HOT SPRINGS, Va. -- To say that from the day Brennan Schmidt arrived at Virginia he has been a staple on the football field would be a massive understatement. Starting all 39 games of his career has earned the left defensive end a reputation of being much more than a staple. Hard worker? Check. Defensive force? Absolutely. Leader? Without a doubt.
So it came as no surprise when Schmidt was named a 2005 team captain. Over three years in the trenches the 6-foot-3-inch Schmidt has amassed 224 tackles and six sacks, his tackle total ranking seventh best in Virginia history.
His production hasn't gone unnoticed by the coaching staff.
"Brennan's one of the real beavers on the team," Virginia coach Al Groh said. "If any player wants a good example of how to go about it and really apply himself to the nth degree, whether you're a defensive end or wide receiver, Brennan Schmidt is a good guy to follow around."
Two budding players who might want to heed Groh's advice are fellow sophomore defensive ends Chris Johnson and Chris Long. The similarities between the two exist well beyond their shared first name. Both players are of local origin, Johnson from Charlottesville High School and Long from St. Anne's Belfield and in ensuing years, both were named the Central Virginia Defensive Player of the Year by the Daily Progress. Johnson earned the distinction in 2002 as a senior and proceeded to red-shirt his freshman year at U.Va. while Long also won as a senior in 2003.
Due to an injury that sidelined starting defensive end Chris Canty, Johnson started the final three games of the regular season as well as the MPC Computers Bowl. On the season he recorded 27 tackles, tops among freshman. Long had five tackles and one sack in six games but missed five games midway through the season due to a case of mononucleosis.
When questioned about Long's potential at the ACC Media Kickoff last weekend at The Homestead, Groh answered with cautious optimism.
"Chris Long has certainly shown at every stage that he can be a very good player," he said.
Schmidt voiced the same opinion regarding both Johnson and Long.
"They're both doing a great job," he said. "They work very hard in the off-season and I know they see the opportunity ahead of them and they really have both impressed me, especially Chris Long in spring practice and stuff like that. I know they're ready and I know that they just can't wait for the opportunity to show what they can do."
Long shared a similar sentiment with his senior teammate.
"We [Long and Johnson] felt like we had some opportunities last year but we couldn't take full advantage of them," he said. "Chris [Johnson] did that more-so than me. We both look to step into more important roles this year and were excited about it."
Although Johnson finished out the 2004 season as the starting right defensive end, the pre-fall depth chart in the 2005 Virginia football media guide has Long listed as the starter while senior Kwakou Robinson is listed as the back-up. The nose tackle, a position vacated by the departure of Andrew Hoffman, will likely be filled by either sophomore Keenan Carter or junior Ron Darden. The 6-foot-1-inch, 324 lbs Carter is listed as the starter on the pre-fall depth chart.
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