A bit blue? UVa battles Bulldogs
Cavaliers try for third straight bowl victory, 9-3 season
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
December 27, 2004

BOISE, Idaho – When you tune in today to watch Virginia play in the MPC Computers Bowl, do not adjust your television set.

The surface on the field at Bronco Stadium is blue - very blue.

Virginia’s spirits are not.

The 18th-ranked Cavaliers know they have a chance to do something special today.

A win over Fresno State (8-3) would give Virginia a nine-win season and a third-straight victory in bowl games.

It will not come without a fight.

Fresno State is entering the contest on a five-game winning streak that saw its offense get on track. During the winning spree, the Bulldogs averaged 56 points a game and in their last seven games, they have converted 33 trips into the red zone for 31 touchdowns and two field goals.

“They’re really clicking,” Virginia coach Al Groh said.

Like Virginia, Fresno State’s attack starts with its ability to run the ball.

The Bulldogs averaged 5.4 yards per game, the most in the Western Athletic Conference and the seventh-best in the country.

Fresno State has averaged 228 yards per game on the ground and scored 36 rushing touchdowns. Only three schools in the country - Boise State (46), Louisville (44) and Texas (37) - have scored more rushing touchdowns this year.

“They’re a very strong running team,” Groh said on Sunday. “There’s no bobbing and weaving with these guys. That’s good old-time football.”

Virginia defensive end Brennan Schmidt said the Cavaliers are well aware of Fresno’s ability to run the ball between the tackles.

“They’re very aggressive offensively,” Schmidt said. “We’re going to have to slow down their momentum.”

While Fresno State’s offensive unit lit up scoreboards like Christmas trees during its current winning streak, the defense held its own, allowing an average of 16 points per game.

For the season, the Bulldogs rank 26th in the country in scoring defense, despite having faced four of the top 43 scoring teams in the country.

Groh said defensively, Fresno State is comparable in schemes to Clemson, Maryland and Syracuse, all teams that Virginia beat by double figures this year.

Fresno State coach Pat Hill knows Virginia’s objective offensively is going to be to wear down his defensive unit by running the football.

Virginia rushed for at least 220 yards in eight of its 11 regular-season games. The Cavaliers are ranked 12th in the country in rushing offense and have scored 31 rushing touchdowns.

“They are very, very good at running the ball,” Hill said. “This is going to be a very physical game. This isn’t a game of spread offenses like we’ve seen in a couple of the bowl games already. There’s going to be some tough sledding out there.”

Hill said the game is likely to come down to the basics.

“It’s going to be a game settled mostly by field position, ball security … those types of things,” Hill said. “They’re the most talented team we’ve played. On paper, the talent level is unbelievable. We are going to have to make big plays to win this football game.”

Groh extols Boise bowl experience
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
December 27, 2004

BOISE, Idaho

When Al Groh came back to his alma mater in 2000, the last bowl game he had coached in was the one that starts with the word Super.

It had been a while since he had participated in the college bowl-game culture. Obviously, he had to develop a bowl-game psychology.

How do you motivate college kids to win a postseason game a month after their last regular-season game? How do you get them to buy into the fact that going to Charlotte, N.C., or to Boise, Idaho, is just as important as going to Miami or New Orleans?

Even Dr. Phil might find that a hard sale.

Six weeks into this season, when the Cavaliers were undefeated, ranked higher than Florida State in the nation’s top 10, and anointed by some bandwagoners as a team destined for a BCS location, no one imagined that Virginia’s final destination would be Boise to play Fresno State.

Positive Cav mindset

A lot of folks were whining about having to play in the “We Got Screwed Bowl,” but none of them were part of the Virginia football team. Credit Groh’s philosophy that he created early on for not hearing any whimpering coming out of the Cavaliers’ football camp.

“A team’s agenda for a bowl game is going to get set in various ways and in various different directions,” Groh said. “If the team and the coach doesn’t set the agenda, then other people are going to set it for them. And there are a lot of people who wanted to set a negative agenda on this.”

Virginia’s trip to Boise wasn’t the first time the Cavaliers have been confronted with such issues. When the team qualified for its first bowl trip under the Groh regime three seasons ago, there was similar barking going on about being forced to play in Charlotte.

So, Groh nipped it in the bud.

“Before we went to Charlotte for the first time, the team had come off two catastrophic bowl games,” the coach said.

That would be the 63-21 loss to Illinois in the Micron Bowl in 1999, a memory that every Cavalier fan would like to erase, followed by the 37-14 loss to Georgia in the Jeep O’ahu Bowl in 2000.

We’ll save you the math. That’s 100 to 35.

Don’t complain because it could have been worse. Much worse.

The memories were ...

Groh was a bit curious about those bowl experiences, so he asked a couple of the players about those bowls. When Groh asked offensive tackle Mike Mullins what he did with all the bowl gifts he got from those two games, he got an interesting answer.

“He said, Coach, it’s all in a box underneath the staircase in my cellar,” Groh explained.

The point being, “Why would you want to be reminded of a negative event in your life,” Groh said, while glancing out the window at the bright blue artificial turf at Boise State’s Bronco Stadium on Sunday afternoon. “I’ll guarantee you that if we’re to lose

this game, you wouldn’t see our players wearing these bowl warm-ups around in the future.”

Groh’s philosophy may be a little different than some other coaches. It’s just part of the man’s makeup. He hates losing. He’s no fun to be around after a loss. Sportswriters know what to expect after a loss. His answers are curt and can be delivered with all the venom of a puff adder disturbed from its sleep.

“We’re not going there to have fun ... we’re going there to win,” Groh said of his bowl philosophy. “Now that doesn’t mean that we can’t have fun.”

The Cavaliers have enjoyed all three of their bowl experiences under Groh thus far. The first two teams took trips to NASCAR’s Charlotte Speedway the first two years and on this trip, players got their first experience at snowmobiling in this winter wonderland.

All that’s fun. But winning is what they’ll most remember.

“You only have positive memories about these things when you win the game,” Groh said. “I like to play games. I really don’t much care where they are. Once you get to the site, they are basically all the same.

