Cavs not alone in QB shuffle
A readin goes here and here and here four decks.
Doug Doughty

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- At long last, there's been some news on the quarterback front relating to Virginia's homecoming football game with Western Michigan.

It's not exactly the information that UVa fans had been seeking.

Cavaliers' coach Al Groh hasn't named a starter, at least publicly, but Western Michigan coach Bill Cubit said at the end of practice Thursday that the Broncos will be starting junior Thomas Peregrin for the second straight game.

Cubit said that his son, Ryan, will make the trip but will be available only in an emergency.

If Ryan Cubit does not play, it would mark the second time in as many years that he has been unable to start against the Cavaliers. Cubit could not play against Virginia in the 2005 opener, when he had an injured shoulder, and later suffered a knee injury that ended his season after three games.

Cubit, now in the sixth year of a college career that began at Rutgers, experienced another setback in the Broncos' opener two weeks ago when he sustained a laceration on his throwing hand in a 39-20 loss at Indiana. He still has stitches in his right middle finger.

Three different Western Michigan quarterbacks had more than 100 attempts last year, when the Broncos had second-round Green Bay Packers draft pick Greg Jennings at wide receiver.

With Peregrin, a junior-college transfer from Bakersfield (Calif.) College, Western Michigan threw 15 passes last week in a 31-10 victory over Toledo.

"They played Toledo in a fashion they haven't played anyone else," Groh said. "Whether that was the gameplan or the quarterback situation, we can only speculate. Last year [against Virginia] they called 55 passes in the game."

Western Michigan (1-1) scored 24 points in the second half, erasing a 10-7 halftime deficit at Toledo. But the Broncos finished the game with only 261 yards in total offense.

One of the turning points was a 92-yard interception return for a touchdown by Londen Fryar, son of one-time University of Nebraska wide receiver Irving Fryar, who played 17 seasons in the National Football League.

Virginia is 9-0 against Mid-American Conference opponents and has won 14 of its past 15 homecoming games, including five in a row. Moreover, UVa is 16-3 in its last 19 games at Scott Stadium.

On the other hand, the Cavaliers (1-1) seldom have had the kind of offensive problems that have plagued them in the first two games.

They have a total of two touchdowns, one rushing and one passing, on drives of 13 and 25 yards.

So much has been said and written about Virginia's quarterback situation that another issue has been virtually overlooked, namely the identity of UVa's starting tailback today.

Jason Snelling, who carried nine times for 28 yards in a 38-13 loss at Pittsburgh two weeks ago, suffered a sprained ankle that kept him out of the Wyoming game. Groh said Thursday that Snelling's ankle has gotten "progressively better" but did not give the starting nod to either Snelling or sophomore Cedric Peerman.

In seven media opportunities between Saturday and Thursday, Groh also declined to say who his starting quarterback would be today. His choices are fifth-year Christian Olsen, who started the first two games, and junior Kevin McCabe, who bailed out the Cavaliers with an overtime touchdown pass against Wyoming.

"I'm not really concerned with naming one for the public," Groh told the media Tuesday. "The public's not going to choose the quarterback. You guys can have all your little Internet polls. It really doesn't make any difference what the polls say."

Of the 154 readers who had voted in a roanoke.com poll as of Friday afternoon, 56 percent supported McCabe. Next was Vic Hall, a redshirt freshman cornerback who set numerous state records as a quarterback at Gretna High School. Hall had 21 percent of the vote.

In his last teleconference of the week, Groh said that a decision would wait until the end of practice Thursday, by which time media availability had expired. Least among his considerations was the fact that McCabe will have eligibility after this season.

"About as long term as we're looking is Saturday," Groh said, "and I'd say the distant future for us is next Thursday night."

Win or lose, Virginia will go straight from today's game into preparation for next Thursday night's visit to Georgia Tech.
 

Shorten the games -- but not this way
Limits don’t curtail hoops recruiting
Doug Doughty

I’ve got no problem with the powers that be who felt that college football games needed to be shorter.

What I’ve got a problem with is their solution.

Nobody wants to be sitting in a stadium for four hours, but the problem is not the number of plays. The problem is all the damned TV timeouts.

Even when a game is not on television – last week’s Wyoming-Virginia, for instance – there are stoppages in play for what are sometimes described as “media” timeouts.

Let me assure you: this member of the media has never needed a timeout, particularly with deadlines approaching.

If you haven’t noticed, speed-up rules are in effect this season. The average UVa football game in 2005 had about 139 plays per game (not counting kicks). An average Virginia Tech game had fewer than 130, a difference that can be attributed to Tech’s tendency to kill the clock when protecting leads.

According to my calculations, there were a total of 117 offensive plays in each of the Hokies’ first two games, including 48 by Tech last week at North Carolina. While it might sound like the Hokies were pitiful on offense last week, generating only 224 yards, consider that Tech last year had the ball on average for more than 69 plays a game.

Project Tech’s 4.7-yard-per-play average last week over 69 snaps and the Hokies would have gained 324 yards – not great but considerably more impressive than 224.

I drew the same conclusion after looking at the stats from a game last week involving this week’s Virginia opponent, Central Michigan, which beat Toledo 31-10. Central Michigan had 261 yards in total offense, which was hardly overwhelming, but the Broncos got that yardage in 47 plays.

Did fans want to see less football? I doubt it. What they wanted to see was shorter games and the best way to do that would have been to reduce the number of TV timeouts, which is never going to happen.

Given the choice of less football or the same amount of football, I’ve got to believe that true fans would prefer the latter.

ONE SIGN OF A growing obsession with college football, at least for me, is a decrease in attention given to men’s college basketball recruiting, at least in print.

The online services still cover recruiting and it had occurred to me that while Virginia and Virginia Tech continue to recruit for 2007-2008, both programs had to be close to the 13-scholarship NCAA limit.

