Cavs' Gottschalk has some lofty goals
Freshman DE hopes to follow in Long's footsteps
By Jay Jenkins / jjenkins@dailyprogress.com | 978-7250
October 10, 2007

With a stone-cold expression, Sean Gottschalk exposed why Virginia’s football team is enjoying a five-game win streak.

Gottschalk’s opinion, a rib-tickling explanation, offers a closer look at the free-spirited redshirt freshman.

“I think it is because Will [Barker] and I are roommates at the team hotel,” the defensive end said. “The last five games, home and away, Will and I have been roommates and that’s really why we are winning.

“It is not because of Coach [Al] Groh’s gameplan or anything we are doing on the field. It is because of that, which is great.”

Gottschalk had another revelation regarding the Cavaliers’ success. Of late, he has noticed fans from opposing teams using university-issued mug shots of Virginia’s players to concoct ideas for look-alikes.

Offensive lineman Zac Stair drew a recent comparison to wrestler Steve Austin. Chris Long was compared to ex-Coca-Cola spokesperson Max Headroom. The list is long.

“I forget what mine was, but they are all really funny,” Gottschalk said, hiding the fact that his picture drew a comparison to movie character Edward Scissorhands. “Fans from teams keep on doing it and we keep on beating them, so I think people might want to stop.”

Gottschalk also joked about what his celebration would resemble when he landed the first sack of his career.

He cited a dance move from a scene in the recent movie “Knocked Up.”

“We were talking about the ‘dice roll’ the other day,” Gottschalk chuckled. “I am sure it will be something lame. I am the type of guy that will either do nothing or be super-juiced up.”

Gottschalk’s first sack could come Saturday when Virginia (5-1) hosts Connecticut (5-0) before a sold-out crowd at Scott Stadium (3:30 p.m., ESPNU).

“I almost had one last week,” Gottschalk said. “There was this one play with their quarterback (Middle Tennessee State’s Dwight Dasher), who was a Marques Hagans-type quarterback. And it is funny because there’s a video of it online and one my roommates, Joe Torchia, keeps watching that play.

“I’m coming towards him and about to get that first career sack and [Dasher] pump fakes a little bit, I put my arm up and he was so small he ducked under it.”

Another defensive end, sophomore Jeffrey Fitzgerald, was there to collect the scraps.

“That was still great,” he said, “but hopefully that won’t happen again.”

For now, Gottschalk can take solace in knowing that he will at least be in positions to make plays - he has secured a starting role in Virginia’s nickel defense.

The youngster knows, however, that he is expected to add to his tackle total - and quickly.

“It’s always fun just to get on the field, but now they are looking for me to get a little bit more action, make a few more plays, which I think I am going to start doing pretty soon,” he said.

“In the first couple of games, it was not overwhelming, but I saw the speed at this level and I am kind of through with that and ready to start making some bigger plays and hopefully help us a lot more.”

Groh certainly expects and desires that, but Gottschalk is not alone. In different degrees, the entire recruiting class from 2006 needs to expand its impact.

“We have a large number of players in that class that, if their performance will grow here in the upcoming weeks, it will add a lot to the team,” Groh said. “That will be a very important thing. We are halfway through the season now and, really, for all the players, whatever class they are in, the class designation that they have in the program … they should be well beyond that right now.”

Those players, regardless of their classification in school, are “a full training camp and six games older,” the coach noted.

“The line from where they are now to where they can be is a lot longer than it can be for some of these developed players,” Groh said. “If they can move down that line here in the next six weeks, they will provide more for the team than what we have right now.

“That’s probably what we are going to need, and I would say that Sean is one of the players in that category.”

Last year, Gottschalk was an easy player to redshirt - he was admittedly too small at 255 pounds.

“I think the reason [nose tackle] Nate Collins played last year was because he knew the defense really well and he was physically ready,” Gottschalk recounted. “He was a big guy and definitely physically ready.

“I am still the runt of the bunch. In this defense you have to carry enough mass, like strong mass that results in strength to push up against the guys in the 3-4. I still need to work on that.”