“Just think about it. It really doesn’t make a difference if you go to Charlotte, Atlanta, Nashville, San Antonio or Shreveport. It’s all the same when you get there. There’s a major event for the team one day or night. Then there’s a night out at some type of video game place. There’s a luncheon or a dinner. You get on the bus and go to practice and you get ready to play the game.”

Groh said if you ask UVa’s players what kind of experience they had in back-to-back wins at the Continental Tire Bowl in Charlotte the past two seasons, they would tell you they had a great time there.

Fans who complained about having to go to Charlotte the first time around, raved about the experience after the affair ended and were enthusiastic about going back a second time last year.

“For all the things that preceded the game, they are saying that because it turned out successfully,” Groh said. “That mood was set from the very beginning, that going to postseason games isn’t about how many trips down the log flume you can take. It’s about winning the game. There’s a responsibility and an obligation of a team that accepts a postseason bid, to win.”

Nothing else is acceptable in Groh’s view.

That’s why some of the Boise media may have been surprised at Virginia’s answers on Sunday when Groh and some of his players were asked about playing Fresno State, not exactly a household name in college football, but a team that the true fan would easily recognize.

Groh’s philosophy is that you don’t have to be a brand name team to be good. He developed that kind of thinking during all those years in the NFL. Groh knows that in college football there are a lot of teams that are not brand names that still win every week.

“If you don’t prepare and take your opponent seriously ever week, then you had better get accustomed to getting your [bleep] kicked every week,” Groh said. “Look at the Arizona Cardinals. They’ve only won five games, but they’re pretty hard to beat.”

Same holds true for college football. Virginia has beaten Duke every year that Groh has been aboard, but the Blue Devils aren’t always easy to beat. If you take them for granted, well ... look at what Duke did to Clemson this season.

Groh’s agenda, or rather, Virginia’s agenda for today’s game is simple. As the great poet Al Davis once said, “Just Win, Baby!”

“We have a chance to win nine games, one of the few Virginia teams to do that,” Groh said. “We have a chance to have one of the highest rankings Virginia has ever had. We have a chance to win a third bowl game in a row for the first time in Virginia history. Those are worthwhile things to get excited about. We have a chance to do something special.”

Hagans getting plenty of reps
Practice time benefits QB for matchup, next season
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
December 27, 2004

BOISE, Idaho - There’s one thing about bowl games that coaches appreciate more than the bonus for winning games and all the event’s festivities: practice.

Bowl games provide almost the equivalent of an extra spring practice worth of workouts that can not only benefit upcoming players, but help the veterans hone their game.

A perfect example of that is Virginia junior quarterback Marques Hagans. He won a four-way battle for the starting quarterback job in August training camp and has led the Cavaliers to eight wins, which ties (Scott Secules, 1987) for the most of any first-time starter in Wahoo history.

Still, critics have questioned whether he has the passing skills to win the big games, and whether he’s tall enough at

5-foot-10, to find receivers. Some observers have recommended that Hagans return to wide receiver and leave the passing game to a taller quarterback, or to move Hagans to running back where he could also be a threat to throw the ball on bootlegs on every play, while also utilizing another quarterback to throw from the pocket.

Time for adjustments

Groh bristles at such suggestions, believing the criticism of his quarterback is unwarranted. He believes it takes a quarterback a certain period of time to adjust to all the

responsibilities.

Some quarterbacks go through the motions for an entire season before everything really sinks in. At some point a switch goes on when a young quarterback truly “gets it.”

“If Joe Montana or John Elway or Matt Schaub or Brett Favre came in and criticized [Hagans], then we would pay a lot of attention to it and try to respond to the criticism,” Groh said. “But for somebody who has never played quarterback to criticize him, then I take that about as seriously as if I was criticizing somebody on trying to write the economy, or how he prosecuted a particular course. I mean, what do I know about those things?

“Has Marques been perfect? No. Does he know that? Yes. Did he win eight games for us? A number of which we couldn’t have won without him? He sure did,” Groh pointed out.

Groh said Sunday at Broncos Stadium on the eve of today’s MPC Computers Bowl that Hagans had definitely benefited from the extra 12 to 14 days of practice in preparation of facing Boise State.

“As I said to Marques just shortly after the regular season was over, that two quarterbacks who were judged as having the finest years in the ACC this season were certainly not as appreciated by either their fans or probably their own organizations at this time last year,” Groh said in speaking of Virginia Tech’s Bryan Randall and Miami’s Brock Berlin. “The fact they were in their second season this year made a big difference in their seasons.”

More than meets the eye

Groh said that Hagans’ extra practice time and another important game such as today’s bowl contest, will be a positive experience for his young quarterback.

In some ways, Virginia’s coaches are still learning about how to take advantage of Hagans’ skills. He is not only an adequate passer (he led the ACC in passing percentage this season with a 63.6, good for 20th nationally), but is a highly mobile and elusive player on the run.

He has been compared to former Georgia Tech quarterback Joe Hamilton and even on occasion to former Virginia Tech quarterback Michael Vick.

Many fans don’t feel that Hagans runs the ball enough and that if he did, Virginia would have won at least one, if not two more games this past season. Critics have pointed out that with their NFL backgrounds that UVa coaches didn’t know how to properly use a quarterback who could create on the run because they are more accustomed to classic, dropback passers.

Groh said Sunday that he and his staff are still exploring ways to best utilize Hagans’ rare abilities.

“We certainly do use what’s going on with similar style quarterbacks as a resource,” Groh said. “If everything we did depended upon our creative thinking, we might have a small playbook. We use some of those kinds of players or some of those kinds of coaches as a resource to kind of kick-start our thinking.”

Measuring stick

Criticism of Hagans’ passing ability increased after losses to Miami and Virginia Tech late in the season. Some claimed that his height, or rather lack of it, prevented him from seeing his receivers downfield because of the huge linemen that blocked his vision.

Groh said that Hagans’ height shouldn’t prevent him from becoming a good passer.

“Would it be easier for him if he was 6-foot-2 than if he was

5-10? It probably would be,” Groh said. “Would he have run 59 yards against Syracuse and 65 against Miami? Probably not.

“You take the whole package. That’s what you have. Marques is what he is. There’s sometimes we’d like him to be taller...there’s sometimes we would have liked Matt [Schaub] to be faster. But Marques can see what he needs to see to play well. That he’s not 6-4 does not keep him from being a good player.”

