Schaub awaits chance to shine
Ex-Virginia star Matt Schaub bides his time as the backup QB to Michael Vick in Atlanta.
By Mark Berman
981-3125

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. -- The backup is back for what could be his final season with the Atlanta Falcons.

Former Virginia star Matt Schaub is entering his third season as the Falcons' No. 2 quarterback behind Michael Vick. Once again, his chance to start will come only if Vick is hurt.

"My mentality going into the year is ... be ready to go on Sundays," Schaub said after a recent practice. "If I don't [play], then that's fine, that's good -- Mike's staying healthy and our team's moving right along."

Schaub said he does feel he is good enough to be a regular starter for an NFL team.

"It's just a matter of getting the opportunity, and we'll see what happens down the road," Schaub said. "Until then, I just have to take advantage of every opportunity I get here."

Schaub will be a restricted free agent after this season. So if the Falcons are willing to let him go -- which might depend on the progress No. 3 quarterback D.J. Shockley makes during his rookie season -- Schaub could have the chance to start for another team next year.

"I could still be here another season," said Schaub, whose team opens the season Sunday at Carolina. "Who knows what might happen? I'm not thinking about a year from now. If I just take care of my business ... next year will take care of itself."

There was trade talk surrounding Schaub after last season. The New York Jets and Minnesota Vikings were among the teams reportedly interested, with the Jets dangling standout defensive end John Abraham. The Jets eventually did trade Abraham to Atlanta, but not for Schaub. The Falcons deemed him too valuable to trade.

"It's definitely flattering to hear that teams like what I'm doing, but at the same time, to have a team that values me high enough to keep me around, given what they were offered, I'm happy to be here," said Schaub, who was a third-round draft pick in 2004.

Last year, Schaub played most of the way in a win over Minnesota, coming in relief of an injured Vick. With Vick still sidelined, he started the following week in a loss to New England, throwing three touchdown passes. In 2004, he started for an injured Vick in a win over New Orleans.

Some Atlanta fans wish Schaub, who is more of a classic drop-back passer than Vick, were the starter.

"I am what I am and Mike is what he is. We both have two different styles," Schaub said.

Schaub completed 33 of 64 passes for 495 yards and four TDs with no interceptions last season, when he saw time at quarterback in five games and was the holder on kicks in every game. Schaub threw for 330 yards in 2004.

"He's done a nice job of adapting to the speed of this game, compared to what it is in college," said Bill Musgrave, the Falcons' new quarterbacks coach.

Schaub is happy to be reunited with Musgrave, who was the offensive coordinator and QBs coach at UVa in 2001 and 2002. Schaub set school single-season marks for passing yards (2,976) and TD passes (28) as a junior in 2002, when he was named the ACC player of the year.

Musgrave taught Schaub the West Coast offense at UVa. The Falcons have employed the same offense since Schaub has been in Atlanta, although Musgrave said that while the terms are the same, the plays and strategies are somewhat different from UVa's version.

"He's got the offense down pretty well," said Musgrave, who was the Washington Redskins' quarterbacks coach last season.

Schaub isn't worried that the longer he stays the backup, the more teams will come to view him as only backup material.

"I don't let those thoughts creep into my mind," he said.
 

D.C. linebacker chooses Virginia
Richmond Times-Dispatch Sep 5, 2006

The University of Virginia football program's 14th commitment for 2007 is from Romale Tucker, who attends Ballou High in Washington.

The 6-4, 217-pound linebacker said yesterday that he also had scholarship offers from North Carolina, Illinois and Syracuse. Tucker, who said he needs to continue to improve academically, is projected as an outside linebacker in U.Va. coach Al Groh's 3-4 defense.

That Groh personally tutors the Cavaliers' linebackers appealed to Tucker. He also enjoyed meeting Howie Long, whose oldest son, Chris, starts at defensive end for Groh, at a U.Va. practice this summer.

"He gave me a couple of pointers, a couple of moves I can use to get by offensive linemen," Tucker said.

Until this year, Tucker attended another D.C. high school, Coolidge, where he an all-league performer in 2005. Tucker was one of about a half-dozen Coolidge players to transfer to Ballou before this school year. Also in that group was his close friend Marvin Austin, a defensive lineman whom many recruiting analysts rank No. 1 in the nation's Class of 2007.

U.Va. is among the schools in which Austin has said he's interested.

"That's my boy," Tucker said. "I'm really trying to get him to come with me, because I know if we're together we can do great damage on the field." -- Jeff White
 

Questions still persist for beleaguered Cavs
Suppposed to alleviate offseason doubts about a young team, season opener has instead brougth more to forefront
Barney Breen-Portnoy, Cavalier Daily Senior Associate Editor

Cornerback Marcus Hamilton summed up the bleak situation best following Virginia's 38-13 loss at Pittsburgh Saturday night.

"If what we showed tonight is how Virginia is going to play, then we're in for trouble and a long season," the veteran senior said.

For many teams, the season opener is when questions raised during the off-season begin to get answered. After Saturday's performance, however, the Cavaliers find themselves facing only more questions.

All spring and summer, there was much discussion about who would fill the numerous gaps left by Virginia's departed stalwart players. The picture certainly was not made any clearer by Saturday's performance.

"Their stars played like stars," Virginia coach Al Groh said, referring to Pittsburgh. "We had no stars."