All of it, he said, has been an eye-opening experience.

“In high school, it’s all a 3-point stance and get up the field,” he said. “Here it is ‘Read your keys, do stuff that helps other people make plays and make plays yourself.’ But a lot of what happens behind you relies on you. Just learning that, which took time, was good.”

Gottschalk thinks his current status is comparable to that of senior defensive end Chris Long when he was a freshman.

“He and I, I don’t know, I see a lot of similarities,” Gottschalk said.

Groh said he would certainly enjoy that.

“It would be very uplifting to me to think we had another Chris Long coming along,” Groh said. “That might be aiming a little bit high, but that’s probably a good comparison. Chris had the same amount of energy and the same amount of passion for the game when he was a young player, but there was kind of a surprise during the course of every play, and Sean is going through some of that right now.

“The roles are somewhat similar.”

Gottschalk added: “Hopefully, I can blossom and be the type of player that he is. I know he didn’t redshirt, but that first year he got sick. In his second year, it was more a year where people saw what he could do. In his junior year, he finally blew up. And this year he is having an All-American year. That’s a good goal.”

 

UNC fans awaiting Spurrier's return
By Jerry Ratcliffe / jratcliffe@dailyprogress.com | 978-7251
October 10, 2007

Scattershooting around the ACC, while noting that Chapel Hill, N.C., has been awaiting this moment for a long, long time ...

The return of Steve Superior, or, er, Spurrier will take place Saturday afternoon when North Carolina hosts South Carolina. Why is this such a big deal, you ask?

The last time Spurrier stepped foot in Kenan Stadium was the last game of the season in 1989, when he was the coach at Duke and poured it on a hapless Tar Heel team to the tune of 41-0. While Spurrier denied he was attempting to run up the score on a 1-10 Mack Brown-coached UNC team, some of Duke’s players admitted the following season, after Spurrier’s departure to Florida, that the coach was trying to get 50.

What really infuriated the Tar Heels though, was that Spurrier had the Duke team pose for a team picture with the scoreboard in the background, raising blood pressures of all those Heels who witnessed the event in their own stadium.

Carolina has never forgotten. The Heels reeled off 13 straight wins over Duke after Spurrier’s exit, and have won 16 of the last 17.

However, that’s Duke and not South Carolina. Spurrier’s Gamecocks have the potential to score 41 or more on the Tar Heels, so perhaps they shouldn’t boo him too much during his welcome back introduction.

BC has blinders on

Now that Boston College has jumped to No. 4 in the national polls, its highest ranking since 1984, Coach Jeff Jagodzinski’s biggest challenge may be keeping his unbeaten Eagles focused.

“I think that every week, if you continue to win, the bull’s-eye on your chest gets even bigger,” the coach said.

Some observers of the program questioned whether BC might overlook this week’s opponent, Notre Dame, because of the big game that looms ahead at Virginia Tech, a week from tonight in Blacksburg.

“I promise you there will be absolutely no chance that Boston College will overlook Notre Dame,” Jagodzinski said. “There will be zero chance of that.”

BC has beaten the Irish four straight times and five of the last six. Still, how can anyone afford to overlook Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind.? That’s just asking for trouble.

Hoos streak

Don’t look now, but there’s only nine current winning streaks in the country longer than Virginia’s five-game string.

LSU has the longest winning streak in the nation with 13 in a row, followed by Cincinnati’s nine-game streak. Then, Boston College, Hawaii, South Florida, and California, all own seven-game streaks.

Arizona State and Ohio State have six-game streaks going, but then comes Virginia and half a dozen other teams with five in a row.

Turnover talk

Florida State coach Bobby Bowden has always believed that one of the most important statistics in football is turnovers.

That’s one reason he believed the Seminoles struggled most of last season when they went 7-6. Bowden pointed out that his team had at least one turnover in 12 of 13 games in 2006. Four of those came against Wake, which beat FSU and went on to win the ACC title.

No wonder Bowden is leery of tonight’s match with the Deacs.

