Linebacker, safety are out
BY DARRYL SLATER
247-4641
December 23, 2005

Virginia will be without two defensive starters for next Friday's Music City Bowl against Minnesota, which boasts the nation's fifth-best offense (497.8 yards per game).

Junior inside linebacker Ahmad Brooks is out because of a back injury. Junior safety Tony Franklin, a co-captain, will miss the game because he was charged on Dec. 4 with misdemeanor marijuana possession. "If Ahmad was able to prepare and practice, then he would play in the game," U.Va. coach Al Groh said Thursday at the Cavaliers' pre-bowl media day.

Brooks didn't make the trip to Miami for U.Va.'s season finale because of the back injury. He missed the season's first three games while recovering from offseason right-knee surgery. Upon returning, he sprained his left ankle and missed U.Va.'s fifth game, at Boston College. He started the next five games.

True freshman Antonio Appleby started in Brooks' place at Miami and is scheduled to do so again for the bowl.

Brooks considered leaving for the NFL after last season. But he and his family have not set a timetable for deciding if he'll declare for the 2006 NFL Draft, Brooks' mother, Vergie, said Thursday night. "None of that is coming to any discussions yet," she said. She indicated in October that Brooks would decide himself if he wanted to leave U.Va. early.

Last season, Brooks was a finalist for the Butkus Award, given to the nation's best linebacker. He made 90 tackles, after making 117 in 2003. He's made 27 this season.

Franklin's absence deals another blow to U.Va.'s safeties. Fellow starter Nate Lyles' season ended Nov. 12, when he suffered a neck injury against Georgia Tech. Redshirt freshman walk-on Byron Glaspy has started in Lyles' place. Candidates to start for Franklin in the bowl game include junior walk-on Ryan Best and sophomore Jamaal Jackson.

Franklin was one of four players suspended for the Georgia Tech game because they broke an unspecified team rule. His Dec. 12 court date for the marijuana charge was moved to January. Groh said the court ruling wouldn't impact his decision regarding Franklin's future with the program.

Senior defensive end Brennan Schmidt said he's learned over the years that Groh has a "no-b.s." approach. "He doesn't put up with anybody's crap," Schmidt said.

True freshman wide receiver Brandon Woods, who is redshirting, is playing safety in pre-bowl practices. Though the switch is temporary for now, the 6-foot-2, 201-pound Woods was an all-state defensive back at Southern Durham (N.C.) High.

NOSE JOBS

The Cavs played the past two games with just one nose tackle - a difficult situation in U.Va.'s 3-4 defense, because three defensive linemen have to take on five offensive linemen.

But nose Kwakou Robinson will get some help for the bowl. Keenan Carter will play after missing the past two games with an ankle injury.

More surprising, Ron Darden will return, though only for the bowl. Darden originally ended his career after U.Va.'s Oct. 22 game at North Carolina, where he suffered a concussion that apparently worsened his recurring migraines. Darden, a fourth-year junior, plans to play in the bowl, then call it quits.

One player who won't return for bowl preparation is true freshman cornerback Chris Cook. He broke his right leg at Boston College, but there remained an outside chance he could practice for the bowl.

COACHING SHUFFLE

U.Va.'s recent assistant-coach exodus has left Groh rearranging his staff.

Four coaches left earlier this month for other jobs - Ron Prince, Al Golden, Mark D'Onofrio and Danny Rocco - but D'Onofrio and Rocco returned for pre-bowl practices and the game.

Groh has taken on additional duties. He'll be defensive coordinator and coach the secondary - Golden's old jobs. Groh will also coach linebackers, D'Onofrio and Rocco's former unit. D'Onofrio and Rocco are currently catching up on Minnesota's schemes, but D'Onofrio continues to coach U.Va.'s special teams. Graduate assistant Chad Wilt, who left with Rocco for Division I-AA Liberty, is helping Groh with the secondary. Graduate assistant Bill Polin will coach the offensive line, Prince's former role.

THIS AND THAT

As of late Thursday afternoon, U.Va. had sold 4,904 of its allotted 10,000 bowl tickets. But because the school bought 1,500 for itself, 3,596 tickets remain. U.Va.'s ticket office is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. today, Wednesday and Thursday. ... U.Va. quarterback Marques Hagans was excited that Curt Newsome interviewed Monday for one of the Cavs' coaching vacancies. Newsome, a James Madison assistant, is a Hampton native whom Hagans, a Hampton High graduate, has known for years. "I thought it would be a good move," Hagans said. "But I'm not the one hiring."

