Wahooze

Deep Breath

2012-02-15T08:26:00.000-05:00

It feels so good to emote after a tough loss, but after a good (well, bad) night's sleep, I can get my legs back under me and see the forest through the trees.

Littlejohn is a tough place to play, especially after fighting so hard against superior physical specimens at UNC three days prior, and seeing your second leading scorer and best perimeter threat hit with an unfortunate broken hand. The team is demoralized right now, I think. A few days rest and a raucous home crowd to help us beat a hated rival should get things back on track... I hope.

Time for the Gipper speech, coach.

Meanwhile, taking a step back and really examining the collection of parts that comprise this team, it's pretty remarkable how Tony Bennett has built up our expectations for this season to the point that many of us are actually angry and feeling quite salty about the possibility of missing the NCAA Tournament.

Bottom line, we have a great coach who runs an effective system but currently has an under-talented roster. It's a collection of role players that for 80% of the other coaches in college basketball would add up to about a .500-type team.

I know star ratings don't mean much, but they are a decent measure of the baseline talent level of a player coming out of high school.

Mike Scott -- 3-star
Sammy Zeglinski -- 3-star
Assane Sene -- 3-star
Jontel Evans -- 3-star
Joe Harris -- 3-star
Akil Mitchell -- 3-star
Darion Atkins -- 3-star
Paul Jesperson -- 3-star
Malcolm Brogdon -- 4-star

I know there is a lot of consternation about Sammy Zeglinski, but I think it's important to remember the big picture: We wouldn't be so worried about his shooting slump if this team hadn't come together under Bennett's incredible coaching and forced us to raise our expectations to extremely high levels.

I think right now we're left in a situation where we need to fight for three wins over our last six games (including ACC Tournament first round) in order to have a shot at making it to the Dance off of the bubble. Given the relative talent level of this team, I think that's a pretty good spot to be in, all things (injuries, attrition, etc.) considered.

Yes, Zeglinski's slump is hurting us, but we don't have any other options, and we won't do any damage in the Tournament without him scoring, anyway. So we need to just support the kid as he works his way through this rough patch in his game while celebrating just how much this team has overachieved in getting to 19 wins at this point.

Also, in case you missed my tweet, we got a lot of help in RPI action last night.

TCU beat UNLV. That was big, and will likely elevate the Frogs from "bad loss" status on our resumé.
LSU beat Mississippi State, which probably buoys their RPI ranking in the top 100, and maintains their "good win" status on our resumé.
And my favorite -- George Mason's buzzer beater against VCU keeps GMU in "good win" status. (Suck it, Shaka. Best team in the state my ass.)

Our profile is solid. Our resumé is good. The peripherals are sound. We can't finish 6-10 or 7-9 in the conference and hope to have a chance, though. 8-8 might do it, but probably not. We need three more wins. It starts on Saturday against Maryland.

Cue herculean effort from Mike Scott, continued offensive production from Jontel Evans, Joe Harris getting more comfortable with that King Tut wrap on his hand, and - I'll dare to say it - Sammy Zeglinski battling out of his slump.

We can do it. I still believe.

GO HOOS!

Mike Scott once won a NASCAR race... without ever turning left.

KNOW THIS:

2012-02-14T22:16:00.001-05:00

(I try not to make new posts directly following frustrating losses, but I honestly think these impassioned bilge-dumps end up being some of my most honest, entertaining material. So I'm allowing myself this on a super shitty Valentine's Day.)

KNOW THIS: If you didn't believe we're on the bubble before, you should sure as shit believe it now. Also, if you were bullish on the overall quality of the team, you might want to re-examine that, too.

Consider:

KT Harrell and James Johnson were too soft/weak/immature/fragile/scared/selfish/etc. to stick it out, and they transferred, effectively sapping our end-of-bench depth. We could really use a couple of good fluffers right now.
Assane Sene broke his foot, effectively destroying our frontcourt depth and throwing our frontcourt balance out of whack. We miss you, Zu.
Sammy Zeglinski has clanked, thudded, and airballed his way into the most horriffc shooting slump I've seen since Mamadi Diane was building houses out of bricks in the hissing remains of the grease fire known as the Dave Leitao era.
Joe Harris (sadly, no longer Joey Hoops) broke his hand on a - let's be honest - stupid loose ball play in a hopeless situation against UNC. Now he's a glorified decoy, unable to catch the ball, unable to pass the ball, unable to effectively rebound, and edging over toward Zeglinski-level bad shooting. Losing Harris might just be the straw that breaks the camel's back for us this season. God bless him for trying to play through the injury, though. But please Joe, don't buy into the glory the announcers try to heap on you for trying to make hustle plays. You are too valuable for hustle plays. Let Akil Mitchell dive all over the court like a lunatic. You are a sports car, Joe. Let the jeeps drive it off road.
For all of Mike Scott's awesomeness, he's not there in the clutch, and he hasn't even really been there in the second half of games lately. ACC Player of the Year makes plays to win games late in the second half. Mike Scott is just disappearing completely at that time. Not a good trend. For all of Mike Scott's stepping up, we really need him to step up to a new, higher level. And one more thing: can he work his low post offense without turning it over? He's become a one-dimensional jump shooter. There, I said it.
Akil Mitchell is J.C. Mathis 2.0 -- a truly damning comment, I know. But consider the traveling, consider the "completely lost" plays. I think Mitchell can and will be better than Mathis... but he's not there yet. I do like his pogo stick rebounds though.
Our second-best player, and now our second-best scoring option is a ~~free safety~~ point guard who spews turnovers and has zero - ZERO - jump shot. Hallelujah for Jontel Evans' development of that runner, which is now our second-best offensive weapon to Mike Scott's 15-foot half-fadeaway jumper.
Darion Atkins can't get playing time. He also can't avoid fouls. *sigh*
Paul Jesperson can't make a shot. I think he looks really good in terms of his effort on defense and his "fit" in the system, but I hate what I've seen when he gets the ball in position to shoot. It's like he's trying to decide whether or not to shoot, and that hesitation is throwing off his rhythm. It's all part of being a freshman thrown into the deep end of the pool without the early season cupcake games to snack on, I get it. More collateral damage from KT Harrell's cowardice. We really need Jespy to gun that ball up and start becoming a perimeter threat... because the form on his shot is sweet as Yoo-Hoo. I know he can be a real weapon for us shooting the ball, once he gets his legs under him and gains confidence in his role. But that might not click into place until next year.
Malcolm Brogdon has shown flashes. Unfortunately, we need more than flashes right now. I don't have a whole lot of faith that his line drive perimeter shot is going to suddenly get more accurate within the next few weeks, but at least he hasn't come down with the crippling communicable disease that put Zeglinski's jumper on its death bed. Brog turns it over a lot when he puts the ball on the floor and tries to drive, but that might be a necessary evil because we desperately need another scoring option right now.
We are hemorrhaging turnovers. That ain't Bennettball. It's mostly due to our starting ~~running back~~ point guard needing to think of himself as more of a scorer and getting sloppy with his handle, but it's also bad passes, out of control dribble drives, and bad ball security. It killed us against UNC, and it killed us tonight.
Maryland, @ Virginia Tech, North Carolina, Florida State, @ Maryland, first round ACC Tournament game. Do you see us winning four of those six games with the way we're playing right now? No, I don't either. Three wins in that stretch puts us on the bubble. Two or fewer? NIT, baby. Get used to the thought.

What we have going for us is Tony Bennett's coaching, our defense (which is less reliable now with Sene out), Mike Scott drawing double teams, and Jontel Evans discovering his scoring ability. It's not enough. This team does not look like an NCAA Tournament team right now.

