Cavaliers eyeing Owls, bowl bid
Hamstring healing, quarterback Hagans productive at practice
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Oct 31, 2005
TEMPLE AT. U.VA.
SATURDAY: 3:30 p.m.

CHARLOTTESVILLE - The ACC football champion will be crowned Dec. 3 in Jacksonville, Fla., site of the conference's first title game.

The Virginia Cavaliers entered the season hoping to be part of that historic event. But the team's recent slump has rendered that goal unrealistic, and so U.Va. (2-3, 4-3) has shifted its focus.

When the ACC title is "no longer a goal, the next goal is to try to get yourself placed as best you can in the postseason," fifth-year coach Al Groh said last night.

To be eligible for a bowl, a team must finish the regular season 6-5 or better. Four ACC teams already have qualified: Virginia Tech (8-0), Florida State (7-1), Miami (6-1) and Boston College (6-2). Then comes the pack: seven teams still hoping to claw their way into postseason play. Georgia Tech (5-2) leads this group, followed by Virginia, Clemson (4-4), Maryland (4-4), Wake Forest (4-5), North Carolina (3-4) and N.C. State (3-4).

"That's just the kind of season it is in this conference right now," said Groh, who caught several ACC games on television Saturday. "There seem to be so many teams that are in a position or in a necessity to fight their brains out to try to win six."

The Cavaliers are well-positioned. Next up for them is Temple (0-9), which visits Scott Stadium this weekend. Two more home games will follow in succession for U.Va. - Georgia Tech on Nov.12 and Virginia Tech on Nov.19. The Yellow Jackets last won at Scott Stadium in 1990.

The Wahoos haven't played since losing 7-5 at North Carolina on Oct.22. They used the off week "to really focus in on making the best stretch run we can," Groh said.

After limping home from Chapel Hill, U.Va. didn't practice again until Thursday. The players reconvened again Friday before getting the weekend off.

Jermaine Dias, who started Virginia's first three games at outside linebacker, hasn't played since Sept.24, when he sprained his foot against Duke. Dias "was one of about six [injured players] who did not practice last week, so we're still waiting to see what tomorrow brings," Groh said last night. "Had we had a game yesterday, he would not have played."

The prognosis is better for senior quarterback Marques Hagans, who was visibly bothered by a hamstring injury against the Tar Heels. Hagans didn't do much in practice Thursday, Groh said, but "Friday he had a really productive day."

 

Leitao & Co.'s recruiting off to good start
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
October 30, 2005

When new Virginia basketball coach Dave Leitao first hit the recruiting trail last summer it was an eye-opening experience. He quickly learned how potential prospects perceived his program.
“The kind of thing that I found ... I don’t know if this is the right way to put it ... [the perception] is almost non-existent,” Leitao said recently. “Virginia basketball does not and had not lived in the consciousness of a young recruit’s mind. They turn on the TV in the winter time and it wasn’t like they were looking to see Virginia basketball.”
Establishing the Hoos
Leitao and his talented coaching staff are changing that perception in a hurry.
Need proof?
Sources confirmed late Saturday night that Leitao had gained his third and final commitment for the class of 2006 - Alabama star Johnnie Lett picked the Cavs over Alabama, Miami and South Alabama.
The 6-foot-8, 220-pound forward/center averaged
18 points and 15 rebounds a game and was a finalist for the Division 5A State Player of the Year last season as a junior at Alabama. He is considered a three-star recruit.
Lett took an official visit to Charlottesville three weeks ago, witnessing Virginia’s five-point win over Florida State in football.
That commitment completes the class of 2006 and the Cavaliers have already landed one for ‘07 as well. In other words, they are on their way.
Three of the four are Top 100 prospects by either Rivals.com or Scout.com, two of the top recruiting services in the country. If that’s the case, Leitao & Co. may have already pulled a recruiting coup.
Jamil Tucker is a 6-9, 210-pound forward with a four-star rating from Rivals. He is considered the No. 63 overall prospect in the country, No. 4 in the state of Indiana (Gary), and the No. 18 small forward nationally, although some observers believe he could eventually become a tough matchup at power forward.
“In a league that values big wings, Tucker will fit right in,” said Dave Telep, national recruiting analyst for Scout.com. “This guy can really score and he’ll do it off the drive and from the perimeter.
“A true wing player with size, I’d like to see him be consistent in both halves and string together those big games,” Telep added. “He tends to play strong in spurts but he’s more than capable of being a legit scorer for this team.”
Believing in a Buckeye
Tucker is an interesting story in that while he chose the Cavaliers over Georgia Tech, Miami, Indiana, Purdue and Kent State, he thought he would be a Buckeye up until the end of summer ball. He played for the powerhouse AAU team Spiece Indy Heat along with three other Ohio State commits and most observers believed Tucker would follow suit.
However, when the Buckeyes decided to look elsewhere, Tucker and his high school coach John Boyd were caught off guard.
“We don’t think that Ohio State, after not offering him a scholarship, respects the kid’s caliber,” Boyd told an Indianapolis publication. “We don’t think [Ohio State] respects his ability to play the game.”
That’s when other schools increased their recruiting efforts for Tucker and Virginia was right on the doorstep.
“[Virginia] was one of the few coaching staffs that fully understand Jamil’s potential,” Boyd told Rivals.com. “Jamil is hungry and wants to get out there and prove to people that he’s a talented player and I think [Virginia] is that way, too.”
Intriguing player