The truth is, with the addition of three players who have made oral commitments, all of Virginia’s scholarships for 2007-2008 have been allocated. Add the recruits to the current scholarship underclassmen and UVa is at 13.

Because the Cavaliers are continuing to recruit the likes of 6-8 Charleston, W.Va., big man Patrick Patterson and others, the first inclination is to believe that All-ACC point guard Sean Singletary, who will be a junior this season, will not return for his senior year.

Singletary could pass up his senior year and turn pro, but I don’t think that’s a given. The approach we’re seeing from both Virginia and Virginia Tech is shop-now, pay-later.

“Stuff happens,” Tech coach Seth Greenberg said. “Look at [T.J.] Bannister leaving Virginia. Stuff happens.”

Bannister, who has transferred to Liberty, would have been a senior this year. So, the Cavaliers didn’t run out and get another player when he gave notice of his departure on the eve of classes. What Greenberg was saying is that players are always leaving, whether it’s the result of academics or playing time or injury or illness.

At the present time, Tech has four commitments for 2007-2008 and hasn’t ruled out taking two more players to be at 13. Problem is, Tech also has taken two commitments for 2008-2009 (from J.T. Thompson and Shamarr Bowden) but stands to lose only one scholarship player, Deron Washington.

If Tech took two more commitments for 2007-2008 and all scholarship underclassmen returned in school and Thompson and Bowden honored their commitments, the Hokies would have 14 scholarships spoken for, but history would suggest that’s not going to happen,

The same goes for Virginia, which has a transfer guard from William and Mary, Calvin Baker, who has enrolled without a scholarship. If Singletary turns pro, that might open a spot for Baker, but don’t assume Virginia won’t take another commitment first.

Here’s what I’m showing for the 2007-2008 Tech and UVa scholarship slots:

VIRGINIA TECH – Senior Deron Washington; juniors Robert Krabbendam, Cheick Diakite and A.D. Vassallo; sophomores Nigel Munson, Terrance Vinson and Lewis Witcher; freshmen Jeff Allen, Gus Gilchrist, Terrell Bell and Malcom Delaney.

VIRGINIA – Seniors Adrian Joseph, Ryan Petinella, Sean Singletary and Tunji Soroye; juniors Mamadi Diane and Lauris Mikalauskas; sophomores Will Harris, Jerome Meyinsse, Solomon Tat and Jamil Tucker, and freshmen Eric Wallace, Jeff Jones and Sam Zeglinski.

While we’re at it, keep in mind that the Hokies are still tracking 6-3 Tyrone Appleton, a 2006 signee who failed to meet NCAA eligibility guidelines and has enrolled at Midland (Texas) Community College.

IN FRIDAY MORNING’S EDITIONS of The Roanoke Times, it was reported that Myrtle Beach, S.C., football player Bruce Taylor, a junior who committed to the Hokies on Thursday, has a broken arm but it is expected to return in time for the playoffs.

Taylor did suffer a broken arm in the first game of the season, but according to the Sun-News in Myrtle Beach, S.C., he could return to action as early as tonight. Taylor earlier had come back from an injured shoulder to play in the opening game.

IN THURSDAY’S UVA INSIDER, a discussion of Virginia’s ninth-ranked 2002 football recruiting class said that Ahmad Brooks was one of four signees who never made it to Charlottesville.

Of course, Brooks did make it to Charlottesville, but not till 2003. The other three players were defensive lineman Keenan Carter, Robert Armstrong and Robert Jenkins. Brooks and Carter were the only ones to reach Charlottesville and only Carter remains.
 

U.Va.'s struggling offensive line insists it's slowly getting better
By ED MILLER, The Virginian-Pilot
© September 16, 2006

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Branden Albert sees the progress every day in practice. A block here. A run there. Virginia's young offensive line, he says, is starting to come together.

"Each week, we're improving," said Albert, the starting left guard. "Even though it doesn't show up from a statistical standpoint."

That's an understatement. Through two games, Virginia's rushing offense is 116th among 119 Division I-A teams at 42 yards per contest. The Cavaliers' total offense, rushing and passing, ranks 110th.

Virginia has scored two touchdowns, neither a result of what could charitably be called a "drive." One came on a 25-yard pass on the first play of overtime against Wyoming - the team's longest play of the season. The other, a 2-yard plunge by Jason Snelling, was after a Nate Lyles' interception and 40-yard return gave the Cavaliers the ball on the Pittsburgh 13.

The Cavaliers' longest drive of the year is 51 yards and that ended with an interception that was returned for a touchdown. The offense has had the ball just over 26 minutes per game, with opponents keeping it eight minutes longer.

Much of the focus this week, leading up to today's game with Western Michigan, has been on who will start at quarterback, junior Kevin McCabe or senior Christian Olsen. Without improved play from the offensive line, it might not make much difference.

"Everybody knows we have to run the ball to be successful," Albert said. " I just feel like last week we had a couple of big runs, we opened up some holes better than we did the first week. And we put more hats on defenders."

Albert's as qualified as anyone to talk about the line's struggles. A sophomore with 14 career starts, he's its most experienced member.

From left to right, Virginia lines up with tackle Eugene Monroe, a sophomore with two career starts; Albert; center Jordy Lipsey, a junior with four starts; junior guard Ian-Yates Cunningham, with eight starts; and redshirt freshman Will Barker, with two starts.

As individuals, they are showing improvement, coach Al Groh said. As a unit, there's much work to be done.

Barker, overwhelmed in his first career start against Pittsburgh, held his own against Wyoming. Monroe, coming off knee surgery, is rounding into shape. Groh has touted Lipsey as one of the team's most improved players. Cunningham beat out former starter Marshall Ausberry in the preseason. Albert, 6-foot-7 and 320 pounds, oozes potential.