Back to basics

Hagans said that he has gone back to some of the basics during bowl practices and hopes to concentrate on things that should help his overall game.

“Bowl practice has definitely been helpful to me,” he said. “We’re going to go into the game and try to do what we do best, run the ball and throw the ball when the opportunity presents itself.”

Fresno State coach Pat Hill said that he hasn’t faced many quarterbacks with the mobility of Hagans.

“That’s what this quarterback does,” Hill said Sunday before his Bulldogs warmed up at Bronco Stadium. “When you play a quarterback like [Hagans], the play is never over. If you keep him in the pocket, you’re in better shape that when things break down with these type of guys.

“You don’t see that type of quarterback very often,” Hill said. “They’re special.”

Hagans hopes he can show fans how special he can be this afternoon and use it as a stepping stone to next season.

MPC Computers Bowl Notebook
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
December 27, 2004

Cignetti ready for 3-4 defense. Fresno State offensive coordinator Frank Cignetti has two things to worry about today in the MPC Computers Bowl - Virginia’s 3-4 defense and the players that play it.
The Bulldogs have seen the 3-4 defense, which boasts four linebackers and three defensive linemen, on just one occasion this season in a loss to Louisiana Tech (28-21).
Cignetti said his days coaching in the NFL prepared him for the odd scheme.
“If I had never coached in the league, I’d probably be swearing a little bit right now,” Cignetti told the Fresno Bee. “Even though we face [4-3 defenses] 10 out of 11 times, our players are taught these looks 365 days a year. So it’s not like all of a sudden, “Whoa, what are we going to do. … There’s still 11 guys on the field.”

Bowling at the bowl. One of the festivities designed for both teams, left Virginia with the opportunity to bowl at a local bowling alley. Fresno State missed the event after its charter flight could not land in Fresno, Calif, because of foggy conditions.
Virginia’s offense won the contest against Virginia’s defense, with ease, thanks in part to some savvy bowling from starting center Zac Yarbrough.
The senior got some experience bowling early in his Cavalier career when he played in a league in Charlottesville with some former teammates including Chris Luzar and Mikle Abrams.
A pair of offensive linemen - D’Brickashaw Ferguson and Brian Bathelmes - were among the top bowlers on the team according to several players.

Talking tickets. Today’s game is not expected to be a sellout as close to 3,000 tickets remained for sale on Friday.
Bronco Stadium, which is the home of Boise State’s football team, has a capacity of 30,750.
Both schools were allotted 3,000 tickets. Virginia sold close to 3,000 tickets, but almost half of that allotment were sold as proxy tickets and given to military families stationed near Boise.
Only one game has sold out in the eight-year history of the bowl, which was titled the Humanitarian Bowl until this year. The sellout was in 2002 when Boise State hosted Iowa State.

Parting gifts. Players from both teams were given gifts from executives from the MPC Computers Bowl.
Fresno State and Virginia players were given a bag that included a handheld video recorder, a parka-style coat and snow gloves, among other items. The NCAA allows bowl gifts to be given to players, as long as the total value does not exceed $350.

From familiar places. The talk around today’s game during the past two weeks surrounded the link that Virginia coach Al Groh and Fresno State coach Pat Hill shared while working for the Cleveland Browns. Two other coaches - UVa offensive coordinator Ron Prince and Fresno State running backs coach John Settle - share the same alma mater. Prince and Settle graduated from Appalachian State in Boone, N.C.
Settle actually played one season at Appalachian State under coach Mack Brown, now at Texas, and three seasons under Sparky Woods, a former offensive coordinator at UVa and the running backs at Arkansas this year.

Quotable. “It is in California. Right?” joked Virginia defensive end Brennan Schmidt when asked what he knew about Fresno, Calif.

Extra points. Today’s game is scheduled to kickoff in Boise at 12:04 p.m. (2:04 p.m. EST). A 23-minute halftime show is scheduled. … The officials for today’s game are from the PAC-10. The referee for today’s game, Jay Stricherz, called Fresno State’s game on Sept. 5 when the Bulldogs topped Washington on the road. Fresno State was called for 12 penalties in that game. … Virginia is just one of 10 programs that are playing in a bowl game this year after winning bowl games each of the last two years. One of the other teams in that elite company is Fresno State. … Today’s matchup will be the sixth known head-to-head sporting event for Virginia against Fresno State. The UVa softball team has played Fresno State three times and the men’s tennis and women’s soccer teams have met once. … There are no common opponents for Fresno State and Virginia this season and the teams have only 12 common opponents in the history of both programs. … Today’s game will be the 13th football game in school history west of the Mississippi River. Virginia is 4-8 in previous games played west of the nation’s most famous river. … Kickoff temperature is expected to be around 42 degrees. ... According to coach Al Groh, Virginia will wear white uniforms today.



 

Farrior leads Pittsburgh's 'D'
By Nick Hahn / Daily Progress correspondent
December 27, 2004

PITTSBURGH - Near midfield after the Steelers’ 20-7 win over Baltimore at Heinz Field Sunday afternoon, Pittsburgh inside linebacker James Farrior shook hands with Ravens inside linebacker Ray Lewis.

One of the NFL’s most underrated defensive players spoke to one of the league’s most recognizable.

“I just told him, ‘Good job.’ I really don’t know him that well,” said Farrior about his pro bowl teammate. “Ray’s a great player. He’s one of the best in the league. He’s been playing at a high level for years and years. He always makes plays and he’s always around the ball.”

Funny … that’s what many have been saying about Farrior’s play this year.

The name Farrior is an Old French derivative for “blacksmith.” This year, the Richmond native hasn’t been tacking steel to the bottom of horse hooves. He’s been nailing it to opposing offenses. Farrior has gathered 122 tackles, 94 of those unassisted. With four sacks, three fumble recoveries, four interceptions and one touchdown, his play could no longer be overlooked.

One of Farrior’s observers has been his former linebacker’s coach when was playing with the Jets.

“He’s played some terrific games and made some game changing plays. He’s surpassed my expectations and has developed well,” said Cavalier coach Al Groh earlier this week. “I’ve been particularly interested in watching his play.”

Groh may use Farrior’s play as a textbook to coach his linebackers considering both the Steelers and the Cavaliers utilize the 3-4 defense.