Solomon Tat, a 6-5, 220 wing guard from Community Christian School in McDonough, Ga., may be even more intriguing. Ranked No. 96 overall by Rivals and No. 21 among the country’s shooting guards, Tat already possesses a pro body and plenty of versatility.
In fact, the native of Nigeria has played every position except center. He has carved out a reputation for being a nightmare for opponents in transition, usually finishing off a fastbreak attempt with a jaw-dropping dunk.
“He’s a strong athlete who is built to play in the attack mode,” said Scout.com’s Telep. “He’s best as a driver when he uses his strength to lean on guys and finish.”
Rivals’ Jerry Meyer said of Tat: “He’s a very physical wing with a solid skill package, but excels at slashing to the basket and finishing at the wing. He could be a great defensive player, but still needs to refine perimeter skills.”
Offered by a ton of schools, Tat chose UVa over Texas, Georgia, Purdue, Oregon, Memphis and Baylor. As a junior, he averaged 25 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists per game.
Community Christian coach Linzy Davis said that Tat has a strong work ethic and is a model citizen.
“He’ll be a poster boy for what Coach Leitao wants his program to be like,” Davis said.
In fact, to develop Tat’s skills, Davis moved the wing guard to the point for a while, which made him more aggressive in creating his own shot and expanding his skills.

Point taken
That bodes well for Virginia’s future, as does junior recruit Sam Zeglinski, a 6-foot point guard from Pennsylvania. He’ll be part of the large 2007 class, which currently will have four more scholarships available.
“This guy is going to be a player,” Telep said of Zeglinski. “There are a lot of things to like about him. For instance, he’s got natural leadership abilities. An athletic family has cast him in the mold of competitor, and he’s a valuable asset as a perimeter shooter. He’s a confident, no-nonsense kid who takes care of his business. He can be crafty with the ball and capable of the big scoring number.”
The perception of Virginia basketball may have been non-existent before, but no longer. Certainly, after being picked last in the preseason ACC media poll, Leitao has his work cut out for him.
But the Cavs are taking steps in the right direction. Recruits are beginning to notice.

 

UVa's freshman trio vying for playing time
By Whitelaw Reid / Daily Progress staff writer
October 26, 2005

University of Virginia freshmen Mamadi Diane, Laurynas Mikalauskas and Sam Warren better get ready to peel off their warm-ups.

Coach Dave Leitao is a few bodies short this season. He only has 10 scholarship players at his disposal. That means the trio is going to be receiving more playing time than they would have under ordinary circumstances.

“We don’t have too many options,” said Leitao, after practice on Wednesday. “The good thing is they’ll be able to play. The bad thing is they may not be ready to.

“They’re all at different stages. Each one will have moments. There’s so much for them to learn.”

At his first press conference of the season, Leitao called Diane a pleasant surprise. He said Diane probably would have found his way on to the court even if Gary Forbes hadn’t transferred to U-Mass.

Diane, a 6-foot-5 player who will share the “3” position with sophomore Adrian Joseph, isn’t a very flashy player - a plus according to Leitao.

