Storms 'chasing' Cavalier
Former Tulane WR survived Katrina, may face Hanna's rain
Wednesday, Sep 03, 2008 - 12:07 AM
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

CHARLOTTESVILLE As a Tulane University freshman, he survived Katrina, and Cary Koch has friends in New Orleans who had to leave the Crescent City as Gustav approached. Now comes word that Hanna's path may include Virginia.

"I feel like hurricanes are just chasing me," Koch said yesterday with a wry smile.

Since the summer of 2006, the place to find this Baton Rouge, La., native has been the University of Virginia, to which he transferred from Tulane in the aftermath of Katrina's devastation. His brother, John, attended Washington and Lee University.

In his first two seasons on U.Va.'s football team, Koch (pronounced "Coke") didn't come close to matching the numbers he put up at Tulane, totaling 10 receptions for 101 yards and one touchdown for coach Al Groh. As a senior, however, the 6-0, 192-pound wideout has an expanded role in an offense that's been fine-tuned to emphasize the passing game.

Never mind that Koch's name can't be found on the depth chart. That's because Virginia lists the old-school lineup for offense: two receivers, tailback, fullback, quarterback, tight end and five linemen. In the opener Saturday against Southern California, U.Va. came out in a three-receiver set, and on the game's first play quarterback Peter Lalich passed to Koch for a 7-yard gain. Koch finished with three catches for 40 yards.

"I don't know if many people expected to be in a three-wide receiver set as much as we were, considering the last few years of really pounding the ball and running the ball a lot," said Koch, who was put on scholarship before the season.

At Tulane in 2005, he caught 23 passes for 308 yards and two TDs and made Conference USA's all-freshman team. His profile has been lower at U.Va., in part because of the knee injury he suffered during training camp in 2007. But his teammates and coaches have been buzzing about Koch this year.

"He probably runs the best routes of the whole group," receivers coach Wayne Lineburg said last month. "And he's got tremendous hands. He might have the best hands in the group."

When Virginia used three-receiver sets last season, tight end Tom Santi usually was shifted to the slot. Koch and redshirt freshman Kris Burd are splitting time there this season.

"You like to have guys who can maneuver around linebackers and get up under the safeties," Lineburg said, and Koch has "a knack for all that inside stuff that we're doing."

That Tulane eliminated his major, computer science, made it easier for Koch to leave. But that wasn't the only reason he started looking at other schools. In 2005, having been displaced from New Orleans, the Green Wave played each of its 11 games at a different stadium.

"After Katrina hit, and the tough season we had, when I went back to New Orleans in the spring, it just wasn't the same New Orleans I'd once grew up and loved," said Koch, an economics major at U.Va.

"When we went back in the beginning, it was so just barren. It just looked like a Third World country."

Hanna is expected to have been downgraded from a hurricane by the time it hits Charlottesville, but the storm may bring wet weather Saturday to Scott Stadium, where U.Va. will host Richmond. That's fine with Koch. When he was a 12th-grader, his team played eight games in the rain, he said, some in torrential downpours.

"In Baton Rouge," he said, "once a day it'll just rain, just to rain. I'm used to playing in wet games."

 

Green not awed by USC's speed
By Doug Doughty
981-3129

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- On an afternoon that seemed overwhelming for many of Virginia's younger football players, redshirt freshman Jared Green stood tall Saturday following a 52-7 loss to visiting Southern Cal.

Green, a 6-foot-2, 178-pound wide receiver from Vienna, Va., was not listed on the Cavaliers' two-deep roster but had three receptions for 40 yards. The first came on his first collegiate play.

"Probably in the last seven or eight days, [he's] started to show some of the things that showed up today," coach Al Groh said after the game. "He made some nice plays, which is an encouraging thing at that position.

"What he's starting to do is to use his speed more. He is one of the fastest players that we've had here, but if he doesn't have the pedal to the floor all the time, he doesn't play faster than the other guys.

"He's starting to understand the value of his speed."