Frankly, I am scared shitless that we are going to have a sad Selection Sunday. If the cookie crumbles that way, I hope we can gather our pride and at least make a good run in the NIT.

Meanwhile, I am officially worried about Tony Bennett's grip on our fickle, slippery fanbase. Miss the Big Dance this year, and apathy returns. We desperately need to beat Carolina or FSU and make the Tournament this year.

Saturday is a home game against Maryland. That is a must win. Lose it, and the sky starts falling.

Bonus thought: Would you trade Mike Scott, Sammy Zeglinski, and Assane Sene for Justin Anderson, Evan Nolte, Mike Tobey, Teven Jones, a potential mystery recruit big man, and lowered expectations?

In my mind, Sene isn't playing, Sammy is an offensive liability, and Mike Scott is tapering off. Jones > Zeglinski, Tobey > Sene, Anderson + Nolte > Scott, and mystery recruit and lowered expectations are gravy. Continued improvement from Jontel Evans, Joe Harris, Akil Mitchell, Malcolm Brogdon, Darion Atkins, and Paul Jesperson is also gravy... but also a given.

Suddenly looking forward to next year...

Wahooze on the Trail: Tight Ends

2012-02-13T10:42:00.000-05:00

While the first three positions of this exploration have been deep and talented, the tight end position is quite the opposite. UVA currently has offers out to 2 tight ends, one of which may not actually be a tight end when he gets to Charlottesville. The question then becomes, is there even a role for a tight end in this offense? That could be an entire post in and of itself. The conclusion I can draw from this is that the tight end is a luxury position in this offense, and that if we can get a great talent at the position Coach Lazor will, as he always does, figure out how to use it. That being said let’s look at the targets

Trent Corney 6-3 240lbs. Brookville, Ontario Thousand Islands

Corney is gray-shirting for the class of 2013. Not sure where he will end up spending his prep season but it will most likely be FUMA, mostly so we can have a bug in Mr. Hackenberg’s ear pulling him to Charlottesville. Corney is a wild card in that no one really knows where he is going to play. He certainly has the speed and build to play tight end, but he could also provide solid depth at the linebacker spot. I think he will most likely get reps at both for FUMA in the fall and wherever he excels more will be where he starts.

Probable Destination: UVA. He’s already committed. FUMA doesn’t let their kids who have commitments be swayed very often.

Adam Breneman 6-5 225lbs. Camp Hill, PA Cedar Cliff

Remember when we referenced the great talents that would make us use the tight ends? This is the one. Breneman is the top tight end in the country and appears to really like UVA. Obviously a pass catching tight end Breneman has been linked to a ton of programs and currently holds 29 offers to some big time places. UVA’s biggest competition might in fact be hometown Penn State. Before the scandal the Nittany Lions appeared to be the heavy favorite, but given the recent shakeup on the staff Breneman has reopened for business. That being said if Coach O’Brien uses the same style of offense at Penn State that he did with the Pats, it’s hard to believe that a dynamic pass catching tight end like Breneman will say no to that, especially if O’Brien can also bring in a big time QB like Stone Bridge’s Ryan Burns. This will be an intense battle, it will be interesting to see what happens.

Probable Destination: Penn State. I think in the end this is where Breneman wants to be. The new regime should be able to effectively pitch the tight ends role in his offense and maybe have a shiny new QB prospect to also show off.

Arshad Jackson 6-6 235lbs. Hampton, GA Lovejoy

It is not a game with this kid. He is a gargantuan human being who can catch, run, and probably eat humans. Jackson would be a terror in the redzone with his monster frame and supreme athleticism. Think Joe Torcia minus injuries. That being said he is another player that could project to the defense as well, though I think that would be a mistake, which is why I am listing him here. All indications are the Jackson loves the Hoos, who were his first offer, and that he will most likely be one of the first kids to come on board if the Hoos stay on him. Look for them to push him hard at one of the upcoming junior days.

Probable Destination: UVA. Barring some sort of disaster I think we can bag this kid, and that he will be an absolute steal. Put some weight on his big frame and watch out.

Wahooze on the Trail: Wide Receivers

2012-02-10T14:03:00.001-05:00

We’ve covered the Quarterbacks and Running Backs so far but now we are going to get into what is one of the more sought after positions by this coaching staff, the receivers. First off it appears that we are bucking the traditional tight end in favor of the hybrid TE/WR position, see Severin, Canaan. That being said there is no shortage of talent at this position that the Hoos will be looking at this season, including a name you may recognize that could jump on board very soon. It does become apparent however just what the coaching staff is looking for at wideout in this class. Without further ado let’s jump into this.

Zack Jones 6-0 178lbs. Chesapeake, VA Oscar Smith

Name ring a bell? This is current UVA all around stud Perry Jones’ little brother. While taller than his brother Zack is also lighter, but with solid hands and 4.5 speed Jones could be an equally integral part of the offense. Currently the Hoos are the only offer on the table, though schools are looking hard at the Junior, including Michigan, Nebraska, and Alabama. Jones’ stock is somewhat low due to his requirement to sit out his sophomore season due to complications in his transfer from Great Bridge. That being said I would go ahead and say the Hoos are in an incredibly good position here.

Probable Destination: UVA. Come on now. Your brother is the star of the team, your family is very close knit and Coach London offers you a scholarship personally the day you win the state championship. I would have committed right there. I think this will happen on Junior Day which is February 18 or 24.

Stefon Colbert 6-4 195lbs. Olney, MD Good Counsel

UVA will be chasing two more Good Counsel receivers this season with Stefon Colbert and Andre Levrone. Colbert is the more impressive specimen of the two. At 6-4 195 with a 4.5 40 Colbert has all the makings of a solid number 1 receiver. The bad news for Wahoo fans is he really REALLY likes Virginia Tech. In fact this recruitment might be pointless based on early reports. The first program to offer however was Auburn, who offered while they were out scouting Stefon Diggs. A player with Colbert’s size and speed is a rare combination and would be a perfect fit in any offense, especially this one. That being said this is looking like UVA is going to have to do a ton of work to get any traction here, because if he loves Tech, he most likely is not to fond of us.

Probable Destination: Virginia Tech. But let’s all root for Auburn. If this kid plays up to his potential his stock could explode.

Andre Levrone 6-0 185lbs. Olney, MD Good Counsel

Levrone is a sold receiver out of a powerhouse program, which means a giant attribute that he brings is an expectation of success, which could be the kind of attitude that the coaches are looking for. While he is plenty big already Levrone expects to get bigger, considering his father is 6-6. Levrone is also very interested in a strong academic school. All of these coupled with the fact that we were his first offer puts the Hoos in a good position with Levrone. However Levrone also holds offers from Mississippi State and Auburn, which could present some challenges for Coach London.

Probable Destination: Maryland. I think Maryland is going to come in with an offer soon and will work hard to get a pipeline established with Good Counsel. Could I see him at UVA? Absolutely. But I think Maryland will be able to pitch him good academics (sorry, he wants engineering and they are actually good at that) and being close to home, as well as being able to play with his friends. The kid seems to value family so that might be best for him.

Kwamane Bowens 6-2 185lbs. Virginia Beach, VA Salem

Bowens has all the makings of a combo with Bucky Hodges, but in reading his statements it sounds like where Hodges decides to commit will have little to no bearing on where Bowens ends up. Bowens will obviously need to put on some weight when he gets to college, but if he does could become a major threat in the red zone with his long arms and leaping abilities. Bowens is oddly very close with the staff at Western Michigan, who have been recruiting him very hard. Also Vanderbilt is a huge player in this too, as they have hired Josh Gattis from Western Michigan to be their new wide receivers coach and offensive recruiting coordinator.