“There’s not a lot of wasted motion to his game,” Leitao said. “It wouldn’t surprise me how far he could go four years from now. He has all the usable tools to become a better and better player as time goes on.”

Cavs junior guard J.R. Reynolds has been impressed, too.

“He’s a hard worker and has adjusted well,” Reynolds said.

Mikalauskas’ biggest contribution to the Cavs will be his physical play. The 6-foot-8, 240-pound Blue Ridge product isn’t afraid to throw his body around, a la former New York Knick Charles Oakley.

In practices, he’s also shown a nice touch around the rim, with an ability to finish with either hand.

“It’s been a big adjustment for him - learning plays and defenses,” Reynolds said, “but he has the potential to do very well. He’s a player who’s going to be able to help us.”

The best thing about Mikalauskas? He seems to understand his role.

“[Leitao] wants me to rebound, play defense, pick ’n roll,” Mikalauskas said. “We don’t have that much size and strength, so I can guard centers if [the team] needs me to.

“The biggest goal is to win more games. I want to help bring the glory days back to UVa. I really want to go to the NCAAs this year.”

Of the three, Warren is the most raw. In practice, the 6-foot-10, 235-pounder from Colorado shows flashes of athleticism, but looks a little out-of-sorts for the most part.

“He’s a ways away as far as his skill package and understanding of the game,” Leitao said. “We’ll work very hard to get him better. He’s not unlike a lot of freshmen around the country in that he sometimes gets that deer-in-the-headlight look to him.”

The most encouraging sign from Warren: his attitude.

“This year I’m just focused on helping make the team better because I know I’m not the greatest player yet,” Warren said. “I will get better. Next year I’ll be better, and the year after that I’ll be even better than that. It’s just a matter of time and hard work.”

Spoken like a true Leitao student.

Dunks. Mikalauskas (sprained ankle) and Warren (hyper-extended knee) both sat out practice on Wednesday. Leitao said neither injury was serious. …

Practice continued to be very physical. In a 3-on-3 drill, sophomore Tunji Soroye and junior Donte Minter had each other in headlocks as they competed for a rebound. …

Joseph and junior walk-on forward Mike Forkin got high-5s from Leitao after hustling back on defense to block shots. …

Johnnie Lett, the 6-foot-8 high school forward from Alabama who made an official visit to UVa recently, hasn’t made visits to his other top choices - Miami and Alabama - yet. Lett’s younger brother, Christopher, said he’s trying to convince big bro to go to Charlottesville. “I met the coaches and they seem like good people,” Lett said. “That’s the kind of environment I want him to be around.”

 

Late-game strategy shades of Gillen
Shuman extends olive branch
By Doug Doughty
THE ROANOKE TIMES

Pete Gillen has been gone from the University of Virginia and, still, all anybody wants to talk about is clock management and timeouts.

At least football coach Al Groh had three timeouts remaining at the end of last Saturday’s game at North Carolina, even if he failed to use them to everyone’s (anyone’s ?) satisfaction.

In an e-mail following last week’s UVa Insider, a reader asked why all of my columns were “negative or critical.” This week, following up on my coverage of the UNC-UVa game, another reader asked why I was giving Groh “a free pass.”

Needless to say, you can’t please everybody.

To be honest, when Virginia quarterback Marques Hagans was intercepted with 1:23 remaining Saturday at North Carolina, I was under the impression that the Cavaliers would be able to stop the clock after first and second down, but not third down.

Virginia had three timeouts remaining, but I did not realize that the clock stopped on the change of possession and that it would remain at 1:23, with no need for a UVa timeout, until the ball was snapped.

As a result, when Groh elected to accept a holding penalty against North Carolina that allowed the Tar Heels to repeat second down, I estimated the time lost at 11 seconds.

Instead, UVa lost approximately 45-50 seconds, some of it as the result of the officials’ lack of haste in marking the ball following third down.

At the instigation of the e-mail writer who suggested I was giving Groh “a free pass,” I raised the issue Wednesday on the ACC coaches’ teleconference.

DOUGHTY: “In hindsight, seeing how long it took to mark the ball after the third-down play, would you do it any differently next time?”