If there was one Virginia player who might not have been awed by the opponent and a Scott Stadium-record crowd of 64,947, it would have been Green.

One month earlier, he had been rubbing elbows with NFL Hall of Famers in Canton, Ohio, where he was the presenter for his father, ex-Washington Redskins cornerback Darrell Green.

On Saturday, Darrell Green was among the spectators at Scott Stadium and father and son spoke before Jared met with the media.

"He said he was speechless," Jared said. "If you guys watched his speech at the Hall of Fame, you know he's very emotional. That's him.

"Coming from a guy who played in the NAIA league [at Texas A&I] and was thought to be too small, he didn't have a lot of opportunities compared to mine.

"He's one of those fathers, he's so proud, all he talks about is me. He doesn't talk about himself. I probably have read more about him than he's told me."

Chasing Koch

Talk that Charlottesville could catch the remnants of Hurricane Hanna this weekend have brought back memories for wide receiver Cary Koch, who probably wouldn't be in Charlottesville if not for Hurricane Katrina, which ravaged the gulf coast in 2005.

Koch was a freshman wide receiver at Tulane that fall, when his team was unable to play any home games after Katrina forced closing of the campus. He transferred to Virginia after Tulane dropped his proposed major.

"I talked to a friend last Wednesday who is still on Tulane's team," Koch said. "He said they've been evacuated again. If I'd stayed at Tulane, I would have been evacuated my freshman year as well as my senior year.

"The last time Tulane was evacuated, they told us to bring a bag for two or three days, and this time, they said they packed a suitcase."

By last week, Tropical Storm Fay had done most of its damage and the Bayou was bracing for Hurricane Gustav. Koch said his family traveled north for the Cavaliers' game with Southern California and elected not to return home before this Saturday's 3:45 p.m. kickoff with Richmond.

"In Baton Rouge, once a day, it'll just rain," Koch said. "I counted up eight of 15 games my senior year that were played either in the rain or a torrential downpour. So, I'm used to playing in wet games."

Personnel

Junior Denzel Burrell, who battled Aaron Clark for playing time in the preseason, will take over as a starter at outside linebacker after Clark suffered a season-ending knee injury Saturday.

Highly rated recruit Cameron Johnson (6-foot-4, 220 pounds) is listed as Burrell's back-up and the Cavaliers are prepared to play him, Groh said.

Steve Greer joins Johnson and offensive guard Austin Pasztor as true freshmen listed on the two-deep. Greer is listed behind Jon Copper at inside linebacker. Only Pasztor saw action against USC. ... Sophomore Mike Parker is listed No. 1 at the cornerback spot where redshirt freshman Chase Minniefield started against Southern Cal.
Junior wide receiver Kevin Ogletree, returning to action after knee surgery caused him to miss the 2007 season, returned kickoffs for the first time in his UVa career. Ogletree's 18.5-yard average was deceiving because an apparent 25-yard return was shorted to 14 yards by penalty.
Quote of the week

When asked about players of the week, Groh said, "Nobody's player of the week. There's no coach of the week. There's no player of the week. There's the bum of the week and I'm leading the club."
 

UVa picks Burrell to replace injured Clark
By Andy Bitter
Published: September 2, 2008

