VIRGINIA TECH at VIRGINIA
Trophy has resided in Blacksburg five of the past six seasons
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Nov 19, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE - The Commonwealth Cup hasn't spent much time in this city in recent years, to the University of Virginia's dismay and Virginia Tech's delight.
The 87th meeting between the state's Division I-A football teams comes this afternoon at sold-out Scott Stadium. To the winner will go possession of the Commonwealth Cup for the next year.

The Hokies, of course, believe the trophy belongs in Blacksburg, and it's almost become a fixture there. Tech leads the series with U.Va. 44-37-5 and has won five of their past six meetings. The seventh-ranked Hokies (5-1, 8-1) are favored by seven points today against the unranked Cavaliers (3-3, 6-3). ESPN will televise the ACC game.

"I expect that we'll be playing the best team that we've played this year, by far, in terms of strength in all areas," said Al Groh, Virginia's fifth-year coach. "That's not the coach speculating or hyping the team, that's the numbers saying that."

Indeed, the Hokies are superior statistically to the Wahoos in nearly every area. But if there's one statistic from which the Cavaliers draw hope, it's this: They've won 21 of their past 23 games at home, including their 2003 clash with the Hokies.

Under Groh, Virginia has knocked off seven ranked opponents at Scott Stadium. Already this season, U.Va. has upset then-No. 4 Florida State and then-No. 24 Georgia Tech in Charlottesville.

"It's our 12th man, that Scott Stadium crowd," tailback Wali Lundy said. "They always provide us with energy, and I feel we feed off them and they feed off us, and it's just a good combination."

Lundy will be among more than a dozen Cavaliers making their final appearances at Scott Stadium. Others to be honored during the Senior Day ceremony before the game include quarterback Marques Hagans, offensive tackles D'Brickashaw Ferguson and Brad Butler, center Brian Barthelmes and defensive end Brennan Schmidt.

A two-time team captain, Schmidt could have been speaking for the group when he talked about facing the Hokies in his final game at Scott Stadium.

"This is a big game for me, and I just look forward to playing my very best and hope to close things out with a great performance," Schmidt said.

If any team should be unfazed by U.Va.'s home record, it's Virginia Tech. The Hokies, who joined the conference before the 2004 season, have yet to lose an ACC road game. They won at Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, North Carolina and Miami last year - the victory over the Hurricanes gave Frank Beamer's club sole possession of the ACC title - and have won at N.C. State, Duke and Maryland this season.

Virginia has won two straight since a disheartening defeat at North Carolina on Oct. 22. The Cavs lost one of their starting safeties, sophomore Nate Lyles, to a season-ending injury last weekend, but they enter today's game healthier than they've been much of the fall.

"I think this is the football team they envisioned when they started the year," Beamer said. "It's a very good football team. Their record at home speaks for itself."

Tech hasn't played since Nov. 5, a night it would like to forget. Miami came into Blacksburg and stomped the Hokies 27-7, knocking them out of the national-title picture.

The 'Canes piled up 304 yards of offense, but until that game Tech's defense had rarely been pierced. The heart of the Hokies' D is a stout front seven led by all-ACC candidates Jonathan Lewis (tackle), Darryl Tapp (end), Xavier Adibi (linebacker) and Vince Hall (linebacker).

"It's certainly the equal of any [Tech defense] that we've seen," Groh said.

U.Va. has some playmakers on defense, too, most notably junior linebackers Ahmad Brooks and Kai Parham, the ACC leader in sacks. The spotlight today, however, figures to shine most often on the starting quarterbacks, each a product of the powerful Peninsula District in Tidewater.

Hagans starred at Hampton High; Tech junior Marcus Vick, at Warwick High in Newport News. They're close friends and more similar than different in style of play.

"I think they both have athletic ability, both can throw the football, both are very competitive," Beamer said.

Both can run, too. Hagans, who's recovered from an early-week bout with food poisoning, has rushed for 251 yards and three touchdowns. Vick has run for 326 yards and four TDs. Each QB's rushing totals would be higher if sack yardage were not counted.

Numerous observers have opined this week that the quarterbacks' effectiveness may determine the outcome of this game. Groh didn't disagree.

"Since that's the case in most games," he said, "I'd say they're in pretty safe territory."

 

THE MATCHUPS: UVA vs. TECH
Richmond Times-Dispatch Nov 19, 2005
VIRGINIA TECH AT VIRGINIA
TODAY, noon, ESPN

LINE: Tech by 7

Virginia's offensive line vs. Tech's defensive line: Potentially a strength-on-strength matchup, maybe the best of the game. Virginia's offensive line hasn't been great all season, but it's been good the past two weeks now that it is healthy again. Tech's defensive line has been strong all season, at least until Miami managed to handle it. Tech can get pressure from the line alone. How well Virginia's inexperienced guards, including true freshman left guard Branden Albert, hold up will be a key.

ADVANTAGE: VIRGINIA TECH
Tech's receivers vs. Virginia's secondary: If Tech quarterback Marcus Vick gets time, he could have a field day because Virginia's secondary is battered. Safety Nate Lyles suffered a season-ending injury last week, cornerback Chris Cook was lost for the season last month. Hokies sophomore Eddie Royal may not be full strength with a hamstring injury, but Tech is deep at this spot.

ADVANTAGE: VIRGINIA TECH
Virginia's receivers vs. Tech's secondary: Virginia's receivers have been better than expected this season after being a liability in'04. Junior Deyon Williams has 44 catches for 517 yards - it could be more except he's prone to dropping a ball occasionally. Fontel Mines has been solid with 20 catches for 265 yards. Tight ends Jonathan Stupar and Tom Santi have a combined 30 catches for 430 yards and three touchdowns. Tech's secondary has been mostly good, though its members say the great rush from the front has helped. Without that rush, Miami was able to find some holes, so it is imperative that Tech applies pressure.

ADVANTAGE: EVEN
The quarterbacks: They don't match up against each other, but the men under center are key figures. Tech's Vick had an exceptional season until he turned it over six times in a loss to Miami. How will he rebound from that? Virginia's Marques Hagans has had a strong season, especially at home and in Virginia's marquee victories over Florida State and Georgia Tech. It's his last game, he'll probably be at his best.

ADVANTAGE: VIRGINIA
The ground game: Neither team is going to have a 1,000-yard rusher. Both run by committee. Virginia has five players over 200 yards and nobody over 400. Wali Lundy leads with 387. He's been hampered by a foot injury much of the season, but he's healthy now. Tech's leader is Mike Imoh with only 400 yards, and he's out with an ankle injury. Vick (326), Branden Ore (365) and Cedric Humes (385) are over 300 yards for Tech. Each quarterback has a rushing game with more than 100 yards. Ore has Tech's only other such game. Jason Snelling and Lundy each rushed for more than 100 yards against Temple.

ADVANTAGE: EVEN
Special teams: Virginia has a fine kicker in Connor Hughes, Tech has a fine kicker in Brandon Pace. Tech has the punting edge with Nic Schmitt over Chris Gould. Virginia is first in the league in kick coverage, Tech is fourth. Virginia is third in kick returns, Tech is 11th. Tech is fourth in punt returns, Virginia seventh. With Mike Imoh (ankle) out and Eddie Royal (hamstring) possibly limited, Tech's return game is not in its best shape.