GROH: “Hindsight, hey, one of the great talents that the armchair quarterback has. There is no hindsight when you have to make those decisions, but given that the third-down play looked like it was going to be third down-and-a yard and a half or two yards, I’d say that my concern would still remain the same on that third-down play.

“We’re letting this game come down to a yard and a half, and, if they can make the yard and a half, then essentially the game is over. By the same token, we traded some time for that. I’d say, if we’d not taken the penalty and they’d made the first down on third down and 2, then I probably would have said we probably should have made them go a farther distance.

“There might be quite a lot of other things that I wish collectively or individually that we’d done different, but I don’t have any second-guessing of what we did or what I tried to do in that circumstance.”

DOUGHTY: “I was specifically talking about the marking of the ball and the length of time there. Based on what you said the other day, it’s really hard to estimate how long that’s going to take. I guess that varies from group from group.”

GROH: “In all the things we analyze, we also analyze the crew we receive each week. We’ve got a scouting report on that crew today – what that crew has a tendency to call more or less of, what kind of pace they run with the game.

“This was the second time that we’ve had this crew. We’ve had them in the past and I think it’s really one of the best crews in the league. Jack Childress, who was the umpire, runs a good game every week. I don’t really have any complaints with it.

“It did seem like it was a little bit of a slow pace in that particular circumstance, but I wouldn’t attribute the fact that we didn’t win the game to that circumstance.”

Groh can be credited for not blaming the officials, but I haven’t heard anybody defend his decision to take the holding call and repeat the down. Sure, Carolina could have gained a first down on third and short and the game would have been over, but by the time the Cavaliers got the ball back, the game was over anyway.

If was difficult to tell exactly how close Carolina was to a first down – estimates range from third-and-3 to third-and-1 ½ -- and there wasn’t much time to do the math on how much time would remain if Virginia had used its final timeout following a second second-down play.

If Groh had simply admitted all that, maybe some people would have said, ‘That’s why they pay him the big bucks.” But, that would have made more sense than continuing to stick by his original story.

IT WILL BE interesting to see what becomes of Jacoby Ford, the speedy Fork Union Military Academy receiver visited by Groh earlier this week.

Groh had considerable success with Fork Union products like Billy McMullen, Muffin Curry, Jamaine Winborne and Darryl Blackstock early in his Virginia tenure, but relations between UVa and Fork Union, located 35 miles from Charlottesville, have soured in recent years.

“I have worked hard to settle our differences,” said Fork Union coach John Shuman, son-in-law of one-time Virginia basketball standout Bill Miller. “I went to every clinic that UVa had last year. I worked their camp.

“They actually helped me this year. I always heard they were high-energy coaches. I don’t know what that is. I’m not a verbal guy, so I went over and worked with them for a week. Believe me, I’m a lot better high-energy coach now than I’ve ever been in my life.

“We’re excited about Groh’s visit. Hey, man, we’re trying everything possible to get [Ford] to Virginia. We need a guy at Virginia.”

 

Tech recruit Simmons a no-show at Louisburg
Final say on UVa’s clock management
By Doug Doughty
THE ROANOKE TIMES

At last word, prize Virginia Tech linebacker recruit Deveon Simmons was headed to Louisburg (N.C.) Junior College in hopes of becoming eligible to spend his final two seasons of college eligibility at Virginia Tech.

Simmons, rated the No. 4 prospect in Virginia last year by The Roanoke Times, may eventually end up at Tech but don’t look for him before 2008.

Simmons, a 6-foot-1, 210-pound linebacker from Landstown High School in Virginia Beach, did not do the necessary paperwork in time to enroll this fall at Louisburg and is now talking about entering Louisburg in January.

Because he was not an NCAA qualifier out of high school, Simmons would need to graduate from junior college in order to play at the I-A level.

The letter-of-intent Simmons signed with the Hokies in February is no longer binding. There are no indications that his interest in Tech has wavered, but while the Hokies have continued to keep abreast of him, eventually he’s going to have to prove that he’s serious about school.

Damon McDaniel, a preseason All-America wide receiver from Landstown, is taking an official visit to Tech in conjunction with next week’s Tech-Miami game. McDaniel, though frequently overshadowed by teammate and fellow wide receiver Percy Harvin, is rated the No. 7 prospect in Virginia by The Roanoke Times.

