Tar Heels visit house of horrors
UNC hasn't won on Virginia's field since Reagan's first term
Saturday, Oct 18, 2008 - 12:07 AM Updated: 02:27 AM
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

Winning at Scott Stadium was once routine for the University of North Carolina football team. So when the Tar Heels headed home Nov. 14, 1981, after rallying to beat Virginia 17-14, they had every reason to believe more victories would follow in a town where they'd won four straight.

"I never thought in a million years that it would be 20-some years before we'd win there again," former UNC running back Ethan Horton, a freshman on the '81 team, said by phone yesterday from Charlotte, N.C.

In fact, as Horton and UNC fans know, the baby blues haven't won at Scott Stadium since that '81 win, and the drought could well extend beyond 20-some years. Still, the 18th-ranked Tar Heels (1-1, 5-1) are favored to break through today against the Cavaliers (1-1, 3-3) in an ACC game that looms large in the Coastal Division race.

"I'd like to think Carolina wins [today]," Horton said. "Right now Virginia is playing some good football, but I'll go with the Heels."

The Streak, not surprisingly, has been a popular topic in Charlottesville this week. Some U.Va. players, such as senior linebacker Clint Sintim, said they weren't aware UNC has dropped 13 straight at Scott Stadium. Others, such as sophomore quarterback Marc Verica, were better informed. But both downplayed the significance of The Streak.

"That really won't have as much bearing on the outcome of the game, unless [the Heels] feel it will," said Sintim, who leads the ACC in sacks. "The people who are going to win the game are the people who execute and play the best football [today]."

Verica said: "Really what it comes down to is what's going to happen between the white lines. It's a long streak, but they're a really good football team right now."

Second-year coach Butch Davis deserves much of the credit for the Heels' resurgence. His predecessor, John Bunting, recruited well, but Davis has instilled discipline and order in a program that for years underachieved.

"He's really selling them on believing they can win," Horton said.

Davis has already faced considerable adversity this season. His No. 1 quarterback, T.J. Yates, fractured his left ankle Sept. 20 against Virginia Tech -- the only team to beat UNC this season -- and hasn't played since.

Cameron Sexton has sparkled in Yates' absence, but Carolina suffered another blow last weekend in Chapel Hill. Senior Brandon Tate, the team's most explosive player, tore up his knee in the first quarter of UNC's 29-24 win over Notre Dame. Tate was a talented wide receiver and perhaps the best return man in college football.

"This team does not have a Brandon Tate waiting in the wings," Davis said.

With such challenges to address, Davis didn't plan to spend much time, if any, discussing UNC's losing streak in Charlottesville with his players.

"In reality, to these kids, it doesn't really make any difference," Davis said. "None of these guys were alive back then during that period of time. It's the next game on the schedule."

The Cavaliers, dismissed by most observers after a 31-3 loss at Duke last month, have posted two convincing victories since the debacle in Durham. And now comes an opponent that U.Va. coach Al Groh calls the best his team has faced since Southern California on Aug. 30.

"It's exciting," said senior Eugene Monroe, an All-America candidate at offensive tackle. "We've won two games in a row, and we hope we can create an identity for ourselves much different than what we started out as being, and we have an opportunity to do that against a ranked opponent."

 

Preview: North Carolina at Virginia
Saturday, Oct 18, 2008 - 12:07 AM

No. 18 North Carolina at Virginia
Where: Scott Stadium (cap. 61,500), Charlottesville

When: Noon

On the air: TV -- WRIC-8; radio -- WRVA (1140), 2:30; XM Ch. 191, 3:30

Tickets: $42; (800) 542-8821, www.virginiasports.com

Line: North Carolina by 4½

Records: Virginia (1-1 ACC, 3-3); North Carolina (1-1, 5-1)

Players to watch: North Carolina -- QB Cameron Sexton, 38-67 passing, 560 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT; WR Hakeem Nicks, 33 catches, 553 yards, 4 TD; TB Shaun Draughn, 61 carries, 297 yards, 2 TD; CB Trimane Goddard, 4 interceptions. Virginia -- WR Kevin Ogletree, 31 catches, 383 yards, 3 TD; TB Cedric Peerman, 53 carries, 379 yards, 4 TD; QB Marc Verica, 91-138 passing, 794 yards, 3 TD, 7 INT; LB Clint Sintim, 7 sacks.

Outlook: This series dates to 1892 and is billed as the South's oldest rivalry. U.Va. has dominated Carolina in recent years, winning eight of their past 10 meetings. North Carolina has lost 13 straight games at Scott Stadium since beating Virginia there in 1981. The leader on each sideline today is a former NFL coach. UNC's Butch Davis coached the Cleveland Browns; U.Va.'s Al Groh, the New York Jets. These teams have one common opponent so far. Virginia lost 45-10 at Connecticut on Sept. 13. Carolina crushed UConn 38-12 in Chapel Hill on Oct. 4.


 

Groh, Davis shift focus away from past
North Carolina hasn't won in Charlottesville since 1981.
By Doug Doughty
981-3129

Nobody in uniform for today's North Carolina-Virginia football game was alive when the Tar Heels last defeated Virginia at Scott Stadium.

