UVa QB charged again
By Doug Doughty
981-3125

The status of Virginia quarterback Peter Lalich was in question Thursday after he was charged with violating terms of his probation.

According to court records, he was charged Thursday and is due in Charlottesville General District Court on Sept. 26.

The Cavalier Daily, UVa's student newspaper, cited an anonymous source Thursday in a Web site post in which it reported that Lalich had refused a blood test.

Lalich was charged with underage possession of alcohol on July 13 and appeared in Charlottesville General District Court on July 21, when he was placed on probation for one year.

Lalich started at quarterback in the Cavaliers' opening game against Southern California and has been listed No. 1 on the depth chart for UVa's game Saturday with visiting Richmond.

Virginia officials were familiarizing themselves with the details of Lalich's case and offered no comment Thursday night.


 

Cavaliers' QB Lalich violates probation
Friday, Sep 05, 2008 - 12:06 AM

CHARLOTTESVILLE - University of Virginia quarterback Peter Lalich is headed back to court after being cited yesterday for violating the terms of his probation.

Lalich, a U.Va. sophomore who turned 20 in May, was charged in July with unlawful purchase and possession of alcohol, a misdemeanor. In Charlottesville General District Court, he was placed in a pre-conviction probation program.

If Lalich had met the terms of his probation, which weren't disclosed but probably included testing for alcohol use, for a year, the charge would have been dropped July 21, 2009. Now, however, he has to return to court for a Sept. 26 hearing and may be convicted of the charge.

U.Va. officials declined to comment last night. Lalich, a graduate of West Springfield High in Northern Virginia, started the Cavaliers' opener against Southern California last week. Virginia hosts Richmond tomorrow. - Jeff White

Glory days revisited
Cavs hoping to draw inspiration from past as they host Richmond
Friday, Sep 05, 2008 - 12:06 AM
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- University of Virginia football players will wear retro uniforms tomorrow, a sight sure to elicit happy memories for many at Scott Stadium.

The days of Shawn Moore and Chris Slade and Herman Moore were glorious ones for a program that for decades had had little to cheer.

The Virginia-Richmond game won't be the only attraction tomorrow. To celebrate a stretch of 10 seasons, 1984 to '93, in which the Cavaliers won 72 games, the university will honor the '89 team at halftime.

George Welsh, who retired in 2000 after 19 seasons as Virginia's coach, will be there, along with Shawn Moore, Herman Moore, Slade and dozens of others from that team.

In 1990, the Wahoos briefly occupied the No. 1 spot in the national polls, and that team has long overshadowed its predecessor. But the '89 Cavaliers still are the only team in school history to win 10 games, and they were the first to capture an ACC championship. Moreover, they were the first to play in a New Year's Day bowl.

"Great talent, great leadership," Welsh said yesterday. "The offense, the execution was unbelievable, and we had a pretty good defense."

The Cavaliers closed 1988 with five straight wins and entered the '89 season stocked with talented players, among them Shawn Moore at quarterback, Herman Moore at wide receiver, Roy Brown at offensive guard, Slade and Ray Savage at defensive end, Ray Roberts at offensive tackle, Marcus Wilson at tailback, Ron Carey at nose guard, Joe Hall at defensive tackle and Jake McInerney at kicker.

They opened with a thud, losing 36-13 to second-ranked Notre Dame in the Kickoff Classic in New Jersey. A week later, U.Va. traveled to State College, Pa., to meet the nation's 12th-ranked team.

"I remember the locker room for the Penn State game," Hall said yesterday. "It was so quiet, and that can go one of two ways: Nobody's focused, and you're going to get run over, or everybody's focused, and you're going to play your [rear ends] off."

The Cavaliers stunned the Nittany Lions 14-6 and went on to win nine of their next 10 games. Would they have been to able to finish first in the ACC had they opened the season with back-to-back losses?

"It's hard to tell," Welsh said. "Whether it would have hurt us or not, losing, I don't know. But [the win over PSU] helped us."

In its second ACC game, U.Va. destroyed Duke 49-28, and it wasn't as close as the score would suggest. The Cavaliers' lone conference loss -- the ACC was an eight-team league back then -- came against Clemson, naturally. With Shawn Moore out with a shoulder injury suffered in a win over William and Mary, U.Va. lost 34-20 at No. 15 Clemson to fall to 0-29 in the series.

A year later, of course, The Streak ended when Virginia whipped Clemson 20-7 in Charlottesville. Still, Welsh can't help wondering what might have been in '89. "Maybe if Shawn hadn't gotten hurt in the William and Mary game . . . "

U.Va. and Duke each finished 6-1 in league play in 1989 and thus shared the ACC title. Steve Spurrier, then Duke's coach, belittled the Cavaliers' claim to the crown, noting that, unlike his team, they'd lost to Clemson, the league's perennial champion.

Nearly two decades later, Welsh still bristles at Spurrier's comment.

"I remember it," Welsh said yesterday. "One thing I never could understand about Steve Spurrier, we scored touchdowns on seven straight possessions [against Duke], and it could have been worse."

A 31-21 loss to Jeff George-led Illinois in the Florida Citrus Bowl ended a remarkable season for Virginia (10-3). The 1990 Cavaliers had a more explosive offense -- Shawn Moore finished fourth and Herman Moore sixth in the Heisman Trophy race -- and attracted more national attention, but the '89 team accomplished more on the field.

"That was a hell of a football team," Shawn Moore said.

 

Just how bad was Virginia's loss?
Doughty's "take" might surprise you
By Doug Doughty

My impression is that most Virginia fans who read The Roanoke Times consider me a glass-half-empty guy when it comes to Cavalier athletics.

I don’t know if that impression will ever change, but I’m here to say that UVa’s 52-7 season-opening home loss to Southern California was not as disturbing as a 23-3 loss at Wyoming in the 2007 opener.

As far as I know, Beta Bridge hasn’t been painted over with any “Groh Must Go” messages this week, but maybe that’s no longer allowed with the free-speech crackdown that resulted in signs being banned from Scott Stadium.

(For more on that, look for a blog to be posted shortly on the Press Box on roanoke.com).

One way to look at the UVa-USC game was that the Trojans were simply too good, as represented by their elevation to No. 1 in the polls, and that few teams this side of the NFL could have beaten them.