Probable Destination: Vanderbilt. While Western Michigan is strong here I’m not sure you could turn down an SEC offer, especially at a program that is on the rise like Vanderbilt to go to a mid-major in Western Michigan. This is probably an important recruit for Vandy who is trying to get into Virginia.

Michael Parker 6-3 191lbs. Nokesville, VA Kettle Run

Parker is a big receiver. Currently holding 7 offers from big time programs like Ohio State and Tennessee Parker figures to be a hot commodity for this class. Parker has stated that he is open to going out of state for college and it appears the Tennessee might be the leader in the clubhouse. That being said Parker seems to highly covet an offer from LSU. Parker is the number 117 in the Rivals 250, so expect an LSU offer to emerge. Parker would fit in nicely in the Hoos offense in the Canaan Severin/Kyle Dockins role as the big hybrid receiver. It will be interesting to see how the in state schools fare in his recruitment.

Probable Destination: LSU. If the offer comes he is as good as gone.

Marquez North 6-2 210lbs. Charlotte, NC Mallard

North is another tall wide out, which seems to be the theme of the targets. North is a very sought after young man with offers from some huge programs like Florida and Michigan. He also has offers from both Virginia schools. The biggest obstacle the Hoos face in this one might actually come from the Hokies. North is on the record as saying that he wanted an offer from the Hokies and has a “natural liking” of them due to his grandfather being a big fan. If nothing else Virginia fans should be rooting for other schools to come into his focus, because North looks like an absolute terror.

Probable Destination: Virginia Tech. Hopefully big time programs like FSU and Alabama turn up the heat, but as of right now I would say he is Hokie bound. Not good news for the Hoos at this point.

Quan Jones 6-4 192lbs. Wylie, TX Wylie East

Marcell Ateman 6-4 190lbs. Wylie, TX Wylie East

Jones (left) and Ateman (Right)

I have lumped these two for a reason. With the success in Texas with Kelvin Rainey the Hoos have gotten ambitious with these two Texas giants. Ateman and Jones both sport offers from Mississippi State, Michigan, and Arizona, among others. Everyone seems to be involved in bagging both of them which I think is the Hoos plan also. That duo would be lethal in the redzone and would create a ridiculous matchup problem. They are also blazers on the outside making them even more of a matchup headache. I do expect them to remain as a pair in college and would complete any receiving corps.

Probable Destination: Baylor. I think the recent success will make them able to land these two. Keep in mind they played for a school that is only entering its 3^rd season of varsity football, so they most likely will not mind being put in the role of being the focal point of an offense.

Robert Foster 6-3 190lbs. Monaca, PA Central Valley

Foster is yet another big receiver the Hoos are looking at. While relatively slow at a 4.8 40 Foster possesses the height, build, and hands to become a great possession receiver. Ranked number 26 in the Rivals 250, Foster already holds offers from programs like Oregon and Michigan, and of course the hometown Nittany Lions. Penn State presents and interesting option for Foster. While the Patriots’ offense features precise route by receivers it also features heavy use of big athletic tight ends. Those players might be tough to come by in college so O’Brien may be forced to use bigger receivers in that role. If that is the case look for Foster’s interest to perk up as he is that kind of player.

Probable Destination: Penn State. While I think foster will be tempted by the bigger offers I find it hard to believe he will turn down an opportunity to play for an NFL pedigree coach and rebuild the Penn State program. That being said Ohio State and Urban Meyer are also looming. This could be an interesting battle.

Zach Bradshaw 6-3 205lbs. Damascus, MD Damascus

Yet another physical receiver Bradshaw has the potential to be quite potent in this offense. He is a yards after the catch machine and seems to be quite good in open space. Most of his highlights are for punt returns. While the obvious comparison you will first think of is Matt Snyder I think Bradshaw will be closer to a Max Millien, catching that swing pass out in space would be perfect for him. Bradshaw has a ton of offers, but also a 4.0 GPA. I think the Hoos will have an advantage here in that regard. Big competition will come from Northwestern, who uses a system that he would excel in, and of course his hometown Terrapins, but I think the Hoos have a pretty good shot.

Probable Destination: Northwestern. I think this will come down to a numbers crunch. The hoos are pretty full at Wideout and if they take on Zack Jones and any other big targets Bradshaw might be the odd man out. That being said I think he would be a great fit and would not be surprised to see him here.

Wahooze 2012 Lacrosse Preview

2012-02-08T10:40:00.009-05:00

Last season, the Wahoos completed one of the most improbable championship runs ever in NCAA lacrosse by winning it all as the #7 seed. The tournament summed up Virginia’s season well, by starting with a miraculous comeback against a Bucknell team with MUCH less talent. Inconsistency plagued UVA all year and the team looked to be finishing the season in disappointment. The Wahoos pulled it out in overtime, though, and spent the rest of the tournament by finally playing up to their potential. In possibly the greatest fashion possible, the guys beat up on Maryland to win their 7^th National Championship.

This season, the team certainly has the potential to repeat as champs and the media has voted them #1 in every major preseason poll. The keys to success this year are basically the same as last year’s: consistently playing to their potential and playing as a team. Thankfully, the Bratton twins are long gone and, as we saw in the NCAA tournament, the team immediately plays more cohesive without them. While the team lost plenty of talent (most notably defender/longstickmiddie Bray Malphrus and goalie Adam Ghitelman), most of the important pieces are left and the incoming class of freshman is a great one. Let’s take a look at who’s back:

Dom Starsia – Coach

Aha- you thought I was going to start with Stanwick. Well, no one is more important to this team than their Hall of Fame ALL TIME WINNINGEST COACH IN D1 LACROSSE. Starsia has dealt with an extraordinary amount of turmoil in the past couple of years: tragedy off the field, suspensions and disunity on the field. Without a coach like Dom, this team would’ve been in complete shambles. Instead, they won the National Championship. His importance to the team can’t be understated- he is the team.

Steele Stanwick – Attack

What else is there to say about Steele that hasn’t already been said? He’s the Mike Scott of Lacrosse. The guy is the reigning National Player of the Year coming back for his senior season. (Important LAX TRIVIA ALERT: The Heisman of Lacrosse is the Tewaaraton Trophy). He’s routinely scored some of the most amazing goals I’ve ever seen and is particularly clutch late in the game. He alone makes us a National Championship contender.

I give this one a 6/10 in difficulty, 9/10 in importance

Chris Bocklet – Attack

Bocklet is another veteran attackman back for his senior year and while Stanwick gets most of the press, Bocklet can light up the scoreboard with the best of them. Bocklet paced the Cavs in the NCAAs last year, with a hat trick in the quarterfinal against No. 2 Cornell and in the semifinal against Denver. He was 10^th in the country last year in goals per game and can be counted on as a great compliment on the front line to Stanwick.

Colin Briggs – Middie

Good teams have a couple guys that they can rely on for scoring. Great teams have three go-to scorers. Briggs is our third. Going into last year’s final, Briggs wasn’t sure if he would even play. When the chance to start opened up, he made the most of it by scoring 5 of UVA’s 9 goals. He’s back for his senior year this year and should pick up right where he left off in his last game. Teams are going to focus hard on Stanwick and Bocklet up top, which should provide ample open looks for the middies to score. Production from the middies is always a key for the Hoos and they should be in good shape with Briggs leading the unit.

Matt White – Attack/Middie

Did I say great teams have three go-to scorers? Oh, well UVA has four. When Matt White shoots it, the ball usually goes in – he scored a ridiculous 60.6 % of his shots last year. A junior, White scored the game-winner in the Bucknell game last season and should see plenty of looks with teams doubling Stanwick. Look for White to see a good increase in shots/goals as he establishes himself as the heir to the go-to scorer roll.