ADVANTAGE: VIRGINIA
Coaching: The schools love their men. Tech's Frank Beamer has a new contract that will pay him $2 million-plus starting next year. Virginia's Al Groh was bumped up to $1.7 million this season, and eventually he will receive more than $2 million under terms of the deal. Beamer has a 3-1 edge over Groh, and Tech has won five of the past six.

ADVANTAGE: VIRGINIA TECH
Intangibles: Both teams have plenty at stake. Tech still has a shot at the ACC championship game and a BCS slot. Virginia closes at Miami and doesn't even want to consider a 6-5 season. Virginia has won at least eight games each of the past three seasons.

ADVANTAGE: EVEN
Mike Harris' call: Virginia Tech 28-20

Jeff White's call: Virginia Tech 27-21

 

U.VA. NOTES
Richmond Times-Dispatch Nov 19, 2005

CAMP WAHOO: The first one went up Tuesday. The number grew as the week progressed, and by last night, about 25 tents had been set up outside Scott Stadium. Their occupants? U.Va. students willing to camp to get prime seats for today's game against Virginia Tech.

"This is the most we've ever had," said Jason Bauman, the Cavaliers' associate athletic director for facilities and operations.

UNFAIR ADVANTAGE? Twice in the past week, Groh has voiced his displeasure at the ACC schedule, which gave Virginia Tech an extra week to prepare for today's game.

Since beating Boston College on Oct. 27, the Hokies have played only once - Nov. 5, when they lost to the Miami Hurricanes. Virginia, which was off Oct. 29, played Temple on Nov. 5 and Georgia Tech last weekend.

"There's a lot at stake in this conference now with divisional winners and conference championship games and the BCS," Groh said. "I think everybody in the conference ought to play every week in November.

"This has nothing to do with Virginia Tech. They didn't make the schedule. We all get our schedule from the Atlantic Coast Conference office."

MERIT-BASED: Walk-on Byron Glaspy, who joined the team last winter, is expected to make his second straight start at safety for Virginia today. His backup will be sophomore Jamaal Jackson, who, like most of the U.Va. players, is on scholarship.

"Walk-on, full scholarship, half scholarship, National Librarian Association award winner, it doesn't make any difference to us," Groh said. "Once the player is on the team, it's all based on performance and expectation of performance in the game. Whoever we have out in the game, we think they're going to do a good job. That's why we put them out there. If we didn't have confidence in them, we wouldn't put them out there."

Glaspy's college debut came Nov.5 against Temple. The Richmond native's move on the depth chart says more about Glaspy than about Jackson, according to their coach.

"I don't think it's a Byron versus Jamaal comparison," Groh said. "Byron's come in and has done a really good job. He's smart. He's alert. He's very coachable. Obviously, he would have to be to pick things up as quickly as he has. He's got good speed. He's got a nice toughness about him."

ANOTHER HONOR: Bill Dudley, the winner of the Maxwell Award as the nation's top college football player in 1941, is U.Va.'s representatives in the first class of ACC football legends. The 12-member class - one from each school in the conference - will be honored Dec. 2 and 3 in Jacksonville, Fla., the site of the ACC's inaugural title game in football. The game will be played Dec. 3.

Dudley starred as a runner, passer, receiver, kick returner, punter and kicker for the Cavaliers. - Jeff White

 

Show must go on when ACC says so
JOHN MARKON
POINT OF VIEW Nov 19, 2005

For some people, this probably doesn't seem like the Virginia-Virginia Tech football weekend. Thanksgiving dinner is in the future, rather than the past, and there's no climactic nature to today's game at Scott Stadium. Next weekend, both the Hokies and Cavaliers face other opponents.

I have four words of advice for these unhappy traditionalists:

Get used to it.

Many things changed last sum mer when Virginia Tech was admitted to the Atlantic Coast Conference and among them was control over when the state's marquee game would be played. The decision has moved from Charlottesville and Blacksburg to the ACC offices in Greensboro, N.C.

"The conference sets the schedule for our intraconference games," U.Va. Athletic Director Craig Littlepage said earlier this week. "The individual schools would be consulted on something out of the ordinary. An example might be the acceptability of a Thursday night home game. In terms of when a game with a specific opponent might be played, we wouldn't necessarily be consulted or expect to be consulted."

Administrators at all ACC campuses were asked for input on such issues before the 2004 season. At the time, Virginia Tech expressed a general preference that the Virginia game be played on the final weekend of November, as it was last year in Blacksburg.

Tech AD Jim Weaver made it clear, however, that "preference" wasn't a synonym for "demand" and that the Hokies wanted to be agreeable and amenable as first-year league members.

Littlepage and Virginia had a slightly different position.

"We like it as a late-season game," he said, "but not necessarily the final game. I certainly don't envision that it would ever be played in September. Even October seems early. Any time in November would probably be fine with us."

October was the preferred date of former Cavaliers coach George Welsh, who succeeded in having the 1999 game scheduled for Oct. 2. He also lost it, 31-7. Welsh wanted his team's late-season focus on conference games, a point that was mooted when Virginia Tech became a conference game.

In the hands of the ACC office, U.Va.-Tech becomes a property of moderate value as the league attempts to place as many of its games as possible in prominent slots on television.

"Value" because the teams are usually worth watching, and some aspects of the intensity of the rivalry always come across on TV. "Moderate" because it's primarily a backyard game and may be a better fit for a regional rather than a national broadcast.

There's an art to arranging a schedule. If you don't believe it, look at this year's Southeastern Conference master sked and notice how the league offers broadcast partner CBS at least one matchup between its six perennial heavyweights -- Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU and Tennessee -- almost every week.

This can't be done by reserving every "big game" for mid or late November. Starting with Tennessee vs. Florida, usually in mid September, the SEC probably plays more marquee games earlier in the season than any other conference and has been well-rewarded for doing so.

Littlepage said he feels the ACC offers just as many highlight games, but I'm not sure I'd agree. An ivy-covered ACC rivalry such as North Carolina-N.C. State, for example, might be high-demand one year and totally unwanted the next. The ACC needs more year-in, year-out attractions on the order of Miami vs. Florida State, now a network Labor Day "tradition" after only a few seasons.

As for how much influence television can command in this area, former Tech coach Bill Dooley was once asked what he'd do if he could land a prime-time national telecast of the Virginia game, but only if he agreed to play it on the flight deck of the U.S.S. Enterprise in Norfolk.

Dooley thought about it for a second . . . and then started humming the theme from "Top Gun."

 

Cavs prevail in Leitao's debut
Defense extinguishes Flames after U.Va. jumps to an early lead
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Nov 19, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Dave Leitao's debut as University of Virginia men's basketball coach drew a late-arriving crowd at University Hall. By the time all the fans were in their seats last night, the game U.VA. 79 LIBERTY 44was effectively over.

Little more than four minutes in, U.Va. led 18-2 against Liberty. By halftime the score was 44-22. The final was 79-44 as the Cavaliers opened the Leitao Era in convincing fashion before an announced crowd of 8,076.

"I've come in a very short period of time to really, really love this place," said Leitao, whom Virginia hired in April, "and I hope this is one of many, many, many, many games that I'm around here."

Virginia, defensively challenged under Leitao's predecessor, Pete Gillen, held the Flames (0-1) to 22.6 percent accuracy from the floor. The 44 points matched the fewest the Cavaliers allowed during Gillen's seven seasons.

"The first eight or nine minutes of the game, defensively for us, was about as solid and as energized as probably we've had in any of the 29 practices before today," Leitao said.

