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SabreMail - Feb. 16, 2009 |
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Changes Continue The offseason changes with the UVa football program continue to mount. First, assistant head football coach Bob Pruett announced via news release on Wednesday that he is retiring from coaching. Now, just a few days later, multiple reports indicate that defensive coordinator Bob Diaco is headed to a new job as well. Of course, shortly after the season ended, it was announced that Mike Groh, Levern Belin, and Steve Bernstein all were leaving the program as well. Strength and conditioning coach Matt Balis also left for a job at Mississippi State. That means just Anthony Poindexter, Dave Borbely, Wayne Lineburg, and Bob Price are set to return for the 2009 season; only Borbely and Price remain in their previous positions since Lineburg moved over to coach the running backs when Poindexter shifted to the secondary. Pruett, who joined the Virginia staff for just one season, cited personal reasons for returning to retirement. "As we all have to do in our lives, sometimes you have to stop and reset your priorities," Pruett said in a news release. "I think this is the best thing for our family and best for the University of Virginia's family, which I love dearly. When I first started out in coaching in 1965 as a high school coach, a goal of mine was to coach at the University of Virginia. It is an experience I really cherish. I really feel very good about my whole career and being able to finish my coaching career in the great state of Virginia with all the great athletes, all the great high school coaches and all the great people who are here." Meanwhile, the reports on Diaco's expected departure hit the newspapers today with The Richmond Times-Dispatch, The Daily Progress, and The Daily Press all carrying stories. The reports indicate that Diaco is headed to Cincinnati to be reunited with Brian Kelly, who he coached with at Central Michigan. Diaco had been elevated to defensive coordinator in early December amid the staff changes occurring at the time. The decisions by Diaco and Pruett leave Al Groh with more staff positions to address. He has already hired Gregg Brandon (offensive coordinator), Latrell Scott (wide receivers), Chad Wilt (defensive line), and Brandon Hourigan (strength and conditioning) during the offseason. Newspaper reports speculate that Ron Prince, the Cavaliers' former offensive coordinator prior to taking the head coaching job at Kansas State, could be rejoing the Hoos as an assistant head coach. Prince was dismissed from his post at KSU. Read the various reports in Sabre NewsLink!
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Recruiting News | |||||
This Week In Recruiting The University of Virginia football program didn't waste much time in switching gears from seniors to juniors, as it held its first prospect day for the 2010 class on Saturday. It was a small gathering of only around nine or 10 prospects, but the small number allowed the staff an opportunity to really focus on those select recruits. Deep Run (Glen Allen, VA) offensive lineman Conner Davis, who received an official offer from Al Groh on Saturday, appreciated the attention. "I enjoyed it a lot," Davis said. "It gave me an opportunity to get all my questions asked." For more on the 6-5, 255-pound prospect and others, stay tuned to the EDGE today and throughout the week. We already have an article out on Davis, who has much more to say about the junior day event and the rest of his late winter/spring visit plans. Other confirmed visitors include Central York (York, PA) tight end/defensive end Kyle Baublitz, West Rowan (Mount Ulla, N.C.) running back Kevin Parks, King & Low-Heywood running back Silas Redd, and Fork Union Military Academy offensive tackle Mark Shuman. In addition to following up with those prospects in attendance on Saturday, TheSabre.com will take a closer look at some of the top prospects in the state of Virginia's 2010 class. Expect to see that piece out today or tomorrow and to find out which prospects have emerged as early top targets in the Commonwealth. Basketball recruiting On the basketball recruiting front, we will continue to follow up with some of Virginia's top junior targets. In case you missed it, check out the latest on North Carolina combo guard Brian Richardson, a 6-5, 155-pound junior that lists the Cavs at the top of his list. Richardson, who is averaging over 20 points per game in his senior season, is also considering offers from George Washington and South Carolina, among others.
Chris Horne, our resident recruiting expert, provides updates throughout the week for Edge subscribers about UVa's commitments and recruiting targets in football and men's basketball. To sign up for an Edge subscription, please check out the Sabre Edge Sign Up and Information Page. If you're already on board as an Edge subscriber, click the links below to catch up on recruiting. Sabre Edge recruiting updates from the past week ...
Davis Takes in UVa Junior Day
Reflections and Analysis of UVa's Class
Slotting The 2009 Signees More recent recruiting updates on The Sabre ...