The date was Nov. 14, 1981, and the events that day may have changed forever the face of UVa football.

The Tar Heels were ranked 13th at the time and came to Charlottesville as 18-point favorites against a Virginia team that was 1-8 under sixth-year head coach Dick Bestwick.

Bestwick couldn't have asked for more from his team that day. The Cavaliers led 14-7 at the half behind quarterback Gordie Whitehead, who was 18-of-31 for 243 yards and tossed two first-half touchdown passes.

An apparent third touchdown pass to Greg Taylor was nullified by a motion penalty and then Whitehead suffered a broken collarbone and was lost for the game -- and season -- with 5:39 left in the third quarter.

Whitehead's replacement was intercepted three times and North Carolina rallied for a 17-14 victory.

"To win that day probably would have saved my job," said Bestwick, reached by phone in Athens, Ga. "I don't think [Dick] Schultz would have done what he did."

Without Whitehead, UVa took a 48-7 pounding at Maryland one week later. On Nov. 27, the day before the Cavaliers ended the season against Virginia Tech, Schultz walked into Bestwick's office and made a proposal.

Bestwick could return in 1982, Schultz said, but would have to win six games to keep his job. The only way Bestwick would have been paid for the final three years on his contract was to resign on the spot.

That's what Bestwick did and Schultz went on to hire George Welsh, the most successful coach in school history.

"I didn't know the circumstances of that [1983] game," Welsh said, "but, obviously, if they win that day, who knows what happens?"

Welsh never lost to the Tar Heels in Charlottesville, although he had more than his share of close calls, starting with the 1983 meeting, when 19th-ranked Carolina rolled into Scott Stadium as a 17-point favorite.

UNC had gotten as high as No. 3 in the polls only three weeks earlier, but Virginia rallied from a 14-0 deficit to win 17-14.

Welsh's first three home wins over Carolina came by a total of eight points, including a 24-22 victory in 1985 with quarterback Don Majkowski on suspension after being caught in a bar. Scott Secules took over for Majkowski in that game and later engineered a 20-17 victory over Carolina as a fifth-year senior in 1987.

In that game, Carolina led 17-7 before Virginia scored two touchdowns in the final 2:53, the last on a pass from Secules to ex-Chantilly High School teammate Keith Mattioli, a walk-on, with 30 seconds left.

"My father has a tape of the radio broadcast of that game that he still listens to," said Secules, now an athletic fundraiser at Virginia Commonwealth.

Just as unlikely was a 20-17 victory over a Carolina team that was ranked No. 6 in 1996.

Carolina was on track for a spot in the Bowl Alliance, precursor of the current Bowl Championship Series, and looking at an $8-million payday.

The Tar Heels were cruising, up 17-3 and driving, when UVa's Antwan Harris intercepted a Chris Keldorf pass and returned it 95 yards for a touchdown with 10:02 left. Rafael Garcia's field goal with 36 seconds left was the clincher.

"I told 'em that was one of the few times I've been close to tears in my career in 34 years," said Welsh of his postgame talk with his team.

Welsh went 19-0 against Wake Forest in his UVa career, which makes his 10-0 home record against North Carolina seem mild in comparison. Under successor Al Groh, UVa has won its three home games with UNC by a combined margin of 116-51.

As to whether he pays any attention to the streak, Groh said, "None whatsoever. I mean, that's great stuff to fill columns with, but it's pretty irrational for us to try and figure out how that will have any bearing on how [quarterback] Marc Verica reads the coverage or how [UNC's] Hakeem Nicks gets off the jam."

UNC coach Butch Davis said the streak is "lost" on his players, whose victory at Rutgers earlier this year was UNC's first in 21 games outside the state of North Carolina.

"None of us are concerned about any of the history of what our record is up there," UNC quarterback Cameron Sexton said. "I know I'm not."

Welsh wouldn't have mentioned the streak to any of his players and doesn't think Groh or Davis will, "but I think they're aware of it," he said. "That's why I think [the Cavaliers] have a great chance."
 

UNC up against Charlottesville jinx
Tar Heels need win over Cavaliers to retain momentum
By Bill Cole
JOURNAL REPORTER
Published: October 18, 2008

North Carolina can put two notches on its belt today with one victory.

But Coach Butch Davis will have to come up with some creative ideas for that to happen when North Carolina plays at Virginia. Kickoff will be at 3:30.

The Tar Heels need one win to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2004. They also can end a 13-game losing streak in Charlottesville that started in 1983, two years after their last victory in Scott Stadium.

Davis said he won't make an issue of the losing streak, and that's fine with receiver Hakeem Nicks.

"We just can't get mixed up and caught up in that situation," Nicks said. "We've got to look at it like it's another game. We have to step up and be ready. It's a hostile environment, and they want to win just as bad as we do."

North Carolina (5-1, 1-1 ACC) will play its first game without Brandon Tate, a receiver and return specialist who tore two ligaments in his right knee during last week's 29-24 over Notre Dame and had season-ending surgery.

Davis believes that his young team might have to use all of its resources to build on its three-game winning streak.

"Our team is learning to try to be football smart," Davis said. "Sometimes you're not going to have the best match-up at some positions, so you've got to compensate in other areas to try to give yourself a chance to win.