Chris Clements/Matt Lovejoy/Scott McWilliams – Defense

No, I didn’t forget about the defense, but they only get one paragraph. UVA’s historically been a run-and-gun high-scoring team with limitations on the defensive end, but in recent seasons, the Hoos D has taken a step up. These three look to be the starters this year and form a solid base with plenty of experience. McWilliams is particularly exciting, as he started every game last year as a true freshman. The sky’s the limit with him.

Question Marks – Goalie, Faceoffs

Gone this year for the Hoos is apparent nine-year-starter Adam Ghitelman from the cage. Adam kept the Hoos in plenty of games and his leadership/decision-making will be missed sorely (I fully supported his reckless behavior when he regularly ran up the field, others may disagree). Senior Rob Fortunato looks to be the starter this year, but he hasn’t done much to keep back the competition. Look for this spot to be settled early in the year. The Hoos also need to replace their faceoff specialist now that Garett Ince and Brian McDermott have graduated. I’m sure they’ll find someone, but this could be a HUGE area of weakness in the team if it isn’t shored up. Faceoffs are critical to possession and unlike most other sports, you don’t automatically get the ball back when another team scores. For now, I’ll assume Dom sorts this out fine.

Wahooze Outlook:

There’s no reason this team can’t compete for another title and they should dominate inferior competition for most of the season. I really think the chemistry issues are behind the team at this point and you can’t say enough about the senior talent they have all over the field. That being said, the ACC is absolutely STACKED this year, with both Duke and UNC looking like title contenders. When Syracuse is out of most people’s top 5, you know the competition is tough. There’s little chance the Hoos run the table and they’ll probably pickup their fair share of losses, especially if there’s no one reliable between the pipes. Plus, starting the season #1 puts the target of every other team squarely on your back. Can the Wahoos handle the expectations and keep their cohesive play they found at the end of last year? The first step is making the NCAA tournament, which they should do easily. Once they’re in, we know it doesn’t really matter where they line up, but avoiding a matchup with their kryptonite in the Duke Blue Devils could be a key to a repeat.

Prediction:

Glory, Fame, Victory, Trophies for everyone.

(Photos: Daily Progress, AP, virginiasports.com, The Cavalier Daily)

"Cavaliers Looking to Reload"

2012-02-08T08:28:00.001-05:00

Here's a great season preview for the Hoos from Bruce Winkworth of Southeastern Baseball on the Rivals network. Another good read for a lazy Wednesday.

Cavaliers Looking to Reload After Standout 2011 Campaign

There's a lot of turnover with this team, which makes for a very intriguing start to the 2012 season. Baseball starts next Friday!

"Bennett Faces Talent Question"

2012-02-07T22:58:00.000-05:00

A really thoughtful and informed piece from ACC Sports Journal:

Bennett Faces Talent Question

Goes hand-in-hand with my "Examining Bennettball" post from a couple of weeks ago. Definitely worth your time to read.

Wahooze on the Trail: Running Backs

2012-02-06T12:04:00.000-05:00

While the state of Virginia is exteremly deep with talented quarterbacks in the class of 2013, it is not exactly hurting for talent at the running back spot either. The top two backs in the state of Virginia are both extremely talented and UVA would be extremely fortunate to land either one, that being said look for the Hoos to be going hard after some out of state kids as well. RB is not a pressing need for the Cavs with the likes of Parks, Richardson, and Morgan on tap for the 2013 season, but rest assured the Hoos will be hard after a feature RB this go round.

Derrick Green 5-11 215lbs. Richmond, VA Hermitage

Green is the best pure power back in the state of Virginia for 2013, but don’t let that fool you, Green has breakaway speed. At 5-11 215 pounds Green is a solid and strong back but a 4.3 40 yard dash also gives him the speed to become an elite back. Green currently holds 14 scholarship offers to big time programs including South Carolina, Arkansas, Wisconsin, and Oklahoma, but the clear leader in the clubhouse is Ohio State. Green sports offers from UVA and Virginia Tech but it appears both schools are in a hell of a fight to get this kid out of Columbus. It will be interesting to see how Urban Meyer’s offense fits Green’s style of play, but I think that speed will translate into any system. Of course the biggest thing the Buckeyes have going for them is the presence of Curtis Grant, who could become a major factor in making his transition to Columbus that much easier. It will be interesting to see this play out, but I fully expect Green to end up at a major program.

Probable Destination: Ohio State. This to me seems like a done deal, unless Urban Meyer doesn’t use running backs at all. That being said we could see Tech sneak in, but that is highly unlikely.

Taquan Mizzell 5-9 180lbs. Virginia Beach, VA Bayside

With Green out of the picture that turns both in state schools focus towards Bayside High School and the back the call Smoke. Mizzell is cut from the same cloth as Perry Jones. He is able to do it all on the football field, so well in fact that he is listed as an athlete as opposed to a running back on some recruiting sites. Mizzell fits the mold that Coach Lazor seems to want to use as a back that can also be motioned out of the backfield as a receiver. Mizzell currently holds offers from 8 schools with Tennessee poised to offer soon. While that appears daunting it looks like the Hoos may be in the driver’s seat, and I would not be surprised to see Mizzell be one of our first commitments. UVA has worked hard to build up a pipeline from Bayside and landing a player of Mizzell’s caliber would make that that much more solid.

Probable Destination: UVA. I think UVA is in a great position. We had Smoke as a visitor multiple times this season and he seemed to enjoy it every time he was here. UVA is doing a good job establishing the family aspect of the program and look for those bonds to be a key player in Smoke’s recruitment. I think he wants to come here, but will want to go through the process.

Daniel Reid 6-0 195lbs. Chester, VA Thomas Dale

The last back in the state of Virginia we are going to focus on is Daniel Reid from Thomas Dale. Reid is the tallest back but also the slowest of the top backs in the state in this class. Reid currently has offers from UVA, Virginia Tech, and North Carolina, with more coming from schools like Notre Dame and Boston College. Dale is more of a traditional running back and appears to be a solid college prospect. From looking at film nothing really stands out as amazing, but he does everything well. Tech appears to have a sizeable lead for Reid and the biggest competition may come from out of state school. Reid could very well become a fast riser this season but for now is a cut below Mizzell and Green at the top.

Probable Destination: Virginia Tech. This will be Tech’s factor back in the class of 2013. They are going to be the best school that is going to recruit him as their number one target, with UVA looking elsewhere as their top priority.

Marquez Grayson 6-0 195lbs. Lexington, NC Lexington

Grayson could very well turn into one of the top backs in the country this year. He currently boasts offers from Clemson, Virginia Tech, NC State, South Carolina, and the Wahoos. Recently Grayson listed his top three as Clemson, South Carolina, and Virginia Tech were in his top 3. Needless to say the Hoos will have their work cut out for them here. Grayson is extremely strong between the tackles, making him an ideal back for the SEC. He also sports strong blocking abilities, which are also paramount in those styles of offense. I fully expect more SEC offers to roll in as his recruitment picks up, and for him to most likely land at one of those schools. This is great news for UVA since that means he will most likely be out of reach for Virginia Tech.

Probable Destination: South Carolina. I am saying this for now, but fully expect more offers to roll in. I think a school like Georgia would be a good spot, and of course James Franklin at Vandy is always looming.

