Five fumbles and two big plays were almost forgotten thanks to one tremendous near-comeback. The Colorado State Rams (1-0) defeated the host Virginia Cavaliers (0-1) 35-29 in the Jim Thorpe Classic Thursday night. In the closing seconds Virginia's hopes for a last-second win fell apart along with the ball, as it slipped out of quarterback Marques Hagans' hands inside the Rams' three yard line.
With a student section filled to seeming capacity, belying the fact that school would not be in session for nearly a week, an energetic Scott Stadium crowd of 57,120 welcomed college football's earliest start ever. The Cavalier players appeared on Hoovision prior to the game inciting the crowd to start a new tradition by chanting "Hoo! Hoo!" in unison at the sight of the horsebacked Cavalier Man. Though the new cheer did not catch on very well, the Cavalier faithful were not lacking enthusiasm and energy in support of the exciting and fresh 2002 edition of Virginia football.
With two minutes and nine seconds remaining, the Cavaliers stood on their 18-yard line, trailing by six. Aided by a third down roughing the passer infraction against the Rams, Hagans led Virginia within three yards of the end zone. The key plays were back-to-back completions to sophomore running back Alvin Pearman for 39 yards.
At the three with 21 seconds left, Hagans rolled out to his right looking to throw.
"It was a sprint pass on the edge," Coach Al Groh said. "We've been successful with it in the past. The hope is not to get tackled with the ball on the field."
With no timeouts, getting tackled would end the game. Knowing this predicament, Hagans lunged forward, desperately reaching for the end zone, only to lose the ball en route.
The dramatic finish befitted the tight game. The Rams' and Cavaliers' numbers paired up closely: 416 total yards for Colorado State against 414 for Virginia, 20 first downs versus 25, and 29:41 in contrast with 30:19 in time of possession. The one glaring mismatch was turnovers. The Rams lost two fumbles; the Cavaliers lost four and suffered an interception by junior Matt Schaub that would be returned to the Virginia four-yard line.
"We showed some sparks of
doing some pretty good things," Pearman said. "But we can't have all those turnovers. You simply can't win a game with five turnovers, and that's something we have to correct."
Pearman, the team's leading rusher a year ago, did not see the field until late in the first quarter when he fumbled away a punt return that would directly lead to the second of Colorado State'sJeff Babcock's five field goals. But Pearman showed the maturity to forget the mishap and keep playing hard -- he would accrue 54 yards on the ground and lead the team with 60 receiving yards, in addition to scoring two touchdowns.
The defense, led by co-captain Angelo Crowell and his game-high 10 tackles, held consistently strong in spite of high heat and humidity. But asking them not to bend or break at all would be too much. Rams senior running back Cecil Sapp showed no ill signs of missing the 2001 campaign because of a benign tumor in his left heel. He amassed 178 yards on 25 carries, highlighted by a 72-yard touchdown scamper down the sideline after having initially been stuffed up the middle. The defense also yielded a 34-yard scoring strike from Bradlee Van Pelt to Joey Cuppari following a deft Van Pelt play action.
The turnovers and big plays turned what could have been a Cavalier rout into a narrow defeat.
"To be that close and not win, we're all very disappointed," Groh said. "The most difficult part was losing by the two things we worked on for months, turning the ball over five times and giving up two big plays."
The hype surrounding this year's team is the youth, speed and versatility the team has to offer
and that's just what the fans were treated to Thursday.
Groh employed the efforts of ten true freshmen along with the use of redshirt freshman Hagans in the quarterback rotation. Wali Lundy led the team with 94 rushing yards; Kurt Smith's kickoffs consistently reached the endzone; speedy Michael Johnson accumulated 37 rushing yards on only 5 carries and had an exciting 38 yard punt return, only to be tripped up by the Rams' punter -- the last man between Johnson and the endzone.
Hagans completed 10-of-13 passes for 120 yards and ran for 45 yards and a touchdown. The starter, Schaub, initially received a quick hook after an indifferent start but returned to throw for one score and 73 yards. Groh commented that Hagans was in the game plan all along for part-time action, but his solid play will mount discussion of a controversy. If these contributions persist and the turnovers are reduced, the Cavaliers will be in excellent shape to surprise unsuspecting foes this season
- they get their next chance a week from today at No. 3 Florida State.
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