Monster year boosts Miller
By Doug Doughty
981-3129
The Roanoke Times

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Now that Heath Miller has been named one of three finalists for the John Mackey Award, which goes to the nation's top tight end, maybe it is time to examine the 2003 selection process.

As a sophomore last year, Miller received scant Mackey Award or All-America consideration despite catching 70 passes. Miller's monster season wasn't totally for naught because it earned him a trip to Arizona for a Playboy preseason photo shoot and got his name on every postseason awards' watch list.

Virginia coach Al Groh said he thinks the time may come when a Virginia tight end catches 70 passes again, but it wasn't going to be this year, with Marques Hagans entering his first full season as UVa's starting quarterback.

In their first 10 games this year, the Cavaliers have attempted 239 passes. Through 10 games last year, that number was 325.

"That included one game when we threw it 55 times last year," said Groh, whose 16th-ranked Cavaliers (8-2) visit No.11 Virginia Tech (8-2) at 1 p.m. Saturday. "As I've said repeatedly about that circumstance, we had one of the most accurate quarterbacks [Matt Schaub] to ever play college football.

"He was a stand-in-the-pocket, drop-back quarterback, at 6 foot 6 inches, and extremely accurate. We would have been foolish to call 18 pass plays a game with him. Then, we're not using all of the weapons at our disposal."

Virginia leads the ACC and ranks ninth in Division I-A in rushing with 246.6 yards per game. Tailbacks Alvin Pearman and Wali Lundy have rushed for 838 and 792 yards, respectively, but it's not as if UVa has forgotten Miller.

Miller, a former quarterback and Group A player of the year at Honaker High School, has a team-high 34 receptions and has accounted for five of the Cavaliers' seven receiving touchdowns.

"I think I caught an inordinate number of balls last season, so you have to take that into account when [evaluating] this season," Miller said earlier this week. "With what we had coming back on the offensive line, I knew our running game would be more productive this season.

"I'm very satisfied. I feel like, offensively, we've performed well all year, so there isn't much to complain about."

When he caught 33 passes as a redshirt freshman in 2002, Miller led ACC tight ends in receptions. He'll enjoy that distinction again because Duke sophomore Ben Patrick, the only other tight end among the ACC's top-10 receivers, finished his season with 32 catches in 11 games.

Miller has had as many as nine catches in a game this season, but nothing statistically to compare to his performance against the Hokies last year, when he had a career-high 13 receptions for 145 yards in a 35-21 win over the Hokies in Charlottesville.

"It's been one of the memorable games in my career, mostly because it broke our [four-game] losing streak to them," Miller said.

Virginia has taken a different approach this year, but that does not alter the fact that Miller "is just hard to stop," Tech coach Frank Beamer said. "He has great hands and excellent athletic ability."

At least one of the reasons that Miller picked UVa over Tech in the summer of 2000 was a pledge by the Cavaliers that he would be given a shot at quarterback. That's where he began his redshirt year, but it wasn't long before he began his apprenticeship at tight end.

That redshirt season will provide him with a fifth year if he chooses to return following graduation this spring, but there certainly would be NFL interest if Miller decided to pass up his final season of eligibility.

He was quoted in the UVa program as saying he intended to return but said this week that a decision had not been made. He recently was introduced with the seniors prior to UVa's final home game, an option for all fourth- and fifth-year players, "but I was just following orders," he said.

Think they might order him to stay?Put it in the bankHeath Miller, a preseason All-American called "Big Money" by his teammates, has caught 137 passes for 1,603 yards and 20 touchdowns, all school records for tight ends.Year Receptions Yds Avg. TD 2002 33 327 9.9 9 2003 70 835 11.9 6 2004 34 440 12.9 5
 

TE pair Tech's 'Odd Couple'
By Randy King
981-3126
The Roanoke Times

BLACKSBURG - One comes from the laid-back hills and wide-open farmland of Pulaski County. The other comes from the big-city hustle and bustle of northern New Jersey.

If Jeff King is water, Jared Mazzetta must be oil. Well, here's a scoop. Water and oil is mixable. Virginia Tech's "Odd Couple" tight ends are living proof.

"Yeah, it's kind of like a guy from the sticks and the city boy," said King, a former football and basketball standout at Pulaski County High.

"It's kind of like opposites attract a little bit. Now Jared has turned into one of my best friends."

The guy behind King will second that emotion.

"We were like total opposites when we first met each other," said Mazzetta, who lives in North Plainfield, N.J., not much more than a stone's throw from New York City.

"But Jeff is a great guy and now that we've gotten to know each other we're kind of like brothers out there on the field, backing up each other no matter what happens."

The two big guys have been key ingredients in No.11 Tech's success this season. With three games left, including the bowl game, the 6-foot-5, 263-pound King already has established career season highs in receptions (16), receiving yards (242) and touchdowns (three). Ditto for the 6-4, 265-pound Mazzetta, who has 10 catches for 128 yards and one TD.

Adding to one of the most productive seasons ever by a Tech tight ends corps, each caught a TD pass in the Hokies' 55-6 rout of Maryland last Thursday. It marked the first time in 10 years that a pair of Tech tight ends have caught a TD pass in the same game.

It was the fifth career TD reception in 37 games for King, a junior. It was the first in 44 games for Mazzetta, a fifth-year senior.

"It was good to finally get Mazzetta in the end zone. It took him long enough, huh?" noted King, who couldn't resist a chance to bust on his pal.

"If he'd dropped that one, we might not have seen him around these parts much anymore."

Got that right, good buddy.

"Oh, it felt good to catch it," said Mazzetta, whose elusive first score came on a lobbed 15-yard pass back across the field by Tech quarterback Bryan Randall.

"I was so wide open. I dropped one earlier in the game that I could have scored on and I went to the sideline and said, 'Oh, man, I may never score, I think I'm jinxed.' Then a couple plays later I got another opportunity and I actually caught it. If I would have dropped that one, I might would have just walked to the locker room and not came out until the next game or something."

Hokies tight ends coach Danny Pearman loved it. He had plenty of company on the Tech sideline.

"Jared came back with a big grin on his face," Pearman said. "He wouldn't have taken a million bucks for that, I don't think. He was certainly excited and so were his teammates. He's kind of a likable guy and I think everybody was happy he got one."

It's been somewhat of breakthrough season for Pearman's bunch. Toss in promising redshirt freshman Duane Brown's three catches for 64 yards and a TD, and Tech's tight ends have combined for 29 receptions for 434 yards and five scores.