David Williams 6-0 190lbs. Philadelphia, PA West Catholic

Williams is the other back that has caught the eye of the coaching staff. West Catholic runs a pro style set that is very similar to the offense the Hoos run. Williams has good speed (4.4 40) and catches the ball out of the backfield well. UVA is in a decent position but will have to compete with some powerhouse programs like Wisconsin and Notre Dame to secure the services of Williams. This season Williams took visits to Maryland, Rutgers, and Temple, and sounds like he is interested in staying relatively close to home. This may play into the hands of the schools that are closer in but when asked how comfortable he was with the distance from Philly to Charlottesville he said it was no problem. That being said that also opens the door for more schools further out. If I had to guess this will be a battle between Northeastern Schools, most likely Rutgers v. Notre Dame. It all depends on how his visit to Charlottesville goes.

Probable Destination: Notre Dame. When asked which schools he will be visiting over the summer the first team was Notre Dame, definitely. I think that means he has an admiration for the program which makes the Irish a strong player. If they can keep that angle strong Williams will be theirs to lose.

Wahooze on the Trail: Quarterbacks

2012-02-03T17:01:00.001-05:00

The class of 2012 signed on the dotted line on Wednesday and though that was a big day for that class, it marked the beginning of our focus on the class of 2013. The coaching staff has been out on the trail looking for kids to help fill out next year’s class. Over the next few weeks we are going to look at the potential recruits position by position to give you a sneak peak at the targets, and hopefully commits of the class of 2013.

This post will focus on what is most likely the best crop of QBs that Virginia has had a legitimate shot at in a very long time. The state of Virginia alone may boast 3 5-star QBs. That being said QB is not a major position of need on this team, which is quite the opposite of this past season when we were thrilled to score Grayson Lambert, who is a very underrated 3-star prospect. That being said Coach Lazor has stated that he wants to bring in one elite level QB in each class. So don’t be surprised if one of these kids winds up in Charlottesville next season. These are the players, ranked in order of desire by the coaching staff, that I see the Hoos pursuing at the QB position for 2013:

Bucky Hodges 6-6 220lbs. Virginia Beach, VA Salem

Hodges is one of the two premier QBs in Virginia, and possibly one of the best in the country. Extremely mobile and possessing a cannon for a right arm Hodges will be the kind of player that you can build an offense around. Hodges has been declared the number one target for the Hoos this recruiting season. That being said he is also the ONLY QB that Virginia Tech has offered for 2013, and the Hokies are making it very clear that they want Hodges to come to Tech and be the next 757 QB to come dominate the college game, just like Mike Vick and Tyrod Taylor before him. While that will be tough to overcome UVA has a few things playing into their favor. First they have Divante Walker, Hodges’ teammate, already signed for next season. The second and possibly more important angle is that Hodges has the chance to instead of being “the next Mike Vick” to be “THE Bucky Hodges.” Which I think is not something to overlook. Hodges would give the Hoos a dynamic playmaker at QB, making the sky the limit for Bill Lazor and the offense. Hodges is also good friends with Eli Harold, which cannot be understated as far as importance goes, since Harold might be the best recruiter we have. Get on it Coach West.

Probable destination: Virginia Tech. I think this will be a bloodbath in the state, but one I think Virginia Tech will win. Unless we have a downright explosive season on offense and win a ton of games I don’t see us looking more appealing in Hodges mind than VT. Which hurts me to write.

Ryan Burns 6-4 218lbs. Ashburn, VA Stone Bridge

Burns is the other premier QB in Virginia, and the more prototypical, drop back passer. If I had to guess I think Coach Lazor would prefer Burns to Hodges, but Coach London wants, and the program needs, to take Hodges over him, especially if it wants to identify itself more with the 757. Burns can throw the ball deep and accurately. He is more than capable of making every throw possible. That being said he is significantly less mobile than Hodges. If the offense is going to remain a true pro-style then Burns will be perfect, if they want it make a more athletic SEC style offense, then Burns might not be the best fit. That being said the coaching staff would take a commitment from either of these players today. What UVA has working the most for them is the fact the Burns’ brother Rob already plays for the Hoos. Will that be a benefit? It’s unclear at this point, but unless the Burns house is very awkward I can’t imagine that it hurts having Rob around.

Probable Destination: Penn State. I think Burns will be close to the top QB in America, and he seems to have no trepidations about leaving home. He was thought to be a Penn State lean before the Sandusky scandal, and now that Bill O’Brien and his NFL pedigree has arrived in State College I think the “Come be my program cornerstone” angle will be hard to resist, especially for a player with NFL aspirations.

Christian Hackenberg 6-4 215lbs. Fork Union, VA FUMA

Hackenberg has long been thought to be a lock to UVA since his father went and played here. However there are two very major competitors that have entered the fray. The first is Tennessee, who is coached by Hackenberg’s father’s former teammate Derek Dooley. If UVA can play the Alumni card then Tennessee will have no problem playing the friend card in order to win the battle for the parents, which is an important one to win. The second major player for Hackenberg is Alabama, who recently came on board. Hackenberg fits the Alabama offense perfectly as he is very smart and accurate with the ball. Look at the QBs that have had success there. Hackenberg is a more talented Greg McElroy for them. I think the longer this drags out the more traction the Tide has.

Probable Destination: Alabama. UVA could go get Christian right now if they made him the top priority, but with so much focus on Hodges and Burns that will most likely not happen, which is most likely going to cost them. Saban is a tough recruiter and the more time he gets the harder it will be to pry Hackenberg away from Tuscaloosa.

Brendan Marshall 6-5 210lbs. Olney, MD Good Counsel

This might be the only out of state QB we target this season, which is frankly incredible in my mind. While Marshall has all the measureables to be a legit D1 quarterback I wonder how much better the players he plays with, most notably Stefon Diggs, makes him look. Marshall will most likely gain an offer from Maryland but UVA seems to be in the driver’s seat on this one. While slow playing will hurt our chances with Hackenberg, I can’t imagine it will make that big of an impact with Marshall. Most likely a High 3 star prospect we will be competing with programs like BC and Maryland for Marshall’s services. The one thing Marshall does have in his favor is that it may open the door for UVA to also land teammate Andre Levrone, a talented wideout.

Probable Destination: Boston College. I think BC will be able to offer more than UVA as far as playing time, especially since UVA already has a few QBs of Marshall’s caliber on the roster. This could change as the season progresses but I would be surprised to see Marshall give up a good shot at being a starter to come to a school with a more crowded QB picture, especially since he is the star QB of the top program in the DC area.

Wilton Speight 6-6 221lbs. Richmond, VA The Collegiate School

Speight is the big wild card in this class. A physical specimen it will be interesting to see what the interest is in him. Speight broke his collarbone in the first game of the season this year, ending his season. I think he is a sleeper great prospect, if he checks out medically. Of all the QBs in this class he intrigues me the most, and is the one I want to see the Hoos go get. He would be a serious project for Coach Lazor but could easily develop into a very good QB.

Probable Destination: UVA! Finally. This is the one to go and get. We have depth and can take on a project QB like this. We may end up adding him even if we add another QB just because of the potential.

Corwin Cutler 6-3 180 Virginia Beach, VA Ocean Lakes

Cutler is right alongside Speight as a project QB. I think this will be a tough add for the staff considering the failures of David Watford. That being said if Mike Rocco’s arm falls off and David Watford learns how to play football and revolutionizes the offense then this would be a perfect guy to get after, but I don’t really forsee that happening, mostly because Watford seems like he's in over his head. Cutler would be nice, and I think would want to come here, but if he becomes our big QB signing, that might be a problem.

Probable Destination: Virginia Tech. I think this is pretty easy. Cutler probably grew up watching Mike Vick and Virginia Tech, and that angle will most likely work on him, especially since their offense will fit his skills much better.