CHARLOTTESVILLE — After years of waiting, Denzel Burrell badly wanted one of Virginia’s outside linebacker jobs. But not like this.
News came late Monday that starting outside linebacker Aaron Clark will miss the rest of the season because of a knee injury suffered against USC on Saturday.
Burrell, a junior with whom Clark competed all spring and summer, will assume the starting job when the Cavaliers face Richmond this Saturday at Scott Stadium.
“I hate that it happened this way and that I have to step into a starting role because of an injury to him,” said Burrell, who tore the ACL of his left knee two years ago against Wyoming in the home opener and missed the remainder of the season. “I would have rather it had been splitting reps and seeing him as well, because he’s a big part of the team.”
Clark turned in a quality performance against USC in his first career start, making five stops, including Virginia’s only tackle for a loss in the game.
But with just over 12 minutes left in the third quarter, Clark blitzed off the right end and fell to the ground, holding his right knee in pain. He was on crutches by the end of the game.
Word came Sunday through the team’s weekly injury report that Clark was scheduled to have season-ending surgery for what was termed a “knee sprain.” The procedure has not been scheduled.
“We feel bad for Aaron,” Virginia coach Al Groh said. “He had really worked hard on his game. He played well in the game Saturday. Had a number of stops. He put in his time and he certainly deserved the opportunity.”
Clark is a fourth-year player but did not redshirt, which opens the possibility for him to return for a fifth season of eligibility. Groh said he and Clark have spoken about it, but nothing will be decided until after the surgery.
Burrell got most of his action last year on special teams but made strides in the offseason, earning the team’s Rock Weir Award in the spring as the most improved defensive player.
“I guess it was really just a confidence booster, but at the same time, I knew that nothing was promised,” Burrell said.
“The Rock Weir is just an award for the spring. It wasn’t entitling me to any position this season.”
Burrell and Clark, who both played defensive end in high school, bring different looks to the outside linebacker position. Clark, at 6-foot-5, 250 pounds, is bigger than the 6-foot-4, 230-pound Burrell.
But Burrell is faster, and his recognition skills are improving.
“He’s had a strong want-to since he’s been here,” Groh said. “He’s been an intense, passionate player, but what changed in the spring is a lot of the more significant and precise details of the scheme started to click in with him.
“He went from kind of a ‘fur flies all over the place but no telling what direction he’s going to go’ player in the system early in his career to where he recognizes things and he’s on them pretty quickly now.”
Cam Johnson, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound true freshman from Gonzaga College High in Greenbelt, Md., has moved behind Burrell on the depth chart. Johnson is expected to get in games, Groh said.
But the starting job for now belongs to Burrell, who got encouragement from Clark, one of his best friends, shortly after the severity of the injury was understood.
“His words (were), ‘Go get it now,’” Burrell said.


 

UVa notes
By Andy Bitter
Published: September 2, 2008

CHARLOTTESVILLE — Virginia’s game notes usually feature a list of the team’s standout players from the previous week, citing one player from the offense, defense, special teams and scout team.
Tuesday’s notes didn’t honor anyone.
“We didn’t single anybody out,” coach Al Groh said after suffering the most lopsided defeat of his time at UVa, a 52-7 thrashing by third-ranked USC. “Nothing. Nobody’s the player of the week. There’s no coach of the week. There’s no player of the week.
“There’s the bum of the week. And I’m leading the club.”
There wasn’t much to take from Saturday’s game. The Cavaliers (0-1) were out-gained 558-187. They didn’t register a sack. And they were shut out in the second half — all in front of a home crowd.
It drew comparisons to last season’s opener at Wyoming, a 23-3 loss. The Cowboys romped in that one-sided affair, holding the Cavaliers to 100 yards of total offense and racking up 452 yards of their own.
Virginia fans can at least find a silver lining in the fact that last year’s team rebounded to win its next seven games.
“After that Wyoming loss, pretty much the mind set on the team was enough is enough,” safety Byron Glaspy said. “We were ready to be a good team and have a good season and do whatever it takes to get there. That’s would drove us last year.”
Familiar face
Mike London, who had two stints as an assistant at Virginia, serving the last two seasons as the defensive coordinator, took the head coaching job at his alma mater, Richmond, in January. Now he’s coming back to Scott Stadium in enemy colors.
“I think it will only be strange to see him on the other side of the field,” Glaspy said. “But once the game gets going, it’s only another football game.”
Groh said London’s connections to UVa won’t be an issue in preparation this week.
“He did an awful lot for us when he was here,” Groh said. “But this particular week, there really are no personal feelings about it. … We’re pretty sure they’re not going to take it easy on us just because Mike likes us.”
Plenty powerful
Place-kicker Yannick Reyering might have missed his only field goal opportunity Saturday — a 46-yarder in the second quarter that sailed just wide right — but it was encouraging nonetheless.
The kick had plenty of distance and was “straight as a string,” according to Groh. “It was just off in its aiming point,” he said.
Reyering, a native of Germany, was making his first appearance in a football game. Groh sent him, holder Scott Deke and long snapper Danny Aiken to Scott Stadium on several occasions during the preseason to allow the kicker to get used to that atmosphere.
A former all-ACC soccer player, Reyering has a unique kicking style, with very little follow through, something that doesn’t bother Groh in the least.
“It goes far and it goes straight,” he said. “I don’t really care what the style looks like. It’s like those golfers. They’ve all got a different swing. It’s just what the ball looks like in the air.”
Extra points
Sophomore cornerback Ras-I Dowling (leg), who did not suit up for the USC game, was not listed on Tuesday’s depth chart. Sophomore Mike Parker is listed as a starter, ahead of true freshman Chase Minnifield, who started against the Trojans but was a frequent target in his first career appearance. … Virginia will don retro uniforms for its game against Richmond this Saturday, wearing throwback helmets and jerseys to celebrate Cavaliers teams from 1984-93. As part of the promotion, tickets are available for $16, reflective of the cost from that era.