While the numbers may not be eye-popping, it's a considerable increase from last year, when Tech's trio of since-graduated Keith Willis, King and Mazzetta combined for 16 catches for 262 yards and three TDs in a 13-game season.

How paltry were those numbers? Well, the tight end Tech will face Saturday in Lane Stadium, Virginia's Heath Miller, caught 13 passes for 145 yards in one game last year - the Cavaliers' 35-21 victory over the Hokies.

"I think it's a case in which Bryan has a certain amount of confidence in hitting those guys," Pearman said. "For the most part, they have caught the ball when he's thrown it to them, plus I think we've made a more conscious effort to try and get these guys more involved in the passing game."

Randall loves his huge tight ends and their velcro-like paws.

"They're all big targets and they all have good hands," he said. "If I can get the ball to them where they can get their hands on it, I know they're going to catch it."

In Tech's run-oriented offensive scheme, the tight ends spend most of their time blocking defensive ends and linebackers. That's OK, King said. He said he knew that was the deal when he came to Tech.

"Miller is a great player, and you've got to be happy for a tight end making some plays," King said. "There is no jealousy, though. He does what he does and we do what we do."Tight ends feastWith three games left, including the bowl game, Hokies tight ends have caught 29 passes. Last season, Tech's tight ends caught only 16 passes.2003Player Rec. Yds Avg TD x-Keith Willis 7 109 15.6 2 Jeff King 6 109 18.2 1 Jared Mazzetta 3 44 14.7 0 Totals 16 262 16.4 32004Player Rec. Yds Avg TD Jeff King 16 242 15.1 3 Jared Mazzetta 10 128 12.8 1 Duane Brown 3 64 21.3 1 Totals 29 434 15.0 5

Cavs overcome slow start
Elton Brown scores 24 points and grabs 12 rebounds for his sixth career double-double.
By Doug Doughty
981-3129
The Roanoke Times

CHARLOTTESVILLE - The first indication that Virginia wasn't on top of its game Wednesday night came when J.R. Reynolds and then Adrian Joseph stepped out of bounds while attempting 3-point shots.

That's not supposed to happen. Three nights after knocking off 10th-ranked Arizona, Virginia needed 20 minutes to wake up Wednesday night before dispatching Appalachian State 77-60 at University Hall.

The Cavaliers (3-0) held the Mountaineers (1-1) to one field goal during the first seven minutes of the second half, quickly building a 15-point lead after finding themselves in a halftime tie.

Appalachian, coming off a 9-21 season in 2003-04, did not do anything particularly impressive in the first half but would have had the lead if not for an Elton Brown stickback at the buzzer.

Brown, often oblivious to the double and triple teams he was drawing inside, finished with 24 points and 12 rebounds, his sixth career double-double. It marked the 11th time that he has scored 20 points or more.

Unlike the Arizona game, when they shot poorly from outside, the Cavaliers couldn't hit from anywhere in the first half, when they were 2-for-11 on 3-pointers and 9-for-29 overall. Moreover, they committed nine turnovers, with sloppy ball-handling another carryover from the Arizona game.

Virginia coach Pete Gillen, never one to save timeouts, used three by the half in an effort to shake his team from its lethargy. The pep talks did not have the desired effect, as the Mountaineers went ahead 27-24 on Noah Brown's fourth of five first-half 3-pointers with 2:45 left in the first half.

Brown, who had missed four of five free throws against Arizona, went 6-for-6 from the line and had 12 points and six rebounds at the break. The Cavaliers outrebounded Appalachian State 21-18 in the first half, but the Mountaineers' quickness limited UVa to five points off fast breaks.

When Virginia had a rare opportunity for a breakaway, Jason Clark's dunk attempt clanged high off the rim.

UVa was 10-for-10 from the line in the first half, a streak that ended when Brown missed both ends of a two-shot opportunity to open the second half. However, Brown had two field goals during an 8-0 run that finally gave the Cavaliers a cushion to start the second half.

After the Cavaliers went on top 57-37 with 9:21 left, Appalachian never got closer than 14 points and dropped to 5-59 all time against ACC opposition.

After taking a short Thanksgiving break, the Cavaliers will entertain Richmond at 1 p.m. Sunday. The Spiders, who made the NCAA tournament last year before finishing 20-13, already have won at Seton Hall this year.

Cavs upend Mountaineers
Brown scores 24 as Virginia moves to 3-0 on season
By Andrew Joyner / Daily Progress staff writer
November 24, 2004

The Cavaliers’ Thanksgiving would not have been so happy if it wasn’t for Elton Brown and a strong start to the second half.

Brown had 24 points and 12 rebounds and scored eight points during a pivotal 18-3 run to open the second half as Virginia downed Appalachian State, 77-60, on Wednesday night at University Hall.

The Cavaliers (3-0), coming off a 78-60 win over then-No. 10 Arizona on Sunday, found themselves tied with the Mountaineers (1-1) at 30 at halftime. The Cavaliers made eight of their first 14 shots in the second half - four by Brown - to create at 48-33 lead with 12:49 to play on a layup by T.J. Bannister.

Virginia pushed the lead to as many as 20 on four occasions in the second half before the score rested at the final margin.

“We knew that we had to come out and play. We weren’t doing that and we knew we had to turn it up in the second half,” Brown said.

J.R. Reynolds added 16 points for the Cavaliers, who have now opened at least 3-0 for five straight seasons.

“Arizona didn’t beat us on Sunday but [Appalachian State] almost beat us today,” Virginia coach Pete Gillen said. “We were not the same team and didn’t play with the same fire.”

Freshman Sean Singletary started his third straight game at the point but was not as electrifying as his 15-point, eight-assist and six-steal performance against Arizona.

In 22 minutes Wednesday, Singletary had eight points, four assists and four turnovers and was just two of seven from the floor, including a 0 for 4 mark from behind the arc.

Bannister spelled Singletary and finished with 10 points and three assists in 20 minutes.

Noah Brown paced Appalachian State with 17 points.

The 6-foot-9, 255-pound Brown often appeared simply too much to handle for the Mountaineers on the interior.

“He’s a very skilled player. If he’s 250 [pounds], I’m 340. He’s bigger than that,” lanky Appalachian State coach Houston Fancier quipped. “He might not be able to jump over a phonebook but he’s strong and can finish inside.”