ACC Scheduling Announcement

2012-02-03T12:11:00.000-05:00

From the ACC:

Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner John Swofford announced today the future scheduling formats as approved by the ACC's Faculty Athletic Representatives and Athletics Directors.

The announcement was made following the annual ACC Winter Meetings and will go in effect once Pittsburgh and Syracuse become playing members in the conference.

"We have been engaged in discussions on the various options for integrating Pitt and Syracuse since early fall," said ACC Commissioner John Swofford. "It's a tremendous tribute to the leadership at our schools that we will be able to seamlessly add Pitt and Syracuse at the appropriate time when they become full playing members."

A breakdown of the future scheduling models include:

Football:

The Atlantic and Coastal divisions will remain the same with Syracuse joining the Atlantic and Pitt joining the Coastal. The current primary crossover partners will remain consistent with Syracuse and Pitt becoming primary crossover partners with each other.

When Pitt and Syracuse join the ACC, the league will play a nine-game conference schedule. The format will consist of each team playing all six in its division each year, plus its primary crossover partner each year and two rotating opponents from the opposite division. This six-year cycle allows each team to play each divisional opponent and its primary crossover partner six times (three home and three away) while also playing each rotating crossover opponent two times (one home and one away).

Men's and Women's Basketball:

As previously announced, the ACC will play an 18-game conference schedule beginning in 2012-13.

When Pitt and Syracuse join, each school will have one primary partner (Boston College and Syracuse; Clemson and Georgia Tech; Duke and North Carolina; Florida State and Miami; Maryland and Pitt; NC State and Wake Forest; Virginia and Virginia Tech)

The scheduling model will be based on a three-year cycle during which teams will play every league opponent at least once with the primary partners playing home and away annually while the other 12 rotate in groups of four: one year both home and away; one year at home only; and one year away only. Over the course of the three-year cycle primary partners play a total of six times and all other conference opponents play four times.

The format allows each program to see opponents with more regularity and creates an increase in competitive balance throughout the teams.

It was determined that all 14 league members will continue to compete in the ACC Men's and Women's Tournaments and a decision on the Tournament formats will be announced at a later date.

Olympic Sports:

All team sports will continue to play each conference team at least once during the regular season. Baseball is the only exception as they currently don't play all conference opponents.

The league will continue to sponsor an ACC Championship event in all sports. The only exception will be volleyball, which will continue to recognize its champion from regular-season play.

The conference will sponsor an ACC Championship in the sport of gymnastics. There are currently three institutions that sponsor gymnastics (Maryland, North Carolina and NC State) and with the addition of Pitt, the ACC will have four programs, the necessary number in the league's bylaws to host a conference championship. The ACC previously sponsored a conference championship in gymnastics in 1984.

February Rooting Guide

2012-02-03T08:37:00.000-05:00

More notes from the bubble...

Like it or not, we are still on the bubble thanks to our middling strength of schedule (currently #125 overall) and less-than-remarkable RPI (currently #41 overall -- take a look to the right to see our updated tournament resumé!) The schedule turns really tough in February, which will help those peripherals... but if we lose too many of these games, we could be in trouble come Selection Sunday.

Here's our schedule down the stretch...

2/4 @ FSU
2/8 vs. Wake
2/11 @ UNC
2/14 @ Clemson
2/18 vs. Maryland
2/21 @ VT
2/25 vs. UNC
3/1 vs. FSU
3/4 @ Maryland

We need to win five of these games. The obvious ones are Wake, Clemson, Tech, and the two against Maryland. All but one of those games (home against Wake) make me nervous. None are guaranteed wins. The other four games against UNC and FSU represent great opportunities -- each win in those games serves to solidify our inclusion in the tournament, to validate our gaudy record, and probably helps us to jump up seed lines. Losing all four wouldn't be disastrous, but you're looking at the dreaded 8/9 game if we can't notch another marquee win on the season. The hope is that we win at least one of those four games, preferably two.

Then there's the ACC Tournament. Most likely, we are going to end up with the 4-seed, or maybe the 5- or 6-seed if NC State and/or Miami can make a surge while we falter a little. Honestly, playing on Thursday might not be a terrible thing. Another game - presumably a win - against BC, Wake, or one of the Techs won't really help our bubble peripherals, but it would add another win to our total and create the illusion of momentum, should the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee decide to consider that metric this year (you never really know with those wishy-washy n'er-do-wells.)

Do YOU trust the selection committee? Because I absolutely do not.

Anyway, if you're anything like me, you are completely done with football now (sorry, Super Bowl) and are in full college hoops mode. It's been so long since we've been on the bubble you're probably watching games all willy-nilly, with no certain rooting interests. To make it into the Big Dance off of the bubble, you're not operating in a vacuum. You need to see other bubble teams lose, you need to see locks win, and you need to see your RPI and SOS improve down the stretch. With that in mind, I'm here to give you a viewing guide - which is really more of a rooting guide - for the month of February and into March.

Teams to Root FOR:
-- All the teams we played out of conference, especially the decent ones who have a chance to land in the final RPI top 100: Drexel, Drake, George Mason, Oregon, LSU, TCU, and especially Michigan (currently our only marquee win - we need it to stay a marquee win).
-- All of the ACC teams we play twice, as opposed to the ACC teams we only play once: Virginia Tech (blech, I know), Maryland (yuck, I agree), Clemson, North Carolina (ugh), and Florida State.
-- All of the current tournament "locks," the really good teams who have already pretty much punched their dance tickets. (We don't want to see these teams lose and give other bubble teams more marquee wins): Duke (hurts, I understand), Kansas, Missouri, Baylor, Syracuse, Marquette, Georgetown, Ohio State, Michigan State (groan), Kentucky (puke), UNLV, San Diego State, Creighton, Saint Mary's, and Murray State.

Teams to Root AGAINST:
-- In ACC games, pull against the teams we only play once: NC State, Miami, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, and Boston College. The good news here is that the list includes two other bubble teams in State and Miami, and three of the four worst ACC teams. The more our conference standings are striated, the better it looks if we finish toward the top.
-- All of the other bubble teams. Obviously. We want our resumé to be better than theirs, so we need to see these teams lose, early and often. It's a long list, so I'll make it bulleted and put it in alphabetical order for your viewing pleasure:

Alabama
Arkansas
Arizona
Brigham Young
California
Central Florida
Cincinnati
Colorado
Colorado State
Connecticut
Dayton
Florida
Gonzaga
Harvard
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa State
Kansas State
La Salle
Long Beach State
Louisville
Massachusetts
Memphis
Minnesota
Mississippi State
New Mexico
Notre Dame
Oklahoma
Old Dominion
Pittsburgh
Purdue
Saint Joseph's
Saint Louis
Seton Hall
South Florida
Southern Miss
Stanford
Temple
Texas
Vanderbilt
Virginia Commonwealth (Just to stick it to Smaka Shart; I don't care if VCU ever goes back to the tournament.)
Washington
West Virginia
Wichita State
Wisconsin
Wyoming
Xavier

I don't feel like an a-hole in saying that I hate you, Smaka Shart.

I know I just listed a lot of teams. I wanted to be thorough with this. I also wanted to illustrate just how crowded the bubble is this year, and show you why I'm worried about missing the tournament, even coasting into February with an eye-popping 18-3 record. We have played a weak schedule, and our peripherals are not great. You have to be realistic about things, and the reality is that the ACC is down, the nation is still in VCU-induced mid-major euphoria, and the selection committee always loves to smack down a non-vogue ACC team. We need to leave zero guesswork for the committee, so we need to see the bubble get weak while we stay strong.

Please consult this post whenever you settle in on the coach to watch college hoops. We need all the good juju we can get.

GO HOOS!