 

 

 

Sports Focus: U.Va. Football
Stepping out, stepping up Brooks, others will sit; Carter, Darden will play in Nashville bowl
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Dec 23, 2005

CHARLOTTESVILLE Out: Ahmad Brooks, Tony Franklin and Chris Cook.

In: Keenan Carter and -- surprise, surprise Ron Darden.

That was word yesterday from coach Al Groh at the Virginia football team's pre-bowl session with media. Groh's Cavaliers (6-5) meet Minnesota (7-4) next Friday in the Music City Bowl at Nashville, Tenn.

Brooks, Franklin and Cook haven't practiced this month and won't play against the Golden Gophers. Carter, a sophomore nose tackle who missed the final two games of the regular season with an ankle injury, has returned to practice and will bolster a defensive line that has little depth.

So will Darden, who started three games at nose tackle during the regular season. Early last month, Darden gave up football after severe headaches that prematurely ended Darden's 2004 season returned. But the headaches have faded, and the 6-4, 328-pound redshirt junior, who is on track to graduate in May, will play one more game for the Cavaliers.

Brooks' health isn't as good. A season ago, the 6-4, 260-pound inside linebacker was a finalist for the Butkus Award. Brooks had knee surgery in March, however, and hasn't been the same since. He missed the Cavaliers' first three games while rehabbing his knee, then sprained an ankle in his first game back.

A junior who is expected to leave early for the NFL, Brooks started six games during the regular season, but his productivity dipped, and a back injury kept him out of the regular-season finale at Miami. Brooks is still hurting, and so his season -- and perhaps his U.Va. career -- is over.

"If Ahmad was able to prepare and practice, then he would play in the bowl," Groh said.

Franklin, a junior, started 10 games at safety during the regular season. He was suspended for the Georgia Tech game because of an unspecifed violation of team rules. Early this month, however, he was charged with misdemeanor possession of marijuana, and Groh decided this week not to let Franklin, a team captain, practice for or play in the Music City Bowl. Franklin's status for 2006, Groh said, hasn't been decided.

Cook, who started at cornerback against Boston College, hasn't played since breaking his right leg in that Oct.8 game. Groh has hoped Cook could practice this month, but the true freshman's leg isn't ready.

With Franklin and Cook out, and starting safety Nate Lyles sidelined with a neck injury, U.Va. will take a patched-together secondary into yet another game. Another safety, Lance Evans, has missed most of the season with an ankle injury. Of the five safeties Groh named yesterday -- Byron Glaspy, Jamaal Jackson, Ryan Best, Ben Parziale and Marshall Tucker -- only Jackson came to U.Va. as a scholarship player.

Nonetheless, Groh said, he remarked to his assistants the other day that "right now the secondary is operating very cleanly, and Byron's a big part of that."

Since the end of the regular season, four U.Va. assistants have taken jobs elsewhere. Two of them -- Danny Rocco and Mark D'Onofrio -- have returned to coach through the Music City Bowl, but Groh never has been more involved with U.Va.'s defense.

"There seems to be maybe the best compatibility that we've had yet between our secondary coach and our linebacker coach," he said with a sly smile. "They get along very well, and they seem to do everything exactly the way the defensive coordinator wants it done, which is very pleasing to the head coach."

Groh, as you may have guessed, is now overseeing the defensive backs and linebackers as well as serving as coordinator. He said he's having more fun than he's had "in a long time."

"He's enjoying it, I know, and I think it's kind of contagious," sophomore defensive end Chris Long said. "Everybody's having fun right now."

 

 

 

U.VA. NOTES
Richmond Times-Dispatch Dec 23, 2005

BIG DECISION: Next week's Music City Bowl could be inside linebacker Kai Parham's final game for Virginia.

Parham, 21, is a 6-3, 253-pound redshirt junior who graduated with a degree in African-American Studies this month. He's also a first-team all-ACC performer who leads U.Va. in tackles, and he might pass up his final season of eligibility to enter the NFL draft.