 

Cavs face off with familiar opponent
By Jay Jenkins
Published: September 2, 2008

It may be only fitting that a handful of coaches with experience working alongside Virginia coach Al Groh are slated to be a part of Saturday’s “Retro Day” contest against the University of Richmond.

That collection includes former Virginia defensive coordinator Mike London, now in his first year leading the Spiders’ football program.

The Cavaliers (0-1), at this point, would likely settle with merely flashing back to last season.

After a disheartening loss last year at Wyoming in the opening game, the Cavaliers promptly won their next seven straight games and climbed into the national polls for the first time since 2005.

Finding the formula for success could be rather tricky. Last year, Groh said the focus was merely on trying “to get better” on a weekly basis.

“This time a year ago we were just trying to win a game,” he said. “Who knew that we were going to win seven games in a row? We just tried to win the next one. After we had won four, we just tried to win the fifth one.

“Had we pulled off a miracle on Saturday, we would be saying the same thing. We are not trying to go on a two-game winning streak. We are just trying to win the next one.”

Although Richmond (1-0) looms on Saturday, for now, Virginia is focusing internally on glaring problems showcased during the 52-7 loss to Southern California. Groh cited five bad snaps, back-to-back procedure penalties, a poor punt and a block in the back on a kickoff return as prime examples.

“Those weren’t USC things; those were Virginia things,” Groh said. “Those are the things that we have to understand. Teams that win a lot of games, part of the formula is that they are teams that understand what causes them to lose and go about eliminating those things.”

Virginia safety Byron Glaspy said it was promising to know that many of the mistakes were “correctable,” which was a similar scenario after the opening loss in 2007.

“I would say that the biggest thing that comes out of a loss is the feeling that you get, that terrible feeling that you know you don’t want to ever feel again,” Glaspy said. “That helps just drive you all the more during the week and throughout the season. You understand how much better and harder you have to practice and prepare yourself to keep from something like that happening again.

“Pretty much the mindset on the team [last year] was that’s enough. Enough is enough and we are ready to be a good team and have a good season and do whatever it takes to get there. That is what drove us last year to propel us through that seven-game winning streak and the rest of the season.”

For obvious reasons, winning the “next one” does not appear quite as daunting. While Richmond is ranked sixth in the Football Championship Subdivision rankings, the Spiders have defeated UVa only twice in 28 previous meetings, with their last win coming in 1946.

But with London and host of former Virginia graduate assistants on board as assistant coaches, the Spiders do have a familiarity with the Cavaliers.

The same cannot be said for Virginia. Groh said the Spiders do not use schemes similar to what London or the program’s offensive coaches have employed in Charlottesville.

“Since [Richmond’s] offense nor the defense seems to resemble what we are doing, I’d say probably other knowing Mike’s workout routine and what he prefers on his pizza, there’s not much that we are going to be able to apply,” Groh said with a smile.

