With eight more catches, Virginia wide receiver Billy McMullen's greatness will go down yet again in the record books. Smashing this record is no small feat.
Once McMullen brings down catch number 129 of his career, he will pass former Cavaliers' greats, such as Herman Moore and Germane Crowell, as he becomes the all-time receptions leader at Virginia. He already surpassed Moore's record of single-season receptions. Moore's record was 54 catches and McMullen currently boasts 63 receptions so far this season.
If you were to ask McMullen about achievements like Moore's record and especially the career catches record, you might be surprised by his answer.
"I didn't even know about it," McMullen said. "I'm not out there to set records. I've never been a part of a really dominating team, and that's my only goal. I really want to dominate people like Florida State."
John Ford, who played for the Cavaliers from 1984-88 with a redshirt year in between, holds the Virginia record for career catches. During his remarkable career, Ford came up with 128 receptions.
McMullen is on pace to break the mark in only three years - quite an astounding achievement for a player who was not highly recruited out of high school.
My numbers "are really satisfying," McMullen said after being told he would likely break the record this season. "I care about the team first, but to pass all of the great receivers that have come through here is pretty amazing. Most people said I couldn't even be a good receiver."
College football analysts have said he was simply too slow to be an effective wide receiver. In fact, Virginia coach Al Groh said that if he had been coaching at the time of McMullen's recruitment, he might have overlooked the 6-foot-4 205-pound receiver from Henrico High School.
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"A lot of colleges are recruiting speed these days," Groh said. "If you don't take a step back and look at the guys who aren't incredibly fast, you might miss out on a superstar like Billy. I need to make sure I am not doing that right now."
The fact that McMullen was told he was too slow is what has fueled the fire for his success at Virginia. He is quick to point out that he enjoyed - and will continue to enjoy - proving the critics wrong.
"I love playing against people that said I wasn't good enough," McMullen said. "I love going up against the guys that said I couldn't come to their school. I take a lot of satisfaction in how hard I work. I knew the Lord had a plan for sending me here."
McMullen's 38-inch vertical jump is his primary weapon against smaller defensive backs that he faces on the field. He provides highlight-reel catches - leaping in the air and snatching the ball before an opponent can get to it. One instance this year came when McMullen tore the ball away from a North Carolina defender who was about to make an interception on Virginia quarterback Matt Schaub's pass.
"He just went in and stole the ball from the guy," Groh said. "It was simply an amazing play. Plays like that are what makes him on of the best receivers in the country."
The numbers agree with Groh's statements, as McMullen has racked up 63 receptions for 791 yards and 10 touchdowns so far this season. All three are numbers that rank in the top six for career-highs at Virginia. McMullen broke Herman Moore's all-time single-season reception record in Virginia's loss to N.C. State on Oct. 27. He looks to put that number far behind him with three more games left to play in 2001.
Other members on the team will say that McMullen doesn't just focus on his own game, but that he also works to help his fellow receivers. McMullen worked especially close with sophomore wide receiver Michael McGrew in the off- season.
"He worked with me all this summer," McGrew said. "He took his time out to critique my route-running and condition, as we both worked to become better receivers this season. The chemistry has never been lacking."
With such accomplishments to represent his career at Virginia, many wonder if McMullen might be thinking about leaving college football early to enter the NFL draft next spring.
"I'm not even thinking about" the NFL, he said. "I want to play on a powerhouse team, and I'm going to try to help build this team up."
So make sure you keep a count of how many receptions McMullen makes over the next couple of weeks, because when he breaks Ford's career receptions mark, he is likely to get up, go right back to the huddle, and get ready for catch number 130.
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