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News, Notes, and Fan Discussion | |||||
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Blog Banter: On Programs and Pipe dreams By Rob Mahini, The Good Ol' Blog Another reader chimes in:
What does the slogan "Uncompromised Excellence" mean? It means the University will not sell out it's academic program for athletics. After all, UVA is a school of higher education and not a semi-pro breeding ground. Athletic scholarships used to provide a means for high school kids who did not have the funds to go to college another option to do so. Somewhere along the way the money that a good athletic program can generate started to get in the way of most college visions. There are some universities that are proud to be known as "Athletic Powerhouses" while others are proud to be known as "Education Powerhouses." There is one problem with the above. It seems at times that UVA is the only University who cares about its athletes' education. This is where the frustration of the fans comes in to play. The almighty dollar and the prestige of a great football or men's basketball program rule most universities. Look at the stadiums and arenas that are being built to attract the top talent in the land and secure the largest donors available. Let's face it, the smartest athletes are not always going to be the best athletes. Barry Switzer put it best, when he was a coach, when he told reporters that you can not win championships with choir boys. The top athletes want to go to a place where they will be noticed immediately and can opt out of their scholarship to go pro and make the big bucks. If you don't have to attend class or keep above average grades then that?s a plus. Although UVA has had some great talent come through in years past it has never been consistent like the regular top 25 programs in the country. The sports that I like to call the rich boy sports, such as tennis, soccer, lacrosse, and swimming will always be top contenders. The athletes in those programs typically will come with a higher GPA and are naturally a good fit for UVA. Well, this is a general problem with Virginia - I think there's a big tension between the desire to do well in the revenue sports and the desire to keep academics as uncompromised as possible. This, to some degree, is a paradox that will lead to slippage in both directions at all times. For every Ahmad Brooks that gets let in, there's a Robert Armstrong that doesn't. Unfortunately, this paradox doesn't appear to be a good formula for consistent winning or consistent academic excellence. And then the reader had this interesting idea ... Read the full blog post here! Got some thoughts on the current state of affairs? Write me at [email protected]. Advertise With The Sabre! TheSabre.com has come a long way since its conception in 1996. We are the #1 media source and community covering UVa athletics, producing an average of 95,000 unique viewers and over 4 million page views each month. We reach a coveted demographic (you know Hoo you are) 24/7, 12 months out of the year. Rooting for their team clearly represents one of the big passions in the life of our Sabre community members. This site greatly enhances this never-ending passion through information, analysis, and most importantly through communal dialog/networking.Our advertising approach is different in that we make it abundantly clear in a direct and honest way that your company's commitment of sponsorship dollars is what enables the site to continue existing and improving into the future. To learn more, please contact [email protected]. The Sabre is a vital part of a unique collegiate sports network that reaches nearly 2 million individuals per month. Like the Sabre, each site in the SportsWar network is an organically grown community and the emotional home for its fans. To learn more about SportsWar network sponsorship opportunities, please contact [email protected] and visit the SportsWar media guide www.sportswar.com To view a list of our sponsors, please visit our Sponsors Page.
Around the World of Wahoo Sports ...
For more Hoo news or to read full releases, check out Virginiasports.com.
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UVa Bookstores - The Place for Wahoo Gear! | |||||
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SabreMail History | |||||
Issue No. 31 - April 4, 2002
Spring football highlights UVa football is in full swing with spring practices. I had the opportunity to observe three practices during the first week of spring ball. Here are just a few of the highlights. QB Matt Schaub - Coach Groh said in his spring press conference that Matt Schaub took the bull by the horns in the offseason, and is taking the approach that this is his team, and he's the QB. That attitude was clearly visible in the first few spring practices. Schaub was confident and sharp. He's more relaxed and is much quicker in terms of his decision-making after the snap. His passes are crisp and right on time, allowing his receivers to do something after the catch. TB Alvin Pearman - Pearman appears quicker. That's amazing since he added some additional muscle mass during the off-season. Groh and his staff have put an emphasis on having Pearman make one cut and go, rather than putting on too many moves at the line of scrimmage. Pearman now explodes right out of his cuts and gets north and south quickly. Comparisons to UVa's former #21 are hard to avoid. If you didn't read the roster, you'd swear it was Tiki Barber on the field. TE Heath Miller - Wow! That's just about what you'd hear everyone say when watching practice. This young man is a beast. The move from quarterback to tight end was a smart one. Miller has soft hands and is a huge target. He and teammate Patrick Estes could be the best tight end tandem at UVa since Billy Baber and Casey Crawford. WR Billy McMullen - It's should be no surprise that McMullen has gotten out of the gates quickly this spring. It's apparent that he's worked on consistency - McMullen hardly drops a pass in practice, and makes some of the hardest catches I've seen a receiver make since the days of - you guessed it - Herman Moore. Comparisons to Moore might be a bit premature, but this preseason All-American candidate has the tools and the size to do some serious damage this season. WR Michael McGrew - This is perhaps my favorite Cavalier. McGrew just seems to always do the right thing on the field. His routes are perfect, his moves are sweet, and the kid catches everything. Barring injury, McGrew will likely start opposite McMullen this season. WR Ryan Sawyer - Mark him down as UVa's third receiver for 2002, at least for now. Unless true freshmen Wali Lundy or Ron Morton come in and become wonder-receivers, Sawyer looks to have the third receiver slot secured. Sawyer made some nice receptions the first week of practice, and looks to be completely over the injury he suffered last season. DE Chris Canty - Remember last season? Remember how it was reported by Groh, the team and the media that Canty would be an amazing defensive lineman if he could just add weight? Well, Canty did just that in the off-season, adding another 20 pounds of muscle to his 6-7 frame. Canty is now in the 280's and could easily put on another 20 pounds and maintain his athleticism. UVa's offensive linemen are getting a serious workout this spring, and Canty is one of the primary reasons.
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What's New on TheSabre.com? | |||||
Coming Soon The Sabre has you covered when it comes to Hoo news. Here are a few of the articles to expect on the site soon:
In Case You Missed It ... Sabre articles since the last SabreMail
UVa Retires Singletary's No. 44
Cavaliers Chop Down Clemson
Revisiting Key Questions, Part II
Revisiting Key Questions, Part I
Shine Learning On The Job For Virginia
Seminoles Slip Past Cavs
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Sabre Edge | |||||
Get your Wahoo fix. Subscribe to Sabre Edge! Every week, Sabre Edge provides you with exclusive articles, columns, special features, interviews and recruiting news, including daily recruiting updates. There's even a special message board just for subscribers. And to top it off, you get 10 percent off all of your UVa Bookstores purchases during your subscription. All of the great Sabre Edge content can be yours for the price of $5.99 per month or $59.99 per year. Try it for a month and cancel if you like. But we think you'll get hooked on the Edge and find out for yourself why the most knowledgeable Cavalier fans are Edge subscribers. If you're a true Wahoo, then the Sabre Edge is right for you. Check it out! |
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