"Right now, I'm just focused on this game," the hard-hitting but soft-spoken Parham said yesterday when asked about his plans for 2006.

A graduate of Princess Anne High in Virginia Beach, Parham said he's submitted his name to the NFL's Draft Advisory Committee to get an idea of how NFL teams rate him. He's also talked to other players who have faced the same decision and has discussed his situation with U.Va. coach Al Groh, who spent more than a decade on NFL staffs.

"It's a big decision, you know?" Parham said.

A deeply religious young man, Parham said that if he were return to U.Va., "It would be because that was what the Lord's telling me to do."

FUTURE STARS? Parham, who redshirted in 2002, dazzled Virginia's coaches in practices leading up to the Continental Tire Bowl that December. Of the players redshirting this season, Groh singled out three yesterday for their performances in recent practices: safety Brandon Woods, inside linebacker Rashawn Jackson and cornerback Vic Hall.

Impressive all season has been Andrew Pearman, who transferred from Hawaii this season and won't be eligible to play until 2006.

Pearman, who is listed as 5-10, 166 pounds, is the brother of former U.Va. standout Alvin Pearman. Asked what the younger Pearman does in practice, Groh said, "Runs fast. He's a little dynamo."

Andrew is not as big as Alvin, Groh said, "but a little faster. He's played wide receiver, he's played some tailback. He does something that's kind of 'wow' each day."

HELPING HANDS: Two of the four U.Va. assistants who took jobs at other schools this month are back in town. Danny Rocco, now Liberty's coach, was Virginia's associate head coach and outside-linebackers coach. Mark D'Onofrio coordinated U.Va.'s special teams and coached its inside linebackers. He's now defensive coordinator at Temple under new coach Al Golden, another former U.Va. assistant.

Rocco and D'Onofrio will be with the Cavaliers through the Music City Bowl.

"We certainly do appreciate their involvement and their helping us," Groh said.

D'Onofrio is again coordinating the special teams, but Groh has assumed responsibility for the linebackers, as well as the defensive backs and the coordinator's role. He said he's asked Rocco and D'Onofrio to concentrate on familiarizing themselves with the Golden Gophers, "so that during the game we have the same set of eyes looking for the same things, providing the same degree of input that we've had for the regular-season games."

With offensive coordinator Ron Prince now the head man at Kansas State, wide receivers coach John Garrett may well call the plays for U.Va. in the bowl game. But Groh said a decision on who will handle that duty won't be made until next week, when the team is in Nashville, Tenn.

ENDORSEMENT: Hampton High coach Mike Smith isn't the only one who would like to see Groh hire Curt Newsome as an assistant. Newsome's fans include U.Va. quarterback Marques Hagans, who played for Smith at Hampton.

Newsome, who had successful stints as coach at Kecoughtan High and Heritage High in the powerful Peninsula District, is now assistant head coach and offensive line coach at James Madison University. Newsome was in Charlottesville on Monday to meet with Groh.

"He's always been good to me and a good friend to Coach Smith. That's how I met him," Hagans said. "He's shown me nothing but respect and love since day one. He's a great coach and an even better person. When I got a chance to see him the other day when he interviewed for the job, I told [Groh] what I knew about him and how much I respected him and [that] I thought it would be a good move.

Hagans stopped and smiled. "But I'm not the one hiring," he added. - Jeff White

 

 

 

Cavs hope bigger is better
First-year basketball coach lures one of the best strength coaches in business to U.Va.
BY JEFF WHITE
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Dec 23, 2005
LOYOLA AT U.VA.
TODAY: 7 p.m. RADIO: WRVA (1140), 6:30

CHARLOTTESVILLE Hear the title "strength coach" and what comes to mind? Football.

But Dave Leitao is trying to create a niche for his basketball team in the ACC, and Virginia's first-year coach knows he's not likely to land more McDonald's All-Americans than Duke or North Carolina.

Enter Shaun Brown, the Cavaliers' new strength coach for men's hoops.

Brown, 40, started work at U.Va. in October after eight seasons as a head strength-and-conditioning coach in the NBA - the first six with Boston, the last two with Toronto. If that were the extent of his résumé, he'd be an impressive hire. But Brown, a former wrestler and football player, was Kentucky's strength coach for basketball when Rick Pitino's Wildcats won the NCAA title in 1996. He also ran the strength program at Providence when Rick Barnes coached basketball there.