“Really other than acknowledging what Mike’s familiarity is with our team and whatnot, for this week it is very impersonal. Mike’s a dear friend and was a colleague here and he did an awful lot for us while he was here, but for this particular week, there really are no personal feelings about it. It is just what do we have to do to get our team ready to play them.

“We are pretty sure that they are not going to take it easy on us because Mike likes us either.”

Down and out

With an idea of the severity of his injury, Aaron Clark picked up the phone Sunday and called fellow outside linebacker Denzel Burrell.

Clark, now out for the season with what was disclosed as a “knee sprain,” had a message for his friend and fellow linebacker.

“His words were, ‘Go get it now,’” Burrell recounted.

Clark does boast a redshirt year and could return. That decision will not be made at this point, however.

“He and I talked about that [Monday] and we said, ‘Let’s see what the doctors say and what their advisement is,’” Groh said. “But it is certainly something that we would be interested in.”

True freshman Cam Johnson made his debut on the team’s depth chart behind Burrell and is expected to play this season following Clark’s injury, Groh said.

“He’s a promising young player,” Groh said. “He has all the skills. He has size. He has athletic ability and he seems to grasp things quickly, but he’s only been here four weeks and he hasn’t been in too much action.”

Another true freshman, Steve Greer, also appeared on the team-issued depth chart for the first time. Greer, who replaced John-Kevin Dolce, is listed behind senior Jon Copper.

Groh said the coaching staff would not be opposed to playing the rookie.

Sounding off

“We didn’t single anybody out [against USC]. Well, we did, but not in that respect. Nothing. Nobody is the Player of the Week. There is no Coach of the Week. There is the bum of the week and I am leading the club.” — Groh after failing to nominate an offensive, defensive or special teams player for the ACC’s weekly awards.

Straight on

Had placekicker Yannick Reyering converted a first-half field goal on Saturday, Virginia would have scored in double figures for the 13th straight game.

While the former UVa soccer standout missed the 46-yard attempt, the kick itself drew positive praise from Groh and holder Scott Deke.

“In speaking with Scott Deke — actually Scott offered it — he said [Reyering] hit the ball real well,” Groh said. “It went straight as a string and was just off on its aiming point. That’s probably going to come with it a little bit. He has to learn his aiming points, but as I said with him before, he kicks a straight ball.

“He struck the ball well. He struck the extra point well.”

Extra points

Virginia cornerback Ras-I Dowling (leg) was not listed on the depth chart. With Dowling likely sidelined until the Connecticut game on Sept. 13, Groh is going to start another new face at the spot alongside junior Vic Hall. Sophomore Mike Parker, who made two tackles as a reserve last week, has passed redshirt freshman Chase Minnifield. “We are going to give [Parker] the first opportunity there this week,” Groh said. … After taking several series to get on track against USC, senior inside linebacker Jon Copper finished with a fury and leads the Cavaliers with 11 tackles. “He can sort it out pretty clearly, but that’s not necessarily been John’s pattern to start slowly and pick it up, but for whatever reason, he wasn’t going at the clip that he normally does, particularly with all the preparation that we had put into the game,” Groh said. “He certainly got going as time went on.” … Redshirt freshman Jared Green, who is tied for the team lead with three receptions for 40 yards, replaced senior Cary Koch as the top reserve behind junior wideout Kevin Ogletree. Koch, of course, also had three catches for 40 yards. … Virginia center Jack Shields suffered from hand cramps during the USC game. … Deke was used on placement kicks because of a bruise on the hand of Hall, the normal holder. … Former Virginia quarterback Kevin McCabe was victorious in his debut for California (Penn.) University. McCabe completed 30 of 36 passes for 297 yards and two touchdowns before the team’s running game took center stage. Oddly enough, considering the fact that he just arrived at the school, McCabe was named a team captain.