But, here’s one stat that should give UVa fans some hope: For a period of more than 30 minutes, extending from late in the first quarter until late in the third quarter, the Trojans outscored UVa 10-7.

You could argue that USC had lost interest after pulling away to a 21-0 lead, but that didn’t prevent the Trojans from taking advantage of four Virginia turnovers to outscore the Cavaliers 28-0 over the final 18:28.

Southern California had the ball for close to 10 ½ minutes in the fourth quarter as UVa turned the ball over on four consecutive possessions, including a pair of fumbles and an interception by UVa sophomore quarterback Peter Lalich.

It has been hard to find a UVa fan who was alarmed by Lalich’s performance and the Cavaliers are much more certain about their quarterback situation than they were at this time a year ago.

Virginia had 187 yards in total offense against Southern Cal, which might not seem like much until you consider that the Cavaliers had 117 at Wyoming.

The Cowboys outgained Virginia 442-117. That spread was 558-187 against Southern Cal.

In the 2007 opener, former quarterback Jameel Sewell was 11-of-23 for 87 yards and was intercepted twice. Lalich was 18-of-35 for 155 yards and one “pick.”

Don’t people say that stats are for losers? Maybe so, but it appears that there are throws that Lalich can make – the seam route to the tight ends and the 15-yard outs – that gave Sewell trouble.

On the other hand, how many times last year did Sewell scramble for first downs last year when all appeared lost on third-and-7? The Cavaliers don’t have that threat when Lalich is in the game.

It’s sort of what Virginia Tech is going through with its quarterback, Sean Glennon and the de-redshirted Tyrod Taylor. Lalich is like Glennon and Sewell is more like Taylor, except, of course, that Sewell is academically ineligible.

With unproven running backs and young wide receivers, Tech has an absence of playmakers when Glennon is on the field. Virginia has to bank on wide receiver Kevin Ogletree as a playmaker who can complement running backs Cedric Peerman and Mikell Simpson.

 

Tailgates revoked after unruly action
Privilege rescinded after ‘out-of-control’ pre-game events this past Saturday
Jane Ma, Cavalier Daily Staff Writer
Published: Friday, September 5 2008

Because of unruly behavior at last weekend’s USC football game, Lawn tailgates will not be allowed this week. The privilege of Lawn tailgates scheduled before home football games and limited to 40 guests has been rescinded after “disorderly behavior” was displayed before last Saturday’s game against the University of Southern California, according to an e-mail sent to Lawn and Range residents by Dean of Students Allen Groves yesterday morning.
Last year, tailgating was limited in the wake of similar incidents that occurred prior to the November home football game against Wake Forest University. The tailgates before the Wake Forest game were “pretty bad,” Groves said, noting that there were several concerns about the size of the crowds on the Lawn and on the West Range. He added that concern also stemmed from episodes of “violence” that ensued before that game, which included the reported throwing of chairs.
As a result, Patricia Lampkin, vice president for student affairs, sent an e-mail to Lawn residents earlier this fall announcing a new tailgate procedure that would be applied on a game-to-game basis.
The e-mail stated that if the crowd at a Lawn or Range resident’s space “exceeds 40 persons,” the host is “responsible for managing the numbers and sending folks away.”
Furthermore, Lampkin stated in the e-mail that the “number of individuals present for gatherings in lawn rooms is limited to 40 because of the impact it can have on other members of the Lawn community and because of the difficulty in managing larger groups.”
Groves noted those guidelines were created with the safety of Lawn and Range residents in mind. Events occurring prior to the most recent home football game, however, have resulted in the rescinding of the earlier agreement, Groves said.
Crowds of people on the Lawn and in the alleys prior to the USC football game “very quickly got out of control” and made it “an unsafe situation,” Groves said. There was open consumption of alcohol, fist fights, students shouting obscenities and even a “significant amount of urination” on buildings, alleys and bushes, Groves said.
Not all Lawn residents, however, agreed with Groves’ assessment of the situation.
The tailgate crowds appeared to be “under control,” Lawn resident Greg Kauffmann said. “Any disruption was from USC.”
Sydney Owens, another Lawn resident, similarly said she did not think the crowd was unruly. She did, however, “see a lot of Lawn residents try to keep things under control,” she said. Ownes added that “the people from USC were making it difficult.”
Although the pre-game crowds appeared calm to some Lawn residents, Groves also said the crowds proved particularly disruptive to pavilion residents and their families who encountered tailgate-goers.
Commerce School Dean Carl Zeithaml, a pavilion resident, said he has noticed an increasingly out-of-control, rowdy atmosphere, especially before the 2007 Wake Forest game and last week’s USC game.
“It is not the Lawn residents,” he said, noting that he saw one non-University community member toting a 12-pack of beer on the Lawn. “By and large, it’s not even U.Va. students. But the number of students has grown ... and the parties have gotten bigger.”
Zeithaml noted that even though he has long been a self-proclaimed proponent of letting college students be college students, there is still a line that should not be crossed prior to home games.
“When you have fights breaking out and when you have the Lawn, perhaps one of the most important and symbolic architectural monuments, being treated as a public bathroom ... that’s clearly crossing the line,” Zeithaml said.
Like Zeithaml, Groves also noted that some Lawn residents tried to deal with the difficult situation last weekend.
“A number of students who reside on the Lawn tried to control the situation,” Groves said, but the behavior displayed Saturday demonstrated that “the present procedure isn’t working.”
As a result, Groves said, it has become necessary to limit the number of guests of a Lawn or Range resident prior to a home football game to the number of people that can be “safely” enclosed within the boundaries of a resident’s room. Outdoor tables as well as a “general gathering in the area” near the rooms are now prohibited, the e-mail stated.
In taking this action, Groves also emphasized in the e-mail that he is willing to set aside time to meet with the Lawn and Range residents, and to talk about possible approaches for future home football games remaining this season.
“I want to hear from them,” Groves said about Lawn residents, noting that he would like to use the month’s time between this upcoming Saturday and the next home game to find a viable solution to the tailgating problem. In this regard, Groves said he has already reached out to head Lawn resident Christian West and others to arrange a discussion of the procedures with residents.
Fixing the problem, though, Zeithaml said, goes beyond having a discussion.
“Everyone [students, non-students and University administrators and staff] bears responsibility to change the situation, so that people can have fun but not create something that is dangerous and, frankly, embarrassing to the University,” Zeithaml said.