"We were very, very fortunate to get him," Leitao said. "It also speaks to, I think, what this program is about and the potential that it has, that somebody that's been in the gyms and been around the people that he's been around would think enough of us to commit himself to our university."

Leitao expects Brown to help him mold a team whose trademarks are defense, rebounding and toughness. Under Leitao's predecessor, Pete Gillen, the Cavaliers weren't outstanding in those areas.

"You're not going to outdo this or outdo that when it comes to Duke and Carolina, when it comes to - right now, anyway - the talent base that they're able to continue to assemble," Leitao said. "So you have to get guys and find a way to get them better and have them compete at the same, if not higher, level than the established programs. One of the ways to do that is strength and conditioning."

Brown said, "At the end of the day, you want to turn over every stone you can and look at everything you can control."

In the summer of 1987, Brown served an internship at U.Va. under John Gamble, a giant in his profession who was then the school's strength coach for football. Brown didn't think about returning to Charlottesville until Donyell Marshall, who played for Toronto last season, mentioned that Leitao was looking for a strength coach.

Marshall, a former University of Connecticut star, is close with Leitao, a former UConn assistant, and helped bring Brown and Leitao together.

Brown liked Leitao's vision of what U.Va. basketball could become, especially once the 15,000-seat John Paul Jones Arena opens next year. Brown could have stayed with the Raptors, but he missed the college game. In the NBA, most players have personal trainers with whom they work in the offseason.

"This made a lot of sense for me," Brown said. "I missed the ability to kind of have control and an impact. In the NBA, you're dealing with a different customer."

Another selling point for Brown, a native of Hornell, N.Y., was that U.Va.'s new arena will include a weight room strictly for basketball players.

"Hopefully, what we'll be able to do is as unique as anything in the country," Brown said. "Honestly, when this thing is said and done, from a [facility standpoint], we'll be right there with Texas, Kentucky, Louisville, Florida."

 

 

 

A CUT ABOVE
Barber's dedication has made him one of most feared runners in NFL
BY PAUL WOODY
TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER Dec 23, 2005

Fame and fortune on the football field seemed a distant and unrealistic dream for Atiim Kiambu "Tiki" Barber when he graduated from high school in 1993.

"I weighed 172 pounds," he said. "I was valedictorian of my class. I went to the University of Virginia for the education."

The football scholarship helped, though. And when Barber finished his college career with 3,389 yards rushing and 4,883 all-purpose yards, NFL teams noticed.

The New York Giants made him their second-round draft choice in 1997.

Things have worked out rather well football-wise.

Barber, 30, is having the best season of his career at a point when a running back is supposed to be thinking about retirement.

Instead, Barber, 5-10 and now weighing 200, is thinking playoffs, Super Bowl, MVP votes and what to do for an encore next year.

Barber, a native of Roanoke and graduate of Cave Spring High School, leads the NFL in total yards from scrimmage, 1,998, is second in the NFL in rushing, 1,577, averages 10 yards per pass reception and has scored 10 touchdowns.

He has had two, 200-plus yard rushing games this season, 206 against Washington on Oct. 30 and 220 last Saturday against Kansas City. He is one of just 13 players in NFL history to have two, 200-yard rushing games in a season.

His performance is a major reason the Giants (10-4) lead the NFC East and are almost certain to return to the playoffs this season after a two-year absence.

"I give a lot of credit to the guys who are protecting me," Barber said. "All I do is tell them to get in the way, to give me a little bit of an advantage, and I'll do the rest."

And so he has.

Every defense the Giants face makes stopping Barber a priority.

Yet Barber still averages 5 yards per carry.

"He's an outstanding football player," said Giants coach Tom Coughlin, not a man given to hyperbole or gushing overstatement. "He has great timing, the ability to maneuver, makes split-second decisions, has outstanding vision and power.

"He gets in the hole, and just when it seems like everything is jammed up and the play is over, he comes out and is shooting down the sideline and into the end zone. He's serious about his trade, prepares well and is very smart."

The career of an running back is filled with brain-jarring blows, gang tackles and serious injuries. Running backs often grow old before their time and seldom grow old in the NFL.

