Wahoo fans,

What a way to end the year, with UVa football taking down Pitt in the Continental Tire Bowl and UVa basketball winning nine of its first ten games. The football team finished strong, knocking off Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech and Pitt to close out the season with an 8-5 record. With just about everyone on the two-deep returning next season, the Cavaliers should be primed to make a legitimate run at the ACC title. Of course, with Miami and VT entering the league, it could be a bit tougher than in previous years. But my guess is that Coach Al Groh and his troops will be ready for the challenge.

Speaking of challenges, Coach Pete Gillen has gotten his team through the 'preseason' part of the schedule with a 9-1 record - the only loss coming on a road game with conference foe N.C. State. With only two more non-conference opponents remaining (Providence and William and Mary), the Hoos will begin the toughest part of their schedule when they resume ACC play on January 11th against Duke. That is when the true measure and character of this team will be tested, especially since the ACC is the strongest it has been in many years.

I hope all of you enjoyed a safe and happy holiday season. Have a Happy New Year! Or should I say. Happy Hoo Year!!

All has been quiet on the recruiting front, however that will certainly change in the month of January. Recruits will be making their final official visits and, subsequently, their decisions as well. The following prospects had updates from Christmas up to the New Year.

Bowman Ready for Final Visit
Hermitage linebacker Andrew Bowman will be making his fifth and final visit next weekend, when he travels to UNC. His decision will likely come down to UVA, VT, and TN, and may come a week or two following his trip to Chapel Hill.

Sintim With A Favorite?
The Gar-Field HS defensive end/outside linebacker prospect will make official visits to MD and VT this month. He named UVA as his leader, however VT will be tough competition as well. The Terrapins may be behind the two Virginia programs at this point.

Junior Video: Victor Harris
Check out video on one of next year's top in-state recruits, Highland Springs HS RB/CB Victor Harris. Harris may be a top five player in the state for next year. He currently boasts offers from UVA and VT.

Royal Shuffles Visits
The Washington Post All-Metro Offensive Player of the Year will visit TN, VT, UVA, and Marshall this month. It appears UVA will be a mid-week trip. VT is looking strong right now, but Royal hopes to make all of his planned officials.

Three Visits Remain for NJ Athlete
UVA will receive an official visit from Leo Ferrine, a versatile DB/WR prospect from St Peter's Prep in New Jersey. Ferrine will also make official visits to Penn State and Notre Dame, and has made one trip to Rutgers.

Four for Mayo?
Kecoughtan LB Jerod Mayo visits TN and VT this month. It appears his decision will come down to UVA, VT, TN, and NC State, with UVA having the edge in my opinion.

Tristan Davis Sets Two More Visits
One of the state of Georgia's most versatile prospects, S/WR Tristan Davis will make official visits to UNC next weekend as well as Auburn on the 23rd. The Tigers figure to provide UVA with tough competition, as they are closer to home, and he liked them on an unofficial last year. UVA, led by lead recruiter Mike London, is in strong position as well. He visited Charlottesville on the weekend of the VT game last year.

Elton Brown holding the 2003 Tire Bowl trophy

The Cavaliers defended their Continental Tire Bowl title by defeating the Panthers of Pitt, 23-16. Quarterback Matt Schaub took home the MVP honors with an outstanding effort. Schaub completed 20 of his 31 passes for 244 yards and one touchdown. Virginia's defense also came to play, holding Pitt to just 3 second half points and limiting all-everything receiver Larry Fitzgerald to no touchdowns and just 77 yards receiving on 5 catches.

The UVa defense sacked Pitt quarterback Rod Rutherford five times. But the most important defensive play of the game might have come on sack by defensive end Brennan Schmidt with just over two minutes to play. Schmidt's sack caused Rutherford to fumble the ball. Linebacker Kai Parham fell on the loose ball, and the Cavaliers ran out the remainder of the clock with a heavy dose of tailback Wali Lundy.

Defensively, freshman linebacker Ahmad Brooks had the most notable day, racking up 12 tackles, with 11 of them solo. Brooks also had two tackles for loss including a sack, as well as one pass breakup. Freshman linebacker Kai Parham also put in an outstanding day, racking up 10 tackles (8 solo) and recovering the aforementioned fumble.

Credit should also go to senior corner Almondo 'Muffin' Curry and sophomore linebacker Darryl Blackstock for frustrating Pitt receiver Fitzgerald. Their efforts caused Pitt coaches to look away from their Heisman runner-up receiver for much of the second half.

The Cavaliers finish the season 8-5, winning their second straight bowl game under Coach Al Groh. The Hoos have won 17 games the past two seasons under Groh while fielding two of the youngest teams in the nation. The Hoos won't be able to boast their youth next season, but they will be returning just about every member of their two-deep. Questions must be answered with regard to a couple of positions, most notably at quarterback with the loss of Matt Schaub.

While Schaub will not be easily replaced, there are some excellent candidates waiting for their opportunity this spring. Four candidates will compete for the position, but quarterback/receiver/punt returner Marques Hagans may have the jump on all of them. Hagans has experience at quarterback each of the last two seasons and has the heart and determination of a champion.

Check the links below for all you need to know about the bowl game.

Free bowl content

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Sabre Edge subscribers can now view the photos from UVa's basketball and football games against Virginia Tech. It took a while to finally get them uploaded to the site, but I think you'll find it well worth the wait. 127 photos are up from the UVa-VT football game. They include a few shots from the Wilk Hall tailgate when the ESPN crew was there taking interviews. They also include a few nice shots from the Cavalier Football Walk, the pregame ceremony honoring UVa's senior players, as well as the game photos themselves.

On the horizon - tons of photos from the Continental Tire Bowl, as well as photos from the Minnesota basketball game and upcoming Providence game.

Every month, Sabre Edge provides you with exclusive articles, columns, special features, interviews and recruiting news, including weekly 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 online purchases through TheSabreShop.com during your subscription.

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