The Cavaliers' effort against Liberty's best player, junior guard Larry Blair, was especially notable.

Blair, who scored 30 points against Maryland last season, had 13 last night. Shadowed by freshman swingman Mamadi Diane much of the night, Blair missed 11 of 13 shots from the floor.

"It's unfortunate tonight that you didn't get to see him at his best," Liberty coach Randy Dunton told reporters. "That's a credit to Virginia. He did not get very many good looks tonight."

With point guard T.J. Bannister (sports hernia) and power forward Donte Minter (knee) still recovering from injuries, Virginia had only seven scholarship players available last night. Five of them scored in double figures, led by Diane (17 points). The DeMatha High graduate also had six rebounds, three assists, three blocked shots and one steal.

"He's going to be really good," Leitao said.

Because of foul trouble, sophomore point guard Sean Singletary played only 23 minutes, but he finished with 15 points, seven rebounds, six assists and four steals. Junior shooting guard J.R. Reynolds added 14 points and six assists for a team picked to finish at or near the bottom of the ACC.

"We'll see, but if they get that kind of guard play, they'll be a little better than the experts think," Dunton said.

Diane wasn't the only freshman to start for the Cavaliers, who play Tuesday night at Richmond. Forward Laurynas Mikalauskas, a native of Lithuania, contributed 14 points and five rebounds in 19 minutes.

Leitao stalks the sideline with palpable intensity, and he drew a technical foul with 5:22 left and his team ahead by 36 points. On a drive, Reynolds was knocked to the court by Liberty center Russell Monroe, but no personal was called. Moments later, though, the whistle blew after Leitao stomped his foot - loudly - three times on the floor.

"I'm not even a T guy," he said with a smile afterward.

 

MARQUES vs. MARCUS
The quarterback who plays the best today could do more than lead his team to a win -- he could become a favorite for ACC player of the year. By Doug Doughty doug.doughty@roanoke.com | 981-3126VIRGINIA'SVIRGINIA TECH'S
The Roanoke Times

With eight days remaining until the ballots are due, no clear-cut favorite has emerged for ACC player of the year.

For two of the candidates, there won't be a better forum than the football field at Scott Stadium today.

Clearly, there's more at stake than individual postseason awards, but it does make for an interesting debate.

"I'm not quizzing you guys," Virginia coach Al Groh told reporters in a Thursday teleconference. "but, as a fan myself, I'm just curious. Who's the leading candidate?"

Until two weeks ago, it might have been Tech quarterback Marcus Vick, whose seventh-ranked Hokies (8-1, 5-1 ACC) visit Virginia (6-3, 3-3) at noon today.

Tech was undefeated until Miami came to Blacksburg two weeks ago and won 27-7 on a night when Vick was intercepted four times and lost two fumbles.

"When Matt Schaub got it, I thought, clearly, that there couldn't be much you could argue with," Groh said. "When Philip Rivers got it, the same way. I thought last year, Bryan Randall was the clear choice to be player of the year."

Schaub, Rivers and Randall -- all quarterbacks -- were the ACC players of the year from 2002-2004, representing Virginia, N.C. State and Virginia Tech, respectively. In fact, six of the last seven players of the year have been quarterbacks. The exception was E.J. Henderson, a Maryland linebacker from Maryland, in 2001.

If only because of the pronunciation of their first names and their position of prominence on rival teams, it would be easy to compare Vick and Hagans. In many respects, they're also play-alikes.

"They're certainly more similar than they are different," Groh said. "They're multiple threats -- run, pass, scramble out of trouble, on the edge on bootlegs, strong arms. Same school district."

Remarkably, Hagans and Vick have never quarterbacked their teams in the same game, going back to Hagans' senior year at Hampton High School in 1999, when he was a quarterback and Vick was a sophomore wide receiver for Peninsula District rival Warwick.

Durham, N.C., based sportswriter Al Featherston, an ACC representative on the Football Writers Association of America board, said he was impressed by Hagans' performance in UVa's 26-21 upset of Florida State but was equally unimpressed by Hagans in a 7-5 loss at North Carolina.

A majority of the All-ACC voters are from North Carolina and the UVa-UNC game was their only look at Hagans, slowed that day by a hamstring injury. The Cavaliers did not play N.C. State or Wake Forest.

"I think, without a doubt, he's as good a [player-of-the-year] candidate as any," Groh said.

Neither Hagans nor Vick will have postseason honors on his mind today, but Groh wouldn't question people who think that the outcome of today's game hinges on which quarterback plays better.

"Since that's the case in most games," Groh said, "I'd say they're in pretty safe territory."

Boston College defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka was the preseason player of the year in a vote taken at The Homestead resort in July, but Kiwanuka only recently returned to action after missing two games with a knee injury.

"He played Saturday night [in a 30-10 victory over N.C. State] the way we thought he would play all year," Boston College coach Tom O'Brien said. "But, due to his injury at midseason, I don't think he ever got going. I think he's deserving."

Dave Glenn, editor of the ACC Sports Journal and an all-conference voter, speculates that he's seen as many ACC games as anybody, but admits he's confused.

"If it's the best player, it's Calvin Johnson, who was double-teamed all year," Glenn said of the Georgia Tech receiver. "If it's the best player on the best team, it's Eric Winston, who just manhandles people. If it was a career award -- it's clearly not -- I'd give it to Chris Barclay."

Winston is an offensive lineman for Miami and Barclay is a running back for Wake Forest, done for the season at 4-7.

"I'm sure a lot of voters will go for Marcus Vick or [Miami quarterback] Kyle Wright," said Glenn, pointing out that Vick has as many interceptions as touchdown passes in ACC games and that Wright has an 11-8 ratio, "but those teams are winning with defense first."

Glenn said his list of the best players in the ACC this year would include two Hokies, defensive end Darryl Tapp and cornerback Jimmy Williams, but not Vick. He also mentioned Maryland linebacker D'Qwell Jackson, but not Hagans.

"He's not on my board," Glenn said, "but that doesn't mean much. Most voters think QB first, and those two guys [Vick and Hagans] are among the top four in the ACC at that position. With a huge finish -- especially for Vick -- anything can happen."

 

Seniors resolute in Tech recovery
Aaron
McFarling
The Roanoke Times

BLACKSBURG -- Step back, Virginia Tech fans. Away from the ledge.

History will not repeat itself this time. Another collapse is not in the offing. Today's game at Virginia will be the beginning of a grand recovery, a season-ending run that will make you forget all about purgatories past.

This is not a prediction. It is a promise, signed by the Tech senior class.

And I'm buying into every word of it.

You know, sometimes we media blowhards need to just step aside for a moment and give you a direct connection to your team. No filter. No angle. No spin.

So the following is a quote from Tech senior safety Justin Hamilton. He uttered it Tuesday to a small group of reporters in Blacksburg. He was talking about his personal career, a career that has included position changes, backup roles, injuries, highs, lows, you name it.

Don't read it. Listen to it. Immerse yourself in it. Because every word could apply just as easily to this team as a whole during Hamilton's five-year tenure.

Ready? Here goes:

"There were times when I probably needed to be humble," he said. "There were times that I needed to be lifted up.

"There were times that I needed guidance from a coach.

"There were times that I needed a coach to get in my face and yell at me.

"There were times when I needed to not get what I wanted, and to realize the value of hard work, and to realize just why it's so important to dedicate yourself to a bigger cause.

"I feel like I came here as an immature little boy, really. I felt like I knew everything.