With the Steelers on a 13-game winning streak, Farrior has had difficulty following his alma mater this year.

“I’ve been trying to follow them all year, but its tough to do that. But I wish them the best. Good luck to them. I hope everyone stays healthy and that they come all the way home with a win.”

The three-year starter and four-year letterman for the Cavaliers found out this week that he made his first Pro Bowl. In 2001 while playing for the Jets, Farrior had 181 tackles, two interceptions but was passed over. Last year, he had 127 tackles and a pick but missed again. After Sunday’s game he accepted his accolades cautiously, speaking in cliché.

“We got a lot of other things in mind that we want to do as a team. Individual goals are good at the end of the year,” Farrior said. “It feels good, but it’s a personal goal of mine and I don’t let that affect the team goals. I’m a team-oriented guy. Everything is oriented around the team. If I’m playing well and it helps my team than that’s good. It does feel good though.”

Just when you thought he had exhausted every team play cliché, Farrior started crediting the Steeler’s offense.

“I didn’t think we were going to go out there in the third quarter. I thought we were going to have the whole third quarter off,” Farrior said. “Our offense did a good job moving the ball and keeping their offense off the field. I’m a fan when I watching our offense.”

Sunday, Farrior was covering tight ends, running backs, blitzing and stopping the run. His led the Steelers with 10 tackles (nine unassisted) and two passes defended. Not bad considering the Steelers offense gobbled up all the possession time giving the Ravens only two second-half possessions. Farrior’s versatility may be his greatest asset and it’s been the secret to the Steelers’ success.

“We do ask our defensive players to do different things and have different roles,” said the Steelers defensive signal caller on the field. “That’s a good part about why we’ve performed so well this year. Everyone’s versatile.”

Looking up in the stands Sunday, a “Potsie’s Posse” banner was being waved in the crowd. Farrior’s parents, nicknamed James “Potsie” because he had a pot-belly as a child during the popularity of the sitcom “Happy Days.”

“It makes me smile a little bit. I know if I’m playing bad, I’m going to get talked about bad. You take it as it comes and you just smile at it and you just keep going,” Farrior explained. “We really don’t focus on anything else except winning games.”

The Steelers win on Sunday avenged their only loss of the year against the Ravens on Sept. 19. Now 14-1, Farrior like many Steelers players, is trying to curtail his enthusiasm while the rest Pittsburgh is making comparison to the late ’70s. The Steelers now have homefield advantage throughout the playoffs.

“We all belief that we could win games. You never know what’s going to happen at the beginning of the season. Everybody believes that they are going to the Super Bowl but we just stayed focus and took everything one game at a time. That’s how you have to do it in this business.”

Against the Ravens, Farrior made the first two tackles of the game and played on every defensive play of the game. While the Steelers have plugged in defensive players in various positions all year with success, one constant has been Farrior.

“I was just going in expecting to play well and to have a good season. And whatever else happens happens. I have done a good job and playing good defense and making big plays when we needed them. It’s not up to me to determine who’s the best middle linebacker. I just got to go out and play hard every weekend. You guys write all that stuff.”

Saying all the right things and making all the right plays.

Cavs out to keep trend
Virginia has a chance to win its third straight bowl game in a matinee with Fresno State.
By Doug Doughty
981-3129
The Roanoke Times

Quickly forgotten in all the uproar over Virginia's invitation to the MPC Computers Bowl is the outcry that surrounded the first of back-to-back UVa trips to the Continental Tire Bowl.

Feelings were bruised in 2002 when the Cavaliers tied for second in the ACC and went to the bowl game with the fifth choice of ACC teams, but Virginia enjoyed the experience so much that it was eager to return to Charlotte, N.C., in 2003.

That's what winning will do for you.

Virginia (8-3, 5-3 ACC) tied for third in the conference this year but was relegated to the bowl game with the sixth choice of ACC teams, although no one is blaming the bowl-selection process this time.

In this case, the Cavaliers seemingly were headed to the Champs Sports Bowl, which had the fourth choice of ACC teams, until school president John Casteen declared that Virginia could not play in a bowl game during its exam period, Dec.13-21.

That removed UVa from consideration for the Champs Sports Bowl, held in Orlando, Fla., on Dec.21, and left the Cavaliers no place to go but Boise, where they will meet Fresno State (8-3) on the blue artificial "Smurf" turf at 30,000-seat Bronco Stadium.

"At the beginning, a lot of things were happening that were beyond our control and we were getting caught up in where and who and when," said Dennis Haley, a fifth-year linebacker from Salem, "but when you get right down to it, we're excited to be in the postseason and have a chance to win nine games and win three bowl games in a row.

"Winning three straight bowl games would put you on a different platform than other [Virginia] teams. We're going out there for one reason and that's to win. That's coach [Al] Groh's mindset and that's our mindset."

Virginia won't have the overwhelming crowd support it enjoyed in Charlotte, N.C., located within easy driving distance for many of its fans, but there weren't many complaints coming from a UVa traveling party that has been in Idaho since Tuesday.

"Our biggest challenges was the practices we had at home, until we could get them away from everybody who was telling them what a bad deal they got," UVa coach Al Groh said earlier this week. "Once they got out here, I felt sure they would be pretty excited about the environment."

Groh's pitch to his team is the same that it was before the two Continental Tire Bowl trips.

"Before we went to Charlotte the first time, the team had come off two catastrophic bowl games," Groh said. "Right? Did I categorize that accurately? It was something like 130-30."

Groh was referring to lopsided losses to Illinois in the 1999 Micronpc.com Bowl (63-21) and to Georgia in the 2000 Jeep Oahu Bowl (37-14). That came out to 100-35 - not quite 130-30. But he made his point.

"Matt Schaub called me up and said, 'Whenever I would go to ACC functions, the players from Clemson and Georgia Tech said they never had as much fun as they had in this game,'" said Groh, referring to the quarterback on the past two victorious UVa bowl teams.

"One, they got to do some things they never do - snowmobiling and tubing down the mountain, things they do [in Boise]. They don't just take a hayride. But, as has been the point of emphasis since we got here, you only have positive memories about these things if you win the game."