UVa bans tailgating on the Lawn, Range
By Brian McNeill
Published: September 4, 2008

Hundreds of football fans. Trash strewn about. At least one fistfight. A bit of vomiting. And public urination — on cars, in historic alleyways and on the steps of the Rotunda.

That was the scene several people saw at the university’s Lawn in the hours leading up to UVa’s Saturday afternoon football game against the University of Southern California.
As a result, UVa has banned the popular tailgate parties on the Lawn and the Range for the university’s home game Saturday against the University of Richmond.

“As many of you know, this past Saturday’s pre-game activities in and around the Academical Village resulted in excessive crowds and several incidents of poor behavior ranging from impolite to physically aggressive, and in general created a climate that was disrespectful to this important historical site and also potentially unsafe to you, other students and our guests,” wrote Allen W. Groves, UVa’s associate vice president and dean of students, in an e-mail sent Thursday to the roughly 100 students who live in the prestigious Lawn and Range dorms.

Previously, residents of the Lawn and the Range were allowed to host receptions or tailgate parties on game days in front of their rooms with as many as 40 guests. Each of the parties required pre-approval. “In practice,” Groves wrote, “this procedure is simply not working.”
For Saturday’s game, no receptions or tailgates will be allowed. The residents may have guests, but only inside their room.
UVa also will be distributing additional trashcans and portable toilets around the Lawn area for Saturday’s football game.

On the day of the USC game, 24 residents of the Lawn and the Range got permission to host a tailgate party. If the maximum number of guests shown up, that would have placed nearly 1,000 football fans on the Lawn. Plus, many alumni and other passersby saw the crowds and joined the parties. As the crowds grew, things spiraled out of control, witnesses said.
“There were a lot of people here,” said Bernice Ramirez, a fourth-year student who lives on the Lawn. “We want this place to be safe and fun for everyone. We want to have these get-togethers, but we also want to preserve this place.”
Groves himself saw people urinating in public. “I had to personally step in,” Groves said. “I said, ‘This is a historic place. Don’t do that.’”
Groves also had to reprimand a young UVa fan who was shouting obscenities at every USC fan who walked by.

Groves praised the many UVa students who live on the Lawn and Range and tried to keep things under control. Many of them, he said, stuck around during the game to help clean up. The troublemakers, he said, were not necessarily UVa students or alumni.
The vast majority of people were behaving themselves, UVa administrators said, but the size of the crowd simply grew beyond anyone’s ability to manage it.
“The Lawn is like a magnet on football weekends for alumni, students and friends,” said UVa spokeswoman Carol Wood. “A lot of them join the festivities.”

Saturday’s unruly behavior was not the first time that football fans made a mess of the historic heart of UVa. During last year’s game against Wake Forest University, a rowdy crowd convened on the Lawn. Several chairs were thrown, witnesses said.
Following the Wake Forest incidents, the university banned tailgate parties on the Lawn and the Range for the football team’s final game of the season against Virginia Tech.

UVa’s administration and residents of the Lawn and the Range will meet in the coming weeks to find ways to avoid a repeat of the unruly behavior on game days.
“It’s important for us to have that dialogue,” Ramirez said.



 

Spiders, London pay visit to Charlottesville
Former assistant Mike London returns to coach against Cavs
Blair Capps, Cavalier Daily Staff Writer
Published: Friday, September 5 2008

Former Virginia defensive coordinator Mike London, pictured here against Wyoming in 2006, is now the head coach at Richmond. Last Saturday’s thorough 52-7 shellacking by Southern California provided more questions than answers for the Virginia football team. Will the team’s performance last week foreshadow the rest of this season? Will the Cavaliers be able to scrape together a winning record? Was the game against USC a good litmus test for the team’s ability? Some of these questions could be answered Saturday when the Cavaliers (0-1) suit up against Richmond (1-0) at Scott Stadium at 3:45 p.m.
After an off-season during which the question of who would be the starting quarterback was left unanswered, it really came as no surprise that sophomore Peter Lalich, whose status is in doubt Saturday because of off-the-field issues, emerged as the starter Saturday. Some, however, are questioning Virginia coach Al Groh’s decision after Lalich fumbled twice and threw one interception.
“He kept his poise under pretty intense pressure, stepped up, moved in the pocket, made some good throws, was not rattled by the circumstances,” Groh said. “He had to move — somebody said to me, ‘Well it looked like Peter was a little anxious moving in the pocket.’ I said, ‘What was he supposed to do, stand there and get hit?’”
Another potential issue facing the Cavaliers is the loss of senior linebacker Aaron Clark for the season. Clark suffered a knee sprain against USC and is scheduled to have surgery. Clark may be back for a fifth year with the team if he decides to medical redshirt this season. Interestingly enough, his replacement, sophomore Denzel Burrell, is one of Clark’s closest friends on the team.
“He wasn’t my roommate per se my first year, but being a linebacker, we were always together, whether it be at practice or on the weekends,” Burrell said. “Just being a linebacker, being around him all day, that was my main crew, my main friends or whatever at that time, so he was definitely one of those.”
Burrell, the Rock Weir Award winner for most improved defensive player during spring practice, is happy about his opportunity to play but wishes the circumstances had been different.
“We had a huge battle throughout the spring and the summer in camp, and it was known to everybody we both wanted the spot, but we both were very supportive of the other person,” Burrell said. “It just sucks for him to go down in the way he did, the first game of the season, after he had worked hard this spring and the summer to get to where he was. I hate that it happened this way, that I had to step into a starting role because of an injury to him.”
Perhaps a harder hit to the defense than the loss of Clark was the departure of defensive coordinator Mike London before the beginning of the season. London’s coaching of Virginia’s formidable defensive line last season was one of the main reasons the Cavaliers were able to pull off so many last-second victories. London left the team to take the head coaching job at his alma mater, Richmond.
Although the Cavaliers are facing their former coach, they see no advantages to this situation.
“Since neither the offense or the defense seems to resemble what we’re doing, I’d say probably other than knowing Mike’s workout routine and what he prefers on his pizza, there’s not much that we’re going to be able to apply,” Groh said.
This week’s game provides a great opportunity for the Cavaliers to get back on the proverbial horse. Many of the things that stood out in last week’s matchup against USC were not circumstances of a more skilled team simply beating a lesser foe.
“What was disturbing to us was, we had five poor snaps in the game ... we had a block in the back on a kickoff return ... we had two illegal procedure penalties back-to-back there that put us in a deep hole, and then got a 32-yard punt after that,” Groh said.
Against a Football Championship Series opponent, the team has a chance to correct some of these mistakes before ACC play begins.
Last season’s opening loss to Wyoming was a bitter beginning to a successful season that ended up including a seven-game win streak and a trip to the Gator Bowl. Certainly that is enough of a reason to remain hopeful for this season. The mindset that carried the Cavaliers from that shaky start to the Gator Bowl was one of determination.
“Just after that Wyoming loss, pretty much the mindset on the team was just, ‘That’s enough, and enough is enough, and we’re ready to be a good team and have a good season and do whatever it takes to get there,’” senior safety Byron Glaspy said.
Virginia will not be facing the same challenge this weekend as it did in USC. However, Richmond should not be counted as a cupcake team despite its FCS designation.
“In the case of Richmond, it’s a very attractive school with high-end academics, located very similar to Virginia in the East Coast population corridor, so they have access to a lot of players and they have a very attractive product to sell,” Groh said. “Obviously those are the ingredients that make good players interested in going to schools.”
This season, the Spiders were ranked No. 5 in the FCS going into the season. FCS teams are no longer considered pushovers after FCS No. 1 Appalachian State defeated traditional Football Bowl Subdivision powerhouse Michigan last season. This is one team that cannot and should not be overlooked.
Overall, this season’s schedule is doing the Cavaliers no favors. Saturday’s game against Richmond provides the best chance for the Cavaliers to correct major mistakes before it is too late to salvage a season.