"And I'm leaving as a man."

No offense to the big guns of recent history, but I don't think you're going to get that kind of introspection from Kevin Jones or DeAngelo Hall. That's not necessarily their fault, either. They weren't here long enough to develop such a comprehensive view.

But look around now. In their place are folks like Hamilton and Darryl Tapp and Jeff King, Cedric Humes and Jonathan Lewis and Will Montgomery.

Guys who get it. Guys who realize that one loss can be devastating, but it doesn't have to kill a season. Guys who've been around, who've seen one defeat spiral into four -- and are determined not to see it again.

Some will argue that the key to Tech's success today is quarterback Marcus Vick, who turned the ball over six times against Miami. True, he's a big factor. True, this is his first major adversity of 2005. True, he needs to prove he can recover.

But this one's on the seniors.

"I'm excited about it, because it's going to be a test of the leadership of this team and a test of the character of this team," Hamilton said. "Both of those things are things that we [seniors] take great pride in. And those are things that last a lifetime."

So watch Humes, the fifth-year senior tailback. With Mike Imoh out, Humes will share carries with freshman Branden Ore.

This is an enormous opportunity for him, and you probably remember the last time Humes got an enormous opportunity against UVa. He ran for 95 yards and a clinching touchdown in last year's meeting.

Humes has yet to recapture that feeling this season. He's still seeking his first 100-yard game, and he's coming off a gruesome seven-carry, 20-yard performance against Miami.

"We should be running the ball a lot better than we have been doing," Humes said. "It's close to the end of the season, but you've got to start somewhere. Hopefully, it starts this game."

There's a decent chance it will. UVa ranks next to last in the ACC in rushing defense, ahead of only Duke.

So watch Montgomery, Jimmy Martin, King and Jason Murphy. They'll be the seniors trying to open holes on the offense line.

Watch Lewis and Tapp and Tim Sandidge. That's Tech's senior-laden defensive front that will by charged with stopping Marques Hagans, Wali Lundy and Jason Snelling.

Watch Hamilton and James Anderson and Jimmy Williams, seniors defending against the passing game.

Watch them all, and watch them closely. This is their game.

These are the ones who will be departing soon. These are the ones who want to leave as winners, as reformers, as program builders.

As men.

 

Hurricanes leave little room for other All-ACC candidates
Strategy involved in nominations
By Doug Doughty
THE ROANOKE TIMES

The moment of truth for many ACC football players comes when their school submits nominations for the all-conference team.

Unless you’re Miami, that is.

Everybody knows that the Hurricanes have been the class of the league this year, aside from a 10-7 loss to Florida State in the season’s opener, but nobody knew how dominant Miami had been till the Hurricanes submitted their All-ACC nominations.

Miami has 26 players on the All-ACC ballot, which is more than entire team, counting specialists. The Hurricanes nominated 12 players on offense, 11 players on defense and three on special teams.

In the end, that may end up hurting the ‘Canes. Maybe I’ll get around to reading the literature that all of the schools send out. Maybe I won’t. But there are going to be a lot of positions where I might be inclined to pick a Hurricane, but won’t know which Miami player had the better year.

At least next to Miami, I didn’t see any other team that was out of control with its nominees. Virginia Tech nominated 15 players; Boston College, 14; Georgia Tech, 12; Florida State, 12; North Carolina State, 12; Maryland, 11; Clemson, 11; Virginia, 10; North Carolina, 10; Wake Forest, nine; and Duke, three.

Obviously, only two teams nominated fewer players than Virginia (6-3 overall, 3-3 ACC) but that has been coach Al Groh’s pattern, particularly if the nomination deadline closely follows a loss.

In 2003, cornerback Muffin Curry led the ACC in interceptions, but the nominations were due the day after a Virginia loss at Maryland, where Curry failed to wrap up the Terps’ Josh Allen at the 20-yard line and Allen ran 80 yards for a touchdown. Curry wasn’t nominated.

On the other hand, it’s hard to knock Groh’s strategy, particularly after the 2004 season, when the Cavaliers had five first-team selections (Virginia Tech had four).

Some people might be surprised that Groh hasn’t nominated 2004 Butkus Award finalist Ahmad Brooks at linebacker this season. Some voters might not know that Brooks has missed four games and averaged 3.2 tackles in the five games he has played.

(Groh said Thursday that nominations were due when the Cavaliers still had three regular-season games to play.)

Brooks’ reputation probably would have gotten him some votes if nominated, but, without saying, Virginia has made it clear that it wants the focus on its other linebacker, Kai Parham, for postseason honors.

Virginia nominees are quarterback Marques Hagans, wide receiver Deyon Williams, offensive tackle Brad Butler, offensive tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson, defensive end Chris Long, defensive end Brennan Schmidt, Parham, cornerback Marcus Hamilton, safety Nate Lyles and place-kicker Connor Hughes.

Tech’s nominees are quarterback Marcus Vick, wide receiver David Clowney, tight end Jeff King, offensive tackle Jimmy Martin, offensive guard Jason Murphy, center Will Montgomery, defensive tackle Jonathan Lewis, defensive end Darryl Tapp, linebacker Xavier Adibi, linebacker Vince Hall, cornerback Jimmy Williams, place-kicker Brandon Pace, punter Nic Schmitt and return specialist Eddie Royal.

My colleague, the nefarious Nappy King, tells me that Tech sophomore defensive end Chris Ellis is a terrific player and could blossom into a player the equal of Tapp, but Ellis doesn’t have much of a reputation at this point. If Tech had nominated three defensive linemen (for four spots), a vote for Ellis could have come at Lewis’ expense.

Along the same lines, I can understand how Tech might have had difficulty distinguishing between sophomores Adibi and Hall at linebacker but I think there is a good chance that they could eat into each other’s point totals.

With Virginia, that is likely to happen only with Ferguson and Butler although Butler should receive negligible support as the result of an incident that resulted in a one-game suspension for his low blow against Boston College’s Mathias Kiwanuka.

On the other hand, there is a lot of respect at Virginia for Butler as a player and a student-athlete and this could be viewed as a token of UVa’s appreciation.

Ballots aren’t due until Nov. 27, by which time I will have seen most – if not all – of the 26 players Miami nominated. I’ll be interested to see how the Hurricanes fare in the voting.

Readers of the UVa Insider column may have seen analyst Bob Gibbons’ evaluation of the Cavaliers’ recruiting class. Gibbons also provided a head’s up on a possible Tech target for the spring.

Gibbons said he thinks Tech could have a good chance with 6-4, 200-pound Seketoure Henry, who plays at the Patterson School in Lenoir, N.C., Gibbons’ base of operations.

Chris Chaney, who restored a successful program in four years at Laurinburg (N.C.) Institute, has moved to the Patterson School and brought in the likes of Henry, a Linwood, Calif., product who signed with Arizona State last year but did not meet NCAA guidelines for freshman eligibility.

Henry scored 51 points in a recent game and may have more of an upside than Doneal Mack, a 6-5 wing from neighboring Statesville, N.C., who picked Florida over the Hokies.

 

In debut, Leitao gets 'W' and 'T'
Blowout victory over Liberty doesn't mean the first-year coach is going to accept mistakes.
By Doug Doughty
981-3129
The Roanoke Times

CHARLOTTESVILLE -- For a 35-point blowout, Dave Leitao's debut as Virginia men's basketball coach was a stressful affair.