A sleeper recruit who could end up on Tech’s offer list is Ras-I-Dowling, a 6-3, 180-pound utilityman from Deep Creek High School in Chesapeake. Dowling, who missed five games last year, has played defensive back and wide receiver and even a little quarterback.

VIRGINIA TECH FANS who don’t normally read Thursday’s UVa Insider may have missed the first half of the debate on Virginia’s clock management Saturday at North Carolina, but two e-mails have shed new light on the issue.

“ During all this timeout discussion over the last week, I think an important point has been missed,” wrote Richard Litton, a former James River High School Knight. “ All of the discussion has revolved around whether Groh should have accepted the holding penalty or not. I don't have a conceptual problem with his decision. What I don't understand is the exact point at which he took his timeouts.”

Litton’s point was that when Groh accepted the penalty, resulting in a replay of second time, the clock was stopped at 1:05. At that point, he could have let the clock run down to 40, then called timeouts after second and third down. By Litton’s math, the Cavaliers would have gotten the ball back with 20-25 seconds remaining.

Litton makes a good point, but, according to his argument, it would take five seconds from the time a play began until it ended and the defense was able to call timeout. The official play-by-play showed that the first down play, after which UVa called a timeout, took eight seconds.

I still think, if Groh had been standing there with pencil and pad and been able to do the math, the best strategy would have been to decline the penalty. Of course, he didn’t have that luxury, but I would have liked to hear him admit it.

One thing that hardly anybody has mentioned is that David Wooldridge’s game-ending punt went 67 yards – not all of it in the air, but he did boom it.

THE MOTHER of former Virginia Episcopal standout Reyn Willis reports that her son has made the team at Alabama as a recruited walk-on.

Willis, a 6-foot-7, 229-pounder, was rated the No. 65 prospect in Virginia last year by The Roanoke Times but did not receive any Division I-A scholarship offer. Surprisingly, most of the interest in him as a recruited walk-on was from Southeastern Conference schools.

Willis recently was moved to wide receiver, a position he played at VES, but is eligible for a redshirt year and most likely will return next year as a beefed-up tight end.

BEFORE TURNING TO the musical portion of this column, it is only fitting that we make mention of the hottest rising star on the state recruiting scene, 5-foot-10, 205-pound Warren County running back Howard “H.B.” Banjoman.

Banjoman was first brought to my attention by Chris King, a Warren County graduate and former Radford University sports information director who now writes for the Terrapin Times website with Mike Ashley, another former Radford SID.

When Banjoman rushed for 337 yards and scored six touchdowns last Friday in a 41-18 victory over Millbrook, it marked his third straight 300-yard rushing game and left him with 1,960 yards and 31 touchdowns for the season.

Banjoman, who grew up a Virginia Tech fan according to Jamie Oakes of rivals.com, needs 633 yards to break the state record of 2,592 held by former West Springfield running back Damone Boone.

Tech, UVa and James Madison are among the schools that have inquired about Banjoman.

FAR BE IT from me to get between a couple of music aficionados from Patrick County and the more upscale Henry County, but Roanoke Times music critic Ralph Berrier has objected to my selection of Tim Hall as the official Notebook Plus music expert.

“Boy, it’s tough having your music credibility disparaged by a guy whose favorite concerts list includes Don Henley,” Berrier wrote in an e-mail earlier this week.

While Hall had Henley on his best concerts list, it wasn’t Hall who disparaged Berrier’s music tastes. I’m the guy who said he preferred Berrier’s taste in baseball teams – our shared New York Yankees – to his bluegrass-heavy musical tastes.

In any case, Berrier did return the rock-lovers CD that I had forced on him, so here is his best concerts list:

REM, Radford, 1985 (saw in ‘87 and ‘89, too)
Alex Chilton and Tommy Keane, Radford, 1987
Stones, C-ville, 2005
Rod Stewart, Gboro, 1981 (my first date)
Nickel Creek, Radford, 2002
Dylan, a couple of times recently
Paul McCartney, MCI, 2002
Steve Earle, Winston-Salem, 1989
Others I can’t think of.

“I missed a buncha bands in the 80s I could’ve seen: Replacements, Husker Du, etc.,” Berrier added.

Berrier also hung around with Ashley and King --Chris, not Nappy -- a lot over the years, but he’s never seen the Banjoman.