Building a line, though, can be a painstaking process. The familiarity necessary to create a cohesive unit takes time to develop.

"When you talk about an offensive line, you are talking plural," Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden said. "But it only takes one guy to mess it up. One guy."

Bowden should know. His team ranks 118th in rushing offense.

As for the Cavaliers, their problems have extended beyond a shaky offensive front. Olsen struggled at times to make routine throws. McCabe moved the team in a relief appearance against Wyoming, but has thrown 30 career passes.

With Deyon Williams out indefinitely with a broken foot, the receiving corps lacks a deep threat. The running backs haven't broken many tackles. Receivers haven't picked up many yards after the catch, a key in Virginia's short passing game.

"We've just got to get the wheels moving," McCabe said. "We've just go to figure out some kinks in the offense. I'm fully confident that Jason Snelling, Cedric Peerman and Michael Johnson - they're going to start to get the balls moving and it's going to take a lot of pressure off the quarterbacks. You just know it's going to happen because they'd done it in the past."

In the past, they had the likes of Elton Brown, D'Brickashaw Ferguson, and Brad Butler blocking for them. All are on NFL rosters.

"It starts up front," Albert said. "If you're front line's not working..."

Nothing's working.

 

Cavs ready to buck with Broncos
UVa relying on defense to set the tone
By Jay Jenkins  / Daily Progress staff writer
September 16, 2006

Considering the alternative, Virginia’s football team will be wearing smiles when they stroll out of the tunnel and onto the field at a sold-out Scott Stadium this afternoon.
Why so?
If not for Wyoming kicker Aric Goodman shanking an extra-point attempt in overtime, the Cavaliers could well be winless.
They are not.
Instead, Virginia (1-1) is after its first winning streak since last November as Western Michigan (1-1) comes to Charlottesville for the second straight year.
“That was a very important win over Wyoming,” said safety Byron Glaspy. “Being 0-2 and not even in ACC competition yet, that has a grim outlook on things.”
The start of conference play is only five days away - UVa plays at Georgia Tech on Thursday - but given the nature of last year’s meeting against Western Michigan, the Cavaliers are living one day at a time. The Broncos sent a scare through Scott Stadium - they trailed 24-19 with just 11 minutes left.
Western Michigan, fresh off a 31-10 win over MAC rival Toledo, might be even better this season. The Broncos rank among the nation’s best in turnover margin and have allowed less than 80 yards per game on the ground.
They also have registered eight sacks, sixth-most in the nation, but Virginia coach Al Groh said only time will tell how good today’s opponent will be.
“I say it every year, especially in college football, with such quick turnaround on who is on your team, with teams depending on freshmen and sophomores as much as they do, it usually takes three to four games really to see what a team is,” Groh said. “It really takes that long for that team itself to see who and what it is, what its strengths are. I hope they are not better than they were last year because they were plenty good last year.”
Luckily for Groh, his defense showed improvement after a lackluster performance at Pitt. Wyoming failed to reach the end zone in regulation thanks in part to a pair of turnovers the Cavaliers forced inside the red zone.
“It was only one win but it gives us added confidence going into next week knowing that we can play well on defense. We didn’t demonstrate that against Pitt,” said cornerback Marcus Hamilton, who collected a fumble and intercepted a pass last week. “We demonstrated that we are a good defense [against Wyoming] and while it is just one win and it only counts as one, it gives us that much more confidence.”
Give credit to first-year defensive coordinator Mike London, Groh said.
“London has set a good, aggressive tone and our style of play and our play calling has been pretty aggressive to which promotes and brings out more of the aggressiveness of the players,” the head coach said.
Whether Virginia plays aggressive today might depend on the play of Western Michigan quarterback Thomas Peregrin. A hand injury to starter Ryan Cubit, the son of WMU head coach Bill Cubit, forced Peregrin into action against Toledo.
WMU elected to keep the ball on the ground, a complete turnaround from what Virginia was exposed to last year as another backup quarterback completed 33 short passes for 271 yards.
Peregrin only threw the ball 15 times last week. WMU tailback Mark Bonds was the biggest benefactor - he rushed for 134 yards on 22 carries.
“They played Toledo in a fashion that they haven’t played anybody else,” Groh said.
While Virginia appears to have answered its questions on defense, issues still loom large on offense.
It remains unclear if fifth-year senior Christian Olsen will start for the third game in a row or if junior Kevin McCabe, an obvious crowd favorite last week, will get the nod.
While Olsen struggled for the second straight week, McCabe moved the ball on three possessions late in the game, including a one-play 25-yard scoring drive in overtime.
As late as Thursday, Groh said the debate remained open.
Either way, McCabe is looking at Western Michigan like the previous two games.
“I am just trying to prepare myself this week as though I am the starter,” McCabe said. “That what I was doing the first two games and that’s what I am going to continue to do.
“The most important thing is to make sure I am helping my team win in any capacity.”
 

Groh keeps things right on schedule
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress staff writer
September 16, 2006

Virginia’s football team heads for uncharted waters when the Cavaliers host Western Michigan this afternoon, then play at Georgia Tech five days later.

It’s a new deal with the ACC and ESPN’s Thursday night football. The ACC has more games featured on the network’s Thursday night packages than any other conference.

Because Division I-A schools are playing 12-game regular season schedules now and with the addition of the ACC Championship game the first Saturday in December, all league schools must have their regular seasons finished by Thanksgiving weekend.

Five-day turnaround

While four ACC schools each are showcased twice on Thursday nights this fall (Boston College, Clemson, Virginia and Virginia Tech), the Cavaliers and the Tigers are the only teams to play two Thursday night games in the five-day turnaround. BC has three (only one after a five-day turnaround, another being the season-opener and another after a bye week), and the Hokies play one after a bye week.

