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 SabreMail - Sept. 24th, 2004 |
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Cautious optimism. If there is a prevailing mood on the message boards these days, that's what it is. Not giddy excitement about Virginia's three straight routs. Not cynical negativity about how this can't last. There are a wide range of thoughts and attitudes about UVa's football season so far, but I'm struck by how many fans seem to be falling into the category of the cautiously optimistic.
The Cavs are earning national respect -- ESPN's Mark May predicted a UVa upset of Florida State in three weeks -- and it's tempting to throw caution to the wind and expect this season to turn into something truly special. But for most fans I don't think that will happen until Virginia actually beats the Seminoles in Tallahassee (oh, and Syracuse and Clemson before that). If the 'Hoos are 7-0 heading into November, I bet things get a whole lot giddier around here.
John Galinsky |
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| Recruiting News |
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This Week In Recruiting By Chris Horne Football recruiting... North Hall (Gainesville, GA) tailback T.J. Pitts, one of Virginia's remaining targets, has scheduled an official visit to UVa on the weekend of November 6th. Pitts, who has not scheduled any other visits at this time, is also considering offers from North Carolina and Virginia Tech and has received interest from Georgia, Tennessee and Florida. UVa lost out on Ohio receiver Greg Orton, who committed to Purdue. The remaining targets at wide receiver include Todd Nolen and Derrick Williams. These two are the only remaining uncommitted wide receivers with offers from UVa. Basketball recruiting... UVa landed commitment No. 3 last Sunday when DeMatha Catholic (Hyattsville, MD) shooting guard Mamadi Diane verbally committed to Coach Gillen. Diane chose UVa over offers from Georgetown, Miami and West Virginia following his official visit to Charlottesville. He had an offer from Maryland earlier in the process, but both parties decided to pursue other options. Diane is known for his shooting touch (40% from behind the arc last season) and athleticism. He is a 6-5, 175-pound prospect. Tilton School (NH) power forward Alfred Aboya also made an official visit to UVa last weekend. The 6-9, 240-pound prospect still plans on making official visits to UCLA and Georgetown before announcing a commitment. He said he enjoyed his time in Charlottesville.
For more recruiting information and updates, please see Sabre Edge.
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| News, Notes and Fan Discussion |
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Posts of the Week Both posts of the week are about Anthony Martinez's decision to leave the football program. The first post is from a fan and the second is from Anthony's mother, a regular on the message boards.
Subject: Thank you, A Mart
I remember your efforts back in '02, and it was through your efforts that UVA landed many players we might not have landed without you. Even afterwards, it was clear that you were and are a true leader. I noticed in the Virginia Sports segment on summer camp that #4 was the guy out there jumping around, and the players responded. Your mom has been a delight on this board, even as the knuckleheads got out of line. You are a credit to the University, and the future is bright for a guy like you. I will certainly understand if you want to follow your passion for football somewhere else, and that is your right. That said, it would please me immeasurably to have you stay on. Football, after all, ends, but your life as a Hoo is only beginning. Godspeed, AMart. You the Man!
Subject: Hey Guys
Peace always... Anita Cavaliers zip past Akron, 51-0
The question going into last Saturday's game was: Could they do it again? The resounding answer: No. As Frye and his teammates found out, Virginia has vastly improved since 2002. With an overwhelming display of power football, the 'Hoos cruised to a 51-0 victory. They harassed Frye all day, recording five sacks and limiting him to a career-low 72 passing yards. Akron finished with just 84 yards, while the Cavaliers rushed for 326 yards and five touchdowns. Marques Hagans also threw a pair of TD passes to Heath Miller. For an article on the Akron game, please see the link below.
Syracuse on deck for streaking Wahoos After blowing through their first three opponents, the Cavaliers appear ready for a tougher test. Will they get it against Syracuse on Saturday? That remains to be seen. The Orange are a more physical team than Temple, North Carolina and Akron. Walter Reyes, one of the nation's top tailbacks, runs behind a gigantic offensive line, so Virginia's run defense figures to be challenged. Syracuse also is strong on special teams and has forced nine turnovers in its past two games. Still, the Cavs are favored by more than three touchdowns. That's because the Orange has shown little semblance of a passing game or a pass rush. A 51-0 loss to Purdue in the season opener also raised serious doubts about Paul Pasqualoni's team. If the game is close, it will mean one of two things -- either Virginia sank to the level of its opposition, or Syracuse rose to the occasion. For a preview of the Syracuse game, please see the link below.
For more stories, stats, game info and a depth chart, please see the link below.
Support the team on its pregame walk
Engineer's Way is the large alley/sidewalk area that extends from McCormick Road to Whitehead Road between Thornton Hall and the Mechanical Engineering Building. Please see our map for the football team's route of travel. Begin this memorable day with other Virginia fans by setting an enthusiastic tone from the time the players and coaches arrive at the stadium. Men's soccer makes a statement Virginia returned every starter from last year's ACC men's soccer championship team, yet there was plenty of skepticism about the Cavaliers going into the 2004 season. And for good reason. The 'Hoos were lousy in the regular season last year, going 8-9 before making a postseason run. Would they struggle again early this year? So far, the answer is no. UVa is 5-1 going into Sunday's matchup at North Carolina. That includes a 2-1 victory last Sunday at No. 2 Wake Forest, a game in which the Cavs trailed at the half before rallying behind goals from sophomore Ian Holder and freshman Matt Ayotte. Ayotte also scored in Tuesday's 4-1 triumph over Manhattan. Despite being outshot and generally outplayed by the Demon Deacons, Virginia showed resilience and fortitude in the second half. The 12th-ranked Cavs made a statement by finding a way to win -- something they had trouble doing last season in similar situations. That bodes well for the rest of the season. For more information about UVa men's soccer, please see the link below.
