The win was emphatic. Poignant. Lopsided. And yes, comical. It started as I was walking through the assembled tailgating masses and spotted a Maryland fan in full Terrapin regalia including -- and I only wish I was making this up -- a red plastic turtle hat complete with short, stubby head, checkered shell, four stout feet and a small tail protruding from the rear. This was a grown man in his 30s, mind you. The appropriate response was obviously, "Uh, excuse me, sir. You have a turtle on your head." It shut him up quick.
-- The thunderstick officially is the best new sports fad. Last week the noise it produced compensated for the approximately 10,000 no-show fans. It also enhances the experience of signaling a Cavalier first down -- it is impossible not to crack up while watching the drunken student section aim its thundersticks in the general direction of the first down and do it with varying degrees of success. Even better was watching computerized Cav-Man incite the crowd to clap them on 'Hoovision.
-- Does anybody feel bad for Maryland wideout Scooter Monroe? On the first play from scrimmage in the second quarter, his defender, Virginia corner Jamaine Winborne, falls and leaves Monroe hopelessly wide open. Monroe then proceeds to drop a perfect pass and certain 80-yard touchdown. Almost exactly one minute later, Matt Schaub finds Jason Snelling for a 27-yard touchdown. Ouch.
-- Why did Virginia call a quarterback option with Schaub under center inside Maryland's 15? Seeing Schaub decide against the pitch and then stumble for a paltry two yards made me turn to my colleagues and concede, "I didn't see anything if you didn't."
-- Schaub's second quarter? He completed all nine of his pass attempts for 70 yards and two touchdowns. Maryland quarterback Scott McBrien was one-for-four with an interception and exactly one yard passing.
-- The game finally reached the level of pure absurdity on the first series of the third quarter when Virginia receiver Billy McMullen, fielding the ball on a reverse, spun out of a tackle and then made a Brett Favre-esque leaping toss to an open Michael McGrew, who had a better chance of tripping over the yard lines than being caught by a Maryland defender -- certainly the easiest 37-yard touchdown of his life.
Even McMullen recognized the sheer silliness of the play.
"I thought it was a pretty good pass," he said. "If I had to rate the pass one to ten, I'd give it a 13."
-- On Virginia's last score of the third quarter, sophomore guard Elton Brown -- still recovering from a leg injury and unexpectedly on the field -- served as Wali Lundy's lead blocker on a third-and-21 screen pass. Brown, affected by the injury, was lumbering out in front looking for someone to block. And kept looking and looking. It wasn't until Lundy was nearly in the endzone before Brown was able to find a challenger. By that time, Lundy had done his damage. End of third quarter score: 34-7.
-- In terms of famous alumna sportswriters for Maryland and Virginia, they pit their Bonnie Bernstein against our Melissa Stark -- I mean, is this even a contest?
-- The 48-13 final tally does beg this question: can the men's basketball team beat Chaminade by the same 35-point margin?
-- While walking toward the field in the game's final minutes, I was stopped by a fan decked out in full Cavalier apparel. Noting my press pass, he asked if I was a sportswriter and who it was I wrote for -- perhaps, in his drunkeness, he was hoping I was some minor celebrity (he of course had the wrong guy, but I did share Saturday's press box with PTI's Michael Wilbon). Upon replying that I was a writer for Virginia's student paper, he seemed initially disappointed but then perked up and, from the strong smell of bourbon emanating from his general direction, said as triumphantly as he could muster, "All righty! Wahoo-wa!"
And indeed, this was a game that belonged to a student body who came out in full force, packing its section of Scott Stadium and reveling whole-heartedly in the win all night. For the seniors in the stands, it was a great final game to attend full of gafs and good times. For the players, it was even sweeter -- a pinnacle for many of them.
"This is the only way to go out," senior co-captain Angelo Crowell said. "What else could you want?"
Maybe a built in laugh track for the way Virginia dismissed then-No. 18 Maryland.
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