I'm a huge fan of the new LED displays that surround the stadium rim at Scott Stadium now, especially the part where the camera pans up the player's body to focus on his eyes. It's intense and transmits the new attitude of the team. And with coach Al Groh's shuffling of players, more and more pairs of eyes are being seen on the new digital scoreboards.
Each year, major football programs lose important athletes and, immediately, another highly recruited player steps in to handle duties. In these top-flight programs, the team barely misses a beat. The mark of a great football program is the ability to reload and overcome any obstacles with a great talent pool, and here at Virginia, the team is beginning to reach that level of talent and depth.
The Miami Hurricanes' running back situation is a great example of this phenomenon. Willis McGahee left for the NFL after setting a school record for rushing with 1,686 yards as a sophomore. Sophomore Frank Gore then stepped in to the vacated role and averaged 5.3 yards a carry before getting hurt, at which point senior Jarrett Payton took over and rushed for 97 yards in a victory against rival and then-No. 5 Florida State.
Few moral victories exist in top-25 college football and certainly the Cavaliers expected to beat the Seminoles despite being underdogs, but this game demonstrated more about the program than most close losses. The Cavaliers were not overwhelmed by the Seminole talent level. In fact, in most aspects of the game, the teams were almost dead even. If you take away the opening touchdown (so typical of Florida State's quick starts), the defense performed well, surrendering only 12 points to the explosive Seminoles. Clearly the teams were much more evenly matched than in past meetings, and for the first time in three years under Groh, Virginia beat themselves against FSU.
Pinpointing the problem is the tough part. Some indicate that the strategy of nearly eliminating the run from the offense too early in the game contributed to the loss. The absence of the ACC's leading rusher, sophomore Wali Lundy, clearly had an impact on the game plan.
But the Cavaliers were still able to move the ball. In fact, the screen and flare patterns that led to junior Alvin Pearman's record-setting 16 catches functioned almost as long handoffs. To play this wide-open, completely pass-focused attack, though, an offense must be able to stretch the field to keep the short passing game from being over-run with defensive backs. In this department, the Seminoles posses an attribute the Cavaliers have not yet developed.
Florida State has big play potential in Craphonso Thorpe, as evidenced by his 79-yard catch early in the game, which turned out to be a difference maker in the final outcome. However, with the preseason injury to projected starter and senior Michael McGrew, the wide receiver situation is a source of concern right now for the Cavaliers. Freshmen Fontel Mines and Deyon Williams are clearly the future of the Cavaliers at receiver, but as of now, Groh hasn't integrated them in the full rotation of the receiving corps -- surely a product of the learning curve. Marques Hagans provides an excellent option on screens from the slot, but he hasn't developed into a downfield threat, which is something the team desperately needs and doesn't seem to be getting from possession-type receivers junior Ottowa Anderson and senior Ryan Sawyer.
The Cavaliers' longest pass was a screen to Pearman for 25 yards. The longest downfield completion was to Williams for 24. Rarely, if ever, did the Cavaliers try and throw past the Florida State safeties and open up the short game. The talent is clearly present, as Mines and Williams have both shown flashes of brilliance in their rookie campaigns, but these players are young and have not developed into great college receivers.
Until the Cavaliers either set up the short passing game with the deep ball or recommit to the run and force teams to rush more than three players, winning on simple swing passes and Heath Miller's ability to make himself a big target in the middle of the field is going to be tough. Even with a solid defense, upper echelon opponents -- such as Virginia Tech and the Hurricanes' addition to the ACC next year -- will still be able to take advantage of the simplicity of the offense.
Despite this, the Cavaliers had a good chance to win Saturday, and only a few key turnovers and a botched snap separated the Cavaliers from a huge upset victory.
The talent level is getting there, and the coaching staff's recruiting efforts in areas like Virginia's Tidewater -- where players just a few years ago were only going to Virginia Tech -- are showing through in the play of a dominating offensive line and a faster, deeper defense. Wide receiver, though, still lacks a good deal of seasoning, as injuries and graduation have left the corps short-handed. In the future, however, the talent is going to be there, as the process of building a top-flight program continues.
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