But Barber has benefited by the way his career began. In his first three seasons, he was a third-down back and a punt returner.

In his first three seasons, he had a total of 250 carries for 935 yards. This season, he is at 313 carries and counting.

"Without a doubt, those first three seasons have added to my career," Barber said.

"Over the years, I've evolved and reinvented myself in many different ways to allow me to become the player I am at age 30."

Barber is not as fast as he was 10 years ago, and his torso is wider.

The width has added power. Barber not only plows through the line, he shrugs off tacklers who make the mistake of hitting him high.

"I understand defenses, understand the mechanics of tackling," Barber said. "I understand how to stay on my feet. I've gotten stronger. I've started working with a power lifter the past few years who has made me more explosive and enabled me to keep my balance when I go into contact."

Barber undoubtedly will feel his share of contact tomorrow. The Giants play at the Washington Redskins (8-6).

Barber's career has not been all wide open spaces and runs to daylight.

Until last season, he was plagued by fumble problems, the bane of any running back's existence.

Then Coughlin arrived, and Barber's problems ceased.

"I can't discount how great he has been to me as a person and a player," Barber said of Coughlin. "He's taught me the importance of little things, the minutia of football. I give him almost full credit for curing my fumbling problem.

"From the time you start playing, you're told to carry the ball high and tight. But people don't emphasize it as much as Tom has. I run on the treadmill with the ball held high and tight. I go through conditioning drills in the offseason with the ball held high and tight.

"He has made me a better player, and not just on game day. Now I understand what the other guys need to see."

Coughlin is not known for his warm and fuzzy side. When he sees a problem, he addresses it quickly and bluntly.

"His technique was careless, and we felt we could help him," Coughlin said. "He worked throughout that offseason on it. When he decides there's a project, now, he puts all his effort into it. The credit goes to him."

As does the ball.

 

 

 

Cavs host a feisty Loyola (Md.) team
By Whitelaw Reid / Daily Progress staff writer
December 23, 2005

Cupcake.
That was probably the first word that came to mind when University of Virginia fans first looked at the team's schedule and saw Loyola (Md.) on it. After all, Loyola, which competes in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, went 6-22 last season.

Well, not so fast.

Tonight, the 3-4 Cavaliers - riding a three-game losing streak - will be facing a 5-1 Loyola squad that's off to its best start in 25 years.

"I told the team after practice that this needs to be the most important day of the year," Leitao said. "Obviously when you lose games consecutively, you have to continue to get back on your horse and move yourself forward. The last couple games we haven't been able to do that. This is an opportunity to do that against a difficult opponent."

The Greyhounds feature at least two ACC-caliber players in guard Andre Collins and big man Hassan Fofana. Both transferred to Loyola from the University of Maryland.

Collins, who Leitao called "one of the best scorers in America," is averaging 24 points. The senior scored a career-high 39 points in the team's last game, an 85-73 loss to Manhattan on Dec. 11.

Fofana, a 6-foot-10, 270-pounder, will be making his season debut after sitting out the necessary semester upon transferring. However, the junior had a career-high 10 rebounds when Maryland played Virginia his freshman year.

Leitao compared Fofana to Gonzaga's J.P. Batista.

"I'm hoping he's not as offensively skilled as Batista, but he'll be a load," Leitao said.

"He won't have that much of an adjustment period because they play the exact same way that he was used to playing at Maryland."

Loyola is coached by Jimmy Patsos, a former assistant at Maryland under Gary Williams for 13 years. Patsos is in his second year at Loyola.

Virginia, coming off an 80-69 loss at Gonzaga on Saturday, must also contend with Croatian forward Josko Alujevic, who is averaging 10.3 points and 7.3 rebounds.

The Cavs will be trying to get the bad taste out of their mouth from their last game at University Hall - a 62-60 loss to a Fordham team that had lost six of its preceding seven games. However, Singletary was out with a hip injury against the Rams.

Against the Zags, Singletary exploded for 35 points. He also had six rebounds and tied a career-high with six steals.

Despite the losing streak, Leitao said his team is still upbeat.

"It's a long season and we need to get back on our feet and on the winning side of things," he said. "Things can start seeping into your mindset if you're not careful, [but] I think our guys are as excited and as prepared as if we hadn't lost three in a row."

