It's possible the 36-3 dominating defeat the Cavaliers suffered in Tallahassee on Saturday could have a much greater impact than one 'L' in the loss column. The drubbing could destroy the confidence of a team that was flying high after a 5-0 start and a No. 6 national ranking.
But luckily for the Cavaliers, their schedule could be exactly the right dose of medicine to get the squad back on track.
We can go back a few years in the record books and find out what happened to a George Welsh team that was in a similar situation. In 1990, Welsh's squad, led by the "Moore to Moore" connection, (QB Shawn Moore to receiver Herman Moore), got off to a 7-0 start and was ranked No. 1 in the country for three weeks. But Nov. 3 of that year, a No. 16 Georgia Tech team came to Charlottesville and ruined Virginia's dream season with a devastating 41-38 victory.
Virginia beat North Carolina the following week but never completely regrouped from the defeat to the Yellow Jackets, and the team lost its final three games, including a 35-30 home loss to unranked Maryland, to finish 8-4 and barely in the rankings at No. 23 in the country.
If this loss by Virginia happened at home, in three weeks versus a terrible Maryland team, I would say the whole season could be over with dangerous games left at Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech and home versus Miami.
But unlike the loss to Georgia Tech in 1990, this blow from the Seminoles happened in October, in Tallahassee, by a team that deserves to be ranked fifth in the country and that should have beaten Miami in week one. But more importantly for the Cavaliers, check the next two weeks on their schedule: Duke and then a bye week. That should be music to any Virginia football fan's ears and should keep the team from falling into a downward spiral like in 1990.
Let's face it, the only thing that matters in Durham is J.J. Redick's jump shot, and students can't wait for football season to end so basketball can begin.
The Blue Devils are 1-5 this season, 0-3 in the conference. Their only victory is a 21-10 triumph over The Citadel. (I don't know what I would do if I went to a school named "The Citadel.") Duke won three games a year ago and was shut out 27-0 by the Cavaliers in the season opener last fall.
What Virginia needs is a sound trouncing of the Blue Devils this weekend. With injuries to stars Marques Hagans and Elton Brown, who are questionable but should play Saturday, Virginia is not in their top form right now, and the Cavaliers only won 27-22 in Durham two years ago. But that was in 2002, and this season's Cavaliers luckily don't have to be at their best or even completely healthy to win handily at Duke.
A solid victory will keep the team's confidence from plummeting heading into the bye week, and they'll be able to use the week off to rest their injuries and prepare for the brutal last quarter of their schedule.
I despise Duke (Redick, especially) more than any other school, mostly because of its success on the hardwood I guess. And I'll be the first one to complain when Virginia students walk around Grounds wearing Duke attire. But this weekend, I can't be any happier to see that Blue Devil blue.
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