When Leitao wasn't getting in his players' faces, he was raging at the officials, finally drawing a technical foul for a foot stomp with 5:22 remaining.

Predecessor Pete Gillen would go years without technicals, but the UVa brass never pledged to keep the status quo.

"I'm not even a 'T' guy," said Leitao after a 79-44 win over Liberty. "In my three years at DePaul and two years before that [at Northeastern], I had maybe 10. I try to go to the breaking point and no further, but that one was deserved tonight."

Leitao wasn't happy when players failed to box out and UVa committed more fouls than a team with seven healthy scholarship players can afford, but the defensive effort matched the lowest scoring output by a UVa opponent since 1996.

Offensively, the Cavaliers had five scorers in double figures, led by 6-foot-5 freshman Mamadi Diane's 17 points.

"He's going to be really good," Leitao said. "I said last week, there's something inside of him. I don't know exactly what it is. There's just something inside him that ticks the right way."

Diane started the Cavaliers' lone preseason game Nov. 11 but played so poorly in back-to-back practices earlier in the week that he was dropped to the second team.

"We had a meeting Thursday and I didn't have to tell him what the problem was," Leitao said. "He told me. He was pressing, aiming to please. Then, he came back Friday and had maybe his best practice of the preseason. I think the sky's the limit for him."

Sophomore point guard Sean Singletary had 15 points and the Cavaliers had 14 points from junior J.R. Reynolds and freshman forward Laurynas Mikalauskas, Diane's roommate.

Mikalauskas hit six of seven shots from the field but picked up four fouls and played only 19 minutes. Four UVa players had at least two fouls at the half. Substitute guard Billy Campbell had three.

"What we've been trying to teach is aggressiveness on defense and aggressiveness leads to fouls," Leitao said. "It's easier to scale it back than [become more aggressiveness].

"I thought there were some quick whistles. By January, either the calls will be different or we'll be different because we're not a deep team."

Leitao met Jason Cain coming off the floor when Cain gave up a follow shot at the end of the first half, then chewed out Mikalauskas and Adrian Joseph in the second half.

"All the coaches are like that in Lithuania," Mikalauskas said. "I knew why he did it. It was my mistake. He does that to make us better."

And, don't think Leitao's demeanor is going to change depending on the score.

"I don't play the score," Leitao said. "Not blocking out is not blocking out, even if you're up by 30. I don't think the players would respond in the same way if they thought I was situationally coaching them."

 

Hokies have numbers to test Virginia's confidence
By HANK KURZ Jr. / AP Sports Writer
November 18, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP) -- Virginia coach Al Groh is a studious guy, and the more he studied the Atlantic Coast Conference football statistics this week, the more he realized what a challenge his team would be facing in its final home game.

The Cavaliers (6-3, 3-3) play No. 7 Virginia Tech on Saturday.

"The best team that we've played this year, by far," Groh said of the Hokies. "That's not the coach speculating or hyping the team. The numbers say that."

And they do. Virginia Tech (8-1, 5-1) is second in the nation in passing defense, allowing just 140 yards per game, and is tied for second in scoring defense (11.1).

Among ACC teams in league games, it leads in rushing defense (81.5), red zone defense and fewest first downs allowed, and is second in scoring offense (30.2).

The Hokies also feature Marcus Vick at quarterback, and he was probably the front-runner for ACC player of the year before his six-turnover performance in a 27-7 loss to No. 3 Miami two weeks ago, a loss that ended Tech's national championship hopes.

The Hokies have been off since, resting and regrouping.

"Having a week off, I think it helped," Hokies linebacker James Anderson said. "We usually don't have a chance to just sit back and give your body a chance to heal."

While Groh made it clear this week he thinks the rest gives an advantage to Virginia Tech, his players said they expect an angry opponent at Scott Stadium.

"They're going to bring everything they've got, so we're going to see as good a Tech team as you've seen any week this year," defensive end Chris Long said.

"But that's the way, if you're a competitor, you want it to be."

Virginia Tech has won five of the last six meetings in the series that began in 1895, while the Cavaliers have won 21 of their last 23 overall on their home field.

Last week, they were impressive in a 27-17 victory against Georgia Tech, despite playing without two defensive starters who were suspended for violating team rules.

Safety Tony Franklin and nose tackle Kwakou Robinson are expected to return to the lineup this week, and Groh hopes they will rejoin a defense hitting its stride.

"Individually there are many players whose confidence level should be up, and collectively I think the team's confidence level is up," the fifth-year coach said.

"That's a direct result of playing pretty decently the last two weeks."

On the other side, coach Frank Beamer has reminded his team all season about the 2003 squad, the one that started out 6-0, then lost at West Virginia and faded.

Beamer is counting on his seniors to lead this team back from its disappointment.

"I think the proof will be Saturday," he said. "Our seniors know what needs to happen and I think our seniors will take over. We better be ready to play football, because this is a really good football team that's playing at home."

The game will be the last one at home for senior quarterback Marques Hagans and at least a dozen other Virginia players, each of whom will be introduced beforehand.

But while Hagans said he doesn't expect the moment to be emotional, defensive end Brennan Schmidt is hoping that his introduction jazzes him up more than normal.

"I think it's going to motivate me a lot," he said.

 

Showdown: Today is a tale of 2 QBs
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
November 19, 2005

Talk about strategy all you want. Debate the depth factor. Ponder the strength of the offensive and defensive lines. Argue over who has the best secondary or wide receivers until you're blue in the face.
The outcome of today's 87th meeting between Virginia and Virginia Tech will be decided by two of the most exciting quarterbacks in the land.

Sure, someone else might make a game-saving play or have a major impact on the game. But in the end, it will be a tale of two QBs: Marques and Marcus. How you spell it depends on where your allegiance falls, to Cavaliers' senior Marques Hagans or Hokies' junior Marcus Vick.

How odd that two quarterbacks, who grew up as friends, who remain friends, will grab the major share of today's high noon spotlight at Scott Stadium. How fitting it is that this duo, both high school heroes in the talent-rich Hampton area of the state, will go jaw-to-jaw in trying to win state supremacy for their respect football teams.

They're similar players you know, both cut from the mold of highly mobile, yet strong-armed quarterbacks from the Tidewater, which has produced Aaron Brooks, Ronald Curry, Mike Vick, Bryan Randall and now Hagans and Vick II. Their statistics are about as even as can be and so is their will to win and ability to make it happen.

There's one exception

The major difference is experience. This will be Hagans' fourth shot at the Hokies, having claimed one pelt two years ago, but not as a quarterback (he played wide receiver then). It will also be his last shot, so don't be surprised to see the 5-foot-10 dynamo put everything on the line as Brooks did back in 1998.

Earlier this week, Hagans talked about how he has had a chip on his shoulder all his life about his height, or rather lack of it. At 5-10, he has to be one of, if not the shortest Division I-A quarterback in the land.

"People always said I was too short," Hagans said. "Then when I started playing [quarterback] people said I ran too much and that I couldn't throw the ball. I think ever since I've gotten here I've had something to prove."

Virginia fans are hoping that he's not trying too hard to prove that he's a passer today because when Hagans uses his feet, he's one of the most lethal weapons in all of college football and that's probably what the Cavaliers need to pull off an upset of the seventh-ranked, once-beaten Hokies.

Quickness on the run

When Hagans puts his body on the line and runs to daylight (not necessarily out of necessity, but because the yardage is there for the taking), he's practically unstoppable.

So is Vick, something that Virginia's defense must be constantly aware of in order to limit the Hokies' offense.