Instead of being tied at 30, Virginia was quite lucky not to be trailing at intermission. The Cavaliers showed little of the intensity they did against Arizona and in addition suffered from frigid shooting and no offensive rhythm early on. The Cavaliers missed 20 or their first 25 shots and committed nine turnovers in the first half.

The Mountaineers led by as many as three in the first half and held a 30-28 advantage in the final minute before a Brown layup just before the buzzer tied it at 30.

“Quite honestly, we were lucky to be tied and not down seven or eight points at halftime,” Gillen said.

The Cavaliers shot just 31 percent in the first half, including a 2-for-11 performance from behind the arc. The Mountaineers were not much better, shooting just 39.3 percent.

“We weren’t being patient in the first half on offense. We weren’t swinging the ball and weren’t trying to get the ball inside enough,” Reynolds said. “We were settling for a lot of jumpers and just not being patient.”

Virginia returns to action when it hosts in-state rival Richmond on Sunday. The meeting will be the first between the schools in nearly five years and Richmond’s first visit to Charlottesville since 1997.

Holland may want Prince to coach ECU
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
November 24, 2004

Scattershooting around the ACC, while wondering who would have ever dreamed that this Saturday’s UVa at Tech game would be for all the marbles, or at least a lion’s share ...

Hoo to ECU? Rumors flying out of Greenville, N.C., is that former Virginia athletic director Terry Holland, now the boss at East Carolina, may be interested in hiring UVa offensive coordinator Ron Prince as the Pirates’ next head coach.
Holland fired ECU coach John Thompson last week and is now looking for a new guy. Reportedly, former N.C. State head coach Mike O’Cain, now the quarterbacks coach at Clemson is interested but hasn’t been contacted. Nor has former Georgia coach Jim Donnan, who some would like to see get a shot at the ECU job.
Prince would certainly be a good choice. He has done a good job in two years as the Cavaliers’ offensive coordinator and has built UVa’s offensive line into one of the best units in the nation.
No one at UVa, however, would confirm whether ECU has asked for permission to speak with Prince, known in some circles as “Big Sexy.”
“I think that’s best for East Carolina to disclose,” UVa coach Al Groh said Wednesday.
Groh and Holland are good friends.
“Ron has done a terrific job for us, both as our offensive line coach and as offensive coordinator,” Groh said. “Our offensive staff now has the best collective style and it has been good every year. The way the four [offensive coaches] interact has been very positive for us.”
UVa Athletics Director Craig Littlepage declined to confirm or deny if Holland had asked permission to speak with Prince, who like all of Virginia’s football assistants, are off limits to the media. Holland has told media he will not discuss the coaching situation until after Saturday’s ECU game against N.C. State in Charlotte.

Hokie high. Virginia Tech football coach Frank Beamer has now moved up to third among active NCAA coaches in games won with 175. Beamer was fourth prior to this week’s retirement of Lou Holtz, who had been third with 249 wins.
Obviously, FSU’s Bobby Bowden is No. 1 with 350, followed by Penn State’s Joe Paterno at 343.
Beamer is also tied for fourth in bowl appearances among active coaches. The Tech coach has taken the Hokies to 11 bowls, trailing Paterno (31), Bowden (25), and Tennessee’s Phil Fulmer (12).
“I haven’t thought about that,” Beamer said during Wednesday’s ACC teleconference. “You’re making me feel old. I feel fortunate to have been around this long and in good places. I have a great deal of respect for those two coaches above me [Bowden and Paterno].”
Both of those coaches are still active in their 70s. Would Beamer, age 58, consider coaching that long?
“I think what success you have determines that,” the coach said. “It’s kind of fun if
you’re winning. The other side of it’s not much fun. It all gets back to your health and how long your alumni will put up with you.”

Recruiting update. Virginia football target, Greensboro area running back Toney Baker “the Touchdown Maker,” had his season come to an end last weekend when his Ragsdale team lost to Southern Durham in the playoffs.
Baker finished his high school career as the second-leading rusher in national high school history. The tailback accumulated 10,132 yards rushing for his career, ranking him second to only the legendary Ken Hall of Sugar Land, Texas, who rushed for 11,232 from 1950-53. Hall went on to college but a knee injury ended his career.
Two other Wahoo recruits helped beat Baker’s team. Wide receiver tandem Maurice Covington and Brandon Woods, hauled in four receptions for 67 yards in the game.
Meanwhile, Jamie Oakes of The Wagon Online, a Virginia Rivals site, reported that Hampton wide receiver Todd Nolen (6-3, 185), has added Penn State to his list of final schools, which includes UVa, Tech, UNC and Nebraska.
Nolan also told Oakes that “Virginia is my leader right now.”
He hauled in three catches for 123 yards and two TDs in last week’s playoff game.

Frustrated Fridge. Maryland coach Ralph Friedgen was only speaking out of frustration last week when his Terps were hammered at Virginia Tech, knocking the northern neighbors out of bowl contention.
Fridge said afterward that if he couldn’t turn the Terps around next season, that Maryland wouldn’t have to worry about firing him because he’d quit.
Didn’t mean it.
“I’ve never quit anything in my life,” Friedgen said in explaining his frustration. “I was embarrassed, frustrated, mad. I was a lot of things. It was just something that came out. I’m in this for the long haul. I knew it was going to be a hard season, but I didn’t think it would be this hard.”

No heat in Raleigh. If there’s any heat on N.C. State’s offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone, then head coach Chuck Amato isn’t aware of it.
Wolfpack fans have been less than happy with the offense this season, particularly with the fact that State scored only one offensive TD in a 24-14 loss to Georgia Tech and had no offensive TDs in a 17-10 loss to Florida State.
“I didn’t even know [Mazzone] was catching heat,” Amato said. “That’s how out of it I am.”
He doesn’t listen to talk shows or explore the internet chat sites. Mazzone is Amato’s third offensive coordinator in five years, but the State coach said he’s not planning any staff changes in spite of the Wolfpack’s 4-6 season that ends in Charlotte on Saturday against East Carolina.

Blue heaven. The atmosphere is a little more heaven-like in Chapel Hill now that Coach John Bunting led the Tar Heels to a winning season and a bowl bid.
As a reward, the school gave Bunting a two-year extension to his contract less than 30 minutes after UNC beat Duke 40-17 last Saturday. Bunting, who had three years remaining on his original contract, is now good at Carolina through the 2009 season.
Bunting did not get a raise in the deal, which was more symbolic to recruits that UNC’s program is stable.
“There’s a number of people that we recruit against that have been trying to use that against us,” Bunting said. “Unfortunately, that’s the nature of recruiting.”