The Seminoles did not turn over the ball in last week’s win over N.C. State, the second time this season they played without giving the opponent the ball.

Lessons learned

Wake Forest is riding a three-game winning streak heading into tonight’s home contest against Florida State.

But the Deacs’ last two wins came in completely different fashion. They came back from a 24-3 deficit to beat Maryland in overtime two weeks ago, then had to fight off a Duke comeback last weekend, when the Blue Devils trailed, 34-9.

Duke went on a 27-7 run before falling short against Wake, 41-36.

“I told our players that we’ve had two wins that were completely opposite,” said Deacs coach Jim Grobe. “We learned against Maryland that we can come back, that no deficit is a problem if we keep playing. And, against Duke, it was a great lesson for us that no lead is good enough.”

One of the big plays in the Duke game was by Wake cornerback Alphonso Smith, who returned his third interception for a touchdown this season, tying an ACC record.

Injury report

You’ve got to feel bad for N.C. State coach Tom O’Brien. His team, already hobbled by injuries all season long, suffered another big blow in a loss to Florida State last weekend.

The Wolfpack, which already lost starting tailback Toney Baker for the season with a knee injury, may have lost his replacement, Andre Brown, for the rest of the year.

Brown suffered a fracture to his left foot, leaving sophomore Jamelle Eugene, who started the season as No. 3 on the depth chart, as the new starter.

Other key injuries last weekend: Virginia Tech lost senior Vince Hall, the Hokies’ leading tackler this season, to a broken wrist. He will be out four to six weeks. ... Duke lost its best defensive player, end Patrick Bailey, with a leg injury. ... Maryland lost starting right guard Andrew Crummey with a broken left leg, ending his season.

Stat of the Week

2 - The number of rushing touchdowns that unbeaten UConn has allowed to opponents in five games so far this season. That ties for fourth in the country, behind only Ohio State, Wyoming and Cincinnati, all of which have yielded only one rushing TD apiece so far this season.

Quote of the Week

“Everybody’s got two losses after six games. I’ve got the same problem. I’ve got the same militant fan base as Georgia, Tennessee, Penn State, Michigan, Texas and Nebraska. There’s no difference. We have surely done it here before, bounced back from a couple of losses and played well. The nail has been in the coffin a couple of times and the players have responded.”

- Clemson coach Tommy Bowden after his Tigers fell to 4-2 (2-2 ACC) with a lopsided home loss to Virginia Tech.

Inside info

Virginia coach Al Groh has a special affection for reserve quarterback Scott Deke, and he had better, because Deke’s got the dirt on his coach.

“I would hope that behind the scenes that confidentiality is one of the things that [Deke] exhibits, in that not only does he hear the calls that comes from upstairs and signals them in, but he hears most of what I have to say,” Groh revealed this week. “Sometimes those comments concern large numbers of our organization. So, he could probably hold me up for a little bit of extortion here, if he told me he had it all on tape.”

Short yardage ...

Playing for injured starting Maryland linebacker Eric Henderson, backup Dave Philistin came through big time against Georgia Tech, recording 21 tackles, the most by a Terp since Eric Barton’s 22 in 1998. ... Florida State coach Bobby Bowden said that last weekend’s 50-minute lightning delay in his team’s home game with N.C. State was the first such delay he’s been a part of in his long coaching career. ... What was it Bowden also said about turnovers earlier in this notebook? N.C. State, which is 1-5 on the season, already has 22 turnovers. ... As he watched junior Victor Harris catch a kickoff 3 yards deep in his end zone and race 103 yards for a big touchdown against Clemson, Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer described his thoughts as: “Stay in, stay in, go, go, go, go.”

The picks

Last week: 4-3. To date: 38-15. Tonight: Florida State 24, Wake Forest 17. This week: Boston College 27, Notre Dame 19; Georgia Tech 28, Miami 21; South Carolina 42, North Carolina 20; Virginia Tech 30, Duke 17; Virginia 27, UConn 20.

 

Kirby, Slade now linked in greatness
By Jerry Ratcliffe / jratcliffe@dailyprogress.com | 978-7251
October 10, 2007

Kirby and Slade. Go together like peanut butter and jam. Always have. Always will.