"They continue to work hard. They continue to watch film, to become more football knowledgeable. They're real receptive to what we, the coaches, have to say to them and then executing. You've get to give the players credit. With all the X's and O's in the world, the kids still have to go out and make plays."

Davis has been coy all week about how the Tar Heels will make up for Tate's absence. He hasn't said if tailback Greg Little will move back to receiver because of progress made by the other tailbacks, Shaun Draughn and Ryan Houston.

He also has declined to say if Dwight Jones, a highly regarded freshman receiver, would play. Jones got a late start in summer practice because of a mix-up in his academic status and then had a leg injury that held him back. He hasn't played yet and appeared headed toward a redshirt season.

"We're still experimenting; this football team does not have a Brandon Tate in the wings," Davis said. "It's going to take a couple of different people doing a variety of different things to help compensate for Brandon's absence."

Virginia (3-3, 1-1) has made a sudden turnaround behind tailback Cedric Peerman, who rushed for 283 yards and scored three touchdowns in wins over Maryland and East Carolina.

Virginia has scored 66 points in its last two games after scoring only 36 in the first four. Peerman had touchdowns runs of 79 and 60 yards against East Carolina last week. He is only the second player in school history and the first since 1948 to have two scoring runs of at least 60 yards in a game.

Marc Verica has given Virginia stable play at quarterback but said the credit for the resurgence belongs to Peerman, an ordained minister known to teammates as The Running Reverend.

"Sometimes I don't carry out my fakes because I want to see what Cedric does with the ball," Verica said. "On those 3-yard and 4-yard runs, he is usually running over someone and laying his pads down. We really feed off his energy."

Davis has concerns about the Cavaliers' 3-4 defense, a formation the Tar Heels haven't seen this season.

Quarterback Cameron Sexton said that the defense allows Virginia to drop its linebackers into pass coverage more quickly. Sexton also said he thinks the Tar Heels might have to adjust their approach on offense.

"It's going to change the way we game plan a little bit," he said. "I think we adjust well week to week anyway. I just feel like we're going to have to do some different things. We'll probably have to run the ball well. We'll have to attack them differently."
 

Backups Move to the Forefront
Verica, Sexton Went From No. 2 to Top of the Charts
By Zach Berman
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, October 17, 2008; Page E04

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Neither Virginia quarterback Marc Verica nor North Carolina counterpart Cameron Sexton was supposed to start Saturday's meeting between the Cavaliers and No. 18 Tar Heels. Both were buried on their respective depth charts when the season opened, yet both had inner confidence that their chances would arrive.

And arrive they did: Virginia's starter, Peter Lalich, was dismissed from school, and North Carolina's T.J. Yates suffered a broken bone in his left ankle. Overall, nine of the 12 ACC teams have used at least two quarterbacks this season.

"What it tells you," North Carolina Coach Butch Davis said, "is one quarterback is not enough."

The reasons for change have varied. Clemson recently replaced Cullen Harper with Willy Korn to inject life into the offense. Virginia Tech determined that Tyrod Taylor is more effective with the Hokies' current personnel than Sean Glennon.

"You would like to have three, but you better have two" quarterbacks, Virginia Tech quarterbacks coach Mike O'Cain said. "I've been through very few years in my 31 years of coaching where you haven't needed a backup quarterback."

This season has shown that a reliable No. 2 quarterback almost is as essential as a starter, but backups come from different backgrounds. Verica was a relative unknown before the Cavaliers called on him to revive their season. Sexton, on the other hand, was underwhelming in an earlier stint as the full-time starter but has proven to be an adequate replacement this season.

Most programs recruit quarterbacks every season, and Davis and Virginia Coach Al Groh have said they recruit only players they feel can become standout starters. But forecasting which high school standouts will become college starters is an inexact science, particularly at this position.

"You still hope that one day he can be a starter," O'Cain said. "You look at him and you say: 'I don't know when they can, but he's smart, he can do all the things you want to get done. Whether he's the guy who can take you to the Atlantic Coast Conference championship or the national championship, I don't know, but I'd like to have him on this football team.' "

The question backup quarterbacks face is how long to wait. Groh said he receives the most transfer requests from quarterbacks and place kickers, positions in which playing time is typically not shared. Verica, who is a sophomore like Lalich, did not consider transferring, preferring to wait for his shot at Virginia.

"I just think you should never become content, whether you're playing behind a guy who's your year and has the same amount of eligibility left, or you're playing behind a senior," Verica said. "Your job as a backup is to be prepared if you're called on."

Sexton started for the Tar Heels as a redshirt freshman in 2006. Yates became the starter last season. North Carolina also has Mike Paulus, another high-profile recruit. Sexton said he briefly considered transferring during the offseason before electing to remain with the Tar Heels.

"I never wanted to leave. I never planned on leaving, but I wasn't stupid," Sexton said. "You've got to have confidence. That's where it all starts. You can't be afraid of competition."

But the reality is that a chance sometimes never arrives. Virginia senior Scott Deke arrived in Charlottesville five seasons ago and has not started a game in his career. If Verica continues to produce, Deke likely will leave without ever seeing significant playing time.