ACC draws laughter at attempts to play football
By Lenox Rawlings | Journal Columnist
Published: September 5, 2008

Foghorns and other notes:

The ACC emerged from the expansion pit claiming top-dog status among America's football leagues, which merely seemed amusing at the time. Why are so many people laughing now?

Maybe that's because the ACC finished 2-6 in bowl games last season. Maybe that's because no ACC team has won its headliner Bowl Championship Series game since Florida State beat Virginia Tech for the 1999 mythical national title.

Maybe that's because the ACC has a grand total of one ranked team, No. 20 Wake Forest, and the Mountain West Conference has two, No. 15 Brigham Young and No. 22 Utah. The Mountain West isn't a BCS league.

The opening weekend compounded the consternation. After a sluggish first half, N.C. State had nothing left for overrated South Carolina and lost 34-0. Southern Cal suffocated Virginia 52-7. Alabama jolted those sleepwalkers from Clemson 34-10. East Carolina (of Conference USA) turned a blocked punt into the deciding touchdown against Virginia Tech.

Elsewhere, Wake Forest trounced Baylor. Duke knocked off James Madison for a rare celebration. North Carolina ran haphazardly against McNeese State but still won, and four other teams beat lower-level opponents.

On several campuses, the accusatory fingers are pointing at erratic quarterbacks. FSU will start a sophomore, Christian Ponder, against Western Carolina rather than senior Drew Weatherford, who has started 33 games. Virginia Tech's unorthodox redshirt plan for sophomore Tyrod Taylor was judged too clever by at least a half, and Coach Frank Beamer decided that Taylor should resume sharing the job with Sean Glennon.

Because Russell Wilson suffered a severe concussion, N.C. State once more will turn to Daniel Evans, who is 6-11 as a starter. The Wolfpack didn't score in its final game last season, either, but should manage points against William & Mary.

The opening-act upheaval left Riley Skinner alone at the top of the quarterback heap, another reason why Wake Forest deserves the favorite's gold jersey. The Deacons will open their home schedule Saturday against Mississippi, the No. 5 pick in the SEC West before an opening 41-24 win over Memphis.

The ACC takes only a few shots at ranked outside teams. In 2007, the ACC finished 3-10 against ranked opponents from other BCS leagues. This week's big shot: Miami at No. 5 Florida. The little shot: Duke at home against Northwestern. The danger zone: Richmond at Virginia.


 

UVa honoring 1989 ACC title team
By Andy Bitter
Published: September 5, 2008

Virginia’s 1989 football team never garnered as much attention as the 1990 squad, so it figures that the school will celebrate the ’89 team’s ACC championship — UVa’s first ever — on the 19th anniversary instead of a nice round number, as is custom.
“Hey, at least they’re doing it,” said Shawn Moore, the quarterback of both those teams.
A group of players from the 1989 team and coach George Welsh will be recognized at Scott Stadium this Saturday when the Cavaliers host Richmond.
While the 1990 team gets more notice because it reached No. 1 in the polls for the first time and featured the most explosive offense in the country, the 1989 group has one thing its ’90 brethren do not — a championship ring.
The Cavaliers tied Duke for the first place in the ACC in 1989, ending Clemson’s three-year reign as champions.
“Great talent. Great leadership,” Welsh said. “On offense, the execution was unbelievable. And we had a pretty good defense, too. We did what we had to do.”
Said Moore: “That was a hell of a football team.”
The 1989 team was the first in Virginia history to:
w win an ACC championship.
w win 10 games (it remains the only team to do so).
w appear in a New Year’s Day bowl game (it lost 31-21 in the Florida Citrus Bowl to a Jeff George-led Illinois squad).
Virginia had four all-ACC first-teamers that year, led by outside linebacker Ray Savage and Moore, who set a UVa record for total offense with 2,583 yards and 27 touchdowns.
“I know of three (players) that I think were perfect college quarterbacks: Shawn Moore, John Hufnagel and Aaron Brooks,” Welsh said. “Because they could run, they could throw, they could break tackles, they had speed and they were very clever with the football.”
Six more players made second team, including tailback Marcus Wilson, who ran for 1,098 rushing yards, and wideout Herman Moore, who began to emerge as a force, with a team-best 848 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns.
The ’89 Cavaliers might be overlooked for a couple reasons. First, they got hammered in the Kickoff Classic by defending national champion Notre Dame, losing 36-13 in East Rutherford, N.J., to open the season.
“I thought, if you’re going to get in the big leagues, you’ve got to start playing those kind of games,” Welsh said.
Second, they lost to Clemson halfway through the season when Shawn Moore couldn’t play because of a shoulder injury suffered against William & Mary the previous week. That prevented an outright ACC title.
But there were plenty of highlights, like the 14-6 win at No. 12 Penn State the week after the Notre Dame loss that got the season back on track.
Virginia carried that momentum to the ACC portion of the schedule. It scored on seven straight possessions to clobber Duke and outspoken coach Steve Spurrier, and it crushed Maryland 48-21 in the regular season finale to clinch a share of the regular season title.
The current Cavaliers will wear retro uniforms against Richmond this Saturday to honor all of the Welsh teams from 1984-93, but it will be the ’89 squad that gets singled out.
Finally.
“It’ll be fun,” Welsh said. “It’s about time.”