So then, it was perfect timing for the Virginia High School League to induct both of these famed athletes into its Hall of Fame during ceremonies Tuesday night at Charlottesville’s Doubletree Hotel.

The two cousins have had a special bond since they were in diapers, started playing youth sports together at age 7, and even lived on the same street in York County.

Together, they delivered glory days to Tabb High School while carving out national reputations as blue ribbon football prospects. The ride continued as they became part of Virginia’s 1989 recruiting class and are now part of Cavalier football lore.

Each had lengthy NFL careers, and for the first time, not for the same teams.

Together forever

This week they came full circle as part of the VHSL’s Class of 2006 inductees (see bios on the class on Page C5). While both have received numerous honors during their lifetimes, deep down, this one was special.

“It’s not only me and Chris going into this hall of fame, it’s a community going in, too. It’s Tabb High School going in,” Kirby said. “To me, that’s more important than anything else. That’s something we all did together. Teachers, coaches and families kept us grounded. That community raised two great athletes.”

Slade agreed.

“It’s been a life-long thing,” Slade said. “Chris and Terry are always going to be linked together no matter what. The ride has been a good one. There have been a lot of great people go into this particular hall of fame and to join them is a great honor. I couldn’t have asked for a better situation than coming back to Charlottesville for this honor.”

For those too young to remember, former UVa coach George Welsh believed that getting Kirby and Slade was a recruiting breakthrough for the program, grabbing the two premier players in the Tidewater area in the same class.

Standing the test of time

Kirby had drawn more acclaim as a running back who had compiled 7,428 yards and 104 career TDs for Tabb. He put together 26 straight 100-yard rushing games and 36 for his high school career (still VHSL records) en route to being named the 1988 National Player of the Year by Parade Magazine, USA Today and Gatorade Circle of Champions.

His career at Virginia was spectacular. He still ranks third on the Cavaliers’ all-time rushing list with 3,348 rushing yards and owns a better yards-per-carry average (5.9) than the two backs in front of him, Thomas Jones and Tiki Barber.

Kirby was a third-round draft choice of the Miami Dolphins and he enjoyed a 10-year pro career.

Slade was named to the USA Today All-America team as a defensive end and finished his career at Tabb with a school-record 47 sacks.

While at Virginia, he set the UVa and ACC career record (still stands) for quarterback sacks with 40 and was named to the 1992 Associated Press All-America team.

He was a second-round draft choice of the New England Patriots where he played for then-defensive coordinator and linebackers coach Al Groh.

“Chris and Terry were just outstanding athletes in every sense of the word,” said Tabb High School coach Charlie Hovis, one of about 40 people from the Tabb community that drove up for the ceremonies.

“We just put Chris at end and said, ‘sic ’em,’” Hovis said. “He could get inside and make a mistake and still catch the runner before he got outside. He was that quick, that good, and so big and strong.

“Terry could do anything,” the coach said. “He was such a natural athlete in every sport. Our best play was ‘just get Terry the ball.’ Let’s see, we had Terry left, Terry right, and Terry up the middle. And when he didn’t make it, we let him punt.”

Kirby, who now lives in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., where he owns a charter school for at-risk kids, called “Touchdowns 4 Life” (www.touchdowns4life.net), said that sports meant something special to him and Slade.

“We lived for playing sports because we knew that was our way out and would keep us out of trouble,” Kirby said. “If we didn’t have a ride to practice, somebody would take us. That was part of being raised by that community.”

Slade said that he often tells people that some of the most memorable games of his football career were at Tabb, particularly the 1988 win over Hampton and the 1987 state championship over Martinsville. To Slade, those rank right up there with big games at UVa and in the NFL.

Both were pretty good basketball players, too, and Slade believes his team may have won a couple of state crowns in that sport had it not been for future fellow Cavalier Bryant Stith.