In all likelihood, Virginia will need more than positive thoughts against a Fresno State team that has piled up 280 points - an average of 56 per game - during its past five games. Two of the Bulldogs' most prominent football alumni are quarterbacks David Carr of the Houston Texans and Billy Volek of the Tennessee Titans, but this is not a stereotypical, pass-happy West Coast outfit.

In many ways, Fresno resembles Virginia. Junior quarterback Paul Pinegar has thrown for 1,864 yards, compared to 1,862 for the Cavaliers' Marques Hagans, and the Bulldogs feature two running backs, just like the Cavaliers.

Alternating tailbacks Bryson Sumlin and Wendell Mathis have rushed for a combined 1,904 yards and 25 touchdowns for Fresno, as opposed to 1,786 yards and 25 touchdowns for the Cavaliers' Alvin Pearman and Wali Lundy.

Fresno's scoring spree can be attributed "to a combination of things," Groh said. "The most obvious [reason] is their offensive play, but they've also been very disruptive on defense in terms of turning the ball over to their offense, and special teams have been the foundation of everything they've done.

"They've really been clicking in all aspects."

U.Va. focus: history
With victory today, Cavs would have 3-bowl win streak
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER
Dec 27, 2004

BOISE, Idaho -The University of Virginia fielded its first football team in 1888. In the more than 110 seasons since, U.Va. has finished with nine or more victories only six times.

Only once have the Cavaliers been ranked better than 15th in the final Associated Press poll, and that was 53 years ago, when they closed at No. 13. Never has U.Va. won three consecutive bowl games.

This is not, obviously, a school with a rich football tradition. So don't tell fourth-year coach Al Groh or his players that Virginia has nothing to play for today in the MPC Computers Bowl.

"It's got very big opportunities for us," Groh said yesterday at Boise State's Bronco Stadium, where U.Va. will meet Western Athletic Conference power Fresno State (8-3) on the famed blue turf this afternoon.

The Cavaliers are 8-3, they're ranked No. 18 by the AP and, having won at the Continental Tire Bowl in 2002 and '03, they have a chance to run their postseason record under Groh to 3-0. Yes, they'd rather have ended up in Atlanta or Jacksonville, Fla., or New Orleans or, had final exams not been an issue, Or- lando, Fla. But they say they've enjoyed their week in Boise and are focused on the future, not the past.

"We're just excited about the opportunity to play again," senior offensive guard Elton Brown said.

Virginia would have clinched a share of the ACC title by beating Virginia Tech at Lane Stadium on Nov. 27. The Cavaliers lost 24-10 and finished in a tie for third in the conference.

"We didn't win the championship," Groh said. "We came up a little bit short of what we want to do. But we accomplished a lot, we're close to accomplishing a lot more this year, and we're close to accomplishing a lot more next year. There won't be very many teams in the country that can win nine games this year, so if we can do that, we can say when the season's over we're one of the best teams in the country. Not the best one, OK, but one of the best."

In Fresno State, Virginia will face a rugged team that relishes its periodic matchups with opponents from Bowl Championship Series conferences. The Bulldogs' talent level is similar to that of Maryland or Georgia Tech, Groh said. Virginia beat both of those teams this team, but neither the Terrapins nor the Yellow Jackets put up numbers approaching those of Fresno State.

After a three-game losing streak dropped their record to 3-3, the Bulldogs closed the regular season with five straight victories. During that span, they averaged a staggering 56 points. Much of that scoring came at the expense of weak WAC defenses, but Virginia is impressed nonetheless.

"No matter who they're playing, 56 points the last [five] games is pretty amazing," junior defensive end Brennan Schmidt said. "We got a big task at hand, and we'll see if we can handle it."

Like Virginia, whose tailback tandem of Alvin Pearman and Wali Lundy ranks among the nation's best, the Bulldogs emphasize the running game. Bryson Sumlin has rushed for 1,010 yards and Wendell Mathis for 869. U.Va., meanwhile, ranks 18th among Division I-A teams in rushing defense.

"That's obviously one of the storylines," Groh said. "They're a very strong running team, and it's a non-finesse running game. It's like a boxer who just comes out and goes to the body. There's no bobbing and weaving with these guys."

For much of the fall, Virginia's Marques Hagans led the ACC in passing efficiency, and he still ranks first in the league in completion percentage (63.2). But the 5-10 junior's productivity declined after he suffered a hip injury Oct. 16 at Florida State, and he threw only three touchdown passes in the final six regular-season games.

If the Cavaliers are to win today, Groh said, they'll have to move the ball through the air as well as on the ground.

"This certainly isn't a game that we can come in here and run the ball 75 times and think we're going to have more points than the other team," he said.

"I wouldn't anticipate that this is going to be a 14-10 game. By the same token, we don't want it to be 70-60. I don't think that's how we're set up, and that's not how we favor playing these days. But that's how some of these bowl games seem to have been here in the last week or so, and unless you can get the Fresno points down, you're going to have to do something that match that point production."

MPC COMPUTERS BOWL NOTES
Richmond Times-Dispatch
Dec 27, 2004

RODNEY DANGERFIELD LIVES: Their coach didn't seem to agree, but two Fresno State players said yesterday that they believe Virginia looks down on its opponent from the Western Athletic Conference.

The 18th-ranked Cavaliers (8-3), from the Atlantic Coast Conference, face Fresno State (8-3) today in the MPC Computers Bowl at Boise State's Bronco Stadium.

"I don't think they have any respect for us," said Logan Mankins, the Bulldogs' standout offensive tackle.

Senior strong safety James Sanders, sitting next to Mankins at a press conference, added, "I don't think they respect us at all, but come [this] afternoon, they will."

Unlike the WAC, the ACC has a spot reserved for its champion in the Bowl Championship Series each season.

"All those big schools from the BCS, they look down on schools from smaller conferences," said Mankins, though neither he nor Sanders cited any examples of the Cavaliers' alleged disrespect.

GOOD OL' BOY: Mankins, a 6-4, 320-pound senior, has a handlebar mustache. Asked if he did so as a tribute to Fresno State's coach, Pat Hill, who's worn one for years, Mankins shook his head.

"Where I'm from, this is what they wear," said Mankins, who grew up on a farm in tiny Catheys Valley, Calif., and majors in agriculture education.