 

Senior Reyering kicks off career in new sport
Placekicker played soccer for Virginia for past three years, becomes starter
Paul Montana
Published: Wednesday, September 3 2008

Reyering missed but had some impressive kickoffs in the Cavaliers’ loss to USC. Senior Yannick Reyering has made many big kicks in his athletic career.
Saturday, however, the ball was not quite as round, and he had nearly 65,000 eyes on him.
In Virginia’s football home opener against USC Saturday, Reyering, a former Cavalier men’s soccer star, made his debut for the football team as the starting placekicker. Named the starter instead of fellow kickers redshirt freshman Chris Hinkebein and true freshman walk-on Robert Randolph just a week before the opening game, Reyering appeared on the field four times against USC; twice with the kickoff team, once on a field goal opportunity, and once for a successful extra point after Virginia’s lone touchdown, the first point of his career.
“Soccer final fours are a big thing, but I don’t think anything in college soccer can prepare you for what I faced [against USC],” Reyering said. “I was really excited and I didn’t want to disappoint anyone in the crowd, so that really got me pumped up.”
His first kickoff after Virginia’s only score was certainly the highlight of his afternoon. Reyering sent a knuckling line drive that landed untouched inside the Trojans’ 20 yard-line, and rolled all the way down to the 6 before sophomore returner Ronald Johnson scooped it up. Johnson managed a return of only 7 yards, earning Virginia one of its few cheers from the sold-out crowd in the 52-7 rout.
Was this unconventional — yet seemingly ingenious — kickoff by design?
“You could say that,” Reyering said with a wry smile. “They didn’t return it so far, so I guess you could say that.”
Given his history in the other kind of football, Reyering might deserve such seemingly accidental success. In his three years as a Cavalier soccer player, the 6-foot-6 German forward led Virginia in goals all three years he was with the program, accumulating 39 goals in his career. Reyering was only granted three years of eligibility in college soccer, however, as a result of his time spent on a semi-pro German team prior to enrolling at Virginia. The opportunity to play one more year of collegiate sports, perhaps combined with the setback of a torn ACL suffered at the end of last season, took him away from beginning a professional soccer career and onto the football field.
Now, on a Virginia team that lost one of its biggest personalities in Chris Long, Reyering is one of the more intriguing stories of 2008.
Reyering, however, did not win the starting kicker’s job by reputation. Though Groh has praised Reyering for his unsurprisingly strong leg, when asked what separated Reyering from Hinkebein and Randolph in training camp, Groh had a one-word answer: “accuracy.”
“We didn’t have any expectation as to [field goals], but we were impressed with how quickly and kind of unflappable he was in making the transition,” Groh said. “He strikes the ball cleanly and very evenly and he did a real nice job in camp.”
Groh also noted that Reyering uses soccer as an analogy for both kickoff and field goal situations. According to Groh, Reyering compares penalty kicks with kickoffs, and considers a kick in the run of play in a soccer game similar to a field goal.
On kickoffs, “the ball is just sitting on the ground, it’s not moving, it’s in a tee,” Groh said. “There’s certainly more timing and synchronization of different guys on field goals; you’ve got to get the snapper, holder, kicker all in the same rhythm.”
His first field goal try Saturday, a 46-yarder from the right hash mark with Virginia trailing 24-7 in the second quarter, tailed just to the right of the goal posts.
“I knew when I hit it that it was a little too far right,” Reyering said. “I don’t know what exactly the reason was for that because usually that doesn’t happen a lot from the right hash, so I’ve got to watch tape and figure that out and then improve for the next game.”
Reyering, however, will get more chances, as he continues to find his way in American football.
“It has been a great transition so far,” Reyering said. “Obviously I’m a little disappointed that I missed that field goal but I’m working on it every day and just hoping to get better.”

Cavs fall to elite-level competition
By Jerry Ratcliffe
Published: September 2, 2008

It didn’t take long for the naysayers to come out of the woodwork and declare the 2008 Virginia football season officially over.

If the Cavaliers were to take some of these posters seriously, they might as well turn in their uniforms, forfeit the remaining 11 games and start playing field hockey. Thank goodness that the 100 or so kids on the UVa roster show more maturity than half the fans that follow them.