Slade, who now lives outside Atlanta (in Alpharetta) and has bought a franchise with the Planet Smoothie corporation, and Kirby both agree that the one moment they will never forget in their UVa careers was the 1990 loss to Georgia Tech. The Cavaliers were ranked No. 1 in the nation and lost a heartbreaking game.

“To this day that still burns me up,” Kirby said. “Georgia Tech came in here and burned a hole in our field and we lost [quarterback] Shawn [Moore], who got hurt, and then we go to the Sugar Bowl and blow a 21-point lead.

“They still play the Georgia Tech game as one of the college classics and I still get sick about it. Shawn getting hurt, really, really hurt us.”

Memories of their deeds may fade in the distant future at Tabb and at UVa, but their success as human beings will not. Both are involved in helping kids, showing them the way to better choices, better lives.

What could be better than that?

Kirby and Slade. They should know. Their community taught them how.

 

U.VA. NOTES
Wednesday, Oct 10, 2007 - 12:06 AM Updated: 09:32 AM

Gould getting in kicks and hits
The 34-yard field goal he kicked with 8 seconds left Saturday night lifted Virginia to a 23-21 win over Middle Tennessee, and that ranks as Chris Gould's greatest moment as a college player. But neither Gould nor his teammates will soon forget a play that the 6-1, 221-pound senior made Sept. 29 against Pittsburgh.

With U.Va. leading 20-0, Gould kicked off. Moments later, he made a textbook tackle on Lowell Robinson, the Panthers' return man. Suddenly, Gould's teammates had a new appreciation for his football skills.

"A lot of times they say, 'Oh, you guys don't hit. You guys just sit on the sideline all practice. You're not working as hard as we are,'" Gould said yesterday with a smile.

"But when you go out there and make a tackle like that, they kind of look at you and say, 'Jeez, I didn't know you had it in you.' "

Against Middle Tennessee, Gould said, he thought he might get to make another tackle on a kickoff, "but Ras-I, it seemed like he made every tackle there was to make out there."

That would be Ras-I Dowling, a true freshman from Chesapeake.

"He's had an awesome year," coach Al Groh said yesterday. "He's played in five games, he's made 18 tackles on special teams. It's awesome . . . His performance on special teams would really be quite extraordinary if he was a veteran player."

Injury leaves hole on special teams
If Cedric Peerman, who hurt his right foot against Middle Tennessee, misses Saturday's game against Connecticut, Keith Payne and Andrew Pearman again will split his snaps at tailback. But Peerman also returns kickoffs - he lines up alongside Pearman - and it's not clear who would replace him on that unit.

Possibilities include Payne, Mikell Simpson, Raynard Horne, Chris Dalton and Josh Zidenberg.

"From our perspective, there are probably less candidates than the players think there are," Groh said. "I think there's some who think they're strong candidates for this and that they might get a chance to win their letter now. But they've got to show more than what they've shown before to fall into that category."

Injured foot could sideline CB Cook
Starting cornerback Chris Cook almost certainly will miss the UConn game. Cook, a junior, sprained his left knee while breaking up a long pass in the fourth quarter against Middle Tennessee. Before Cook's MRI, there was concern that the injury might be season-ending.

Groh noted that Cook "came down at a very awkward angle. You've seen players get pretzeled to a lesser degree than that that have had significant injuries, so that was a positive response."

Covington may return to practice Monday
Wide receiver Maurice Covington, who started Virginia's first three games, won't play against UConn, but he returned to practice "on a limited basis" Monday, Groh said.

Covington, a junior, broke his left hand in Virginia's Sept. 15 win at North Carolina. He has nine catches for 65 yards this season.

Punting job opens up for 2008 recruit
In June, punter Matt Zubyk committed to Virginia. In August, however, Zubyk decided he'd rather attend Stanford, and a spot for a punter opened in the Cavaliers' 2008 recruiting class.

Barring another change of heart, that slot will be filled by Jimmy Howell, a 6-6 240-pounder from Florence, S.C.

An excellent student, Howell orally committed in July to Northwestern, at the time the only school that had offered him a scholarship. But after Zubyk chose Stanford, U.Va. offered Howell, and he accepted this month.