Despite spending three years as an understudy at quarterback, senior Christian Olsen looked like an overwhelmed rookie at times under the lights of Heinz Field. His catastrophic third quarter interception resulted in a touchdown that began the unraveling process for the Cavaliers in a game in which they trailed by only a touchdown at halftime. He also overthrew open receivers at several key junctures throughout the contest.

Despite his mediocre effort, Olsen does not have to worry about his job security. Groh made it clear that the starting quarterback job is not up for grabs.

"Let's not go down that road," Groh said tersely when asked about Olsen's hold on the starting job. "We've played one game."

Virginia's offensive woes were not limited to the quarterback spot. The running game was also largely kept in check due to an ineffectual effort by the Cavaliers offensive line. Virginia's running backs -– Jason Snelling, Cedric Peerman, Michael Johnson and Mikell Simpson -– were limited to 52 rushing yards overall, averaging 2.5 yards per rush.

"We need to block better, clearly," Groh said.

Defensively, the most obvious flaw was a paper-thin pass defense. Virginia's secondary made Pittsburgh quarterback Tyler Palko look like a Heisman candidate as he accumulated 283 yards through the air and three touchdown passes -– two of which were over 70 yards.

The secondary, however, does not deserve all the heat for Pittsburgh's excellent passing performance. Virginia's defensive line allowed Palko adequate time to progress through his reads. In fact, Virginia's only sack of Palko was by safety Tony Franklin on a zone blitz.

The Cavaliers flew back to Charlottesville with plenty on their minds as they look ahead to this weekend's home game against Wyoming. An effort similar to what was put forth against Pittsburgh would likely allow the Cowboys, of the Mountain West conference, to at least make a game of Saturday's matchup. Wyoming defeated Utah State 38-7 this past weekend.

"This was a terrible way to start," junior tight end Tom Santi said. "But this game is over and it's time to move on to the next one. That's what we plan on doing this week."

 

The House that Jones Built
Jeremy Root, Cavalier Daily Columnist

I had been there before, so I didn't think much of my second visit to John Paul Jones (JPJ) arena to watch the Virginia-Pitt football game. I was praying for a Cavalier victory after such a turmoil-filled offseason -- where it seemed Al Groh spent more time getting athletes out of Charlottesville jails than game-planning, and our top assistant coaches left town faster than Marquis Weeks running from the cops. But as the football game progressed, and the outcome became clear -- even for us die-hard Cav fans -- I found my mind drifting and I began to take in the new jewel of the Virginia athletics department.

Maybe it was the atmosphere -- thousands of fellow Virginia fans cheering in support of a team –- that gave glimpses of what basketball season will entail in the brand new arena. Or possibly it was the sweet, four-sided jumbotron, which was nowhere to be found in U-Hall's 40-year existence -- until the final game when they dragged out a couple of huge big-screens to put at the end of the arena. It could even have been the fact that JPJ offers Wild Wing Café chicken wings and Auntie Anne's pretzels at the concession stands. (I just can never decide between cinnamon sugar and regular.) Beats the heck out of the hot dogs and pizza offered at U-Hall. But I digress.

I think what gave me the most satisfaction was that U.Va. finally had a first-class arena.

Let's face it, folks: U-Hall was embarrassing. The circular design placed fans ridiculously far from the court. It had a total capacity of under 8,500. The lack of box seats forced our own athletic director, Craig Littlepage, to have to sit in what basically amounted to the cordoned-off section of the lower bowl.

JPJ is a place I can be proud to call the home of my basketball squad.

Apparently, I'm not the only one looking forward to the new facility. The men's basketball team has added five new scholarship players to a squad that made it to the NIT tourney last winter.

Additionally, the women's team signed All-American Aisha Mohammed last May. The Lagos, Nigeria native was named MVP of her conference's national tournament and shot a mind-boggling 70 percent from the field as a sophomore at Central Arizona College. I don't think former Cavalier Elton Brown could shoot that well in lay-up drills unless there were candy bars offered as his reward..

The arena helps all sports at U.Va, not just the b-ball squads. While I can't claim the women's tennis team's No. 1 recruiting class last July was due to the new complex, prospective athletes are of course paraded throughout the new $130 million masterpiece, and shown JPJ's luxurious dining and athletic training facilities. You can't tell me that JPJ doesn't have an impact on their decision to attend U.Va, compared to another institution with an arena of U-Hall quality.

The complex even extends directly into University life. Look at some of the big shots signed up to perform or who have already done so: Dave Matthews, Kenny Chesney, Eric Clapton and Brad Paisley. Just add the Boss to that mix and JPJ would be an instant legend. Heck, even the Ringling Bros. Circus and Disney on Ice are coming. (Gentlemen, make a mental note of those performance dates, so you can do something besides take your lady friend to the predictable Jaberwoke, or worse, the Pav. ...)

On that concert note, the only widely popular group that has been at U.Va during my three years before this fall was the Rolling Stones; and that was at the football stadium. For a public university, it's about time we had some respectable performances. Thanks, John Paul. I just hope in my next visit to your arena, there is something more to cheer about than getting the attention of the T-shirt launchers and watching the supposed star of our defense, cornerback Marcus Hamilton, spin around like a ballerina while getting burned for a 78-yard touchdown.

What's the date of the first home basketball game again?