Double standard? Former Clemson player Will Merritt, who is now the school’s radio game analyst, didn’t like the school’s decision to forfeit a bowl bid and claimed there was a double standard in the ACC when it comes to fighting.
“Some of the guys involved [in last weekend’s brawl with South Carolina] have never made a dirty play in their life, and because they were defending their teammate you’re gonna take away their bowl game?” Merritt said. “To take all that away because of 10 minutes, I think that’s throwing the baby out with the bath water.”
Merritt went on to say that the ACC did not make examples out of Florida and Florida State or FSU and Miami after pre-game fights last year and in recent years.
“You won’t make an example out of Bobby Bowden,” Merritt said. “Now you’re gonna make an example out of Clemson. Talk about double standards.”
While we take our hats off to Clemson and South Carolina for putting the sport in perspective for doing the right thing and turning down bowl bids, lets not rush to judgment. Our question is, would USC and Clemson have turned away bowls if their teams had been 10-1 instead of 6-5?
A side note: Clemson would have likely gone to either the MPC Computers Bowl in Boise or the Continental Tire Bowl in Charlotte, which has since invited North Carolina.

Short yardage ... Our sincere condolences go out to Tech coach Frank Beamer and his family for the loss of his 86-year-old mother, Herma Beamer. ...The Hokies wore an “H” decal on their helmet in her honor last Thursday night against Maryland and presented a game ball to the coach in honor of his mom. ... UVa coach Al Groh sent flowers to the Beamers for the loss, which Beamer said Tuesday was a “gracious thing” for Groh to do. ... Peach Bowl president Gary Stokan will be at Lane Stadium on Saturday to check out the Tech vs. UVa game, making the fourth time that Stokan has seen the Cavaliers in person this season. ... Our best guess is that the Cavs will play in either the Peach or the Champs Sports Bowl (formerly the Tangerine Bowl), on Dec. 21 in Orlando. ... But what about this sports fans? Florida State coach Bobby Bowden said he would not be one bit interested in a rematch with Florida in the Peach Bowl, so could it be that the ACC might throw the somewhat wobbly Orlando game a bone with the Seminoles if it comes down to FSU and UVa for the Peach? ... Virginia, of course, must win Saturday to forge a share of the ACC title and an outside chance at a BCS bowl. If UVa beats Tech and Tech beats Miami, then UVa, Tech and FSU would tie for the ACC title and the BCS bid would go to the highest ranked team in the BCS standings of which currently looks like this for those three teams: the Hokies are 14th, the Cavs 17th and the Noles 18th. ... However, under that same scenario, the Hokies could leapfrog the Cavs in the final BCS rankings. You got that? There will be a pop quiz in the morning.
... Maryland’s Friedgen is so upset with starting quarterback Joel Statham, that he might bench him and go with fourth-stringer Sam Hollenbach, who finished the Tech game last Thursday night. Second-teamer Jordan Steffy is recovering from a concussion and third-teamer Ryan Mitch is serving a two-game suspension. ... Rumors abound that both Mitch and Statham may bolt the program after the season. ... Wake Forest’s five losses prior to going to Miami last weekend, had been by a combined 30 points. The Hurricanes beat the Deacs 52-7. ... N.C. State has lost four straight since beating Maryland on Oct. 16. ... How about future ACC team Boston College, needing only to beat Syracuse at the Carrier Dome this weekend to clinch the Big East title and a BCS bid. Problem is, BC coach Tom O’Brien lost senior QB Paul Peterson with a broken bone in his passing hand in last week’s win over Temple and will go with this young backfield against the Orange: redshirt freshman QB Matt Ryan; redshirt freshman running back L.V. Whitworth, who is backed up by another redshirt freshman and a true freshman.

The picks. Last week: 5-1. To date: 53-19. This week: Georgia 42, Georgia Tech 23; Wake Forest 28, Maryland 24; N.C. State 27, ECU 20; Virginia Tech 21, Virginia 19.

Driven by faith: Hamilton excels
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
November 24, 2004

Virginia cornerback Marcus Hamilton has strong feelings about his faith. And he is not afraid to let it be known.

Hamilton is outspoken about his love for God and how thankful he is for the impact it has played on his life.

That impact will be felt again on Saturday as Virginia (8-2, 5-2) travels to Virginia Tech (8-2, 5-1) for an ACC game that will leave the victor with a share of the ACC title.

For Hamilton, his faith has been a source of inspiration.

That faith was promptly tested after he arrived at UVa in the fall of 2002.

After sitting out Virginia’s opener against Colorado State, Hamilton made his way onto the field at Scott Stadium against Florida State.

Hamilton saw action at cornerback and even returned two punts for 22 yards. But late in the game, Hamilton was injured on the kickoff team. He was forced to redshirt.

Hamilton’s faith did not waver. It became stronger.

Last season, Hamilton played as a reserve and made 29 tackles. He knew things were looking up for him.

Hamilton’s play in spring practice earned him the Rock Weir Award as the most improved player.

His play boosted him into the starting lineup when the season started. Alongside fellow cornerback Tony Franklin, Hamilton started Virginia’s first six games.

After Virginia fell to Florida State 36-3, Hamilton’s spot in the starting lineup was given to true freshman Philip Brown.

His faith was tested again.

“It is just something that happened within the aspect of the team and so I just had to go out there and work hard and be prepared as though I was starting, because anything can happen,” Hamilton said. “That’s how you prepare each week going in there and if you do, good things will happen.”

Good things did happen for Hamilton.

With Virginia fighting for its’ ACC titles hopes, Hamilton came in off the bench and intercepted a pair of passes thrown by Georgia Tech quarterback Reggie Ball.

Hamilton caught both in the end zone.

It changed the game, but it did not change Hamilton’s demeanor.

“I believe all things happen for a reason. I feel what happened on Saturday was truly a blessing from God to allow me to be able to do that,” Hamilton said.

On Sunday, the Walter Camp Football Foundation named Hamilton the national defensive player of the week.

So, what did he do?

He called his parents, Christina and Gregory, and then he thanked God.