Howell, who also starts at quarterback for West Florence High, will have an opportunity to win the starting punter's job at U.Va. next summer.

Virginia's two punters this season - Ryan Weigand and Gould - are seniors. The Cavaliers' punter during spring practice is likely to be walk-on John Thornton, a Henrico High graduate. - Jeff White

 

Cavaliers finding home on ESPNU
Fans might have to work extra hard to see team on TV
Thursday, Oct 11, 2007 - 12:07 AM Updated: 01:17 AM
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- For the third time in four weeks, Virginia's game will be televised on ESPNU.

That's not great news for all U.Va. fans hoping to catch the TV broadcast of Saturday's game against Connecticut. ESPNU, which was launched in March 2005 in 2½ million homes, is considerably harder to find than sister networks ESPN and ESPN2.

ESPNU now is in about 20 million homes, but it's not available everywhere in Virginia. That's mainly because the network does not have an agreement with Comcast, the dominant cable company in much of the state, including the Richmond area and Charlottesville.

"Comcast would be a big part of the equation, no question, and we're optimistic that will happen sooner rather than later," said Burke Magnus, ESPNU's vice president and general manager.

ESPNU has arrangements with Dish Network, DirecTV and most of the major distributors, including Cox, Charter, Time Warner and Verizon. In some cases, customers must pay extra for sports packages that include ESPNU.

Magnus said ESPNU is thrilled with its progress and hopes ultimately to be in 50 million to 60 million homes.

U.Va. and UConn meet at 3:30 p.m. at Scott Stadium. The game is sold out, U.Va. officials announced yesterday. ESPNU televised the Virginia-Georgia Tech game Sept. 22 and the Virginia-Pittsburgh game a week later. The Cavaliers have appeared twice on the ACC's Lincoln Financial/Raycom broadcast, too.

When TV networks choose from among games involving ACC teams, ABC and ESPN select first, Magnus said, followed by Lincoln Financial/Raycom. Then ESPNU picks.

That the Cavaliers opened the season with an ugly loss to Wyoming made them less attractive to ABC/ESPN.
 

ACC's no grade-A league
Thursday, Oct 11, 2007 - 12:05 AM Updated: 12:22 AM
By BOB LIPPER
TIMES-DISPATCH COLUMNIST

Face it, the ACC is the Faber College of big-time football (or, to quote Bluto Blutarsky, "Four years of expansion down the drain") -- one positive-spin note around here being that Nov. 24's Virginia Tech at Virginia encounter could be a Coastal Division pre-test for the conference championship final.

Anyhow, the registrar said to turn in first-term grades or she'd expel Tommy Bowden and Chan Gailey immediately. It's a thankless job, but somebody has to do it . . .

Boston College: Yeah, the Eagles have the league's best quarterback (Matt Ryan) and a couple of stout lines. But what you really need to know about them is they lead the ACC in turnover margin and third-down conversions. Those are the signs of a well-schooled, veteran team. Second-semester classes figure to be tougher. Grade: A.

Clemson: Last week, Bowden demanded data to support claims his special teams were crummy. A reporter told him 14 Tigers punts had been blocked since he came aboard in 1999. And this was before the kick-coverage meltdown against Virginia Tech. C-minus.

Duke: Wideout Eron Riley is really, really good, but these guys are just marking time till Greg Paulus' first bounce pass. The little Devils have performed reasonably well against Virginia, Miami and Wake, though. D-plus.

Florida State: Maybe it wasn't all Jeff Bowden's fault. New offensive guru Jimbo Fisher's unit is slogging along at 345 yards per outing -- quarterback and running-game issues remain -- but Mickey Andrews' defense still can bring it. Tonight's outing at Wake is one of four severe road tests (also: BC, Virginia Tech and Florida) to go. B.

Georgia Tech: The Jackets have gone from 15th in the country to sixth in the Coastal in a heartbeat. Speaking of a pulse, tailback Tashard Choice has one. Gailey and everyone else? Hard to say. C-minus.