Did anyone out there in fandom really think Virginia was going to play USC close? If so, they need to take a refresher course in Football 101.

Learning opportunities

We learned a few things about the Cavaliers this weekend, and a few things about the Trojans.

The Associated Press pollsters, who probably know a little more about football than those ripping Al Groh and his team on the message boards, boosted USC to the nation’s No. 1 team. Many football experts familiar with the Trojans stated over the weekend that this Southern California team looks better than last year’s, which lost several starters to the NFL.

We’ve been around the block a few times and have seen some great teams over the years. However, this USC team might just be the best we’ve ever seen in person. If there’s a better college football team in the country than Southern California — and I was skeptical about that until I saw them play — then I’d like to see that team.

Ohio State had better brace itself, because I don’t think there’s any way that the Buckeyes match up with the Trojans.

We were curious if it was the best college team that Groh had seen over his vast career, and he pretty much confirmed so during his weekly press conference Tuesday.

Groh said that while in the NFL, he had been assigned to evaluate some of the nation’s best college players for the draft and that included several trips to Miami and Florida State back in the ‘90s. However, Groh didn’t see them play in person, just on tape. Rather, he worked out the players without pads as many NFL scouts do.

As good as it gets

“From my limited experience over the last 20 years or so with college football, that’s physically the finest looking team that we’ve seen ... size, speed,” Groh said.

Keep in mind that 10 of Virginia’s players were starting for the first time in their careers against the Trojans and that 15 Cavaliers made the first appearance of their careers in the game.

Certainly that should bode well for next year’s UVa team, but it should be fun watching this group of Cavaliers grow up before our very eyes this season. Groh said back in July that this should be an evolving team that will play better as the season goes along.

If you look at the big picture, last year’s season-opening loss at Wyoming was a whole lot worse that Saturday’s loss to USC. The Cavs bounced back to win seven in a row — just after some clown painted Beta Bridge insisting that Groh, who went on to be named ACC coach of the year, must go. Brilliant.

Under review

Some brief observations from Saturday’s game:

Other than the mishandled shotgun snaps, quarterback Pete Lalich did a good job. His quick release is going to come in helpful until the offensive line gets its act together, and he can make all the throws that a big-time passer needs to have in his arsenal. We also liked the way he moved in the pocket considering that he has limited playing time under his belt. He will get better.

Using the spread was a good idea. With an offensive line that hasn’t quite yet grasped the concept of run blocking, throwing the ball was about all UVa could do, especially against perhaps the best defense in the nation. It takes less time to hold a pass block and with Lalich’s quick release, a host of receivers, and running backs that can catch, it made perfect sense to go airborne.

We were kind of disappointed that UVa didn’t use more short passes to the running backs, particularly to Mikell Simpson, who is a proven receiver. Screens, swings and some dinks would have been interesting. But heck, maybe nothing would work against the Trojans.

Cary Koch, Jared Green and John Phillips were impressive receivers that should give Lalich a lot more targets to throw to as the season progresses.

The running game should make an impact this week against Richmond. While the Spiders boast a good, experienced defense, it pales in comparison to USC’s (but then again, whose doesn’t?). Cedric Peerman and Simpson should be able to provide a little more balance this weekend.

Under the circumstances, the kicking game showed promised. Freshman punter Jimmy Howell is going to be a good one (38.2 yards per punt on eight kicks). Ex-soccer star Yannick Reyering missed his lone field goal attempt, but he showed plenty of leg on the miss. He just needs to work out the accuracy thing.

Defensively, the secondary got toasted a few times and that may not be the last time, but there were a few times that Virginia’s defenders had their opponents well covered and the USC receivers made incredible plays. Plus, it’s highly unlikely that UVa will face another quarterback the rest of the way who was as hot as USC’s Sanchez.

UVa’s linebackers were solid but looked slow compared to USC’s offense. The D-line has some work to do, which we expected.

Forget USC

The players have put this behind them, chalked it up as a learning experience and have moved on.