Women's soccer still flawless So the football team's 3-0? Big deal. The women's soccer team has a perfect 8-0 record heading into tonight's game at Florida State. The third-ranked Cavaliers shut out two more opponents -- George Mason and William & Mary -- last weekend to extend their best start in over a decade. Sophomore midfielder Shannon Foley had two goals and two assists in those games, giving her five goals for the season. The Wahoos, who have outscored their opponents by a combined score of 27-3, should get their toughest test to date from the ninth-ranked Seminoles. For more information about UVa women's soccer, please see the link below.
Women's golf gaining respect In just its second year as a varsity program, the UVa women's golf team is earning national respect. The Cavaliers are ranked No. 14 after a good showing in their first tournament of the season. Individually, Rachel Smith is ranked third nationally, while sophomore Leah Wigger is 11th. At the Cougar Classic last week, Virginia placed fourth as a team. Smith claimed the school's first medalist honors with a four-under-par 212 and Wigger finished third at 214. For more information about UVa women's golf, please see the link below.
Driscoll wins Virginia Beach Open James Driscoll, a UVa alumnus, won the Virginia Beach Open last weekend. His total of 15-under-par 273 set a tournament record and gave Driscoll his first title on the Nationwide Tour.
More importantly, Driscoll's victory all but guaranteed him a PGA Tour card for next year. He earned $81,000, pushing his season total to $224,111. That moved him from No. 23 to No. 9 on the money list with seven events left. The top 20 money winners on the Nationwide Tour earn PGA playing privileges in 2005.
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Sabre Edge articles and columns from the past week
One thing UVa will need to do is play physical football against the Orange, its toughest opponent to date. That should be no sweat for Elton Brown and company.
We must protect this house. I know this because Ralph Friedgen told me so. With Year One of the New ACC now over 25 percent complete for most of the conference's teams, I think it's a fine time to step back and gather my thoughts on what we've seen to date. Now normally I would do this in an orderly and cohesive fashion, but given that the season is only one-fourth complete, my thoughts are in a similar state. So consider yourself warned.
Hagans often gets noticed for his lack of height, but recently the size of his hands has become a topic of discussion in explaining his success. Along with speed, elusiveness, poise, savvy and smarts, the junior quarterback has huge hands that envelop the ball and help with handoffs, fakes and throws.
Also included in this audio feature is an interview with junior linebacker Darryl Blackstock.
We also name MVPs on offense, defense and special teams as well as give the coaching move of the game.
The 84 yards were the fewest the Cavaliers have allowed in a game since 1979, when they yielded 51 to VMI. "That's a great performance," senior end Chris Canty said of the defense he captains. "Any time you can hold a team under 100 yards of total offense - that's amazing, that's unheard of."
Even quarterback Charlie Frye, a supposed All-America candidate, failed to give UVa's pass defense an adequate test. The swarming Wahoos surely had much to do with his ineffectiveness, but Frye simply wasn't sharp and never looked dangerous. The rest of the Zips were even worse. Because of that, there is still no way to get a firm grip on just how good this team is. Sabre Edge recruiting updates from the past week Our resident recruiting expert, Chris Horne, provides updates for Edge subscribers about UVa's commitments and recruiting targets in football and men's basketball. To sign up for an Edge subscription, please see the sign-up promotion below. If you're already on board as an Edge subscriber, click the links below to catch up on recruiting. Football
Basketball
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For each game, we list five things Virginia needs to do (the absolutes) and five things the Cavaliers would like to do (the desirables). Here are the absolutes and the desirables for Saturday's game against Syracuse.
We suspect that Virginia's offense is in good hands with Marques Hagans. We know that it's in big hands.
In his Monday press conference, Virginia coach Al Groh discussed the challenge presented by Syracuse, the progress of Marques Hagans, the versatility of Wali Lundy, the talent of Chris Canty, the red-zone offense, the punting situation, North Carolina's win over Georgia Tech, and much more.
Another rout means another swell report card for the Cavaliers to bring home. We hand out grades after Virginia's 51-0 thumping of Akron, and as one might expect, the dominating Cavalier defense gets all A's for its effort after allowing 84 yards and no points. One unit, however, gets a C-minus.
High school sprinters can cover 100 yards in less than 12 seconds. Akron's offense had 28 minutes and 10 seconds of possession time this afternoon but was only able to muster 84 yards. The difference is that high school sprinters don't have to go through the Virginia defense.
We didn't learn much about Virginia's football team today that we didn't already know, and that's a good thing and a bad thing. It's good that the Cavaliers proved once again that they can crush a crummy opponent. It's a shame that Akron, like Temple and North Carolina, couldn't provide a semblance of a challenge.