 

Old friend now new foe for Cavs’ Groh
By Jerry Ratcliffe
Published: September 4, 2008

Coaches will readily tell you that they would prefer not to coach against their best friends.
While it doesn’t happen too often, it’s almost impossible to go through a career without a clash against someone that’s practically a member of the family. Former UVa coach George Welsh had a few battles against Joe Paterno, whom he had coached for at Penn State. In fact, the Welshes and Paternos were so close that they were the godfathers of each other’s children.
Welsh had similar encounters with Gary Tranquill at Navy. And then there was Steve Spurrier at Duke ... nah, just kidding.
A tilt between friends
Virginia coach Al Groh will have one of those dreaded matchups this Saturday when his Cavaliers host the University of Richmond, coached by former UVa defensive coordinator and close friend Mike London, who is in his first year at the helm of the Spiders.
London was on Groh’s first staff at UVa in 2001 as defensive line coach, left for a year in 2005 to take that same role on the NFL’s Houston Texans staff under Dom Capers, then returned a year later as Virginia’s defensive coordinator.
A firm connection
Over time, Groh and London developed a bond, a mutual respect. In fact, last winter London returned to Charlottesville to present a toast during a special event held at Glenmore Country Club to celebrate Groh being named ACC Coach of the Year for a second time.
On that same evening, London told the crowd a heartwarming story about his relationship with the Virginia head coach.
“When my daughter [Ticynn] was diagnosed with a rare blood disorder that required a bone marrow transplant during spring practice (2007), Al asked me what I wanted to do,” London told the audience. “I told him I wanted to coach, and he said, ‘Look, if you want to go to practice and then go up to Johns Hopkins Hospital on the weekends to be with her, then you can do that.”
Following the story, London looked toward Groh and thanked him for caring.
“Coach, you don’t know how much that meant to me when you allowed me to do that,” London said.
London donated bone marrow to his daughter and saved her life.
“Not many people know that about Coach,” London said. “He had a profound effect on me.”
However, come Saturday afternoon at Scott Stadium, London will put those personal feelings aside and try to take his old coach and his old team to the woodshed.
London said it is tough going up against his mentor but he can’t let the relationship get in the way of his goal of winning the game.
“We’re trying to beat him and he’s trying to beat us,” London said.
Personal and professional emotions will be evident before the game and after the game, but in between is strictly football.
Groh dearly loves London and would do almost anything to help his career ... except let him win come Saturday. Maybe it’s because Groh has been around longer, but he has completely blocked those feelings for this week. After the game, things will return to normal, but for now, it’s all out pigskin warfare.
“Other than acknowledging Mike’s familiarity with our team or whatnot, for this week it’s very impersonal,” Groh said. “Mike’s a dear friend and was a great colleague here and he did a lot for us, but for 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 because Mike likes us, either.”
London, who also served as UVa’s recruiting coordinator for one stint, helped bring a lot of the current Cavaliers into the fold and he has maintained a relationship, though distant one, with several of those kids. However, his allegiance now lies with the Spiders as he attempts to maintain the quality of the program at his own alma mater.
Still, he admits it will be a little strange emerging from the visitor’s locker room at Scott Stadium come Saturday.
“A long time ago at a [Virginia] spring game, I was on the opposing side, and it was the first time I had been in the other locker room,” said London, who said it would still seem a bit odd.
Both coaches have been quizzed by media types about how knowing each other’s styles, philosophies, tendencies, and the like might come to their aid in this weekend’s clash. Both downplayed the idea.
“Other than knowing Mike’s workout routine and what he prefers on his pizza, there’s not much we’re going to be able to apply,” Groh said.
London, by the way, is not using the 3-4 as his base defense at UR, although he said he might have to go with that against Virginia if the Cavaliers spread things out and throw it as much or more than they did against Southern California last week.
However, London said
because he hasn’t been at UVa since last January, when he took the Richmond job, he can offer but only a little insight into what the Cavs might do, but not a whole lot.
“I can’t assume what they’ll do against us,” London said of his old team. “They spent all spring practice and camp trying to find their identity. They may decide to run the ball on us or continue to do what they did [against USC]. We’ll find out after the first couple of series.”
The two friends spoke over the phone last week, London talking briefly about his team’s opener with Elon, Groh about taking on the Trojans.
“Basically, it was wishing each other good luck,” said London, one of four former Groh assistants that have moved on to become head coaches.
Still, Richmond quarterback Eric Ward said in Wednesday’s press conference that London’s knowledge of Virginia’s 3-4 has been helpful in preparation for the game.
“He tells us what [UVa] likes to do, what they did last year, where guys are coming from in their 3-4,” Ward said.
Of course, London will have to guess as to whether Groh has changed things up for this game (the UVa coach said they would change their signals if nothing else), or just see if the Spiders can stop what they expect him to throw their way.
Somebody’s got to win and somebody’s got to lose. One of these guys will feel badly for the other come Saturday night. By then we’ll know if Groh taught London too much.