“I know it couldn’t have happened without the help of God,” Hamilton said. “Without him working through me, it couldn’t have happened.”

According to Hamilton’s mother, Marcus’ life changed during a summer between his eighth- and ninth-grade year in school, during a youth retreat taken by the First Baptist Church in Vienna, the Hamilton’s church.

It was something that Marcus’ parents had wanted for all three of their kids from the day that each were born.

“One of things we talked about as being parents was that we would keep our kids involved in school, in church and in sports to keep them off the streets,” Marcus’ mother Christina said.

When Marcus arrived at UVa, his parents quickly noticed a change in their son.

It was a change that warmed their hearts.

“We have observed that Marcus has grown stronger in his faith since he has been away at school, almost as, not a last resort, but as a comfort, because he knew he had to rely on that to get him through the finals and the hard classes. To also get him through each one of those games, the hard practices and the drills,” his mother said. “His faith has grown ever since he has been at school. It’s comforting to know that he has a sense of self, a sense of good and evil, as corny as that sounds, but just an awesome respect for who he is and whose he is.”

For his Dad, Gregory, he takes pride in the fact that his son has looked to God for answers when times were tough, whether it was a final exam, an injury or even losing his starting spot.

Gregory said that Marcus knows that sometimes the reasons for why things happen are not clear, “but eventually you will and Marcus always keeps his faith that things are going to work out and the reason why he believes that is because he believes in God and he believes that there is a purpose for why he’s doing what he is doing.”

Thanks to his faith, Hamilton is approaching Saturday’s game as a chance to thank God for his talents.

“God has given me this gift and it’s not smart to waste what he has given you, so I just go out there and work hard everyday and improve,” Hamilton said. “I feel like I am working towards it.”

With his faith in God as his support, Hamilton says he’s certain that Virginia can play well at

Virginia Tech’s Lane Stadium.

“The whole team is excited. There’s a buzz about us. We feel confident,” Hamilton. “We know it is going to take some work. It’s not going to be easy, but this is what we wanted. We wanted a chance to fight for the ACC Championship. That is what this week is going to be about. We have to have a good week of preparation and a good week of practice. I think we are going to be alright.”

U.VA. NOTES
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Nov 25, 2004

HIGH STANDARDS: Marques Hagans, who ranks second among ACC quarterbacks in passing efficiency and third in total offense, was not among the players Virginia coach Al Groh nominated for all-conference consideration.

Nor were junior tailback Wali Lundy, who leads the ACC in scoring, ranks fifth in rushing and made the all-conference second team in 2003, or junior kicker Connor Hughes, also a second-team all-ACC selection last season.

Groh nominated eight players for the consideration of Atlantic Coast Sports Media Association members, who may also write in choices in voting for all-ACC honors. The eight: senior tailback Alvin Pearman, junior tight end Heath Miller, junior offensive tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson, senior offensive guard Elton Brown, senior center Zac Yarbrough, senior nose tackle Andrew Hoffman, junior linebacker Darryl Blackstock and sophomore linebacker Ahmad Brooks.

Groh said yesterday that he based his nominations on "merit."

"That should be the criteria, shouldn't it?" he said. "I have my own opinion of what an all-star player is, and I guess I'd be false to that opinion if I nominated players that I didn't think were all-star players.

"That doesn't mean that a player [who's not nominated] isn't a very good player. But at the same time, if you have players selected for an all-star team who everybody in your organization, including the player, knows hasn't had an all-star year, then how do you come back the next year and tell him that he's got to play better?"

Virginia Tech, by contrast, nominated 15 players, including true freshman Eddie Royal, who's on the ballot as a wide receiver and as a return specialist.

No. 16 Virginia (5-2, 8-2) closes its regular season Saturday against the No. 11 Hokies (5-1, 8-2) in Blacksburg.

. . .

CLASS OF THEIR OWN: Asked about leading candidates for the ACC's player-of-the-year award, Groh said Pearman and Hokies quarterback Bryan Randall "have meant as much to their teams as any two players."

Pearman leads the ACC in all-purpose yards and fills numerous roles for U.Va. Randall, a senior, leads a Tech team picked to finish sixth in the ACC.

Pearman "has been the heart of our team, so I think he's a tremendous candidate for the award," Groh said. "And I think Bryan Randall has meant as much to his team as Alvin Pearman has meant to our team."

ACC coach of the year?

"I think Coach [Frank] Beamer certainly should be a top candidate for what he's done with his team this year," Groh said.

. . .

VOCAL MINORITY: Lane Stadium's official capacity is 65,115, and the large majority of those fans Saturday, of course, will be pulling for the Hokies.

But the Cavaliers will have a cheering section, too. U.Va. was allotted 4,400 tickets for the game and sold all of them last spring. Other U.Va. fans have found other sources for tickets.

. . .

IN THE MIX? East Carolina's new athletic director, Terry Holland, has strong ties to U.Va. So it's probably no surprise that the Cavaliers' offensive coordinator, Ron Prince, is being mentioned as a potential successor to Pirates coach John Thompson, who's stepping down after the season.

In a statement released recently, Holland said the school's "first option will be to seek a coach with a successful record at the Division I level. It is apparent that this is a small pool of people and 99 percent of them are under long-term contracts at their current institution. Therefore, the pool of candidates will include coordinators at highly successful Division I- A programs and highly successful head coaches from other" levels.

Asked yesterday if ECU had contacted Prince, Groh said, "I think that's probably best for East Carolina to disclose."

The Times-Dispatch wasn't able to reach Holland for comment yesterday.

Prince, 34, coached Virginia's offensive linemen in 2001 and'02. He added the title of offensive coordinator last season.

"Ron's done a terrific job for us, both as our offensive line coach and our offensive coordinator," Groh said.

. . .

INTERESTED OBSERVERS: Peach Bowl President Gary Stokan will be at Lane Stadium to scout U.Va. and Tech on Saturday. The ACC representative in the Dec. 31 game in Atlanta will meet a team from the SEC.

U.Va. is likely to land in the Peach Bowl if it beats Tech on Saturday and the Hokies lose Dec. 4 at Miami. - Jeff White

The wheeler-dealer behind the scenes
The fortunes of Virginia Tech football go well beyond sports for Gov. Mark Warner.
BY HUGH LESSIG
804-225-7345
Published November 25, 2004

RICHMOND -- Gov. Mark R. Warner grew up in Indiana and Connecticut, two states known more for basketball than football.