UVa coach Al Groh isn’t complaining. He knows his program will get two big nights of national exposure.

There is a price, though, with such a short turnaround. There’s less preparation time and less recovery time for both the players and coaches.

“We have done quite a bit of research on it and had a lot of conversation,” said Groh of the five-day window. “It’ll definitely change things next week. It’ll change things for the staff this week.”

All in all, it produces more strain and long hours, but it’s doable.

Sewanee triumph

But it’s nothing compared to what little Sewanee College did in 1899. Back when men were men, Sewanee put together the most incredible road trip in football history, shutting out five big-name opponents in a span of six days - all on the road.

This is how Sewanee, a small college in Tennessee, did it by hopping on and off a train over a 2,500-mile trip:

Thursday in Austin, Texas, defeated Texas 12-0; Friday in Houston, defeated Texas A&M 10-0; Saturday in New Orleans, defeated Tulane 23-0; Monday in Baton Rouge, La., defeated LSU 34-0; Tuesday in Memphis, Tenn., defeated Ole Miss 12-0.

Sewanee also beat Auburn, North Carolina, Georgia, Georgia Tech and Tennessee that season en route to a 12-0 record and was clearly named Champions of the South.

Kind of makes this week look like a piece of cake for Groh’s charges.

Ask the NFL experts

The Virginia coach turned to some of his buddies in the NFL who experienced the Thursday night Thanksgiving games, only four days after their Sunday games to see how they conducted their business. What he learned was that it was a must to get the research done on Georgia Tech well in advance of normal in order to cram six days of work into only four.

Because the team flies to Atlanta next Wednesday, a lot of work will have to be taken care of early.

Don’t think for a minute that Virginia’s coaching staff is overlooking its preparation for Western Michigan to focus on Georgia Tech. Quite the contrary. It just means that the coaches will have to spend “X” amount of extra hours to get the job done.

“We will have to be ready to go Sunday morning with Georgia Tech as opposed to Tuesday afternoon with the players,” said Groh, who tried to get further ahead with the Western Michigan work this past week. “I’ve tried to come in earlier and stay later and be further ahead on a day-to-day basis with Western Michigan so I can get started earlier on Georgia Tech.”

Most coaches have the hay in the barn for a Saturday opponent by Thursday during a normal week and spend Friday’s going over last-minute details, so usually Fridays aren’t too strenuous, particularly for a home game.

So, with the Western Michigan knowledge and planning in the bank, Groh spent some of his Friday researching Georgia Tech. When Virginia’s game ends with Western Michigan around 6:30 this evening, Groh and his coaches will return to their offices and grade the game film, so that Sunday morning, they’ll be up to speed.

Normally, UVa’s players are off on Sunday, but not this time.

Sunday becomes Monday, Monday becomes a combination Tuesday/Wednesday, Tuesday becomes a combination of Wednesday/Thursday, and Wednesday is a travel day.

Maryland was the first ACC school to get the five-day turnaround a couple of nights ago and had a disastrous experience in Morgantown, although the results may have been the same even if the Terps had the luxury of a week or more preparation.

It was Maryland’s first short week since 2001 when the Terps beat Georgia Tech in Atlanta, an upset that galvanized a struggling program and led it to the ACC title. Coach Ralph Friedgen still points to that week as a big deal for his program.

Even though this time it didn’t work out as well, Maryland’s coaches did a lot of preparation for West Virginia during training camp, breaking down film of last year’s game, then cleaned up the game plan during the five-day turnaround.

“It doesn’t make for a fun week for coaches,” the Fridge said.

Neither did the outcome, after his Terps trailed WVU 28-0 at the end of the first quarter.

Still, playing on Thursday night is a big thrill for any college program. There’s a certain mystique about a Thursday night, the only game in the nation, sort of college football’s answer to Monday Night Football.

While the coaches have and will invest a lot of time into the two games, Western Michigan and Georgia Tech, the players have spent all week focusing solely on the visiting Broncos. Anything less than their full attention to Western Michigan would be plain stupid.

Just ask linebacker Jon Copper where his thoughts are for today.

“I am not really looking that far ahead,” said Copper of the five-day swing. “I am just looking at Saturday and what we have to do to win. We will start getting ready for Georgia Tech on Sunday.”

Of course, playing multiple games in less than a week’s time is nothing new for the former walk-on, who starred for coach Jim Hickam at Roanoke’s Northside High School and John Shuman at Fork Union.

“There was one week at Fork Union when we played three games in seven days, so I have something similar to that before,” said Copper. Two games were on the schedule and the third game was a last-minute deal. I think it ended up getting postponed one time, so they were like, ‘Well, hey, let’s just play it here.’”

Now, Copper, he could have probably suited up for Sewanee.

 

6 burning questions for the Cavs
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
September 16, 2006

1. Does it matter if it is Christian Olsen or Kevin McCabe under center today for the Cavaliers?
That’s the million dollar question. And just when you think you know the answer, coach Al Groh throws out a new wrinkle to keep Virginia fans, and more importantly the opponent, guessing. It could be Olsen, perhaps in his final audition at quarterback. It could be McCabe, the hero against Wyoming after moving the ball in the fourth quarter and tossing the only Virginia touchdown of the season through the air.
Groh would not tip his hand all week, something that should give Olsen confidence considering the alternative. “It’s a lot better than Coach coming in and saying one of us is definitely the No. 2 and one of us is definitely
No. 1,” Olsen admitted. “We both have an opportunity to go out and win that spot.”

2. Can the Cavaliers flex their muscles on special teams?
Chris Gould jerseys could sell like hotcakes around Scott Stadium. Virginia’s jack-of-all-trades has certainly been on the field enough throughout the past two games to warrant such attention. The junior has booted four field goals and punted
12 times for an impressive average of 41.1 yards.
The bigger question lies in coverage. Can Virginia avoid fake punts - Wyoming pulled off two - and limit WMU’s ability to start with a short(er) field. The Broncos amassed 73 yards last week on kickoff returns from Brandon West.