 

Team travels to Mason to chase after its first victory
Following a disheartening first two games, the Cavaliers hope to rebound at George Mason tonight; Virginia returns home to battle Hofstra Sunday
Anders Sleight, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor
Published: Friday, September 5 2008

Freshman Hunter Jumper and the rest of the Cavaliers look to record a win or two this weekend against George Mason and Hofstra after a dismal 0-2 start last weekend. Redemption can mean deliverance, rescue or, perhaps, what Virginia sports fans will be looking for this weekend.
Tonight, the Virginia men’s soccer team will travel to Fairfax, Va. in search of its first win, facing off against George Mason. Virginia enters the game winless on the season (0-2) and is seeking to break the ice tonight at 8 p.m.
“We know we’re good and we know it’s very early in the season,” Virginia coach George Gelnovatch said. “We’ve got 16 regular-season games and we haven’t started ACC play yet. We’ll be fine. We just need to get back on track and get ourselves going.”
Virginia enters tonight’s road contest hoping to erase the bitter memories of last weekend, when the Cavaliers went 0-2 while hosting the Virginia Soccer Classic. To make matters worse, the Cavaliers were shut out in a 0-1 loss to St. John’s and were blasted 1-3 by Southern Methodist. Although last weekend’s action was only Virginia’s first two games of the season, it was nevertheless a disheartening way to start the year. The Cavaliers will have to have a short-term memory in order to bounce back from their early season shortcomings.
One bright spot for Virginia thus far has been freshman forward Chris Agorsor. The freshman standout scored his first career goal Sunday night against Southern Methodist. Agorsor’s goal was Virginia’s only goal of the weekend. Agorsor outraced two Southern Methodist defenders to one-touch a cross pass from junior forward Matt Mitchell into the back of the net. Though the goal was a beauty that hit the disappointed Klöckner Stadium crowd like a lightning bolt, it was just about the only thing Virginia fans could cheer about.
George Mason enters Friday’s game with a 1-0-1 (0-0 Colonial Athletic Association) record after posting a win against American and a draw against George Washington this past weekend participating in the D.C. College Cup, where the Patriots finished second among a group of teams from the D.C. area. Both of George Mason’s games reached overtime, which speaks to the parity of talent the tournament featured. The Patriots defeated American 1-0 on an overtime goal and tied George Washington 1-1.
George Mason is not a program that comes to mind when one thinks about traditional soccer powers. To be truthful, the Patriots are not at the elite level yet. They are, however, edging ever closer. In 2006, George Mason was selected to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in 10 years. It was a major step for the growing program, but the Patriots were unable to match that success in 2007. After a number of devastating injuries, George Mason was only able to score 15 goals throughout the season en route to a subpar 5-11-2 record.
2008, however, is a new year, and a year that brings the nation’s No. 33-ranked recruiting class to Fairfax, along with the return of several healthy leaders. Offensively, the Patriots are led by sophomore forwards Parker Walton and Irvin Martinez. Walton scored his first career goal last weekend, when he blasted the ball by the American goalkeeper to give George Mason a golden-goal victory. Senior defender Michael Vallie and sophomore defender Eric Zuehsow lead the defense. Both defenders were named to the D.C. College Cup all-tournament team.
“It [the game] will be at their place, which is always a tough place to play,” Gelnovatch said. “They will be a good opponent.”
There is no doubt George Mason will present quite a challenge for Virginia, although the Patriots did suffer a 0-4 loss to Georgetown in the preseason. Considering Virginia’s recent struggles, however, the Cavaliers would be more than happy to end Friday night with a “W.”
“Well, we’re just going to go,” sophomore goalkeeper Dan Louisignau said. “I’m positive they’re a good squad — everyone is at this level. It’s just a matter of giving it our all. If we can do that, I’m sure we’ll come out with a win.”
Following the trip to Fairfax, Virginia returns home Sunday and hosts Hofstra at 7 p.m. Hofstra is currently 0-1-1 but has a game tonight at Virginia Tech.

Cavs travel to Georgia for face-offs
Squad travels to Athens, Ga. to play in Georgia Nike Invitational
Jack Bird, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor
Published: Friday, September 5 2008

The Virginia women’s soccer team will begin its away season today, traveling to Athens, Ga. to take on Georgia and Auburn in two games of the Georgia Nike Invitational. Coach Steve Swanson said Virginia's biggest challenge will be staying focused in a season already full of success.
“Good teams don’t really understand how to handle success,” Swanson said. “Great teams — teams that win championships — know how to handle that.”
Having already won their first three games by sizeable margins, the Cavaliers (3-0) have had a chance to enjoy success. Swanson noted, however, the importance of not taking any teams for granted, mentioning various upsets that have already occurred in the ACC. This weekend will be an opportunity to see how Virginia performs away from Klöckner Stadium against more challenging competition. The first of these two games, against Georgia, will be especially tough — Georgia will be Virginia’s first ranked opponent of the season — so the team will have to play to its strengths.
One of the keys to Virginia’s success thus far is that the Cavaliers have yet to allow a goal. This is likely driven by a combination of factors. Virginia uses its high-powered offense and midfielders to extend pressure on the other team. This pressure often causes opponents to be unable to establish coherent transitions from their defensive side of the field to their offense.
“In our first game against Loyola, I thought our defense did a great job of not letting the team get behind us once,” Swanson said. He added that against Liberty, "it was more us putting a little better pressure on the ball up the field where it doesn’t get to the point where they’re serving it. I think a couple times they were just looking to counter on us.”
In addition to the up-field pressure, the Cavaliers have an experienced senior goalie in Celeste Miles behind a solid defensive line. While Miles has made many key plays in maintaining Virginia’s shutout season thus far, she has yet to record a save. This seems to be more a credit to sound defense from the Cavaliers' back line than anything else.
“I think that the shutouts have been a great team effort — made it pretty easy for me,” Miles said. “We are just building on each game, getting better as a defense and a team.”
Georgia (2-1) is currently No. 22 nationally; its most noteworthy game has been a 4-1 loss to BYU. This weekend, the Bulldogs will get a chance to overcome that loss and prove themselves by playing No. 6 Virginia and No. 7 Stanford. One thing Georgia will have in its favor is home field advantage.
Like Georgia, Auburn (2-2) will be playing both Stanford and Virginia in the Invitational. Unranked Auburn, fifth in the Western division of the SEC, will likely be outmatched in many positions against both Virginia and Auburn.
“We’ve had such a deep bench over the year," Swanson said. "I really like to spread the scoring out.”
Look for Virginia to take advantage of its depth this weekend, as it has throughout the season. Through three games, Virginia has had 17 different players record a point, including eight different goal scorers, creating a spread distribution of 14 goals and odds that will certainly benefit the team against tougher opponents.