Sexton said all a quarterback wants when signing with a school is the opportunity to compete for the job. But whenever a touted player arrives on a campus, such as Korn at Clemson, outsiders clamor for his entrance into the lineup.

"I really think it's unbelievable the fans and the media jump on the bandwagon of a new huge recruit or if he struggles a little bit, they're right onto the new guy," Sexton said. "People don't have patience to see things through."

Both Verica and Sexton acknowledged that quarterbacks cannot escape attention. Whether they entered the lineup by choice or chance seldom matters. The backups quickly assume the onus of the starter.

"If you can just focus on your own individual performance and not get caught up in all the hype of if you're starting or not, things will come together," Verica said. "Who knows? Maybe these new faces will be the two- and three-year starters down the road."


 

Tar Heels Head To Virginia For The 113th Meeting Of The South's Oldest Rivalry
North Carolina and Virginia have been playing one another in football for longer than a lot of schools have even existed. The two schools began battling in 1892 and have played this game continuously since 1919...
by Michael Felder (Columnist)
 

North Carolina and Virginia have been playing one another in football for longer than a lot of schools have even existed. The two schools began battling in 1892 and have played this game continuously since 1919.

To put that into perspective, the Heels and Hoos have played each other more times than Army-Navy and more than Georgia-Auburn.

Although UNC leads the all time series 56-52-4, it is Virginia that has retained the upper hand in the most recent decades. The Tar Heels haven't won in Charlottesville since 1981 and the Cavaliers have won 8 of the last 10 contests overall. The most recent Carolina triumph came in 2005's game in Chapel Hill, seeing the Heels battle to an ugly 7-5 victory.

Heading into this game the story lines on each side are pretty interesting:

For the Heels, the success of being ranked #18 in the nation is bittersweet as they move forward without two of their offensive leaders, QB TJ Yates (broken ankle, 4 weeks) and WR Brandon Tate (torn ACL/MCL, season).

The Heels have been resilient in the face of adversity relying on timely offensive production, tough and opportunistic defense and outstanding special teams to pull out their victories in their stars' absence.

On the Virginia side of things, the major story is the resurgence of the Hoos in the last two weekends. After a 31-3 shellacking in Wallace-Wade by the Blue Devils, the Wahoos returned to Charlottesville to lick their wounds and welcome in a tough Maryland squad.

Virginia responded, blasting the Terps 31-0 and following that effort up by thumping Conference USA favorite ECU 35-20.

With that said Cavaliers appear to be less "Jekyll and Hyde" and more "ok, we know what we're doing now." Marc Verica's passing efficiency in his first two starts averaged 87.95 with 0 TDs; both losses. His second two starts he pushed those numbers to 140.71 with 4 TDs.

Better still is the running game has gotten their legs back. Through the 1-3 start, Cedric Peerman totaled 96 yards and 1 TD. In going 2-0, Peerman has totaled 283 yards and 3 TDs.

North Carolina Offense vs Virginia Defense

The Carolina offense is going to have to find a new dynamic playmaker to fill the shoes of Brandon Tate in this facet of the game. Brooks Foster, Greg Little and a few lesser known Heels will have to work together to pick up the slack left by the ACC's most electrifying player.

Shaun Draughn and Ryan Houston will have to work harder at running back protecting the football, and finding the holes against a Virginia defense that gives up 168.4 yards per game, but only has been stingy in the last three games only giving up 84 yards per game.

Virginia, while solid against the run lately has not been nearly as suffocating against the pass and here is where the Heels should be able to utilize their strength. Hakeem Nicks, the ACC's receiving leader, will remain Cam Sexton's primary target as the number one receiver.

Foster, Little, slowly transitioning from running back, as well as former defensive back Cooter Arnold should round out the preliminary receiving core tasked with stretching the Virginia defense.

As important as the running and passing game options are to the Heels, the most critical part of this offense and defense match up will be the Heels ability to handle Virginia's aggressive blitzing scheme.

Playing out of the 3-4 scheme, Al Groh brings pressure from multiple areas, drops linemen into coverage and uses unpredictability to confuse offensive lines. This is evident in their seven sacks in the last two games and Clint Sintim's six solo sacks in the last three games.

The good news for the Heels is that they've fared well in facing both the Rutgers and Notre Dame defenses that brought pressure from all areas.

The bad news is this UVA group is far more talented than either of those two groups.

Sintim is a projected first day pick and guys like Antonio Appleby, Jon Copper and Matt Conrath are no slouches. They fly to the football and have a great understanding of Al Groh's system.

Kyle Jolly, Aaron Stahl, Lowell Dyer, Calvin Darity and Garrett Reynolds will have to work with Sexton, Draughn and Houston to diagnose blitzes and ensure solid pass protection and get hat on hat to run the football.

Edge: Even

North Carolina Defense vs Virginia Offense

For the Wahoos there's been ONE major change between their first four games and their last two contests. This change is about 6'6" and 310 pounds and goes by the name Austin Pasztor.

The freshman from Canada was moved into the starting left guard spot following the fourth game, replacing Zak Stair, and the offense has been hitting on all cylinders ever since.