Yet, both of these guys have accurate arms and can burn a secondary in a flash.

Virginia wanted Vick.

Couldn't get him. Tech didn't really recruit Hagans, who came out of Hampton High, which at the time was a UVa stronghold. Hagans, however, had academic issues, signed with Indiana to become the next Randel El, but didn't qualify.

He landed at Fork Union Military Academy under the guidance of coach John Shuman and became one of the veteran coach's favorite players of all-time. Now, that's an impressive list to make.

This columnist was sitting in Hampton coach Mike Smith's office that year, when Smith told former Virginia recruiting coordinator Danny Wilmer that the best athlete in the state was "sitting up there at Fork Union." Smith was speaking of Hagans.

Wilmer pursued him and got him about the same time that coach George Welsh decided to hang it up. Coach Al Groh and his staff had to go in and recruit Hagans all over again. Hagans, who goes by the nickname 'Biscuit,' - and no, don't ask him why because it's the best-guarded secret in UVa history - waited his turn at QB behind Matt Schaub.

But everyone was aware of his capabilities. We used to hear stories his redshirt freshman season that UVa had this uncatchable guy, who resembled Georgia Tech's Joe Hamilton, running the scout team. It was Hagans.

"I remember him at Fork Union, and let me just say this: We wish he was at Virginia Tech," said Hokies coach Frank Beamer earlier this week. "What a player, and what a kid with a big heart."

Now, Beamer wasn't taking anything away from Vick, whom he wouldn't trade for anybody. But it was the coach's way of admiring Hagans' ability from afar.

There's a lot on the line for both schools in this battle for the Commonwealth Cup this afternoon. The state is largely painted either orange and maroon or orange and blue after a Tech-UVa football game.

Virginia, which has lost five of the last six to the Hokies, can't afford to lose another. It's not really a rivalry if the same team wins all the time.

The Hokies, still hanging onto a thread of a chance of a Miami letdown and a slip-through-the-crack backdoor trip to Jacksonville, can't afford to lose focus either.

To the fans of both teams, heck this is usually better than a bowl game and a lot less expensive.

But when the line is drawn in the sand today at Scott Stadium, where Virginia has won 21 of its last 23 games, don't forget who's going to settle the issue: Marques or Marcus.

 

Commonwealth Cup up for grabs
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
November 19, 2005

For one final time, many of the players that Virginia fans have considered superstars will get the chance to rumble through the white smoke that separates the Cavalier locker room and the Scott Stadium field that declares winners and losers.
Household names like D'Brickashaw Ferguson, Marques Hagans, Connor Hughes, Wali Lundy and Brennan Schmidt, among others, will make their final home appearance today in Charlottesville in front a sellout crowd expected to top 63,000.

Call it ironic, unlucky or a historic coincidence, but today's farewell story just so happens to unfold against No. 7 Virginia Tech (8-1, 5-1 ACC), an in-state rival hoping to remain a contender for a major payday and the notoriety that comes with an invitation to the Bowl Championship Series.

Despite the extra emotion that comes with playing for the Commonwealth Cup, the trophy annually awarded to the winner of the UVa-Virginia Tech football game, UVa coach Al Groh said his team would need to be focused against the Hokies.

"I expect that we'll be playing the best team that we've played this year, by far, in terms of strength in all areas," said Groh, whose team is 6-3 overall and 3-3 in the league. "That's not the coach speculating or hyping the team, the numbers say that."

Virginia Tech ranks second in the country in passing defense (140 yards per game), is tied for second in the nation in scoring defense (11.1 ppg) and ranks first in the ACC in scoring offense (33.4 ppg).

Quarterback Marcus Vick gives the Hokies a dual-threat, similar to what Hagans provides for UVa. Vick, the little brother of former Virginia Tech and current Atlanta Falcons star Michael, ranks third in the conference in passing efficiency and has rushed for 326 yards and four TDs.

Vick "will put it on the money [with his arm] and beat you with his feet, so he's definitely a different kind of quarterback you have to defend," said Virginia redshirt freshman linebacker Clint Stintim. "You definitely don't see too many quarterbacks with his stature and his style."

The Hokies have more than bragging rights to play for. They are mathematically alive in the race for the ACC's Coastal Division title. Should they win today and against North Carolina on Nov. 26 and get Miami to lose once in its final two games - the Hurricanes host Georgia Tech today and host UVa on Nov. 26 - the Hokies would win the division and play Florida State in the inaugural ACC Championship game in Jacksonville on Dec. 3.

Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer is not looking that far ahead.

"We better be ready to play football, because [Virginia] is a really good football team that's playing at home," Beamer said.

Virginia has been very good at home, winning 21 of the last 23 games played at Scott Stadium.

That stretch includes a 35-21 win over Virginia Tech in 2003.

"[Virginia's] a good team," Virginia Tech defensive end Jonathan Lewis told reporters. "They play behind their crowd [and] they play with wings on their backs sometimes when they're at home. We've just got to be the storm. We've got to go in there and we've got to take it away from them."

Virginia should also get a lift from the timely return of two starters, safety Tony Franklin and defensive end Kwakou Robinson. Both players and wideout Ottowa Anderson were held out of last week's win over Georgia Tech for violating team policy.

Franklin will be asked to play a major role with another safety, Nate Lyles, out for the season with a serious neck injury suffered against the Yellow Jackets.

Virginia Tech will play without senior tailback Mike Imoh (56.3 rushing yards per game), but the Hokies should otherwise be rested, having had two weeks to prepare for the Cavaliers thanks to an odd November bye week.

"It's probably some advantage," Beamer said of the bye week. "It didn't help us get Imoh back, but I think for us trying to get [wideout] Eddie Royal back, it's an advantage.

"Having a little extra time there to spend on opponent strategy is probably a little bit more of an advantage, but I still think when we line them up [today], it's probably not going to make any difference who had the week off and who didn't."

Groh isn't buying it and urged the ACC to eliminate bye weeks in final month of the regular season. After beating Boston College on Oct. 27, the Hokies have only played one game (the loss to Miami).

"[Virginia Tech has] had a week off to self-scout, to scout Virginia, to rest up, to watch us play," Groh said. "That's a big advantage. I know it's a big advantage when we have a week off. Frankly, I think the conference ought to have no byes in the month of November, when there's so much on the line. Everybody ought to go into the game with the same amount of preparation time.

"This has nothing to do with Virginia Tech. They didn't make the schedule. We all get our schedule from the Atlantic Coast Conference office."

 

Cavalier men bury Flames by 35 points
By Whitelaw Reid / Daily Progress staff writer
November 19, 2005

J.R. Reynolds took a hard dribble to his right, then took an even harder dribble back to his left.
If ever there was an ankle-breaking cross-over, this was it.

Reynolds balanced himself and calmly drilled a bank shot high off the glass as a Liberty help-defender came flying out at him.

It was that kind of night for Reynolds and the University of Virginia basketball team as they did pretty much whatever they wanted to against a Liberty team that made Concordia (Montreal) - UVa's exhibition foe last week - look like the Detroit Pistons.

The Cavaliers, playing their final season-opener in University Hall, rolled to a very easy 79-44 victory in Dave Leitao's debut as coach.

"I was pretty happy, satisfied with the first performance - from the standpoint of what we had been emphasizing [to the players] and demanding," Leitao said.

The Flames' 44 points were the fewest allowed by the Cavs in a season opener since the 1991-92 season when William & Mary scored 43.