3. Can Virginia’s offensive line buy time for either quarterback?
McCabe and Olsen are not candidates to join Virginia’s track team as sprinters. Neither player can move around like Jerry Rice or Emmitt Smith on “Dancing With The Stars.”
Knowing that, Virginia’s offensive line feels the pressure from the fans and from the coaches. Western Michigan loves to blitz. WMU linebacker Ameer Ismail sacked former UVa quarterback Marques Hagans, a true scrambler, twice last year and could be back for more. Expect Virginia’s work in the trenches to improve - experience does help - and with a youthful Bronco secondary on the field, a season-high total in both passing and rushing yards should come.

4. Will injuries take their toll on the Cavaliers?
Tailback Jason Snelling (foot) did not play last week. The same can be said for senior wideout Deyon Williams (stress fracture). Nose tackle Keenan Carter (foot) left the game early and linebacker Denzel Burrell was lost for the season after injuring his knee in the opening quarter.
Groh has said that he would like to redshirt most, if not almost all, of his incoming rookie class. Many more
setbacks and that could change.
Before you feel bad for UVa, consider that Western Michigan will be playing its second straight game without sixth-year senior quarterback Ryan Cubit (hand) and perhaps two others - sophomore wideout Jamarko Simmons and sophomore cornerback E.J. Biggers have ankle sprains.

5. Can Virginia’s defense stop Western Michigan running back Mark Bonds?
Not every “boo” last weekend at Scott Stadium was directed at Olsen and the offensive line. Virginia’s defense, while keeping Wyoming out of the end zone in regulation, missed a number of open-field tackles.
Repeat that performance and Bonds is likely headed for his second straight 100-yard game. The most recent MAC Offensive Player of the Week rushed for 134 yards last week against Toledo on 22 carries. “[Bonds] played with a lot of passion,” said WMU coach Bill Cubit. “You could tell he was kind of ready.”

6. Will Homecoming once again spell victory for the Cavaliers?
It certainly has in the past. The Cavaliers have won five in a row and 14 of the last 15 Homecoming games. The even greater question lies in the support in the stands. Will the fan base get behind a .500 team working the kinks out on the field?
The players surely noticed the unfavorable reaction their play got last week. A repeat could demoralize a young team starting just one senior, cornerback Marcus Hamilton, on defense as it heads into conference play on Thursday.
 

Wahoo memories
By Drew Hansen / Daily Progress staff writer
September 16, 2006

Don Majkowski

AGE: 42

HOMETOWN: Depew, N.Y.

PLAYING WEIGHT: 205 pounds in 1986.

CURRENT WEIGHT: 207 pounds.

HEIGHT: 6-foot-2.

PERSONAL: Married to wife Kelly with two children - Danielle, 10, and Bo Cannon, 8. The family now lives in suburban Atlanta.

PRESENT OCCUPATION: He has operated his own real estate business in the Atlanta area for the last seven years.

“I love real estate,” Majkowski said. “It’s been very lucrative and I enjoy the art of making a deal.”

Majkowski also has a second career as an NFL analyst and commentator all over the state of Wisconsin, primarily covering the Green Bay Packers.

The radio and TV work is currently on hold, however, as Majkowski is taking time off to coach his son, who is in his first year of competitive football.

WHILE AT VIRGINIA: A four-year letterman from 1983-86, Majkowski thrived in Virginia’s option attack. Majkowski took over as Virginia’s starting quarterback in the sixth game of his sophomore season and went on to become the Cavs’ all-time leader in passing (3,901 yards) and total offense (4,632 yards) when he graduated in ’86.

A former standout for Fork Union’s post-grad team, Majkowski tossed 22 touchdowns in his Virginia career. He threw for a score and rushed for another as a sophomore in Virginia’s come-from-behind victory over Purdue in the 1984 Peach Bowl.

SINCE LEAVING VIRGINIA: A 10th-round NFL Draft choice by the Packers in 1987, Majkowski took over as the team’s full-time starter in ’89 and recorded one of the most prolific passing seasons in team history.

Majkowski guided Green Bay to a 10-6 record that year, only to miss the playoffs in the final game of the season. He led the league in passing attempts, completions and passing yards. “The Majik Man” earned the only Pro-Bowl selection of his career following the ’89 season and finished second to the 49ers’ Joe Montana in the league’s MVP voting.

Injuries began to derail Majkowski’s career following that season. He tore his rotator cuff in 1990 and then ruptured his Achilles’ tendon during a game against Cincinnati in 1992.

Majkowski left the Packers following the 1992 season and played out the rest of his career in a backup role with the Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions before retiring in 1996.

Majkowski was inducted into the Packers Hall of Fame in 2005.

“I’ve received unbelievable support [from the Green Bay fans],” Majkowski said. “... It was an honor to play for a team so rich in tradition.”

FAVORITE CAVALIER MEMORY: “My sophomore year I got my real first opportunity to play against Virginia Tech in 1984,” Majkowski said. “[Coach Welsh] put me in the game and we put together two scoring drives in the fourth quarter (Virginia was behind by 10 points). I hit John Ford on a play-action post pattern on fourth-and-inches for about 45 yards. It went down as ‘The Catch.’ Then we took it in for the win.

“Of course, leading the team to win the Peach Bowl is also up there.”

WORST CAVALIER MEMORY: “Probably my senior year as a whole (Virginia finished the 1986 season 3-8),” Majkowski said. “I was pretty established as a starter and I had an opportunity to get drafted a lot higher than I did. I separated my shoulder versus Duke and had a hard time recovering. The whole thing became very difficult for me both physically and mentally, and my stock went pretty low.”