Although Marc Verica's jersey has been clean most of the season the addition of the seventeen year old freshman Pasztor has given Verica plenty of time to settle into the pocket and hit his targets.

Kevin Ogletree and John Phillips have become Verica's primary targets and the UVA passing attack is slowly pulling itself up by the bootstraps in the last two games.

As solid as Pasztor's impact on the passing game has been his contributions to the running game have been monumental. The Hoos have returned to the two-headed monster form that Al Groh relied on heavily in Virginia's recent years.

Cedric Peerman and Mikell Simpson have been running over, around and through the opposition.

North Carolina's defense will have to bow their necks to shut down the Virginia power rushing attack. Mark Paschal along with the gang of defensive tackles (Marvin Austin, Tydreke Powell, Cam Thomas, Alleric Mullins) will have to control the A-gaps and force the Hoos to run wide into the speedy Tar Heel pursuit.

Linebackers Quan Sturdivant and Bruce Carter must do their jobs flowing down hill to fill holes while ends EJ Wilson, Robert Quinn and Quinton Coples hold their edge to keep contain.

Edge: North Carolina

Special Teams

UNC loses Brandon Tate, the best return man in the NCAA history and replacing his output will be no small task. With that said the Heels still feature solid teams led by Melvin Williams, Matt Merletti and Ryan Taylor, guys not afraid to get downfield and make a tackle while sacrificing their body to do it.

To stop Virginia's Ogletree and leading return man Chase Minnifield these guys will have to hustle down on kickoffs.

In the punt return game UNC will also miss Tate but they're a capable group who have managed to block four kicks in their last two games and having the Wahoos wary of the block should open up the field for the Heels newest return man.

Bruce Carter has got a knack for getting to punters and Yannick Reyering doesn't get the ball off quickly Merletti may find himself in the end zone for the second time in as many weeks.

On the flip side UNC's punting unit, lead by Terrence Brown is looking solid after coming out shaky in the opener. Brown's pinned opponents deep 12 of the 26 times he's punted and not had a punt blocked all season.

Keeping the ball out of Vic Hall's hands will be crucial as he is the most electrifying player on the Cavaliers roster and if he gets loose the Heels will be chasing him for a while.

The Heels have a slight edge in the kicking game as Casey Barth has started to prove he's a capable field goal kicker. Reyering, who handles both the kicking and the punting, is still recovering from a leg injury that limits not only his range but his accuracy as well.

Edge: North Carolina

Pregame Summary

Offensively the Heels will have to come out ready for all the blitzes and zone-dogs that are the hallmark of Groh's 3-4 defense. This veteran offensive line should be able to diagnose the scheme and make the correct ID's to keep the Wahoos on their Heels.

Without Tate it'll be tough for Sexton to stretch the secondary deep but Brooks Foster has the speed to keep Vic Hall and his 'mates honest.

Should Butch Davis take the redshirt off of Jamal Womble and/or Dwight Jones, as has been rumored, the Heels will be showcasing two talented athletes capable of breaking the ball for big gains.

Special teams wise the Tar Heels have a clear cut advantage and by getting after the ailing Reyering they should be able to force poor punts and obtain short fields for their offense. Casey Barth must duplicate his player of the week performance from the Notre Dame game in order to ensure the Heels success.

Defensively the Tar Heels linebackers must stick to their gaps to clog the cutback lanes and fill holes to push the Wahoos running backs wide towards the pursuit. Mark Paschal and his downhill, no nonsense approach should come in handy fighting it out with the Cavaliers massive offensive line.

The back seven cannot get lulled to sleep as Virginia and Marc Verica makes use of the play action pass and have burned both ECU and Maryland with run action.

This should be a tight game with both teams jockeying for position within the very competitive ACC Coastal division. With the Heels looking to end yet another embarrassingly long drought, Butch Davis' boys should be ready to play.
 

Verica making sweet music at Virginia
Friday, October 17, 2008 6:01 AM EDT
By TERRY TOOHEY, ttoohey@delcotimes.com

At first, few people noticed the tall, young man at the piano in the Omni Hotel in Jacksonville, Fla., last December as Virginia prepared to take on Texas Tech in the Gator Bowl.

Once he started to play, though, Marc Verica started to draw some attention.

A crowd quickly gathered as the then-redshirt freshman quarterback from Monsignor Bonner High School showed off his self-taught musical skills. Several of his teammates joined in and the impromptu concert quickly turned into a freestyle singing contest as the group made up songs as they went along.

At the time, Verica was a relative unknown outside of the Virginia football program. He was fourth on the depth chart behind sophomore Jameel Sewell, true freshman backup Peter Lalich and senior Scott Deke, which meant much of his time was spent watching practice rather than taking part in the workouts.

Since the players had more free time than they knew what to do with, Verica decided to pass some of that time by playing the piano in the lobby.

It was a spontaneous move to break up the monotony of sitting around for long periods of time, but in many ways it turned into a coming out party for the Lansdowne native.

Nearly a year later, through an incredible series of circumstances, Verica has been thrust into a greater spotlight as the starting quarterback for the Cavaliers.