And the truth is, he wasn't very good at basketball. As a student athlete, he said of himself: "I was always the project."

Luckily for him, getting involved in the biggest Virginia sports project of 2003 required a different set of skills. When the Atlantic Coast Conference wanted to expand, and when football-crazy Virginia Tech got in the mix, Warner stepped onto more familiar turf.

He became the wheeler-dealer. This was old hat for someone who made a fortune as a broker in the early days of the cell phone business. But getting investors to bite on those new-fangled portable phones was one thing. Getting the Hokies on the same page as the University of Virginia, that was something else.

This week, as Virginia prepares to play Virginia Tech on Saturday in Blacksburg with an ACC championship at stake, Warner relaxed in his office and reflected on the off-again, on-again negotiations that brought Virginia Tech out of the Big East and into an expanded ACC, and what he thinks of the deal more than one year later.

Q. How did you get involved with this issue?

A. There were friends from southwest Virginia saying, "Listen, the ACC is going to expand. Virginia Tech has got to get in the mix. This is the most important thing to the future of Hokies in the country."

I talked to Tech President Charles Steger, and we talked about what an impact it would have, not only on Virginia Tech sports but also on the synergy - in terms of research, educational facilities and other things - with the other ACC schools.

So there was that positive. But there was also a negative of what happens if Virginia Tech ends up in a football conference (the Big East) that was going to be diminished. Since they had a program that was nationally ranked, where would that leave Tech football?

So there was a big upside for Tech if it got in, and a potentially significant downside if it remained in a diminished Big East.

The more I looked into it, the more it seemed to be a no-brainer. This is the right thing to fight for. And I can say that as someone who didn't go to Tech or U.Va. I went to that great football powerhouse at GW (George Washington University, which has no football team). We had a very decent basketball team that would always do well during the year and lose to Georgetown in the playoffs.

Q. How concerned were you leaving the world of state politics and getting involved in sports?

A. This was about more than sports. This was about economic development for the region. A Hokie football weekend is one of the biggest economic development drivers. The fact that Hokie fans travel so much ended up being one of the major factors in the ACC considering it. That's an enormous economic boom to some of the communities in North Carolina and South Carolina.

It made absolute sense in terms of what's in the best interests of the state. It makes sense that Virginia Tech and U.Va. are in the same conference.

I can recall calling U.Va. President John Casteen, the very first call I had. He understood that this went beyond sports, that this was important for Virginia.

That doesn't mean that along the way he and I didn't get skewered a bit by U.Va. fans - some of whom thought I had created the ultimate unpardonable sin by advocating for Tech. And boy, it had lots of ups and downs. I remember calling President Shalala (Donna E. Shalala at the University of Miami). I had to call different governors. There were at least two or three times I thought it wasn't going to come through.

When they had the first expansion, it was going to be Miami, Syracuse and Boston College.

Q. At one point, you called for the NCAA or an outside mediator to intercede. Were things in serious trouble?

A. The train was going down the wrong track, and we were trying to get them to slow the process enough to build the case that Tech was a more logical addition. And the fact is, John Casteen is a very persuasive guy. He really went to bat for Tech.

We had to show what Virginia Tech would do in terms of additional television revenues coming out of Richmond, Hampton Roads and Northern Virginia. And the notion of what would happen when you had thousands of Tech fans descending on Winston-Salem or Chapel Hill.

Q. There was a public perception that you lobbied Casteen, - some say arm-twisted him - in order to get his support for an expansion that included Virginia Tech.

A. President Casteen supported expansion in general, and when it came time to specifically support Virginia Tech, he did that as well. There was clearly a period where it looked like the ACC was going in another direction. There were twists and turns. It was a wild process.

Q. How concerned were you that this could cost political points, either from critics saying you were spending too much time on football and not enough on health care and transportation, or if the deal fell through and you got the blame?

A. Any time you get involved in an economic development project, there's a chance it may not work out. I'm not saying this was all about economic development, but this was a big piece of it.

There was clearly a chance it wasn't going to succeed. But in terms of the notion you're spending all your time on this -it's just not true. I made some calls. I tried to build a case. It's absurd for anyone to say it took away from other things.

I would have made the same case if U.Va. wanted to get in a different conference. If the roles had been reversed, I would have done exactly the same.

Q. It's now more than a year later. How has it worked out?

A. I think well. I have to tell you this, I was a little worried for Tech the first couple of games this year, when they had their worst start in a number of years. I thought, 'My gosh, I worked hard to get you into the ACC and now the program's collapsing!'

But Frank Beamer has reversed it. What's been great about the Tech season is that they usually start strong and finish weaker. It looks like the reverse is true.

U.Va.'s had a great season, too. During the fourth quarter of that game against Miami, there were a couple of plays I wish they could've had back. But I think it's gone well. I haven't gotten too many more angry letters or e-mails from U.Va. fans.

The day where I had my single highest approval rating was in the Virginia Tech-Miami game last year. The ESPN game.

It was a Thursday night. The stadium was rocking. Tech just went up 10-0 at the end of the half. The fans are crazy. President Steger walks me out. The band forms the state of Virginia. I come out in the middle of Lane Stadium. I had a 98 percent approval rating that night. They ended up crushing Miami that game. That was a great time.

Now you're seeing Tech as the leader in the ACC, not a bad way to kick off the first season. Now with Tech and U.Va. rivals for an ACC championship, that's great. That's great for both schools.

Q. Finally governor, the winner of the U.Va.-Tech game will be . . . ?

A. I'll give you a political answer: the commonwealth.

For Hokies, a season of cohesion
Va. Tech attributes success to several parts functioning in unity
BY MIKE HARRIS
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER
Nov 25, 2004

BLACKSBURG - A one-word explanation gets mentioned when the discussion turns to why Virginia Tech's football team is enjoying more success this season than it did last season.

Chemistry.

The 11th-ranked Hokies, picked sixth in the Atlantic Coast Conference's preseason poll, are in first place with a 5-1 record (8-2 overall) heading into Saturday's 1 p.m. game at Lane Stadium against No. 16 Virginia (5-2, 8-2).

A year ago, Tech was sinking fast after starting 6-0. Now, the Hokies are a team on the rise.
Building Quality Homes

Chemistry.

"Believing is a powerful key. We believe in each other. Guys have responded," said senior defensive lineman Jim Davis.