 

U.Va.'s QB? Wait and see
Two games in, Olsen, McCabe haven't given results to Groh
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Sep 16, 2006

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- At Scott Stadium today, the visiting team's starting quarterback will be junior Thomas Peregrin. That was the word Thursday from Western Michigan coach Bill Cubit, whose top QB, son Ryan, is recovering from a deep laceration on the index finger of his throwing hand.

Who'll take the first snap for the home team remains unclear, at least outside the McCue Center. University of Virginia coach Al Groh has had several opportunities this week to publicly name a starter or say which way he's learning.

"Why would I?" Groh said Thursday morning, before adding that the Cavaliers' practice that afternoon would play a role in his decision.

U.Va. (1-1) meets homecoming opponent Western Michigan (1-1) at 3:30 p.m. Senior quarterback Christian Olsen, a team captain, started the Cavs' first two games before giving way to junior Kevin McCabe in each one. Last weekend against Wyoming, McCabe threw a 25-yard touchdown pass in overtime to help Virginia escape with a 13-12 win at Scott Stadium.

Running third in U.Va.'s quarterback derby is Jameel Sewell, a 2005 graduate of Hermitage High. Sewell is the most physically gifted of Virginia's QBs but hasn't won over the coaching staff with his command of the offense.

Olsen and McCabe rarely played in 2005, and Sewell redshirted last season. Had U.Va., like an NFL team, had the luxury of four preseason games, Groh said, he'd have more on which to evaluate his quarterbacks.

"That's a little bit the phase that we're in, except that the games count," Groh said.

And two games in, Groh said, the "reality is, neither [Olsen nor McCabe] has led his team on an extended touchdown drive yet."

McCabe said early this week that the uncertainty about his role didn't bother him.

"I like living on the edge a little bit," he said. "It keeps you on your toes. It really does. . . . You always got to be ready, and I'm just ready to go."

U.Va. beat the Broncos in 2003 and again in'05, but Groh had quarterback Marques Hagans, a threat to run and pass, in each of those victories. Life without Hagans has been grim for the Cavaliers' offense. First-year coordinator Mike Groh's group has surrendered as many touchdowns -- two, on interception returns by Pittsburgh in the opener -- as it has scored this season. Most of the struggles can be traced to the poor play of U.Va.'s inexperienced linemen.

"It starts up front," sophomore offensive guard Branden Albert said. "If your front line is not working, the quarterback's not going to be able to pass the ball and the running backs are not going to be able to run the ball."

Al Groh said Thursday that senior tailback Jason Snelling, who missed the Wyoming game with a sprained ankle, is likely to play today. In the 2005 season-opener, Snelling carried seven times for 72 yards as U.Va. battled to a 31-19 win over Western Michigan. That was the first game under Cubit for the Broncos, who'd finished 1-10 in 2004, and the victory didn't come easily for the Wahoos.

"I think we're going to have a whole lot harder deal this year," said Cubit, whose son is available for emergency duty today. "It's going to be hard for us to go down there and catch them by surprise like we did last year."

The Broncos are coming off a 31-10 rout of Mid-American Conference rival Toledo. Junior tailback Mark Bonds rushed for a career-best 134 yards and a touchdown. Bonds was named the MAC's West Division offensive player of the week. The defensive award went to teammate Ameer Ismail, a linebacker who had 12 tackles, including two sacks, and recovered a fumble.

At Scott Stadium last year, Bonds ran for a game-high 119 yards, and Ismail had two sacks.

"Hey, I love him," Groh said of the 6-2, 225-pound senior. "He's fast, he's aggressive . . . He's got that linebacker fever."


 

Memories comfort Cavs receiver
The 2005 season ended on a sour note for Virginia's Kevin Ogletree, but he now has emerged as an offensive threat.
BY DARRYL SLATER
247-4641
September 15, 2006

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- He arrived home that December day and walked through the front door of the two-story red brick house on 204th Street. He climbed the stairs to his grandmother's room, right next to the room where he lived as a kid.

"I waited for you," his grandma said.

Kevin Ogletree hadn't seen much of her lately, hadn't come back to this Queens, N.Y., neighborhood where he grew up under his grandma's stern hand. He was busy with his first season as a wide receiver at Virginia.

The Cavaliers got a few days off around Christmas, so Ogletree bee-lined home to sit by his grandma's bedside Dec. 23 and show her the gifts he received for playing in the upcoming Music City Bowl.

Before Ogletree headed out to visit friends, his grandma hugged him, told him how proud she felt. Then she took her insulin and went to sleep.

Twenty minutes after Ogletree left, his aunt called and said to come home. He pulled the car up, saw the ambulance lights and dozens of neighbors in the street. Diabetic shock had killed 70-year-old Patricia Rossianno. Ogletree was the last person she spoke to.

They buried Rossianno six days later, on a Thursday. Ogletree went right from the cemetery to the airport and hopped a flight to Nashville, Tenn., where he played in the bowl the next day. Though he didn't catch a pass, he said: "With all that going on, it was hard to take it all in and grieve. She was like my mom, really."

He is playing more this season, as injured starter Deyon Williams' replacement. Last Saturday against Wyoming, Ogletree caught 10 passes for 95 yards, including a 25-yard touchdown pass in overtime that helped Virginia win 13-12.

He still keeps reminders of his grandma. On his cleats, where before games he writes "Munk," the nickname her father gave her as a child. In his room, where he has a card she gave him. "Always put your best foot forward," she wrote inside it.

You could find those feet everywhere around St. Albans, Ogletree's Queens neighborhood. They took him from the baseball fields to the basketball courts and, always, back through the front door of grandma's house before dark.