The turn of events began in January when Sewell ran into academic trouble and was suspended for a year. Verica moved past Deke on the depth chart in the spring and wound up as the starter a month ago when the 20-year-old Lalich was dismissed from the team by the university after two games for violating the terms of his probation that stemmed from an arrest for underage drinking July 13. Lalich has transferred to Oregon State.

In an instant, Verica went from backup to starter.

“It’s a surreal feeling to go from fourth string to starter in just a year,” Verica said. “I can’t give enough praise to my coaches and my teammates who have helped me get where I am. The feeling is indescribable.”

Being thrust into the starting job is not a new experience for Verica. He was put into the same position as a junior at Bonner when starter Andrew Case, a senior wide receiver at Temple, tore several ligaments in his left ankle. He wound up starting for two years.

“I’ve always prepared myself as if I were the starter,” Verica said. “Going from backup to starter did not affect my preparation. I’ve always taken the approach that when called upon, I would be ready.”

Verica had little time to prepare for his first start. He received the word from Virginia coach Al Groh three days before Virginia’s 45-10 loss to Connecticut. Verica had two weeks to get ready for Duke, but the result was the same. Virginia lost, 31-3.

Another quarterback may have lost his confidence, but not Verica. He was certain he could do the job and that the Cavaliers would turn things around.

He was right.

The Cavaliers (2-3 overall, 1-1 ACC) carry a two-game winning streak into Saturday’s showdown with 18th-ranked North Carolina in Charlottesville. Verica has played a key role in that turn around.

The 6-3, 206-pound redshirt sophomore is second in the Atlantic Coast Conference in completion percentage (65.9, 91-for-138) and sixth in passing yards per game (158.8). In wins over Maryland (31-0) and East Carolina (35-20), Verica has completed 50 of 67 passes for 442 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.

“We have always had faith in Marc,” senior running back Cedric Peerman said after the Maryland game. “We knew he had a great arm as a scout team guy when he first got here. He seemed to put it all together tonight as he showed impeccable decision-making, incredible poise, and led the team to a big win.”

What the Cavaliers noticed most, though, was Verica’s poise.

“He’s unflappable,” Groh said. “That’s the word we use around here to describe Marc. Nothing bothers him.”

“You have to keep moving forward,” Verica said. “You can’t look back.”

Staying positive is a trait Verica developed during his time at Bonner. The Friars won six games in his two seasons as the starter and he was not what you call highly recruited. Yet he showed enough ability during a camp at Virginia in the summer before his senior season to receive a scholarship offer from the Cavaliers.

“I wouldn’t trade those days at Bonner for anything,” Verica said. “I made a lot of good friends and learned from Jim Carrigan and all the guys on his staff. They taught me a lot about hard work and resolve. You have to believe that if you keep working hard, good things will happen.”

That mentality served Verica well while he was buried on the depth chart as a redshirt freshman. He never once thought about transferring.

“I believe that if you make a commitment, you stick to it,” Verica said. “There’s going to be competition wherever you go.”

Verica’s diligence and loyalty has paid off. He’s the leader of the band.

“It’s just amazing how this whole thing has played out,” Verica said. “You never wish for anything unfortunate to happen to anyone. What happened to Pete was unfortunate, but I was thrust into this role and now it’s my job to embrace it.”

 

Guess Hoo's Coming to Dinner
by T.H. on Oct 17, 2008 8:00 AM EDT in Football

In the last three weeks, UNC has gone through the toughest part of its schedule, playing three straight one-loss teams, two with a metric to of history, and all with a guy under center who started the season as the scout team QB. And the Heels have found a way to win all three, coming down to the wire in two of them and never folding under pressure.

So why am I more worried about the Virginia Cavaliers than I was for any of those games? Virginia, who lost by 35 to the same UConn team that Carolina crushed. Who barely escaped Richmond, and was a four touchdown loser to Duke. Duke football.

Some of it, of course, is the Cavaliers' turn around. They've won two straight, against semi-respectable Maryland and ECU, with new quarterback Marc Verica and a running back Cedric Peerman who has two straight 100-yard rushing games. (As Matt Hinton pointed out, those 283 yards are more than UVa's rushing total through its first four games.) But mostly it's the stadium.

Scott Stadium is not an imposing place. Presumably, it could even be pleasant, when not filled with drunken Virginia fans. And yet, UNC struggles there. More accurately, they break apart on the rocks of futility there. The Heels haven't won in Charlottesville since 1981 - not just the Dick Crum Era, but the Dick Crum Isn't Loathed Era. The Lawrence Taylor Era. Twenty-seven years.

Even that doesn't convey how cruel this stretch has been. I have buddies who need to be in Charlottesville this Saturday, just to bury the pain. I was there in 1996, when Carolina was up 17-3 with the ball on the UVa 10 with under ten minutes to play. One Chris Keldorf interception later, and the tide had turned and the Hoos were n their way to a 20-17 win. My friend is more hurt by 2002, when a 21-0 halftime lead somehow turned into 37-21 loss. Every Carolina fan of a certain age has their own tragedy at Scott Stadium, and it is past time they were put to rest.