CHANGE OF PACE: Virginia will be the only the second team Fresno State has played this season that uses the 3-4 as its primary defense. The other was Louisiana Tech, which beat the Bulldogs 28-21 on Oct. 2.

The 3-4 isn't popular with college teams, but Hill said the Cavs have "the players who can play it . . . You've got to have special linebackers to play it."

CHALLENGE ISSUED: James Sanders, a two-time all-WAC pick, didn't sound too concerned about Virginia quarterback Marques Hagans.

"We feel that if we can force them to pass the ball, the game's going to go in our favor," Sanders said yesterday.

The Cavaliers probably would disagree. Virginia coach Al Groh said the practices leading up to the bowl have benefited Hagans, who's in his first season as a full-time starter. Hagans, a junior, didn't play as well late in the regular season as he did in September, but Groh hasn't lost faith in the former Hampton High star.

"As I said to Marques, shortly after the [regular] season was over," Groh recalled, "the two quarterbacks who were judged to have had the finest years in the Atlantic Coast Conference this year, and I think accurately so, [Miami's Brock] Berlin and [Virginia Tech's Bryan] Randall, were certainly not as appreciated by either their fans or probably their own organizations at this time last year. The fact that they were [more experienced] doing all of this has certainly made a big difference in their seasons."

POSTSEASON MARKS: U.Va. is 6-8 in bowl games. Fresno State is 10-8. Each team has won its past two postseason games. The Cavaliers whipped West Virginia 48-22 in the 2002 Continental Tire Bowl at Charlotte, N.C. A year later, in the second Tire Bowl, U.Va. beat Pittsburgh 23-16.

Fresno State defeated Georgia Tech 30-21 in the Silicon Valley Football Classic in 2002. The Bulldogs beat UCLA in the Silicon Valley bowl last season.

QUARTERBACK U.? No school has more of its former quarterbacks on NFL rosters than Fresno State, which is tied with Michigan and Florida State for the lead with three.

The former Bulldogs are David Carr (Texans), Trent Dilfer (Seahawks) and Billy Volek (Titans). Fresno State's current starter, junior Paul Pinegar, is 23-8 as a starter. He ranks sixth at Fresno State with 49 career touchdown passes. Carr, with 70, holds the school record. -Jeff White

UVa has plenty to play for today
By Andy Bitter / Lynchburg News & Advance
December 27, 2004

BOISE, Idaho - Fresno State plays the “No Respect” card as well as anyone, even if, as is the case of today’s MPC Computers Bowl against Virginia, the opponent is saying the exact opposite.

The Bulldogs aren’t just playing for themselves in this game between teams with matching 8-3 records (2 p.m. EST, Bronco Stadium). They’re playing for all the non-Bowl Championship Series schools on the outside looking in. Or so they think.

“All those big schools look down on the schools from the smaller conferences,” Fresno State all-WAC offensive tackle Logan Mankins said. “They think they’re better than us even though they haven’t played us. We’ll find out tomorrow.”

To the Cavaliers’ credit, even though they may think the opposite, they’re saying all the right things. One still has to wonder how excited they can get for the ACC’s sixth bowl tie-in, however. After all, this was a team that with one more win could have been playing on New Year’s Day.

“You get fired up to play any game,” Virginia senior guard Elton Brown said. “We’re just excited about getting the opportunity to play again.”

Despite its precipitous fall from grace in the bowl selection process, Virginia still has plenty to play for, which head coach Al Groh is more than eager to point out.

• The Cavaliers have never won three consecutive bowl games (they’ve won the Continental Tire Bowl the last two seasons).

• They can become only the sixth team in school history to win nine games in a season (the last time they reached that plateau was two years ago).

• They can finish with one of the highest rankings in school history (UVa is currently 18th; it has finished higher than that only twice in the last 20 years).

Virginia’s perceived lack of respect isn’t from a lack of knowledge. Brown and Groh both said they have seen Fresno State play on numerous occasions, usually when they are sequestered in a hotel room on the Friday night before their Saturday game and the WAC has a featured game on ESPN.

“On Friday nights, there’s not really a whole lot to watch on TV,” Brown said.

From his viewing, Brown said Fresno State reminded him a lot of Maryland, a ball-control team with an aggressive, attacking defense. Virginia beat Maryland 16-0 during the regular season.

Undoubtedly, most of the focus of the game will be on Fresno State’s running game and Virginia’s run defense. The Bulldogs are 15th nationally, averaging 228.0 yards on the ground. UVa is 18th nationally at stopping the run, yielding 109.2 yards per game.

Fresno State features a two-back rushing attack, led by Bryson Sumlin (91.8 yards per game) and Wendell Mathis (86.9 yards per game). They run behind an offensive line that is not only willing but has a preference for physical play.

“It’s a non-finesse running game,” Groh said. “It’s like a boxer who comes out and goes to the body. There’s no bob-and-weave with these guys. There will be a lot of one-on-one confrontations on the front, and that’s good old, fun football.”

As Virginia’s run defense goes, so goes the team. In the Cavaliers’ three losses to Florida State, Miami and Virginia Tech, they gave up 180.7 rushing yards per game.

So what will be the outcome of today’s game?

“I’m not sure,” Virginia quarterback Marques Hagans said. “I don’t get paid to predict stuff.”

Fresno State safety James Sanders was more than willing to offer a prediction of sorts.

“I don’t think they have much respect for us,” he said. “But come (this) afternoon they will.”

 

Bronco Stadium may be blue but 'It's an excellent turf'
Andy Bitter / Lynchburg News & Advance
December 27, 2004

BOISE, Idaho - Feeling blue? Only for a little bit. Bronco Stadium’s blue “Astro Play” artificial surface is its most defining feature. But according to coaches and players, the shock of playing on a surface that isn’t green wears off after a while.

“The first day we were out there, after about 15 minutes I was looking at it and I was thinking after you walk out and see it for the first time, it’s just like, this is the field,” Virginia head coach Al Groh said.

“I think most of these guys when they were playing at (high school in) Virginia, they were playing on a dirt field. There were fields they played on that weren’t all green. The players have enjoyed the turf here, and I think they’re a lot more interested in how it feels under their feet. It’s an excellent turf to play on.”

Said UVa defensive end Brennan Schmidt: “During the week of practice, we got used to it. I don’t think anyone really notices any difference now.”