The Cavs (1-0) never let Liberty (0-1) into the game. They stormed out to an 18-2 lead within the game's first five minutes. The Cavs contested every shot.

"The first eight minutes of the game was as good of defense as we've had in the last 29 practices," Leitao said.

A jumper by freshman Mamadi Diane put the Cavs up 33-10. Moments later, Diane saved a ball that was headed out of bounds, then received a return pass and knocked down a 3-pointer for a 38-13 lead. The Cavs led 44-22 at the half.

"We have a lot of inexperience in a lot of spots and they just jumped on us," said Liberty coach Randy Dunton, whose team only has five letter winners back from last season.

Diane, coming off an impressive game against Concordia, led the Cavs with 17 points. He also did a great job of helping shut down Larry Blair, Liberty's top gun. Blair finished the game with just 13 points on 2-of-13 shooting.

"Mamadi played a terrific all-around game," Leitao said.

In the second half, Blair - already very frustrated - missed a wide-open dunk. He was serenaded with chants of "Dunk it" by the student body for the rest of the night - even when he was at the foul line.

Dunton said he was impressed by the way the Cavs shut his star down.

"He had 30 against Maryland and 30 against N.C. State [last year]," Dunton said. "That's a credit to Virginia. He didn't get a lot of good looks."

Four other Cavs scored in double figures: Sean Singletary (15), Reynolds (14), Laurynas Mikalauskas (14) and Adrian Joseph (12).

The game was not without a few Leitao explosions.

The first came toward the end of the half when forward Jason Cain turned the ball over, then didn't box out Russell Monroe, who scored on a lay-up at the buzzer.

In the second half, Mikalauskas didn't box his man out. Leitao was so angry that he called timeout just so he could chew out the freshman.

Leitao saved his final scolding for the officials.

Late in the contest, Reynolds fell to the floor following what looked like a hard foul.

Leitao went berserk when there was no whistle and earned his first technical of the season.

The crowd responded to the coach's fiery demeanor with chants of "Leitao!"

Singletary only played 23 minutes - partly due to early foul trouble - but played a nice overall game, notching a career-high seven rebounds and dishing out six assists.

"Singletary is a tremendous player," Dunton said. "He was able to take the ball deep on us on way too many occasions for us to be good."

Dunton also praised Reynolds.

"If they get that kind of guard play, they'll be a lot better than the experts think," Dunton said.

Singletary said the season couldn't have started out any better.

"It was definitely a statement game," he said. "If we can keep that kind of consistency on defense we're going to do well."

Leitao said he didn't have too many jitters in his debut.

"I walked out [on to the court] and said, 'Here I am,'" he said. "Once I got to the bench, it was a gym and two teams, and I was mentally ready to go.

"I've grown to love this place in a short amount of time.

I hope I'm around for many, many more [wins]."

Dunks. A crowd of 8,076 watched the game. ... UVa has now won its last nine season openers at U-Hall. The Cavs are 81-20 all time. ... The Cavs improved to 6-1 all-time versus Liberty. ... Leitao has won his last four season openers (including three at DePaul). ... The Cavs play next at Richmond on Tuesday night.

 

Home is where the wins are for Virginia
By ED MILLER, The Virginian-Pilot
© November 19, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE — Four hours before today’s noon kickoff between Virginia and Virginia Tech, the Cavaliers will sit down for their pregame meal. Coach Al Groh will stroll through the hotel dining room and shake his head at some of his players’ menu choices.

“There’s just something about walking by a guy’s table at five of eight and seeing him eat spaghetti,” Groh said.

The pregame routine is always the same and, no matter the time of day, the menu never varies: pasta, steak, chicken, cereal.

For the Cavaliers, there must be something in the home cooking.

Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer says his team is getting Virginia at its very best. He’s right in at least one respect, because the Hokies are playing the Cavaliers at Scott Stadium.

Since the first game of the 2002 season — a loss to Colorado State — Virginia is 21-2 at home, losing only to No. 7 Florida State in 2003 and No.18 Miami last year. This year, Virginia is 5-0 at home, but just 1-3 on the road.

“Their home record speaks for itself,” Beamer said.

So do the statistics. Virginia averages 34.6 points at home, 20.5 on the road. The Cavaliers allow 13.4 points at Scott, 26.0 away. They give up 397 yards per game at opposing venues, just 311 in Charlottesville.

Nearly every team plays better at home. But for Virginia, the difference is particularly dramatic.

“Maybe it’s the home crowd,” quarterback Marques Hagans said. “I guess maybe we just feel better at home, more comfortable.”

Maybe it’s the marinara sauce. Whatever the reason, the question is whether Virginia, at its best, can stay with a Tech team that stacks up as better in virtually all aspects.

The Hokies outpace the Cavaliers in nearly every statistical category. They have an edge in speed that shows up most obviously on defense, where Virginia Tech ranks No. 2 in the nation. Virginia ranks 40th, just outside the top third of Division I-A teams.

The Hokies also enjoy another edge that could negate Virginia’s Scott Stadium advantage. Much more than the Cavaliers, they are the same team home and away.

Tech has gone 8-0 at opposing stadiums the past two years, with wins at No.9 Miami last year and this season at West Virginia, currently ranked No. 13.

Groh has called Tech possibly the best team to ever visit Scott Stadium. At No.7 in the AP poll and No. 6 in the USA Today coaches’ poll, the Hokies have never come into Scott ranked higher.

Virginia Tech is also eager to bounce back after its disappointing effort in a loss to Miami and has had two weeks to prepare.

“We’re just looking forward to getting back on the field,” tight end Jeff King said. “We have a bad taste in our mouth about how we played a couple of weeks ago.”

Tech was tracking toward the ACC championship game before the stunning setback to the Hurricanes, who exposed some potential vulnerability in a Hokies team that had showed none until that game.

Tech’s offensive line couldn’t handle the swarming Miami defense. Quarterback Marcus Vick, forced to make quick decisions under constant duress for the first time all season, melted under the pressure.

Can the Cavaliers take the same defensive approach as Miami did? It’s not likely, said Groh. Miami plays with a “different deck of cards,” in other words, much more speed than Virginia, he said.

Virginia’s 3-4 defense has been playing well lately, holding teams to an average of 103 rushing yards since linebacker Ahmad Brooks returned from injury four games ago. The Cavs also have back three of the four players who were suspended for last week’s Georgia Tech game. Two of the four — nose tackle Kwakou Robinson and safety Tony Franklin — are key contributors on defense.

The Cavaliers have faced just one other quarterback with anything approaching Vick’s level of mobility — Georgia Tech’s Reggie Ball. Ball threw for 207 yards and ran for another 68 .

Hagans is just as mobile as Vick, as he showed with a dazzling performance against Florida State, when he repeatedly carved up the Seminoles by rolling out and throwing strikes on the run. Whichever quarterback plays better today not only puts his team in the best position to win the game, but also could end up as the ACC player of the year next month.

Hagans said he’d settle for a win on senior day at Scott Stadium, a place that has been so good to him and to a host of other key seniors, including tailback Wali Lundy.

“It’s an emotion you can use for an advantage,” Lundy said. “Just because you want to go out as a senior on top, and this would be a good game to do it.”

 

Vick, Hagans on centerstage today in Tech-UVa clash
By Andy Bitter
Lynchburg News & Advance
November 19, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE - Marcus vs. Marques. The names are the same. So are their games.