Maryland: A stealth candidate in the Atlantic Division, the Terps don't do anything special. But the home schedule is advantageous, runner Keon Lattimore is a load to bring down and Erin Henderson is the latest tackling machine. B.

Miami: The 'Canes lost 11 times to Big East rivals in 13 seasons. They're 15-11 in their fourth year of ACC membership -- which tells you more about UM's decline than the ACC's bite. And this bunch still has to go to FSU, Virginia Tech and BC. C-minus.

North Carolina: Get the Tar Heels while you can. They're young, there's talent on the roster and Butch Davis and his aides look as if they can coach some. C.

N.C. State: Tom O'Brien was pried away from BC (big money and that big wolves fountain in front of the football building did the trick) to shape up the sloppy goo that was Chuck Amato's trademark. So how come the Pack is even more heavily penalized this year and way, way last in turnover margin? D-minus.

Virginia: Take away Chris Long's interception at UNC and his blocked field goal at Middle Tennessee, and who knows what the record might be. He's terrific. The Cavs have taken full advantage of his talent and a pliant schedule. B.

Virginia Tech: Offensive coordinator Bryan Stinespring, the O-line and tailback Branden Ore all need to spend time in study hall. A solid defense will miss Vince Hall, but the Hokies do get BC, FSU and Miami at home. B.

Wake Forest: Kenneth Moore (160 all-purpose yards per game) has been terrific for the 2006 champs, but the defense has slipped and turnovers are way up. Beating FSU tonight is a must if the Deacons are to show they're teacher's pets again. C.

 

Rested & ready
Relief is on the way to help with Keith Payne's sleep disorder.
Doug Doughty

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- To watch 6-foot-3, 234-pound Keith Payne rumbling through Middle Tennessee's defense Saturday night, nobody could have guessed that Payne is sometimes at a loss for energy.

Maybe now, he won't be.

Payne, Virginia's leading rusher in a 23-21 victory in Murfreesboro, Tenn., said he has been diagnosed with sleep apnea and that a corrective device is on order.

"Every time I would come home, my dad would ask me why I was so sleepy," said Payne, a redshirt freshman from Fairfax County. "I'd hang out with him, then, five minutes later, I'd be sleeping.

"He was concerned about it. I told him that my schedule was busy, but I was always tired. When I came back to school, he noticed that I was oversleeping certain things, and that's when my father decided to call Coach [Anthony] Poindexter."

At the advice of Payne's father, Keith Sr., Poindexter -- the running backs coach -- started the process that resulted in Keith Jr. undergoing a sleep test.

Snoring might have been the first giveaway. Payne shares an apartment with classmate B.J. Cabbell, who has been known to bang on the wall when awakened by Payne's snoring.

"My whole family snores," said Payne, who indicated that his father does not do interviews. "When I got to college, that's when I realized that I snored a lot. When we travel, people on the team don't want to stay in my room."

Payne isn't alone. More than 50 million Americans are said to be afflicted with sleep apnea, a condition that restricts the flow of oxygen and interrupts breathing.

"I've never really had a night's rest because they said my brain's always awake to keep me from dying," Payne said. "I would stop breathing 80 times per hour."

Help is on the way in the form of Continuous Positive Airway Pressure, commonly known as CPAP, a process that opens up the airways either through a nasal mask or pillow.

"I haven't gotten it yet," Payne said, "but I slept with one during my sleep test and I felt like a different person and that was after only three hours. For now, I'm sleeping on my side. I try not to sleep on my back. That's when I lose most of my air."

Sleep apnea has been discussed as a possible cause in the death of Reggie White, an NFL Hall of Famer who was 43 when he died in his sleep in December 2004.

White was aware that he had sleep apnea but "was unable to wear the facemask because he was claustrophobic," his widow, Sara, the spokesperson for the Dental Organization for Sleep Apnea, said on a Web site.

Research has linked sleep apnea to Attention Deficit Disorder and that raises an interesting question about Payne, who took a leave of absence from the UVa program last summer to concentrate on academics.

"They think [the CPAP] will have a positive outcome," Payne said. "With that, I'll be well-rested and I'll be able to focus more."