DUNKS: The Cavs have won all six meetings between the schools. The most recent was a 98-67 win at U-Hall in 1999.

This is the Cavs only game against a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference opponent this season. They're 12-0 lifetime against the MAAC.

The Greyhounds are shooting .346 from 3-point range this season. The Cavs are a dismal .263 from behind the arc.

Cavs guard T.J. Bannister (sports hernia injury) has not made much progress and will probably not play, according to Leitao.

 

 

 

A delicate balance for coach Groh
By Jerry Ratcliffe / Daily Progress sports editor
December 23, 2005

Ever since three of his top assistant coaches left the program to become head coaches in recent weeks, Virginia's Al Groh has done a juggling act between recruiting, bowl preparation and reviewing candidates to fill the vacancies.
But in the meantime, he has also taken on some other responsibilities as the Cavaliers prepare to take on Minnesota in next week's Music City Bowl in Nashville.

Joking with sportswriters on Thursday afternoon, Groh was asked about how the coaching responsibilities have been divided for bowl practice, and he delivered a series of one-liners that would have made a vaudeville act envious.

"There seems to be the best compatibility that we've had yet between our secondary coach and our linebacker coach," Groh said tongue-in-cheek. "And they seem to do everything exactly the way the defensive coordinator wants it done ... which is very pleasing to the head coach."

He should know because he is the secondary coach, the linebacker coach, the defensive coordinator and the head coach for the bowl game.

Those positions were formerly held by Al Golden, who was the defensive coordinator and secondary coach, while Danny Rocco coached the inside linebackers. Golden, of course, is the new head coach at Temple, while Rocco is head coach at Liberty.

A wealth of experience

Groh, who was considered a terrific position coach with the New York Giants, Cleveland Browns, New England Patriots and New York Jets for more than a decade, has had plenty of experience in coaching linebackers and as defensive coordinator, a job he also held at North Carolina, Air Force and Texas Tech.

"It has definitely been interesting," said All-ACC linebacker Kai Parham of Groh's involvement with the defense. "It's kind of cool because he's now a lot more hands on than he was before. I think he's enjoying it and it's been fun. It has been good for us, too, because he's a really good teacher."

Defensive end Chris Long said that it has been obvious that the players seem invigorated by Groh's presence.

"I'm having a great time with coach Groh working with the defense," Long said. "He's enjoying it, too, and I think it's kind of contagious. Everybody's having fun right now. He's getting the chance to do what he loves, which is to coach players and coach techniques. He just looks like he's having fun."

One more UVa game

Rocco and Mark D'Onofrio, who accepted Golden's offer to become Temple's defensive coordinator, have come back to help coach for the Music City Bowl and each have been given certain assignments.

D'Onofrio has resumed his role as special teams coach for the Minnesota game, while both he and Rocco are studying the Golden Gophers.

"They are catching up on being very knowledgeable on Minnesota, so that during the game we have the same set of eyes looking for the same things, providing the same degree of input that we've had for the regular season games," Groh said.

There's apparently a lot for Rocco and D'Onfrio to catch up on because Groh has repeatedly described Minnesota as the best team UVa has faced in a bowl during his time at Virginia.

Graduate assistant Chad Wilt is working alongside Groh with the secondary, while another grad assistant, Bill Polin, is working with the offensive line, where he assisted Ron Prince for the past two seasons. Prince, of course, was UVa's offensive coordinator and line coach, who left to become head coach at Kansas State.

"We're moving along very smoothly over there," Groh said about the offensive side of things.

While it hasn't been determined, or at least announced, who will call the offensive plays for the bowl game, we know that it won't be Al Groh. Or at least that's what he said Thursday.

"I can't call them on both sides this game," Groh said. "Tom Landry used to, but I don't put myself in that category."

When asked if he will make the defensive calls, the coach in good humor, wisecracked, "By default, certainly not by genius, but only by default."

On a more serious note, he gave a lot of credit to Polin for giving a major assist to the offensive line for the bowl. Polin will serve as the line coach for the game and Groh doesn't expect the operation to skip a beat.