They’ve both got agility. They’ve both got strong arms. They’re both from the Tidewater area. They’ve both made giant strides in the last year in their ability to lead an offense, and for that matter, a team.

And they both might hold the key to putting their respective team over the top when No. 7 Virginia Tech enters Scott Stadium today at noon to take on Virginia in the battle for the Commonwealth Cup.

You’d be hard-pressed to find two quarterbacks that mean more to their respective teams than Marcus Vick and Marques Hagans, friends from their high school football days when Hagans was the signal caller for Hampton High and Vick took over for his brother Michael at Warwick High.

In fact, whoever has the better showing in today’s game may well vault himself to the top of the ACC Player of the Year race. (Honestly, who’s the frontrunner right now? Chris Barclay? Drew Weatherford? Charlie Whitehurst? A defensive player? It’s wide open).

Then numbers would back that up. Vick, a junior, has an ACC-best passer efficiency rating of 153.2. He’s completed 65 percent of his passes for 1,624 yards and 11 touchdowns to seven interceptions.

Hagans, a fifth-year-senior, is fifth in the ACC in total offense, has single-handedly won games for UVa (a 306-yard effort against Florida State comes to mind) and is much a threat with his arms as his legs. He has 11 touchdown passes and nine interceptions.

“They’re certainly more similar than they are different,” Virginia coach Al Groh said. “They’re multiple threats.”

Based on this season’s results, it’s clear that as Hagans and Vick go, so go the Hokies and Cavaliers.

Vick was a model of efficiency in most of Virginia Tech’s games prior to Miami and the Hokies (8-1, 5-1 ACC) got off to an 8-0 start. He came unraveled against the Hurricanes, however, fumbling four times, getting intercepted twice and being held in check. He completed 8 of 22 passes for 90 yards and was held to seven rushing yards.

“I think Marcus understands that you learn from your mistakes and you move forward and be a better quarterback the next time,” Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer said.

Virginia (6-3, 3-3 ACC) will have its hands full containing him. Vick is just as dangerous when he tucks the ball and runs as when he throws it. He leads ACC quarterbacks with 326 rushing yards.

“We’re not going to use a shadow this week,” Groh said of his defensive strategy. “We’re going to use a net.”

Pressure should be the key. Though last week the Cavaliers didn’t sack Georgia Tech’s Reggie Ball, a quarterback similar in style to Vick, they did force him into making some poor decisions.

That could prove crucial, especially considering UVa is playing with a depleted secondary. Safety Nate Lyles suffered a season-ending neck injury last week and safety Tony Franklin’s role remains uncertain after returning from a one-game suspension for a violation of team rules.

“Once you get close to (Marcus), it doesn’t mean that you have the sack,” UVa defensive end Brennan Schmidt said. “With great speed and quickness, it’s really hard to take down a quarterback like him. But just making him make bad decisions or bad throws, I think is just as good as a sack.”

Virginia Tech should employ a similar strategy with Hagans, who is just a shifty as Vick and has run for 251 yards this season.

“I really think this kid is a really good, good football player,” Beamer said. “Tough, competitive. He’s got a big body. He’s hard to tackle. He’s fast. He’s elusive. I think some of his better plays come when he gets scrambling around. I think he plays with a lot of heart. I really think he’s a good football player. I have a lot of respect for him.”

The one time Hagans was held in check, the Cavaliers’ offense looked terrible. Hagans had his worst outing of the season in a 7-5 loss at North Carolina, when, limited by a hamstring injury suffered the previous week against Florida State, he barely topped 100 yards passing.

He was ineffective running the ball and barely adequate throwing it. He threw an interception trying to force a ball into tight coverage late that essentially sealed it.

That was the exception to the rule, however. Hagans has looked every bit the capable field general despite his small stature.

“People always said I was too short,” the 5-foot-10 Hagans said. “Then when I started playing, people always said I run too much. I can’t throw the ball. So it’s always going to be something. I think when I came here I had a chip on my shoulder.”

Vick too has overcome criticism - mostly related to off-the-field matters.

None of that will matter today when both quarterbacks lead their teams onto the field with state bragging rights on the line. As for comparisons, the two players in question will leave that to others.

“He’s the best quarterback for his team. I’m the best quarterback for my team,” Hagans said. “I guess I’ll leave it at that.”

 

Leitao's coaching career at UVa starts with lopsided win over LU
By Andy Bitter
Lynchburg News & Advance
November 19, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE - There was a moment as he walked out of the tunnel Friday night, however brief, that Dave Leitao gave thought to the fact that he was coaching his first game at Virginia.

It passed as quick as it came as he made his way to the Cavaliers bench.

“I said, ‘Here I am,’” Leitao said.

He spent the rest of the game making that known to the referees.

Virginia cruised to a 79-44 win over Liberty at University Hall to make a rather animated Leitao the fourth straight coach to begin his Cavaliers career with a win.

There was nothing timid about Leitao’s courtside theatrics. He yelled at officials. He pantomimed uncalled violations. He even got his first technical with a little over five minutes left, stomping onto the court after J.R. Reynolds got hammered in the lane and received no foul call.

“I don’t think they’re pen pals after tonight, for sure,” Liberty coach Randy Dunton said of Leitao and the officials.

Leitao coached every second as if it the game’s outcome was actually in doubt.

“That’s every day,” shooting guard J.R. Reynolds said. “Every day we step on that court he has that same energy. It doesn’t let down either. That’s what’s great about him.”

“I don’t play the score,” Leitao said. “A non-box out up 30 is the same as a non-box out down 30. You play basketball a certain way. You practice that way. You conduct yourself. And at the end of the game, you look up and there’s the score.”

The game itself was nowhere near as dramatic. The Cavaliers (1-0) dominated the Flames (0-1) from the outset, jumping out to an 18-2 lead in the first five minutes and never looking back. UVa led at halftime 44-22.

Five Cavaliers scored in double figures as their lead swelled at one point to 38. Freshman swingman Mamadi Diane led the way with 17 points and zero turnovers in his college debut.

“There’s something about him,” Leitao said. “I don’t know if I’ve come to what that thing is, but … something inside of him ticks the right way.”

Diane also locked up Liberty’s leading returning scorer, guard Larry Blair, when Reynolds got in early foul trouble. Blair went 2-for-13 from the field and missed his first nine shots, including dunk on a breakaway early in the second half. He finished with a team-high 13.

Blair’s struggles epitomized Liberty’s night. The Flames shot 22.6 percent from the field (12 of 53) and made 3 of their 17 3-pointers.

To be fair, they knew what they were walking into.

“You knew it was going to be a pep rally,” Dunton said. “The Macy’s Day Parade. Welcome to the new coach’s show. And when you get that, you get a lot of enthusiasm. …

“But we’re going to be good. I’ve been through this before. … I actually think my team has more talent than we’ve had the last couple years.”

Defense and rebounding were clearly Leitao’s priorities. The 44 points Liberty scored were the fewest by a Virginia opponent in a season opener since Bucknell scored 45 in 1980.

UVa held a 49-32 advantage on the boards, though several lapses on the defensive glass that led to easy Liberty baskets drew Leitao’s ire more than anything. Several players, particularly junior forward Jason Cain, got an earful after failing to box out, even when the game was well in hand.

“He’s a hands on coach,” said point guard Sean Singletary, who had 15 points, seven rebounds, six assists and four steals.

“We expect that and we respect it. If you can’t take that type of yelling, this team’s not for you.”