Q&A With Doug, Part II -- Doug's Revenge

2012-02-02T15:55:00.000-05:00

You might remember my good friend Doug from such hits as Q&A With Doug, Wahooze Pix -- Lucky Week 13, and Wahooze Weekly Picks -- FINAL STANDINGS!

Well, the guy has an insatiable appetite for all things Wahooze, and he's bringing his Virginia Tech gurudom to roost on our lovely blog for one more hard-hitting Q&A. But first, the same intro I gave four months ago when we did this the first time...

I want to take a few seconds to tell you about my friend Doug. He's a truly great guy. Loyal to a fault (I know this, because he's a fellow life-long Bungles fan). The kind of guy who would give you the shirt off of his back. The thing about Doug... brace yourselves... is that he's a Virginia Tech fan. One of the biggest I know, actually.

But that hasn't stunted our friendship at all. Quite the contrary. I think it's made us better friends. Mostly because I needed to know a decently reasonable VT fan so I could come down off of this misconception that all Virginia Tech fans are total redneck scumbags.

Doug isn't a scumbag at all. Like I said, he's a great guy. And he probably knows more about football, and has the most even-keeled opinions about football of anyone I've ever known. I respect him and his opinions a lot. A helluva lot.

His wife is a Virginia alum and season ticket holder. When he's not down in Blacksburg for a game (he's a Tech season ticket holder, himself), he's out there tailgating and taking in games in Scott Stadium. He knows the Virginia Tech program from top to bottom, but he also knows a hell of a lot about the UVA program. So he brings a lot of knowledge and a lot of unique, interesting perspective to the table.

That's exactly the reason why I wanted to do a blowout Wahooze-style Q&A with the man, coming from the angle of breaking down Tech's success over the last 15+ years, and digging down into how it will continue long term, and how UVA of the 2010's might be able to mirror the 1990's rise of the Hokie program.

As much as we Virginia fans might deny it, it is Virginia Tech's gridiron success that we aspire to. That's the God's honest truth. So I thought Doug was the perfect person to give us a little gospel on the subject. As you read through these questions and his extremely well-conceived and thoughtfully-constructed responses, try to keep that in mind. Where Virginia Tech is right now is exactly where we want the Virginia program to eventually ascend.

On to the Q&A. My questions to Doug are in black. His responses are in blue. My reactions to his responses are in red. Let's do this thing.

Question #1) Do you think Bud Foster would or will ever leave to become a head coach somewhere? Give us some examples of schools you think he might be willing to leave Tech to go coach. If he leaves, what happens to Virginia Tech?

Honestly, I am not sure. I think that there are a couple of things working against him at this point. He has always stated that he wanted to hold out a for a BCS level position, and avoid “coach killing” jobs such as Vanderbilt, Indiana, etc. The other thing that I think is now hurting him is that he is a defensive guy. Take a look at all the recent hires and hotshot up-and-coming coaches. They are almost all offensive minds. I really think that is working against him. Of course it might be possible that he just gives a bad interview as well… damned if I know. The Clemson job he was rumored to be a finalist for when Swinney ultimately got it may have been his last real good chance at a real good job.

The type of schools I could see him getting an opportunity would be a Big Ten type school (Illinois, Minnesota) or possibly a Big East school (UConn, Rutgers.) Honestly though, I believe if he ultimately wants to be a head coach he is going to have to consider other possibilities such as a MAC school to get started.

The effect on VT depends on which coaches would follow him. If VT can hang on to Charley Wiles and Torrian Gray, I think they could pick up where Foster left off. I think that there might be a slight step back, but as long as Beamer is coaching VT, the defense will be a point of emphasis.

Kendall sez: I personally think the guy is just comfortable being a top assistant, and doesn't really have that fire in his belly to be a head coach and run his own program. That's cool, I'm the same way in my job, really. There is something to be said for not being the guy who has to twist in the wind when things go wrong. That said, I really think Foster could be a good head coach somewhere, but he has to start small (Gus Malzahn at Arkansas State) and then build up to the BCS level. ECU, Marshall, Memphis... those feel like the right kind of jobs for Bud Foster.

I hate it when he calls this play.

2) Look 15 years into the future... who is Virginia Tech's head football coach?

If you said five years, I would say Frank Beamer, but I think that will be about it. If we look 15 years ahead you may be talking about a 2^nd, 3^rd or God forbid 4^th coach. Let’s assume that whoever replaces Beamer will have enough success that they will still be coaching after 8-10 years. I think this is doable based on my answers regarding the program in Part 1 of the Q&A.

There are two schools of thought on which direction a school will go in replacing a long time head coach -- in house or completely outside the family. I actually think if the school decided to go in house it will be Bryan Stinespring. The guy has taken his lumps as the OC for the past few years, but I actually think he might have what it takes to be a head coach. There are some that think Shane Beamer would be the guy. I think he has the potential to be a good coach but see no way he would follow in his father’s footsteps. I also think that Torrian Gray could be a real darkhorse for the job.

I think VT can attract a good head coach. We are not talking about a tier 1 guy (i.e. Saban/Miles/Urban Meyer type) but I do think the program would be attractive to a tier 2 head coach or good up-and-coming assistant. Obviously I can’t project out 15 years but if the job were open now I would like to think that VT would be attractive to guys like Gus Malzahn, or Kevin Sumlin. If there was one guy I could pick right now to take over the program it would be Gary Patterson. I would say look for a head coach from a non BCS school that has some Mid Atlantic and SE connections that has had success on the field.

Kendall sez: What about Bud Foster? I always thought he was hanging around so that he could slide right in behind Beamer when he retires. Is that not the case? That shocks me, actually. It seems like such an obvious succession plan.

Retirement looms...

3) Pick three football coaches on the Virginia staff to replace members of the Virginia Tech staff. Who do you choose to hire from UVA, and who are they replacing on the Tech staff? (No demotions!)

Well I will start out by stating that I am fairly pleased with all the VT coaches after the season this year, especially the defensive coaches. That being said I am very impressed with UVa’s offense this year so #1 on my list would be Bill Lazor. The guy seems to really be a hell of an X and O guy and I think he could really help our offense. Not sure what kind of recruiter he is but he is the guy I am most impressed by on UVA’s staff. Technically, Mike O’Cain was the playcaller so I am going to replace O’Cain with Lazor (tough to give up Stinespring’s recruiting.) If you are forcing me to trade out Stinespring, then I would need to know Lazor will be around for at least five years.

VT’s offensive line continues to be an unmitigated disaster year after year and Curt Newsome is certainly not the recruiting force we thought he would be. By the same token, UVA’s offensive line was downright nasty this year. I’ll make the trade -- Scott Wachenheim for Newsome.

VT’s wideouts had a lot of talent but disappeared in big games. Watch… they can’t ever get open against really good defense. Kevin Sherman hasn’t done a lot in terms of recruiting either. That being said, I don’t think that UVA’s WR situation is anything to to really get excited about, but I do think Shawn Moore has some recruiting potential, so I would make that change right now.

I thought about Poindexter, and let me say straight up front, I think he is one of the best football players UVA has ever had… and wish like hell he had come to VT. But frankly, I am not really a big fan of his sideline demeanor. That, and we already have someone to screw up our special teams (for all of you folks that watched the Sugar Bowl.)

Kendall sez: No Chip West? Ninja was named ACC Recruiter of the Year and was a finalist for National Recruiter of the Year, and he's not a bad defensive backs coach. I know Torrian Gray is a stud and you wouldn't want to replace him... but Chip West is recruiting wunderkind. (Mostly, I just wanted to use this opportunity to mention Chip West, who does yeoman's work for us in recruiting the 757.)

