

Recruiting analysts and local high school coaches agreed that one off year did nothing to deflate Maryland's burgeoning reputation and could even help; a losing record can translate into more immediate playing time for recruits, who are often swayed by a message of "we're one or two players away," analysts said. A second losing season, though, could prove more problematic.

"If it's a one-year thing, that can be blamed as a blip on the radar screen," said Jeremy Crabtree, national recruiting editor for Rivals.com. "But if it's a downward spiral that goes into two or three years, then, yeah, it can be something that changes the perceptions of a lot of kids, not just locally but nationally."

"One never really does it to you," agreed Lemming, who said the Maryland brand holds more weight in recruiting now than it has for 27 years. "Two or three years in a row, then kids think it's a downslide and they start to look elsewhere."

Which is partly why Maryland's 0-2 home record, coupled with a narrow escape against Navy, set off an epidemic of Internet message-board angst among some Terps fans. And which is partly why Friedgen has at times acknowledged the importance of Maryland's next seven games.

"If we could come on and play really well throughout the last half of this season, I think it would certainly be a big help in recruiting and everything else," he said. "That could or could not happen. It could go either way at this point."

The coach has remained remarkably upbeat this month. He said he's being more patient with this team than any of its predecessors, because he recognizes its youth and is convinced that it will improve. And even if the breakthrough doesn't come this year -- "things could get worse before they get better," he said this month -- Friedgen said his program would not suffer any long-term damage, pointing out that his 2001 ACC championship came on the heels of 10 straight bowl-less seasons.

"And I think we've got better players now than we had then; they're just younger," he said. "When I came here, there were no expectations. They used to laugh at me -- 'you'll never do that.' Now they're upset because we've reached [those expectations]. And I still think we can go further."

Why, then, has Maryland lost seven of its last 11 games? For one thing, coaches said, the on-field production that might normally come from fifth-year seniors has been absent thanks to an unusually high attrition rate in their hastily assembled first recruiting class.

On top of that, Maryland's coaches said, the leading tailback from last year suffered a season-ending knee injury, as did their best offensive lineman. One top defensive lineman has not played because of a back injury; another is at prep school after failing to qualify academically, and one of their most dynamic defenders -- Shawne Merriman -- left College Park a year early as an NFL first-round draft pick.

"We're five years into the program and you guys don't want to hear me saying anything about youth and inexperience, but we've lost a couple of players that have been outstanding, like Merriman and [2004 third-round pick Randy] Starks that have come out early," defensive coordinator Gary Blackney said last week. "And good programs have that, and good programs are able to just reload, not rebuild. But in fact, we're not there yet. I'm talking about the Southern Cals, I'm talking about the Tennessees. We're not there yet. People have to understand that. We've got a chance to get there, but when we lost a Merriman, we don't just get another Merriman and put him in the lineup. That's not the way it is."

Maryland's coaches, after pointing to their superior win-loss record and more impressive bowl history, also reject any comparisons between their program and Virginia.

"I don't look at things that way," Friedgen said. "Maybe you all do, but I don't. I worry about my program, getting my people better. Whatever happens down there, happens down there."

And lately, what's been happening in Charlottesville has been largely positive. Virginia has been ranked in 21 consecutive Associated Press top 25 polls, and will arrive in College Park with a No. 19 ranking and a 3-0 record. They also have become a recruiting "juggernaut," according to Lemming.

"Virginia's one of the five most aggressive programs in the country," he said. "They're relentless, they're non-stop and they're national."

But for all their recruiting success, the Cavaliers have yet to convert such accolades into a BCS appearance. And four years after bringing in its most lauded recruiting class, this would seem to be time for a breakthrough season. Linebacker Ahmad Brooks, who has yet to play this season, committed to Virginia in 2002. So did linebacker Kai Parham, in his third year as a starter. So did all-ACC tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson, running back Wali Lundy, starting defensive lineman Kwakou Robinson, starting defensive backs Marcus Hamilton and Tony Franklin, starting fullback Jason Snelling and starting offensive lineman Brad Butler.

And yet Virginia has at times struggled in the early going, needing a last-second field goal to win at Syracuse and failing to put away Western Michigan until the final quarter.

"You promised kids that you're going to have a championship-caliber program," Cunningham said. "At some point, you have to pay off that promise. And Ralph has done that, Ralph has won an ACC championship and gone to a BCS bowl game."

Still, like Friedgen, Groh said his team's progress is not measured against that of his ACC rival. "All we measure ourselves by is where we finish in the standings," he said. And like Friedgen, Groh said he does not ponder the larger implications of this season.

"They're all important," he said. "I can't say we've put any more importance on one year than the next. We have a short view of things -- you only get to do each year or each game one particular time. We have no eye on the past, we have some eye on the future, but most of our attention is on the present. And therefore, this is the only game we're thinking about and the only season we're thinking about."