Said junior tight end Jeff King, "You're playing for each other more than anything. You don't want to let the guys beside you down."

Those are just a couple of definitions of chemistry as it relates to a football team.

People word it differently, but the common denominator seems to be the same. Teamwork counts.

"Your respect for each other, your working together. You put a team first is what matters," Tech coach Frank Beamer said. "Consideration of others, doing the little things right, not only with football but with things like going to class, keeping the dress- ing room clean. Everyone is trying to get everyone else better."

Said junior outside linebacker James Anderson, "Chemistry is trust, the trust of a brother, knowing he is going to do his job to the best of his ability. This team definitely has it. This is truly a team. We truly care about each other."

That chemistry, King said, was developed during the offseason by a group of returning players eager to make sure last season's mistakes were not repeated.

"We probably had the toughest summer workout regiment we've had in a while," King said. "It wasn't easy. We had to help each other through. More so than the other years I've been here, we've preached team united. This is probably the best 'team' I've ever played on."

Added junior tailback Justin Hamilton, "It is kind of surprising to me to see the different groups of people . . . you never know who you're going to see with someone else. In the past, it has been this group or that group.

"It is a shame, because if some of those teams had made it the same focal point that we have . . . it would be the same type of environment we have now. I just feel like anybody on this team would do anything for anybody else."

It's all nice, and it has clearly worked on the field for the Hokies, who have won six straight.

But is chemistry really the right word?

In the eyes of Tech's head chemist, it is indeed. Dr. Joe Merola, the chair of the chemistry department at Tech, says the analogy is a good one.

"The teamwork is right, the chemistry is right. It's all ways of saying the same thing," Merola said.

"Let's take a look at how pharmaceuticals work. For them to work, they have to have not only the right number of atoms, they have to be the right kind of atoms. That's kind of like each team member has a role to play. Even more critical, they have to have the right atoms in the right place.

"The overall structure is absolutely critical. So to me, that conjures up thoughts of a team having to have the right number of players, people with the right skills and the skills having to match."

Merola is a chemist and not a coach, though he is a football fan. But if coaches and players can talk about chemistry, it's only fair he be able to talk about football. He seems to have a pretty good handle.

"We don't have somebody who is making a lot of headlines but we have a whole team that is making a lot of headlines," he said. "Over the past few seasons, there seemed to be a belief that a single person was going to carry the team.

"Now they seem to have come to the realization that it is all of us."

That's chemistry.

Shuman facing emotional day
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Nov 25, 2004

We can't expect John Shuman to root against his son on Saturday, can we? And what about guys such as Jim Davis and Jimmy Martin, who played football for Shuman at Fork Union Military Academy?

If only it were that simple. After all, can we expect one of the state's legendary coaches not to cheer for Darryl Blackstock and Marques Hagans? They too starred for Shuman's postgraduate team at FUMA.

"This is like when the Olsen family was talking about their predicament," Shuman said yesterday, referring to the Miami-Virginia game that placed brothers Greg and Christian Olsen on opposite sidelines.

Shuman, a Virginia Military Institute graduate, will be among the sellout crowd at Lane Stadium on Saturday, and he has mixed emotions about the 86th game between U.Va. and Virginia Tech.

On the Hokies' roster are his son, Ryan, and five players who came through Shuman's program at FUMA: Davis, Martin, Maurice Reevey, Josh Morgan and Josh Hyman.

Five players at U.Va. are products of Fork Union's postgraduate program: Blackstock, Hagans, Zac Yarbrough, Keenan Carter and Jon Copper.

"For me, it's an emotional day," Shuman said, "a crazy day."

Ryan Shuman, a freshman center who graduated from Fork Union's high school, is redshirting this season.

"I don't know how I'm going to act [at Tech-U.Va. games] when he starts playing," his father said. - Jeff White
 

Fourth Linebacker, But Not Forgotten
Cavs' Senior Haley Shines on Defense
By Jim Reedy
Special to The Washington Post
Thursday, November 25, 2004; Page D07

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Nov. 24 -- He isn't an all-ACC nominee like Ahmad Brooks or Darryl Blackstock. He doesn't have a catchy nickname like Kai "The Hammer" Parham. Dennis Haley is Virginia's sometimes overlooked fourth linebacker, perhaps the least-known member of a defense ranked 10th in the nation in points allowed.

Yet as the 16th-ranked Cavaliers (8-2, 5-2 ACC) prepare to visit No. 11 Virginia Tech for the last in a series of games that will determine their postseason destination, Haley is playing the best football of his five-year college career. He says he doesn't mind that few have noticed.

Virginia's Dennis Haley, right, might be overshadowed by the Cavs' other linebackers, but he quietly became a team leader. (John Bazemore -- AP)

"I really don't," he said, "because the other guys, it's fun for them to get the attention. They're all younger. . . . I just like being the leader and being kind of a mentor to the younger guys."

Haley, an outside linebacker from Salem, Va., has taken a winding road to get to this point. His first detour came in August 2002 when the Cavaliers discovered after the season opener that he was academically ineligible to play. He reordered his priorities and worked to regain his eligibility while striving each day in practice to add strength and power to his already impressive coverage skills.

Back on the field, Haley led Virginia's defensive reserves in tackles last season and replaced the departed Raymond Mann in the starting lineup this fall. He is tied for fourth on the team with 53 tackles, including three sacks. Off the field, he takes graduate courses in education after he earned his undergraduate anthropology degree in May.

"The two of them go hand in hand," Coach Al Groh said. "Both of those things are a result of a great deal of growth on Dennis's part -- which after all, besides the degree that you take away and hang on your wall, is one of the major reasons why people go to college. And so the fact that he got his degree and the fact that this growth has occurred would certainly indicate that he's accomplished the mission he went to college for. That also includes becoming a very good football player, as kind of a nice sidebar to things."

Haley's fellow linebackers also have noticed the improvement in his play, even if casual observers haven't. He has become one of Virginia's most versatile defenders, ranking third on the team with 613 plays this season.

"Dennis is probably our best coverage linebacker," said Blackstock, whose presence at the other outside linebacker spot often forces teams to attack Haley's side of the field instead. "He has a knack for knowing where the ball's going to go. I think he reads the quarterback when he drops back best [of] anybody on the team. . . . Dennis works hard."

Haley's biggest challenge this week, besides the surging Hokies (8-2, 5-1), might be spending time with the family of his fiancée, Kim Bishop. They're Virginia Tech fans, though they've learned to root for him as well.