The good news is, the new Virginia of the last two weeks is still a young, inexperienced team. Verica has seven interceptions in four games, the Carolina secondary should eat him alive. With Peerman's improvement, they won't be able to hang back in zone like they did with Rutgers and Notre Dame, but the defense that clamped down on Miami should work fine. Virginia's defense is also suspect, despite the near blanking of Maryland. Throw multiple receiving options at them - and even without Brandon Tate UNC has the personnel at WR - and they at best stumble and at worst turn into a feast, as with Southern Cal. This is the Heels' best chance in a decade to put Scott Stadium behind them, and this team has shown itself capable of standing up in some real high pressure situations.

So why am I still nervous?

Virginia hopes to keep ‘The Streak’ alive
By Jay Jenkins
Published: October 17, 2008

Five years before Virginia linebacker Clint Sintim was born, North Carolina’s football program walked out of Scott Stadium with a victory.

The Tar Heels have not enjoyed that feeling since, losing 13 straight road games against the University of Virginia, some of which came in unbelievable fashion.

Sintim, however, was unaware of the Cavaliers’ lengthy success rate against UNC.

“The streak? No? What streak are we talking about?” Sintim asked this week. “I didn’t know that. Hopefully that won’t change.”

North Carolina may have its best chance in recent history to snap that long-standing slide. The Tar Heels (5-1, 1-1 ACC) enter the game ranked No. 18 and as a 4-point favorite.

With his team soaring on offense and creating turnovers at the nation’s best rate on defense, UNC coach Butch Davis all but dismissed the streak.

“To these kids it really doesn’t make any difference,” said Davis, who will be making his coaching debut in Charlottesville. “None of these guys were alive back during that period of time.”

North Carolina has enough to worry about outside of “The Curse.” Wide receiver Brandon Tate, a utility man of sorts, tore his anterior cruciate ligament and medial collateral ligament in the Tar Heels’ win over Notre Dame last weekend and has been lost for the season.

Tate leads the ACC with 163.7 all-purpose yards per game.

“Clearly nobody on the Carolina team or any other team has done what [Tate’s] done, so his special teams work has been dynamic,” said Virginia coach Al Groh.

Despite the loss, UNC is not without talent at wideout. Hakeem Nicks is second in the ACC with 33 receptions for 553 yards and four touchdowns.

“In terms of receiving game, Nicks has got twice as many catches as anybody else on their team,” Groh said. “There’s probably a reason for that, as it would be on any team.

“Coaches have figured out that the most dynamic receiver needs to get the ball the most.”

Virginia has gotten the ball to arguably its most dynamic offensive player of late, too.

Running back Cedric Peerman, who missed the Duke game with a knee injury, has rushed for 283 yards and three touchdowns in Virginia’s past two wins over Maryland and East Carolina.

 

Peerman’s comeback ignites Cavaliers
By Jerry Ratcliffe
Published: October 17, 2008

We have all become addicted to watching Cedric Peerman’s bone-jarring runs. Fans, coaches, media — we all expect excitement every time Virginia’s No. 37 touches the ball.

Peerman runs are often so chock-full of energy that even his own teammates confess they can’t resist watching, even if it means they’ve blown their play assignment.

“I’m still not carrying out my fakes the way I should because when I hand the ball off [to Peerman], I turn around because I want to see what’s going to happen with him, whether he’s going to break it,” admitted UVa quarterback Marc Verica. “So then the coaches yell at me because I’m not carrying out my fakes, making the play look like it’s a pass. It’s just an exciting thing to watch.”

Hungry for contact

Big offensive tackle Eugene Monroe can’t see the results of a Peerman run, but he listens intently for one thing.

“The best thing about blocking for Ced is just hearing the impacts that happen when he hits guys right in front of me,” said Monroe, who is busy providing the slightest crack for Peerman to rumble through. “It sounds like a car crash every time. You almost want to ask him if he’s alright, but I know it’s not him that’s hurting.”

Peerman — tagged “The Runnin’ Reverend” because he became an ordained minister at Charlottesville’s Mt. Zion First African Church over the summer — runs with little concern for his body. The collisions, the wear and tear, require that he wear a knee brace and caused him to miss half of the 2007 season with a foot injury that perhaps cost him the ACC rushing title.

Back in the nick of time

It was no coincidence that when Peerman showed up healthy for the first time this season a few weeks ago, Virginia started its two-game winning streak.

Peerman wasted little time returning to form, rushing for 110 yards in an upset win over Maryland. Last week, he put up 173 yards on the ground in a win over visiting East Carolina, ripping off two touchdown dashes of 79 and 60 yards.

No Wahoo had rushed for two longer runs in 60 years. John Papit did it against Washington & Lee in 1948 with runs of 63 and 60 yards.

Now comes 18th-ranked North Carolina, which comes to town this afternoon in a key game at Scott Stadium, a house of horrors for the Tar Heels, who haven’t won there since Ronald Reagan’s first term in the White House (1981).

That’s fine with Peerman, who had his best day as a Cavalier against Carolina last season in Chapel Hill.

All he did that day was carry the ball 30 times for 186 yards, both career highs.

Don’t let Peerman’s size fool you. At 5-foot-10 and 208 pounds, some are surprised by the power the fifth-year senior from William Campbell High generates. Running backs coach Anthony Poindexter noted before the season that Peerman runs much more like a big, power back than a speed guy, although the Rev has plenty of that, too.