An activity-filled week

Most Virginia players have not made it as far West as Boise before. They were in for some new activities.

To a man, the players said the most memorable part of the trip was a snowmobiling outing they took earlier in the week, despite the conspicuous lack of snow.

“I think a lot of what you get in college is what you don’t get in the books,” Groh said. “I’m sure they’ll be talking about the snowmobiling trip for a long time.”

The team also took part in a bowling competition against Fresno State. According to the players, center Zac Yarbrough, guard Brian Barthelmes and offensive tackle D’Brickashaw Ferguson were among the best bowlers.

“It’s an offensive line thing, I think,” UVa senior guard Elton Brown said.

Said Schmidt, a junior: “It’s been a lot of fun just because a lot of guys are leaving and this is kind of a last chance to spend some time with them.”

A hostile crowd?

It might be a very pro-Fresno State crowd today and it’s not just because Fresno is roughly 2,000 miles closer to Boise than Charlottesville.

The Idaho Statesman ran nine reader response letters to the question most of the local Boise State fans will be asking themselves: do they cheer against WAC rival Fresno State or cheer for the Bulldogs to win and uphold the reputation of the conference?

Most of the responses in the newspaper said that while it pains them to cheer for the Bulldogs, how the conference’s teams do in the postseason plays a large part in how much respect the non-Bowl Championship Series conference WAC gets from the rest of the nation.

“I’m really looking forward to seeing the Boise people react to us,” Fresno State head coach Pat Hill said. “It’s a great town. I know it’s a rivalry game between the two universities, but I think everybody senses that if Fresno can do a good job for the conference it only helps Boise. And vice versa. We’re pulling for Boise when they play Louisville (in the Liberty Bowl).”

Extra points: Virginia will wear its white away uniforms for the game. Fresno State’s uniforms, including its helmets, will be all orange. … The Cavaliers are 2-0 all-time against WAC schools. They beat former conference member BYU 22-16 in the 1987 All-American Bowl and topped San Jose State 52-14 in a homecoming game in 1998. … The game is the first UVa has ever played in the Mountain Time Zone.

Bulldogs relish shot at Cavaliers
Fresno St. has done well vs. BCS teams
AP Photo by Matt Cilley
By TIM KORTE, The Associated Press

BOISE, IDAHO -- Virginia offers the perfect matchup for Fresno State coach Pat Hill: a top-25 opponent and another chance to knock off a team from a Bowl Championship Series conference.

At least this time, Fresno State faces the 18th-ranked Cavaliers of the ACC on a neutral field today in the MPC Computers Bowl. Usually, the Bulldogs play these games in the other team's stadium.

But if anyone thinks Fresno State (8-3) from the Western Athletic Conference has nothing to lose, think again. "We've got plenty to lose," Hill said. "... The expectation at Fresno State is to win, and a win over Virginia would salvage our season at 9-3."

Boise isn't your typical bowl trip.

TODAY'S GAME

FRESNO STATE (8-3) VS. VIRGINIA (8-3)

WORTH KNOWING: The Bulldogs come in on a five-game winning streak in which they averaged 56 points per game ... There's an excellent tailback tandem in Bryson Sumlin (91.6 ypg) and Wendell Mathis (86.9 ypg) -- a good thing, because senior QB Paul Pinegar is too inconsistent to win a game with his arm. ... On defense, the Bulldogs have struggled to stop the run, and that bodes ill today. ... The Cavaliers laid an egg in each of their three "big" games (against FSU, Miami and Virginia Tech), and their mind-set -- i.e., will they care about playing Fresno? -- will play a big role. ... The Cavs also have an excellent tailback tandem in Alvin Pearman (89.5 ypg) and Wali Lundy (72.8 ypg). ... Like Fresno, the Cavs will struggle if the running game is stifled, though Heath Miller may be the nation's best TE. ... The Cavs are much better defensively than the Bulldogs, and an excellent linebacker crew (with Ahmad Brooks and Kai Parham) leads the way.

The weather is frosty, though this year it's rather warm with a forecast of 41 degrees and partly cloudy skies. Rather than strolling the beaches, players can ride snowmobiles in the mountains.

"The sky is as blue as the field," Virginia coach Al Groh marveled when the Cavs arrived last week.

Yep, there's that eye-popping blue field, which must startle some viewers. Nothing's wrong with those TV sets -- the turf matches the colors of host Boise State.

The game is a solid matchup.

Virginia (8-3) is making its third straight bowl trip, and its only losses this season were to ACC heavyweights Florida State, Miami and Virginia Tech.

"They have an outstanding team," Hill said. "We feel very fortunate to get the fourth-place team from the ACC. Here at Fresno State, that's a great matchup."

Virginia is led by quick-footed quarterback Marques Hagans, a versatile threat who averages 197.4 yards in total offense and has completed 63 percent of his passes.

The Cavs split rushing duties between two backs. Alvin Pearman has 985 yards rushing, while Wali Lundy has run for 801 yards and led the ACC with 16 rushing TDs.

"They're the most talented team we've played," Hill said. "Boise State is as good of a team as we've played in a couple of years. But Virginia? On paper, the talent level is unbelievable."

That's not to say the Bulldogs won't compete.

Fresno State's offense is rolling, averaging 56 points a game over a current five-game winning streak.

"They're really clicking," Groh said. "They do a good job in their third-down pass package. They're very good in the red zone. They really have done everything well that a football team has to do for scoring points."

Bulldogs quarterback Paul Pinegar is 2-0 in bowl games and 5-3 against BCS schools.

Bryson Sumlin and Wendell Mathis took over when standout tailback Dwayne Wright sustained a season-ending knee injury in the second game, and Fresno State averages 228 yards rushing per game.

No question Fresno State will be up for this foe. The Bulldogs have won nine of their past 15 against teams from BCS conferences. In their past two bowls, they have beaten UCLA and Georgia Tech.

"Our fans like this opponent more than anything else," Hill said. "We've changed the expect-ations of our community. Everybody knows the goals, and they are very, very high. We want to do what Utah did."