"One of the things the offensive line coach does is on Monday night draws all the plays against the expected fronts," the head coach explained. "So, if a team has four fronts, then he draws [the plays] four times. He draws all the protections against the fronts and blitzes. Now that's a lot of drawing, and that's why on Monday nights, the offensive line coach is often the last to leave the building."

Because Prince was both the o-line coach and offensive coordinator, double that workload. Enter Polin, who for the past year has been doing most of the drawings for Prince in terms of the offensive line.

"Bill's up on which calls we use and in what circumstance and why," Groh said. "He has been able to step in very easily.

Meanwhile, Groh has his hands full, but appears to be loving it.

"It's very different," nose tackle Kwakou Robinson said. "I've never heard coach Groh talk this much in any practice before. He's in every meeting watching film and every period he's talking to us and telling us how we need to take on blocks and such. It's good teaching."

Well, the secondary coach thinks so. The linebackers coach agrees. So does the defensive coordinator. Now maybe the head coach can get some sleep.

Maybe not.

 

 

 

Players ponder importance of bowl
By Jay Jenkins / Daily Progress staff writer
December 23, 2005

In the long run, the difference between 7-5 and 6-6 is just one game. Or is it?
With one final game on Dec. 30 all that remains for the 2005 season, the Virginia football team can accurately answer that question.

If the Cavaliers (6-5) upset Minnesota (7-4) in Nashville, Tenn., next week in the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl they will be on the brighter side of the equation.

A loss would leave UVa not only with a .500 record for the season, but with its ninth loss in the program's last 16 games, a slide that dates back to 2004 campaign.

"An average team is 6-6 and coming in next year people will be looking at you at 6-6 and say they didn't do much, they got a lot to improve on and a lot to prove," UVa safety Ryan Best said.

"7-5 - that's a winning record. That's what it all comes down to. A winning record at the end of the season is what you play for."

One of Best's teammates, defensive end Chris Long, agreed.

"[Being 7-5] makes a big difference just because of the overall importance of the bowl game - that bowl win," Long said. "Whether it is worth one win or not, it is a bowl game. We want to get over that hump and be 7-5 and we also want to win a bowl game because last year was a little disappointing."

Last year, Virginia raced out to a 21-7 lead in the second quarter only to watch Fresno State storm back for a 37-34 overtime win in the MPC Computers Bowl in Boise, Idaho.

"I don't think it is just the 7-5 [record that is at stake]. It is finishing the season with a win," said UVa quarterback Marques Hagans. "I think that is more important than the record itself."

After losing back-to-back games - the Cavaliers lost 52-14 to Virginia Tech and 25-17 at Miami - to finish the season, Hagans said a season-ending win could do wonders for the program.

"I think we took a bad slide," Hagans said. "It has been tough little losing skid, so to get that monkey off our back and to send next year's team into the offseason with positive energy and for the seniors to go out on a winning note is big."

Pulling out a win over Minnesota will not be an easy task. And if it wasn't hard enough already, the Cavaliers will have to do so without linebacker Ahmad Brooks and safety Tony Franklin.

Virginia coach Al Groh elected to hold Brooks out of the bowl game due to a back injury that sidelined the former Butkus Award semifinalist in Virginia's final game.

Franklin will not play as he waits for a January court date on a pending misdemeanor charge of possessing marijuana.

Both players will be sorely missed against Minnesota's powerful running attack. The Golden Gophers, who have a 19-game non-conference winning streak, are ranked second in the country in rushing offense (279.9 yards per game).

"They look good," Long said of Minnesota's offense. "They do what they do well. They zone block well and their running backs feed off that."

Since the Golden Gophers have rushed for over 200 yards in 27 of the past 36 games, you wouldn't expect the team to pass the ball much. Right? Not so. Minnesota averaged 26.8 passing attempts and 217.9 yards passing per game this season.

"Their passing attack is pretty conservative," Long said, "but they sprinkle it in well. It compliments the run."

SAYING GOODBYE? Virginia inside linebacker Kai Parham could be playing in his final game for the Cavaliers next week.

Parham, a junior, is considered by most NFL draft experts to be a lock to go in the first three rounds of the draft and has given his name to the league's Draft Advisory Committee to get a gauge on where he would be selected.

While Parham has not said which direction he would go, he said he has talked to Groh about it.

"Right now, I'm just focused on this game," Parham said. "It is a big decision, you know?"