Those were her rules: Don't let the streetlights catch you out. Sit in the pew every Sunday at the local Baptist church. Be ready for private school every morning. She insisted on Ogletree attending private schools. Her home's proximity to them is one reason why Ogletree and his older brother, Calvin, always lived with her instead of their mother, Leslie Ogletree. Though Leslie is involved in her sons' lives.

Their grandma's unwavering strictness came from somewhere. From the Laurinburg, N.C., farm where she was raised. From the jobs she worked in New York City after leaving home as a 17-year-old, sending money back to the farm. From the spiteful glances people - even family members - gave her when, in 1959, she married Lawrence Rossianno, a man 12 years her senior. A white man.

This was melting-pot New York, all right, but black and white didn't wed back then, let alone have kids. The Rossiannos had four.

"We went to the beach, and my children were playing with white children," Lawrence said. "And their parents said, 'Get away from them!' "

Later, neighborhood kids tried to fight Lawrence and Patricia's kids because they were racially mixed, said Mark Rossianno, Ogletree's uncle. The Rossiannos traveled upstate, to Saratoga Springs, in the late 1960s. When they entered a restaurant, the white people who had ordered their food stood up and left. "We sat down and ate our meal," Lawrence said.

When people saw Lawrence alone on the street with Patricia, they assumed he was cheating on his white wife with a black woman, he said.

Everyone around 204th Street in St. Albans knew her as the Pie Lady. She baked the meanest sweet potato pie on the block. And when meat sizzled on her grill - forget about it, Mark said, the neighborhood came running.

Inside the house, Ogletree quickly learned her duality.

How if she saw a birthday card she liked, she'd buy it months ahead of time. Which is why, when Ogletree turned 19 in August, Mark gave him the card in which his grandma reminded him to put his best foot forward, the card she bought and inscribed before she died.

How she always prohibited him from playing football, and when he joined a Pee Wee league at age 12, he hid his pads from her - before she finally caught on. She steered Ogletree toward Holy Cross High, an all-boys Catholic school in nearby Flushing. He's sure now that Queens' public-school system would've dragged him down.

His feet turned him into a marvel on the basketball court and football field. As a senior small forward, he was Holy Cross' leading scorer, playing in the highly competitive Catholic League.

"His first step is really fast; it's like one and he's gone," said Gordon McKenzie, a basketball teammate and one of Ogletree's best friends. McKenzie is a national-caliber sprinter at Kentucky.

Ogletree's experience as a baseball center fielder helped his hand-eye coordination when football coaches moved him exclusively to receiver before his junior season. He set league records for catches, yards and touchdowns. "That was magic," Holy Cross coach Tom Pugh said.

At 6-feet-2 and 189 pounds, Ogletree isn't a powerful receiver. So he relies on his best parts, his feet. "Slithery," is how Virginia coach Al Groh described his style.

"His ability to change direction without missing a step is amazing," Virginia cornerback Marcus Hamilton said.

He is changing direction now, leaving behind the red brick house. Leaving it a little emptier than it was on those nights when the streetlights flickered on just before he came from the basketball courts and burst through the front door - to find his grandma sitting there, waiting for him. "I just think of her," he said. "Because I know she has something to do with everything."

Cavs will have hands full vs. Broncos
Western Michigan played Virginia tough last year, team not taking MAC foe lightly
Barney Breen-Portnoy, Cavalier Daily Senior Associate Editor

Normally, Virginia's narrow 13-12 escape over Wyoming last weekend would be reason enough for the Cavaliers not to overlook tomorrow's opponent, Western Michigan of the Mid-American Conference.

But the Cavaliers (1-1, 0-0 ACC) have an additional reason to fear the Broncos (1-1, 1-0 MAC). Virginia hosted Western Michigan to open the 2005 season and the Broncos made a game of it, trailing only 24-19 until tailback Cedric Peerman's one-yard touchdown run with 5:38 remaining in the fourth quarter secured a 31-19 Virginia victory.

Sophomore left guard Branden Albert stated it bluntly at Tuesday's press conference.

"They presented a lot of problems to us last year," he said.

For all but the most knowledgeable college football fans, the MAC still flies far beneath the radar. That is not the case, however, for Virginia's coaches and players. As if they needed any further reminder of the dangers that MAC teams pose, Akron traveled to N.C. State last weekend and pulled out a thrilling 20-17 win.

"Once you take out those teams that almost by inheritance are going to stand out every year, there is now so much parity between teams in college football," Virginia coach Al Groh said. "There are just a lot of players around that are essentially the same players."

Western Michigan's offense is known for its inclination to pass the ball frequently. In last year's loss to Virginia, the Broncos passed on 49 of 86 offensive snaps.

Virginia, however, may be faced with a different Western Michigan offensive strategy this time around. A hand injury suffered by Western Michigan quarterback Ryan Cubit -- the son of Broncos head coach Bill Cubit -- in the season-opening 39-20 loss at Indiana put junior Thomas Peregrin in the starter's role for last week's 31-10 home win over Toledo. It was Peregrin's first career start.

In the victory, the Broncos made only 15 pass attempts, compared to 34 in the loss to Indiana. Junior running back Mark Bonds led the Broncos with 134 yards and one touchdown.

Groh is aware that Virginia might have to adapt to a more ground-based Western Michigan offensive approach.

"They played Toledo in a fashion that they haven't played anybody else," he observed.

Whoever starts for Virginia at quarterback, be it Christian Olsen or Kevin McCabe, will have to deal with a Western Michigan 4-3 defense that likes to blitz and put intense pressure on the opposing quarterback. Senior weak-side linebacker Ameer Ismail has notched three sacks and four tackles for a loss in the season's first two games. Given Virginia's struggles thus far on the offensive line, it could be a long day for Virginia's quarterback.

This is the fifth consecutive season that Virginia has played a MAC team. The Cavaliers are 2-0 against Western Michigan and 8-0-1 all-time against MAC teams.