Cavs Making the Most Of Their Trip to Boise
Victory Today Would Cap Fine Season
By Mark Schlabach
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, December 27, 2004; Page D01

BOISE, Idaho, Dec. 26 -- The University of Virginia football team had heard all the bad stories about playing in Boise -- the woeful weather, the dead fowl on the blue turf of Bronco Stadium and playing an inferior team in a bowl game nobody really cares about. But the No. 18 Cavaliers seem to have made the best of their six days here, even if their holiday plans didn't originally include playing Fresno State in Monday's MPC Computers Bowl.

Since arriving Tuesday in Boise, the Cavaliers have experienced warmer than usual weather, haven't found any dead ducks on the stadium turf (which some locals say resembles a blue pond from the mountain sky) and the players say they've largely enjoyed their Western experience. Earlier this week, the players were taken on a snowmobile trip in nearby mountains, a first for most of them.
Virginia's Sean Johnson knocks the ball away from teammate Justin Markey during practice for the MPC Computers Bowl. (Matt Cilley - AP)

Decision Day Nears for Cavs

Virginia stands to lose several of its best players after today's game -- all-America guard Elton Brown, tailback Alvin Pearman and safeties Jermaine Hardy and Marquis Weeks are among its seniors. A few underclassmen will soon announce their plans, too. Indications are that junior Heath Miller, who won the Mackey Award as the nation's best tight end, will skip his senior season (he is scheduled to graduate in May). Offensive tackle D'Brickashaw Ferguson and linebacker Darryl Blackstock have indicated they'll return to school. All-ACC linebacker Ahmad Brooks hasn't hinted at what he'll do, although his father, former Washington Redskins player Perry Brooks, told reporters his son is leaning toward returning to Virginia next season.
Hole in the Middle

Fresno State will play without starting defensive tackle Donyell Booker, the Bulldogs' top run stopper, who is academically ineligible. Booker, who started all 11 regular season games and had 24 tackles and 4 1/2 tackles for a loss, will be replaced by sophomore Louis Leonard and redshirt freshman Jason Shirley.
Key Matchup

After losing senior defensive end Chris Canty early in the regular season, the Cavaliers' defensive linemen struggled to pressure quarterbacks. Nose tackle Andrew Hoffman is the only Virginia lineman with more than two sacks, and the Cavaliers' highly regarded linebackers have combined to make 21 1/2 of the team's 34 sacks this season. Virginia's linemen could have a tough time getting around Fresno State offensive tackle Logan Mankins, an all-Western Athletic Conference selection with 82 pancake blocks in 11 games this year.
Fresno's Block Party

Virginia is ranked next-to-last among 117 Division I-A teams in net punting, averaging only 29.69 yards on 48 punts. The Bulldogs blocked three punts in the last three games, giving them 54 blocked kicks since 1997. Fresno State also has returned eight punts and three kickoffs for touchdowns during that span.
Dynamic Duo

While Virginia's Pearman and Wali Lundy have enjoyed a lot of success running the football this season, Fresno State has a one-two punch of its own. The Bulldogs lost starting tailback Dwayne Wright to a season-ending knee injury against Kansas State in their second game. But Bryson Sumlin and Wendell Mathis have combined for 1,879 yards and 25 touchdowns. The Bulldogs' 36 rushing touchdowns are fourth-most in the nation, trailing only Boise State (46), Louisville (44) and Texas (37).

10

Number of Division I-A teams that won bowl games the previous two seasons, including Fresno State and Virginia.

"I think our team was vulnerable to having a negative feeling attached to it," Virginia Coach Al Groh said. "The game is in Idaho; it's not in Florida. But once you've played in enough bowls, you learn that they're all the same. This has been a very positive thing for our team, the entire environment and experiencing something new."

At least it's not Charlotte, where the Cavaliers played in each of the past two Continental Tire Bowls. And Fresno State, which has won its last five games, scoring 50 points or more in each of the past four, could prove to be as formidable of an opponent as West Virginia and Pittsburgh, which Virginia beat in its last two bowl games.

With a victory today, the Cavaliers (8-3) would win three consecutive bowl games for the first time and they would become only the seventh Virginia team to win nine games in a season. And, depending on what happens in other bowl games, the Cavaliers could finish the season with their highest ranking -- they were No. 13 in the final Associated Press poll in 1951.

The game "has a world of opportunities for us," Groh said.

The game offers just as many opportunities for the Bulldogs (8-3), who recovered from a three-game losing streak in October to play in its sixth consecutive bowl game. Fresno State has won its last five games -- over Southern Methodist, Rice, Hawaii, Nevada and San Jose State -- by a combined score of 280-80. Its lowest scoring total during that stretch came in a 42-0 victory over the Mustangs. The Bulldogs are averaging 40.5 points per game, more than they scored when record-setting quarterback David Carr was leading their offense in 2001.

"I think there might be some better defenses in the ACC," Virginia defensive end Brennan Schmidt said of Fresno State's recent opponents. "But it doesn't matter who they're playing, averaging 56 points or whatever it is, that's pretty amazing."

Virginia's offense, meantime, largely struggled during the second half of the season, when the Cavaliers lost three of their final six games to fall out of the ACC race and a New Year's Day bowl game (Virginia was supposed to play in the Dec. 21 Champs Sports Bowl in Orlando, but that game conflicted with the school's final exams).

During the final six games, quarterback Marques Hagans threw only three touchdowns, was sacked 12 times and threw for 200 yards or more only once. With its passing game struggling, Virginia ran the ball 40 times or more in four of those six games, including consecutive 61-carry efforts in victories over Duke and Maryland.

Running probably won't be as easy against the Bulldogs, who allowed only two opponents to run for 200 yards or more. They held Kansas State to only 59 rushing yards on 33 attempts in a 45-21 upset of the then-No. 13 Wildcats on Sept. 11. "This definitely isn't a game where we can come in and run the ball 75 times and score more points than the other team," Groh said.

The Cavaliers figure to face a Fresno State team playing with a chip on its shoulders. While the Bulldogs have won five of their last seven games against teams from Bowl Championship Series conferences, they say they're still being overlooked because they play in the lesser regarded Western Athletic Conference.

"I don't think Virginia has much respect for us, but that doesn't bother us too much," Fresno State offensive tackle Logan Mankins said. "All those big schools from the BCS look down on the schools from the smaller conferences. They all think they're better than us, but they'll find out."