If he were to return next year, Parham said, "it would be because that was what the Lord's telling me to do."

WELCOME BACK: After playing in seven games this season, migraine headaches forced nose tackle Ron Darden to give up his football career.

While the move appeared to be of a permanent nature at the time, Groh announced on Thursday that the Maryland native would play against Minnesota.

Even though Darden has a year of eligibility remaining, his return is a one-time thing.

When asked about Darden's return, Hagans offered more insight into the situation.

"He played it out. Sit out a couple of games, come back and get all the bowl gear," Hagans joked. "You can't blame him. Take a couple of weeks off, come back just in time to get a couple of extra Christmas gifts."

The defensive line should also have the services of Keenan Carter (ankle), something that could help against Minnesota's highly touted offensive line that includes the Rimington and Outland Trophy winner, senior center Greg Eslinger.

"We will see how helpful it is [having Carter and Darden back]," Groh said. "Maybe all three of them will be equally blocked."

HELP WANTED: Virginia currently has four positions open on its coaching staff, although two former assistants, Danny Rocco (head coach at Liberty) and Mark D'Onofrio (defensive coordinator at Temple), are back to help with bowl preparations.

"We certainly do appreciate their involvement and their helping us," Groh said.

D'Onofrio's return may be the most important since he spearheads the special teams units.

"Of the coaches who moved onward, for this game," Groh said, "[D'Onofrio] would have been the most difficult to replace."

Al Golden (Temple) and Ron Prince (Kansas State), the defensive and offensive coordinators at UVa, respectively, did not return for the game.

While Groh did not offer much about the search itself, he has interviewed James Madison assistant Curt Newsome for the vacant offensive line job and plans to move on the other vacancies shortly after he returns from the bowl game and well before Signing Day.

"There's no sense putting it off," Groh said. "I also want to be very thorough in this process. As I said last week, there are quite a few intriguing names on the list.

"I feel very positive about how this thing is going to end up being put together."

Newsome has already been given one recommendation. Hagans said he met Newsome though Mike Smith, his high school coach.

"[Coach Newsome's] shown me nothing but respect and love since day one," Hagans said. "He's a great coach and an even better person. When I got a chance to see him the other day when he interviewed for the job, I told [coach Groh] what I knew about him and how much I respected him and I thought it would be a good move."

TALKING TICKETS: As of Thursday afternoon, 4,904 tickets had been sold for the bowl game through the UVa Athletic Ticket Office. That figure does not include the 1,500 tickets that the school will use for "internal use," leaving the school still 3,596 tickets shy of its allotted amount (10,000).

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: After allowing just nine sacks last season, Minnesota's offensive line has been even better this year. The Golden Gophers have allowed only three sacks for just 17 yards this season.

Since the start of the 2002 season, Minnesota has allowed a Big Ten-best 46 sacks.

EXTRA POINTS: Michael Johnson (ankle) has been sidelined for almost all of Virginia's seven practice sessions this month. Groh admitted that he hopes to have the kick returner and reserve tailback available for the game in a "limited' role.

Virginia's list of safeties for the bowl game isn't exactly a who's who in football, but Groh said the unit has practiced quite well. The candidates for playing time against Minnesota include Byron Glasby, Jamaal Jackson, Ben Parziale, Marshall Tucker and Best. Brandon Woods, a true freshman, is also practicing at the spot, having moved from wide receiver, but Groh said he would not play in the game, keeping his redshirt season in tact. Groh raved about Woods and two other redshirts - cornerback Vic Hall and inside linebacker Rashawn Jackson - for their work in practice this month.

Another true freshman who will redshirt, tailback Mikell Simpson, has been out of practice since he sprained his ankle during prep work for the Miami game late last month.

Groh did not say who would call the offensive plays in the bowl game. It could be wide receivers coach John Garrett or quarterbacks coach Mike Groh. A decision will be made next week in Tennessee.

Minnesota has only played one ACC school in the past 20 years. In 2000, the Golden Gophers lost to N.C. State, 38-30, in the MicronPC Computers Bowl in Florida.

Virginia's players will arrive in Nashville on Monday (Dec. 26) and have a practice session that day at Vanderbilt University. They will practice at the school on Tuesday and Wednesday as well.