The real key to Virginia’s football season lies in the next three games: Richmond here; UConn on the road; Duke on the road. Virginia has to win at least two of those and then hunker down for a three-game homestand.

Retro week

This should be a fun week for Virginia fans who experienced the George Welsh teams from 1984 on to the early 1990s.

We will take a look at a couple of those great moments during this retro week leading up to Saturday’s Richmond game when UVa rolls back the game ticket prices to 16 bucks.

The Cavs will be wearing retro uniforms and hopefully with discover a retro running game sometime before kickoff. That could come in handy if a hurricane has anything to do with the game.

Getting it right

For the last few seasons now, we’ve been getting e-mails, we’ve been hearing fans who have been getting something completely wrong. We want to clear it up for once and for all.

Don’t know how many times we’ve seen a disgruntled fan write or say something like: “Whatever happened to Al Groh stating that he was going to win a national championship at Virginia?”

Well, Groh never said that.

We looked back on statements from the press conference when Groh was introduced as Virginia’s head coach and the person who spoke of winning a national championship was UVa president John Casteen, not Groh.

Here’s the direct quote:

“My perspective on this is we wanted to find an appropriate way to build toward the next level,” Casteen said. “A level where we are able to compete, using players who succeed in our academic programs, but to compete on the very highest level nationally. Our intention is to support Al in building a program that will be a strong competitor and we hope, periodically, a winner at the level of the national championship.”

Just for the record, since 1990, there have been only two national champions that have been ranked among the top 12 universities in the country by the U.S. News & World Report’s annual survey: Michigan in 1997 and Georgia Tech (a split title) in 1990.

We rest our case.

 

Cavaliers set up challenging schedule
By Jay Jenkins
Published: September 2, 2008

Virginia coach Debbie Ryan has eliminated one series of questions long before the NCAA Tournament selection process will arrive.

While other concerns may arise, the women’s basketball selection committee will be unable to validate knocking the Cavaliers regarding their strength of schedule.

In fact, Ryan thinks the slate, which was announced Tuesday, may be the most challenging of her illustrious career.

Contests with 15 postseason participants, including the defending champions of the NCAA Tournament and the WNIT, highlight a 30-game schedule that opens at John Paul Jones Arena on Nov. 14 with High Point.

“We have competitive games up and down the schedule,” Ryan said. “I really like the fact that we are playing a difficult schedule, but at the same time it is the schedule that we need to play.”

Virginia, expected to enter the year ranked, returns four starters and eight of its top nine scorers from last season’s team. Those players will be counted upon in the opening month, one that includes a trip to face Tennessee, the defending national champions, on Nov. 17.

“We just decided that it would be a good idea to try and get Tennessee on the schedule,” Ryan said. “They are so hard to get and as it turned out they had a cancellation and came to us. We were like, ‘Wow, we would love to get it.’

“I think that is going to be a great experience and it will be a very competitive game and one that will show us where we are with the top teams in the country.”

Virginia also plays at Old Dominion (Nov. 17) and in a four-team, round-robin tournament at Marquette in the opening month. In addition to the Golden Eagles, the defending WNIT champ, the Cavaliers will face Utah and Gonzaga in the three-day event.

Playing back-to-back-to-back in an “exempt event” was intriguing to Ryan after reaping benefits from a similar event last year at Hawaii.

Non-conference contests at home with Georgia, who advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament last year, and a possible title showdown with Louisiana Tech in the four-team Cavalier Classic are included among the team’s 17 home games.

UVa will also face Illinois on the road on Dec. 4 in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.

“It will be orange and blue night,” Ryan chuckled.

Collectively, the schedule should accomplish Ryan’s top initiative.

“I do have a lot of confidence in my players,” she said, “and I want them to be conference-ready when we have to take the floor against our conference.”

Virginia will play Florida State, Maryland and Virginia Tech twice in league play and the remaining schools one time. The four additional home games in the ACC include Boston College, Duke, Miami and Wake Forest. The Cavaliers will play Clemson, Georgia Tech, North Carolina and North Carolina State solely on the road.

Season tickets go on sale Thursday.