At 22, learning is something Haley knows well.

"I've come a long way," he said. "It's helped me a lot just to realize what I needed to focus on. Now I've got my degree, and I'm getting ready to get married in May. Everything's come together."

Cavaliers Notes: Virginia won't know until later this week whether wide receiver Deyon Williams (ankle) will play against Virginia Tech, Groh said, but "until we know he's not [available], then we're going to assume that he is." . . .

The Cavaliers are on their third starting punter in two seasons after switching from Sean Johnson to Chris Gould, a true freshman recruited more as a place kicker. At Georgia Tech, Gould averaged 43.7 yards on seven punts, including a 52-yarder, and dropped two inside the 20-yard line. Johnson's 35.3-yard average is a major reason Virginia's net punting ranks last in Division I-A, though that figure is skewed somewhat by the fact that 14 of his 32 punts came inside opponents' territory. . . .

With 2,466 rushing yards this season, Virginia needs 365 in the final two games to tie the record set by the 1990 Cavaliers. . . .

Cornerback Marcus Hamilton's two interceptions against Georgia Tech earned him the Walter Camp Football Foundation's national defensive player of the week award. Blackstock (linebacker) and kicker Connor Hughes (specialist) received two of the weekly ACC awards.
 

Hokies QB Turns Jeers to Cheers
After Rough Start to Career, Randall Grew Into Virginia Tech's Leader
By Mark Schlabach
Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, November 25, 2004; Page D01

BLACKSBURG, Va., Nov. 24 -- Before Virginia Tech's final home game, against Virginia on Saturday, much of the sellout crowd will stand on its feet and cheer for the Hokies' seniors, who will be playing their final game at Lane Stadium. Hokies quarterback Bryan Randall figures to get the loudest cheers, sounds that will be much different from what he heard during much of his first three seasons at the school.

Randall came to Virginia Tech in the shadow of all-American Michael Vick, winning the starting job when senior Grant Noel was hurt early in Randall's sophomore season in 2002. Even though Randall played well enough that Noel never got his job back, he was unable to win the hearts of most of the Hokies' rabid fans.

Senior quarterback Bryan Randall came to Virginia Tech in the shadow of Michael Vick, but he'll finish his career as one of the Hokies' most prolific offensive players. (Toni L. Sandys -- The Washington Post)

"It's funny," Randall said. "I guess it's just something that comes with the territory. You win some over each year, and some will always doubt you. It's just the way it is."

Virginia Tech fans have cheered loudly for Randall at certain moments, such as when he broke the Big East Conference's single-game record with 504 passing yards and five touchdowns at Syracuse in his eighth start in 2002. But those same fans were cursing him -- along with Tech's porous defense -- at the end of that game, after his interception in the third overtime sealed the Orangemen's 50-42 victory.

The following week, Randall threw an interception in West Virginia's end zone with 18 seconds left, ending the Hokies' comeback hopes in their 21-18 loss. Against the Mountaineers last season, Randall suffered perhaps his worst college game, throwing three interceptions, fumbling an option pitch and dropping three snaps in West Virginia's 28-7 victory, a loss that dropped the Hokies from the ranks of the unbeatens.

When Randall got off to a slow start against Miami last season, fan favorite Marcus Vick, Michael's younger brother, played the rest of the way in Tech's 31-7 victory. During the next three games, Hokies Coach Frank Beamer inserted Vick into games in the second quarter. Most fans were ready to write off Randall and turn the quarterback job over to Vick.

"I was going to be a running back or a receiver, something," Randall said. "Everybody had a position for me."

Not until Vick made some costly mistakes in the Hokies' 34-27 loss to Boston College late last season did Beamer ditch his two-quarterback system and finally turn over his offense to Randall. In the Hokies' 52-49 loss to California in the Insight Bowl in Phoenix on Dec. 26, Randall completed 24 of 34 passes for 398 yards and four touchdowns. He finally seemed to be turning the corner.

Randall gave Hokies fans plenty of hope early this season. He played admirably in Tech's 24-13 loss to No. 1 Southern California in the opener and was sharp in blowout victories against Western Michigan and Duke. But when Randall was sacked 10 times in N.C. State's 17-16 victory on Sept. 25, he again shouldered most of the blame for the Hokies' ineptness. Only this time, Beamer didn't have anywhere to turn.

Vick was suspended for the entire season in August after he was arrested twice during the offseason. That left true freshmen Sean Glennon and Cory Holt as Randall's backups. Without another quarterback fast on his heels, and junior tailback Mike Imoh rejoining the team after a three-game suspension, Randall endured and began to steady Tech's offense.

During No. 11 Virginia Tech's current six-game winning streak, Randall has completed 54.2 percent of his passes for 917 yards with 10 touchdowns and only three interceptions. Since he threw an interception that was returned 34 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter of the Hokies' 19-13 win over West Virginia on Oct. 2, Randall has thrown only one interception in his last 103 pass attempts.

"I think it's confidence," Virginia Tech quarterbacks coach Kevin Rogers said. "Obviously, he doesn't have anybody to look over his shoulder at, like he did last year. He knows he's the undisputed leader of this football team and acts like it."

Beamer and his assistants credit Randall with keeping this year's team focused. So far, the Hokies have avoided the late-season collapse that sullied the past two seasons.

"He's just had a calming effect and been a great leader, and when you needed plays, he was there," Beamer said. "I don't know that you could play four freshmen receivers without a veteran quarterback like Bryan directing traffic. He's been an invaluable guy on our football team."

Beamer said Virginia Tech's fans also have noticed Randall's importance as the quarterback prepares to play his final home game against the No. 16 Cavaliers.

"I think the fans, for the most part, are very appreciative of him," Beamer said. "Now, they're extremely appreciative of him. Bryan is kind of like that, he doesn't let things bother him. I think he says what the final results are is what's important, whether it's winning a football game or whether it's his reputation as a great quarterback at Virginia Tech. I think he'll go down as one of the great quarterbacks we've ever had."

Randall, who earned a bachelor's degree in sociology in three years and is working on a master's in health promotions, said he has no regrets about how his college career has played out. He'll leave as the Hokies' leader in total offense with more than 7,200 yards rushing and passing in his career.

"I think I handled it the best way I possibly could," he said. "Whatever was thrown my way, I just tried to overcome it. My attitude has always been to keep striving for what I wanted."