No. 8 Old Dominion poses challenge for Cavaliers
Undefeated Virginia puts record on the line against Vermont, nationally ranked Old Dominion at home
Ben Gomez, Cavalier Daily Associate Editor
Published: Friday, September 5 2008

The Cavaliers did not have too much trouble disposing of William & Mary and Providence in their first two games. The competition gets stiffer this weekend against Old Dominion. The Monarchs lead the series with Virginia 32-8. The Virginia women’s field hockey team heads into the weekend 2-0 (0-0 ACC) and ranked No. 11 in the country by the STX/NFHCA Division 1 Coaches Poll. To remain undefeated, the Cavaliers will have to defeat Vermont and Old Dominion at home.
Senior goalkeeper Amy Desjadon and sophomore goalkeeper Devon Burnley will look to continue their defensive dominance. The pair allowed only one goal total during last weekend’s two games, in which the Cavalier defense held opponents to just six shots.
Beating Old Dominion Sunday at 1 p.m. will be no small task for the Cavaliers, who currently trail the Monarchs in the series 8-32. Old Dominion has won the last 11 games in the series, and the Monarchs are currently ranked No. 8 in the country. However, Old Dominion dropped games to No. 6 Penn State and No. 18 Syracuse last weekend, by scores of 2-0 and 5-0 respectively. The Cavaliers also will have the added incentive of looking to avenge last year’s 1-3 loss to the Monarchs.
“We have to hit the drawing board first, see film, see where the breakdowns were, see how they got a shot and how they got into the circle,” Virginia coach Michele Madison said. “We are excited to play [and] that is why we practice.”
Virginia put on dominating performances last weekend against William & Mary and Providence, though neither school has as successful a program as Old Dominion.
Before facing Old Dominion, though, the Cavaliers will be up against Vermont. The game Friday will be the second meeting between the two schools. Virginia won the previous meeting last season in the Sheraton Catamount Classic 2-1.
The Catamounts lost their season opener to No. 13 Boston College last Sunday 1-4.. A win against Vermont will be less daunting than against a power such as Old Dominion. Regardless of the opponent, though, the Cavaliers will continue to take the approach of focusing on its own preparations, rather than focusing on the opponent.
“We will come out and run through all of our drills and we will mainly focus on what we do as opposed to what the other team does,” senior midfielder/back Lucy Myers said. “Just work on our basics.”
The Cavaliers will once again look to All-American senior midfielder Inge Kaars Sijpesteijn to lead the team on the field. Kaars Sijpesteijn will be seeking her first goal of the season after recording an assist against Providence. Additionally, Virginia will look for freshmen midfielders Paige Selenski and Michelle Vittese to be crucial components of the team’s success, as they were last weekend when they accounted for three of Virginia’s nine goals during its two games.
The players have attributed their success on the field so far to Madison’s ability to create a cohesive team.
“I think she has made us mentally tough and made us really come together as a team which is what we need: chemistry between everyone,” Myers said.

Tough scheduling helps Pirates prosper
Holland likes tough schedules.
A.J. Carr, Staff Writer

There's an easier path to football success than the one East Carolina has chosen.
The Pirates could schedule four inferior nonconference opponents and pad their win-loss record.

But that's not the preferred course of coach Skip Holtz or athletic director Terry Holland, who has lined up brand-name regional opponents for the next eight seasons.

Boom or bust, Holland has pitted the Pirates against BCS conference schools Virginia Tech, West Virginia, N.C. State and Virginia this season.

From now until 2016, the Pirates are scheduled to play Virginia Tech (seven times), N.C. State (six), South Carolina (five), North Carolina (three), West Virginia (two) and Virginia (one).

Extending the series against West Virginia also is a possibility.

Holland considers those matchups as "BCS Bowl games" for East Carolina and its fans.

"We are excited to play that level of competition," Holtz said before his Pirates beat Virginia Tech in last week's season-opener. "That's where we aspire to be, and I think the only way we can get there is if we line up and play [them]."

ECU doesn't automatically qualify for a BCS bowl, and it would probably take a 12-0 or 13-0 record to "maybe" get invited to one of the five BCS bowls, Holland said.

"We say, let's schedule our own BCS [bowls] and keep them regional, so our fans can participate," he said. "We think it is great for our fans, and we know it's a great thing for the coaches and players. It has had a tremendous impact on recruiting, a tremendous impact on our our visibility, not only as an athletic program, but the university."

The way Holland sees it, beating a Virginia Tech or West Virginia brings more prestige to the program than "winning 10 or 11 games" against lesser opposition.

While East Carolina hasn't shied away from playing tough outside opposition, taking on too many nonconference heavyweights can knock a team out of bowl consideration and put a coach's job in jeopardy.

A wise, successful basketball coach once pointed out that scheduling ranked second to recruiting on his most important list, and his approach can include football as well.

North Carolina athletic director Dick Baddour is cognizant of that philosophy.

"We enjoy having programs with traditionally strong football come in and play; our fans like that," Baddour said. "We also want to be careful we don't over-schedule, that our team has a chance to be successful in every way."

The Tar Heels opened last week against McNeese State and escaped with a 35-27 victory.

Carolina's other nonconference games are against Rutgers (Sept. 11), Connecticut (Oct. 4) and Notre Dame (Oct. 11).

"We are looking for a balanced schedule,'' Baddour said. "We also like to schedule nonconference opponents that help us be successful in recruiting. Each school has to sort out what is best for it."

For example, Duke beat Football Championship Subdivision James Madison in its opener and will play Northwestern, Navy and Vanderbilt in its other three non-league games. That's a realistic approach for a program that has long been down and trying to build under new coach David Cutcliffe.