 

U.VA. NOTES
Richmond Times-Dispatch Oct 28, 2005

BEHIND CLOSED DOORS: The Virginia men's basketball team will play host to Concordia University in an exhibition Nov. 11 at University Hall.

Fans are welcome to attend that preseason game. The scene will be different Nov. 5, when U.Va. and East Carolina scrimmage in Greenville, N.C.

The NCAA allows Division I teams to scrimmage each other, provided there are no spectators in the gym and no official scoring is kept. The scrimmage can't be publicized, either.

East Carolina's first-year coach is Ricky Stokes, a former U.Va. point guard who's a friend of the Cavaliers' new coach, Dave Leitao. The Pirates athletic director is Terry Holland, former basketball coach and AD at U.Va.

WORTHY CAUSE: The second annual "Hokies vs. Hoos for the Hungry" food drive will be held during the two weeks before the Nov. 19 football game between U.Va. and Virginia Tech at Scott Stadium.

The event, led by 1-800-GOT-JUNK?, hopes to persuade fans to donate to the Central Virginia Food Bank. Donation boxes will be set up in front of each of the 14 Kroger stores in the Richmond area. A running tally will be kept to see which group of fans has donated more food. Updates can be found daily at these Web sites: www.cvfb.org, www.1140wrva.com and www.sportsradio910.com.

ON THE MEND: Sophomore Jermaine Dias, who started U.Va.'s first three games at outside linebacker, hasn't played since Sept. 24, when he sprained his foot against Duke. Coach Al Groh, whose team is off this weekend, hopes to have Dias back for Virginia's Nov. 5 game against Temple.

Five other players who missed all or part of last weekend's loss at North Carolina because of injuries - outside linebacker Aaron Clark, nose tackle Ron Darden, offensive guard Marshal Ausberry, defensive end Vince Redd and tailback Michael Johnson - could be available for the Temple game, too.

FROM ONE EXTREME TO THE OTHER: In five seasons under Groh, the Cavaliers are 9-17 in road games. At Scott Stadium, however, U.Va. has won 19 of its past 21 games. That should bode well for Virginia (4-3) in its stretch run. Three of its final four regular-season games are at home - Nov. 5 against Temple, Nov. 12 against Georgia Tech and Nov. 19 against Virginia Tech. The Cavs close Nov. 26 at ACC rival Miami.

LEADER BOARD: Virginia isn't likely to be well-represented in the all-ACC selections this season, but several of Groh's players rank among the conference's statistical leaders.

Junior linebacker Kai Parham leads the ACC in sacks (7.5). In seven games, junior cornerback Marcus Hamilton has four interceptions, second-most in the conference. Among kickers, only Clemson's Jad Dean (85) has made a higher percentage of field-goal attempts than U.Va. senior Connor Hughes (82.4).

Redshirt freshman Cedric Peerman ranks third in kick-return average (28.8), and junior wideout Deyon Williams is second in the ACC in receptions per game (4.9) and fifth in receiving yards per game (58.6).

AWARD SEASON: U.Va. defensive end Brennan Schmidt has been named one of 10 quarterfinalists for the Lott Trophy, an award that honors a defensive player for his onfield and off-field performances.

A team captain for the past two years, Schmidt is an honor student with a 3.49 GPA and has started 46 consecutive games since his freshman season.

The other quarterfinalists are S Darrell Brooks (Arizona), DE Elvis Dumervil (Louisville), LB Chad Greenway (Iowa), LB A.J. Hawk (Ohio State), LB Abdul Hodge (Iowa), LB Brandon Hoyte (Notre Dame), CB Antoine Huffman (Kentucky), LB D'Qwell Jackson (Maryland) and LB Moses Osemwegie (Vanderbilt).

IN THE CREASE: The captains for the U.Va. men's lacrosse team next season will be seniors Mike Culver, J.J. Morrissey and Matt Ward.

Culver, a defenseman from Ridgewood, N.J., was a third-team All-American last season. Morrissey, a midfielder from Winchester, Mass., had six goals and seven assists. Ward, an attackman from Oakton, was a second-team All-American. With 97 career goals, Ward is tied for 10th on U.Va.'s all-time list.

- Jeff White