Sluggishness was never one of Payne's traits athletically. He was the Group AAA player of the year in 2005, when he carried 273 times for 2,059 yards and 26 touchdowns, and played every down in Oakton High School's stunning upset of unbeaten Landstown High School in the state title game.

Before that, Payne was a member of state championship lacrosse teams for Oakton in 2004 and 2005, and he hasn't ruled out a return to that field.

"It's shocking a lot of people," said Payne of his pre-diagnosis accomplishments.

"But a lot of people don't know about [sleep apnea]. I'm just glad I found out about it when I did."
 

Finding the right fit
Peerman's injury opens the door for two more tailbacks
By Andy Bitter
abitter@newsadvance.com
October 11, 2007

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Al Groh describes his running backs like they're T-shirts. They come in small, medium and large.
With Cedric Peerman, Virginia's one-size-fits-all back, on the mend with an injury to his right foot, it appears the Cavaliers will have to go to the extremes - the smaller Andrew Pearman or the bigger Keith Payne - to replace him.

"We're just going to do our best to get in where we fit in," Pearman said. "We obviously can't do the same things that Cedric did, but together, cumulatively, hopefully we're going to do some good things."

It worked against Middle Tennessee. The 5-foot-10, 168-pound Pearman, whose older brother Alvin was an all-ACC back for UVa in 2004, ran for 45 yards and scored twice on similar option plays where he used his speed to get to the edge. The junior added 56 receiving yards, mostly on screens.

Payne, a 6-foot-3, 234-pound redshirt freshman who was Group AAA Player of the Year his senior year at Oakton High, did most of his damage between the tackles, running 18 times for a bruising 70 yards.

"These two bring a somewhat different style to the game," Groh said.

For inspiration, Payne looks at Eddie George, a tailback of a similar mold who won the Heisman Trophy at Ohio State.

And Pearman, how would he describe himself?

"Um, a little bit smaller Alvin Pearman?" he said after a hesitation. "I don't know. A lot smaller, but faster."

If anything, they should make Virginia's offense more unpredictable. But, "it adds a little more unpredictability to us," Groh noted.

Both Pearman and Payne have limited game experience and both have had an eventful past year.

Pearman, who transferred from Hawaii in 2005, played four games last season before suffering a knee injury. He later withdrew from the school for personal reasons before re-joining the team in the summer.

He was recruited to be a wide receiver at Hawaii and stayed at the position when he transferred to UVa, but in the preseason he re-emerged as a running back, his natural position where he made a name for himself at Providence High in Charlotte.

Saturday was the biggest impact he's had in a football game in three years.

"It's obviously hard to get in your rhythm when you're not in a game," said Pearman, who has 17 collegiate carries. "I feel like my practices have gone pretty well, but it just took me getting in a game to feel it out."

Payne had to work his way back into good academic standing this summer after Groh suspended him from the team in June. An Internet message board favorite before he ever stepped on the field, Payne said it humbled him.

"I think that happening definitely was a wake-up call," he said. "It really sobered down my life from all the hype I had in high school, definitely brought me back down to reality."

Said Groh: "I hope it was more of a lifestyle and life perspective motivation. If all it did was touch his attitude toward football, then we didn't achieve the entire objective, which is to reach for more and have a greater expectation of himself."

Payne has shown why Virginia fans have high hopes for him. Despite having four career carries entering last Saturday, he ran with confidence against the Blue Raiders, averaging 3.9 yards per carry.

"I made some rookie mistakes," he said, noting that he could have made some better cuts. "I feel now that I've broken that off, I should be comfortable."

Replacing Peerman won't be easy. The junior has 585 rushing yards and five touchdowns in six games and has been the rock of a Cavaliers offense that has had its ups and downs, being equal parts power and speed.

It's a point not lost on Pearman and Payne. When Peerman hobbled off the field last week, they gave each other a knowing glance.

"We just looked at each other and said we've really got to do it. We've got to be a 1-2 punch," Pearman said. "We've got to do what Cedric has done the best we can."