 

UVa fans cheering a Tech loss? Look 'Hoo's talking
by Caleb Fleming, NRV News Editor
Friday, September 5; 12:00 AM

Moments before the Virginia Cavaliers football team took the field on Saturday at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, the home crowd of 64,947 erupted with joy. Jared Lazarus/MCTVirginia safety Byron Glaspy runs back an interception during the second quarter of a game against the Miami Hurricanes last year. The Cavaliers opened their 2008 season with a 52-7 loss at home against USC.
The final score of Virginia Tech's five-point loss to East Carolina had just flashed boldly on the jumbotron, accompanied by a public address announcement. Hours later, the Cavalier fan-base were on the losing end of a 45-point thrashing from the Southern California Trojans.

There is no good excuse for losing your opening game to a team in Conference USA. While ECU is talented and will likely receive more attention during bowl season, it's not a team in contention for a legitimate January bowl game.

Instead, they are the benefactors of a scheduling match-up that pitted their most talented roster in school history against a Hokie lineup that was ill prepared and inexperienced.

The bar is set high in Blacksburg, with fans expecting to win the ACC and contend for a national title every single season. Realistic or not -- and frequently it is not -- when the Hokies come through the tunnel onto Worsham Field each fall, they are expected to win every game.

Anything shy of attaining these goals is considered a disappointment. Winning 10 games is an outstanding feat, but not winning the conference or bowl game is a major setback.

Back in Charlottesville, a 52-7 loss, regardless of the opponent, is terrible. I feel sorry for the players who worked so hard only to discover that their best was not good enough to carry the Trojans' jock strap, let alone play on the same field.

Even more so, I feel sorry for the fans at UVa who feel that a Tech loss on a blocked punt is enough to save their weekend from being a complete football disaster.

Though just 145 miles separate the two schools, we are bitter rivals. If the UVa game had finished before Tech's had started in Charlotte last weekend, you can bet the Hokie Nation would have cheered loudly.

Obviously Cavalier fans could not have foreshadowed the utter blowout they were forced to witness in the home stadium, but it is impossible to accept that they were entirely surprised.

The issue, however, is not centered on the desire to see the other fail, for that is natural and expected amongst rival colleges. Rather, the Wahoos are the embodiment of the phrase "misery loves company."

Upon further review, it's easy to see why students at UVa are willing to count a Tech loss as a Cavalier victory, while at Tech we only count victories when our school is on the stat sheet.

In Charlottesville, UVa has undoubtedly established itself as a top academic university. However, it has also earned itself the reputation of having a sub-par football program.

Big wins are few and far between for the Cavaliers, a program that has literally prided itself on a lone win over unbeaten and second-ranked Florida State in 1995. A great win in its time, it was more of a one-hit wonder than "Baby Got Back." One win, 13 years ago, has become the "face" of the program.

Contrarily, Tech has now been labeled as an academically prominent university with a consistently admirable football team. Head coach Frank Beamer and the Hokies have won 126 games since 1995, including four straight in the Commonwealth Cup against UVa.

Most importantly, qualitative wins show more about the strength of a program than quantitative ones do. Tech has competed in 15 consecutive bowl games, including a national championship.

In addition to the bowl game victories, Tech has also won two ACC championships since it first entered the conference in 2004.

By now, UVa fans are screaming about Tech's historic disciplinary problem and the far superior academic standards for athletes at Mr. Jefferson's university.

Bad news, Hoos: In the latest university census for graduate rates among student athletes, Tech tied with UVa at 76 percent. This means that of all the student athletes who attended either university, 76 percent of them graduated within six years of their first semester on campus.

Are the classes harder at Virginia? Maybe. Does that benefit the students? Not always. Each university is master of a different domain. While Tech is a top research institute and can boast about its engineering and architecture programs, UVa is entitled to recognition for its law school, English department, and school of medicine.

At Tech, athletes are required to uphold a minimum of a 2.0 grade point average, a figure identical to what every other undergraduate student must attain to avoid discipline.

Believe it or not, student athletes are students as well as athletes. Some pass, some fail, some graduate and some feel that it is OK to pull a gun on a group of teenagers in the McDonald's parking lot in the middle of the night.

Michael and Marcus Vick: Two of Tech's most highly touted prospects -- two of the biggest stains on the university's record. Yet, it is often overlooked that both were heavily recruited by more than just Tech. In fact, both Vicks were offered scholarships by UVa.

And contrary to popular belief, they did not choose Tech because they knew they could get away with things here; they did it because it has become an NFL player factory and a prestigious football school. It goes to show what 15 straight bowl appearances will do for a program.

Claiming that UVa recruits football players based on their decision-making abilities and moral standards is a pure falsity. Their players are disciplined frequently, now more than ever, but fly under the radar simply because no one cares. The seven-win, five-loss season Wahoo fans live for is just not enough to warrant national attention. If a player does drugs in his dorm room and no one is around to see it, does anyone really care?

Remember Ahmad Bradshaw? Of course you don't. Bradshaw was kicked off UVa's team before he even played a down. He was arrested in Charlottesville in 2004 for underage drinking, after first providing police officers with a fake name and address.

What about Adrian Burnim and Antoine Womack? They were indicted on felony charges of multiple counts of malicious wounding, after being accused of severely beating two UVa students.

Jameel Sewell will not see any time on the field this year, as he was not academically eligible to enroll for the Spring 2008 semester and was not invited back for the fall.

He could have helped UVa with his athleticism against USC's pocket-penetrating defense. Starter Peter Lalich performed poorly aginst the Trojans and the Cavalier's offense could have used Sewell's playmaking prowess.

Sewell is the successor to Marques Hagans, another UVa player facing legal troubles, charged with disorderly conduct during his collegiate career.

Essentially, neither UVa nor Tech has an advantage over the other in regard to discipline. The ACC is known for recruits of questionable character. Be it the Vick brothers from Tech, the aforementioned players from UVa, or those involved in the scandals at Miami and Florida State, no school is habitually selecting exemplary citizens.

For now, though, Tech remains set on its goals of winning. But for the Hoos, feel free to take pride in our losses. The differences in standards of excellence are clear. We will continue to work toward championships, and you can continue hoping for a Furman miracle.

After all, the argument is over football, something that will be settled for another year on Nov. 29. My prediction: a fifth-consecutive Commonwealth crown for the Hokies.