He was the state’s 100-meter champion his junior and senior years in high school when he put up amazing rushing numbers. ECU got a glimpse of that speed, brace and all, when he turned the corner on the Pirates twice.

While he was hobbled the first four games of the season with a knee problem, his performances since he returned healthy has inspired his teammates to play harder.

“It ignites the whole team to see a guy like that, a guy who’s been through what he has with injuries and setbacks, to come out here and run the ball the way he does with that kind of passion,” said linebacker Clint Sintim. “He’s always bringing the punishment to tacklers. It gives us the mindset, that, hey, this is why we’re playing, for guys like this.”

Teammates say that Peerman is the heart and soul of the Virginia football team and it’s easy to see why. He gives everything in games, practice, in the locker room. As a man who normally doesn’t say a lot — unless he’s delivering a sermon to the faithful at Hill’s Creek Baptist Church in Gladys — when Peerman speaks, his teammates listen intently.

“Just being able to go out there and run with passion, run with fury, is something I’ve always done since high school,” he said. “The Lord has blessed me to play with a lot of passion this year. It’s fun to be able to be out there and celebrate everything he’s done in my life.”

He’s the ultimate team guy, too. When his longtime roommate, backup quarterback and holder Scott Deke — a guy who has played sparingly in five years — threw a touchdown pass to John Phillips on a fake field goal last week, Peerman was the first one out on the field to congratulate the senior.

“He’s always expressed what he would do [if Deke threw a TD pass], and when he finally did it, I think he forgot he was supposed to hold for the extra point,” Peerman chuckled. “I was so ecstatic, so proud of him for making the type of throw that he did.”

It should be noted that Peerman now has 1,354 yards rushing for his career, even though he had limited carries until what would have been his senior season last year. He led the league in rushing midway through the season before the foot injury, and because he had not been redshirted, his career was extended to this season.

After getting few touches until the Maryland game three weeks ago, it’s somewhat amazing that Peerman has zoomed up the rankings into fifth place among the leading rushers in the ACC standings.

The Runnin’ Reverend won’t be satisfied until he’s sitting atop those rankings, which means he’ll keep running with fury and his offensive line needs to do their jobs.

Maybe by then, Verica won’t have to watch any more and Monroe won’t have to listen. By then, they’ll be used to another successful Peerman run.



 

U.Va. shakes off doubters
Leitao says team's proved predictions wrong last 3 seasons
Friday, Oct 17, 2008 - 12:07 AM
By JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- Practice starts today for Division I basketball teams, and predictions for the coming season abound. The consensus among those who follow ACC men's hoops is that the University of Virginia, which must replace point guard Sean Singletary, will finish last in the league.

"I pay zero attention to that," said U.Va. coach Dave Leitao, though he knows prognosticators miss more often that they hit.

In 2005-06, for example, the Cavaliers were picked to finish 12th in the ACC by media representatives covering the league. They tied for seventh.

In 2006-07, Leitao's second season at U.Va., his team was picked to finish eighth in the ACC. It tied for first.

Last season, the Cavaliers were picked fifth, and they placed 10th.

"Whoever's responsible for predicting, they're 0-3, and so the likelihood of them being 0 for 4 is very strong," Leitao said.

Among the other topics Leitao addressed on a teleconference with reporters yesterday:

His team's health. Swingman Mamadi Diane, the team's top returning scorer, had foot surgery in the offseason and is working his way into shape. But overall, Leitao said, the Cavaliers are in good condition.
The depth chart at point guard. Redshirt freshman Sammy Zeglinski, who missed most of last season with an ankle injury, and junior Calvin Baker will be asked to fill the void left by Singletary, a three-time all-ACC pick who's now with the Phoenix Suns.
Sylven Landesberg, a 6-6 freshman and a McDonald's All-American, may play the point occasionally, but "I want to try to not put that on him too much right away," Leitao said, "because I'm going to ask him to do many more things, and that will probably burden him if he's got to now worry about making the other four guys better all the time."

The new go-to guys at the end of close games. In Leitao's first three seasons, Singletary or J.R. Reynolds usually took the big shots. Sophomores Mike Scott (6-8 forward) and Jeff Jones (6-4 shooting guard) showed signs in the offseason that they could fill that role in 2008-09, Leitao said.
Virginia's new big men. Joining Landesberg in the freshman class are 7-0 Assane Sene and 6-11 John Brandenburg.
Big men usually take longer to develop than smaller players, and "I've got to be a whole lot more patient," Leitao said. "But I think both of them are going to be really good. I couldn't tell you exactly when, but I think both of them have the ability to be contributors and maybe beyond that in this league over time."

Defense. Very little came easily for opponents against U.Va. in Leitao's first two seasons. In 2007-08, however, the Cavaliers ranked 11th in the ACC in scoring defense and field-goal percentage defense.
"It's been here, and I'm confident it'll be here again," Leitao said of rugged defense. "But particularly with young guys, the problem that you have is they have so many expectations that they place on themselves, or the people around them place on them, to do certain things, and it's all around offense. . . . Very seldom does anybody truly talk to them about, 'Hey, you're going to go to college and you're going to be the best defender on the team.'"