Junior defensive end Chris Long made his first career start in last year's game against Western Michigan.

"I remember being thoroughly impressed with the level of talent in that conference," Long said. "It's going to be a real battle. ... We're anxious to get out there and try to get win number two."
 

Western Michigan is not an automatic win for Virginia
By Andy Bitter
Lynchburg News & Advance
September 16, 2006

When Virginia hosts Western Michigan today, the spotlight will undoubtedly be focused on whether Christian Olsen or Kevin McCabe starts at quarterback.
Truth be told, that spotlight could expand to cover the other 10 players lined up on offense.

The struggles of the Cavaliers' quarterbacks have been well-documented and the drama of who will start is riveting (coach Al Groh still has not made the starter known to the public), but Virginia's offensive woes are more than just a case of inexperienced quarterbacks.

The numbers are ugly. After two games, the Cavaliers ?

rank 116th out of 119 Division I teams in rushing offense, averaging 42 yards a game.

are 110th nationally in total offense, averaging 208.5 yards a game.

have averaged 13 points per game, tied for the 99th best mark nationally.

have scored two touchdowns in 26 possessions.

"It starts up front," left guard Branden Albert said. "If your front line is not working, your quarterback is not going to be able to pass the ball. The running backs are not going to be able to run the ball."

Albert thought the line, which starts two juniors, two sophomores and one redshirt freshman, has made strides since the first game. That still didn't reflect in the rushing totals. Against Wyoming, UVa tailbacks, which did not include Jason Snelling (sprained ankle), ran for 48 yards, averaging just 2.4 yards per carry.

"Those runners all run the same when there are no holes," Groh said.

Snelling figures to play this week and should split carries with Cedric Peerman, who saved the day in Virginia's 31-19 win over the Western Michigan in last year's season opener, rushing 16 times for 69 yards and a touchdown after Wali Lundy left with a sprained foot.

As for who the quarterback will be, that is anyone's guess. Groh said practice performance would factor heavily into the decision, which would favor Olsen, who, despite not starting a game prior to this season, won the starting job last spring and held onto it based on his showing in practice.

But McCabe looked sharper in the game, getting the Cavaliers (1-1) in the end zone for the only time last Saturday in overtime with one 25-yard pass. Granted, that drive started at Wyoming's 25-yard line.

"The reality is that neither player has led his team on an extended touchdown drive yet," Groh said.

That puts the onus on Virginia's defense, which rose the occasion last week, holding Wyoming to one wing-and-a-prayer touchdown last week and 313 total yards, 60 of which came on fake punts.

For the second straight year, the defense will not have to face Western Michigan quarterback Ryan Cubit, who suffered a deep cut on his throwing hand in the Broncos' opener against Indiana and sat out of last week's win against Toledo.

This presents a dilemma for UVa. When Cubit was hurt last year and Robbie Haas replaced him, Western Michigan (1-1) threw the ball 50 times. Last week, with Thomas Peregrin under center, the Broncos ran the ball on 32 of their 47 plays.

Like Wyoming, Western Michigan isn't a pushover. The Cavaliers certainly haven't forgotten that from last year's too-close-for comfort win.

"They gave us all we could handle," defensive end Chris Long said. "They're a great team and they're good again this year. I think it's going to be a battle."


 

Cavaliers' QB battle moves to field against Western Michigan
9/15/2006, 7:35 p.m. ET
By HANK KURZ Jr.
The Associated Press

(AP) — The suspense even before Virginia kicks off against Western Michigan on Saturday will be on who gets the call at quarterback for the Cavaliers. Then the focus will shift to whether Christian Olsen or Kevin McCabe can finally get the offense untracked.

"We've just got the get the wheels moving and figure out some kinks in the offense," said McCabe, the backup so far but also the one who threw the 25-yard scoring pass to Kevin Olgetree in overtime last week in a 13-12 victory over Wyoming.

"I was ready to go back out there and do it again," he said. "It looked like we were going to have to," he said, but Wyoming missed and extra point and Virginia won.

Virginia (1-1) has averaged just over 200 yards of offense in two games, and wide receiver Andrew Pearman said that while the quarterbacks are getting most of the blame for the lack of production, it's everyone's job to get the ball moving consistently.

"As long as we all do our jobs, we're all going to be just fine," he said.

It starts, as with every offense, up front, where a rebuilt offensive line had had trouble opening holes and made it tougher on an inexperienced backfield. With starter Jason Snelling missing the Wyoming game with an injury, Virginia rushed for 32 yards.

"If your front line's not working, the quarterback's not going to be able to pass the ball and the running backs aren't going to be able to run it," left guard Branden Albert said, adding that the Broncos "presented a lot of problems to us last year."

Western Michigan (1-1) is coming off a big victory, 31-10 against defending Mid-American Conference champion Toledo, and did it without starting quarterback Ryan Cubit. Head coach Bill Cubit's son also is questionable to play Saturday, but Virginia needs only to think back to last season to remember a tussle with the Broncos.

Virginia won 31-19 in its season opener, but it was closer than that.

"I remember being thoroughly impressed with the amount of talent that comes out of that conference," junior defensive end and tri-captain Chris Long said this week.

"They gave us all we could handle."

Long said he hopes the victory against Wyoming, even if it wasn't easy, was valuable for the many new players on the defense, which was very solid.

Cornerback Marcus Hamilton agreed and said hearing the defense credited with being the major factor in keeping the Cavaliers in the game was a great reward for the unit, especially after it got repeatedly burned in a 38-13 season-opening loss to Pitt.

"Our mentality was that we were going to try to win the game on defense," Hamilton, another tri-captain, said. "And I think we did a pretty good job of it."

Kickoff in Charlottesville, Va., is set for 3:30 p.m.