I understand this was a tough question to answer, because you feel a certain loyalty to a coaching staff that has shown so much loyalty to Virginia Tech. Therefore, I really appreciate your candid response on this one, Doug.

Torrian Gray: a real up-and-comer on the VT staff.

4) Tough question... Since joining the ACC, Virginia Tech has now gone 1-4 in BCS bowl games. What do the Hokies need to do differently to reverse that record and go 4-1 in their next five BCS appearances?

Play Cincinnati four times. Well, not quite, but before I answer this lets look at the history a little here. I like to include the old Bowl Coalition and Bowl Alliance bowls as well, as they were the same level as the current BCS.

1) 1995 Sugar Bowl -- Beat Texas, 28-10

2) 1996 Orange Bowl -- Lost to Nebraska, 41-21

3) 1999 Sugar Bowl -- Lost to FSU, 46-29

4) 2004 Sugar Bowl -- Lost to Auburn, 16-13

5) 2007 Orange Bowl -- Lost to Kansas, 24-21

6) 2008 Orange Bowl -- Beat Cincinnati, 20-7

7) 2010 Orange Bowl -- Lost to Stanford, 40-12

8) 2011 Sugar Bowl -- Lost to Michigan, 23-20

In analyzing the losses, I think you can make the statement that we were frankly only expected to win one or maybe two of those games. Yes, we pissed away Michigan this year. Even though we were actually not favored, I feel that should have been a win. The 2007 Orange bowl is the one that bugs me. This was the best Kansas team in school history (The team was ranked #1 going into its last game of the year) but we should have won that game going away. Losing to eventual national champion FSU, an Auburn team that should have been in the championship game, and a Nebraska team that was in the middle of winning 3 out of 4 is not really shameful, and we played reasonably well in all three games. We did get embarrassed by the best Stanford team in history, which is bothersome but we were clearly overmatched.

I do know Beamer has changed things around from bowl to bowl and it still seems to be the same issue. The bottom line is that overall the ACC needs to play better football to prepare the champion for these games. Clearly it is not just VT that is struggling, as Clemson, UVA, UNC, and GT all laid eggs this year and Miami got throttled last year. I wish I had the answer to this question because trust me I would bottle it and sell it to all the ACC programs.

Kendall sez: I think it boils down to this -- a team built on defense and the running game but lacking SEC-level talent in the trenches is going to struggle in BCS games. You can win those games with explosive passing ability, or with elite talent along both lines. Virginia Tech seldom has either. So while they are clearly the class of the ACC, they need to become more relevant in national-level recruiting... or change the whole program's identity. Lunch pail beats rebuilding Miami and decade-cursed UVA, but lunch pail gets crushed by NFL talent in BCS games.

I get your point about iron sharpening iron, and I'm one of those people who believes that Florida State is actually on its way back, so hopefully that helps. (Clemson needs to find a new head coach, Swinney is egregious. And who the hell knows what's going to happen with Miami.) I do know the ACC needs to start winning some BCS games, and more of its bowl games in general. I think Virginia is on its way to being able to pitch in a little bit in that regard.

Painful sight for Hokie fans.

5) Rank the 12 ACC football coaches from best to worst overall. Explain your choices.

This is a perfect follow-up to the last question. My rationale for my rankings is as follows: 1) Winning recently (what have you done for me lately?), 2) Winning over time (historical trends), 3) Recruiting, 4) Results on field based on #3, 5) Performance in big games, and 6) Performance in conference. Keep in mind that this is how I rank them currently, not forecasting out a few years.

1) Frank Beamer -- Hard to argue this one in reality despite his shortcoming in big games. Whatever is lost in recruiting is made up for in on-field results with these lesser-rated recruits.

2) Jim Grobe -- I think this is a strong #2. Anybody that can win at Ohio U and Wake Forest is a good coach.

3) Al Golden -- Kendall disagrees with me here, but he did pretty well in the hornets' nest that was Miami this year and was able to win at Temple. The guy can flat out recruit. I will be interested to see what happens with Coach Golden.

4) Tom O’Brien -- Kind of hard to put this guy any higher or any lower. You can count on 7-8 wins every year and that is about it. Really, this is an indictment on just how bad the ACC has been the last few years.

5) Paul Johnson -- I can’t stand this guy, but his system has won over a long period of time (obviously bowl games and SEC games excepted.) Only ranked higher than #6 based on criterion #2, above.

6) Mike London -- A couple of years from now I think he will be higher on this list. He still makes a few head-scratching decisions though.

7) Larry Fedora -- Great year at Southern Miss. The guy is a good, innovative coach (as UVA found out.) I have a feeling he will be moving up this list, much to VT and UVA’s chagrin.

8) Jimbo Fisher -- Dabo Swinney Junior. Not a big fan of this guy. Everyone bangs on VT, but yet FSU has been getting a pass the last decade. If this team doesn’t win 10 games next year with the talent they have then perhaps there should be an investigation.

9) David Cutcliffe -- The guy has done alright at Duke. His teams play hard and always play teams close, unlike previous Duke squads.

10) Dabo Swinney -- I’m sorry, but this guy just can’t coach. He can recruit his ass off, but he should be last on this list considering the amount of talent he has pissed away the last three years. That being said, beating VT twice this year gets him a two spot jump.

11) Randy Edsall -- Anybody that calls Maryland a dream job deserve to be ranked about here. I’ll be interested to see what happens with the Terps next year. This program is a dumpster fire.

12) Frank Spazziani -- Sorry, this guy is terrible and I am not sure how he is still around.

I think you can take coaches 3 thru 9 and put them in a hat and pull them out. I think there are some good but not great coaches in the ACC. I would call Frank Beamer historically great but I think he is starting to trend down.

(By the way, I would put Syracuse's Doug Marrone and Pitt's Paul Chrsyt probably around the 8-ish area.)

Kendall sez: Good list, Douglas. Hard to argue with any of that. I think we currently have five tiers of coaches in the ACC. Beamer is alone on the top tier. Tier two is Grobe, O'Brien, and Johnson -- proven to be consistent winners but nothing really special, or somehow otherwise flawed. Tier three is the relatively unknown but exciting up-and-comers -- Golden (who really knows how good of a HC he is, winning at Temple isn't the miracle some try to make it out to be), London, Fedora, Marrone, and Chryst. Tier four is the over-hyped underachievers -- Fisher and Swinney. Tier five is the crap -- Edsall and Spaz. Cutcliffe stands alone, tierless. I honestly have no idea how good or bad he is. He did well at Ole Miss, considering the difficulty the Rebs have had since. It feels like he's doing well at Duke... but he's 15-33 in four seasons with zero winning seasons and zero bowl appearances. They play better than they had at any point during the prior decade-plus, but he's still not winning, and they're still losing to FCS teams. So I'd probably put Cutcliffe on tier four, but inching toward tier five. I'm not a big fan of the guy, I think he's a bit of a dildo.

Sorry, still not sold.

6) Assuming no large-scale playoff, how would you fix the college bowl system?

I could go on for pages and pages about this. What is the main problem with the bowl system? There are too many, the same teams go to the same bowls and half of them are two 6-6 teams. Very simple fix… Cut the number of bowls to 15, eliminate conference tie-ins, and put them into three tiers (five games each) that pick each of their their 10 teams from a pool. Increase the number of wins required to be bowl eligible to 8 and get rid of the FCS component… If you play an FCS team you better win 9. Any bowl that is played above the Mason Dixon Line or in a baseball stadium need not apply. Additionally all the traditional names will be coming back. After all the bowls are complete, have a +1 game to determine the national champion.

Tier 1 Bowls: Rose, Sugar, Peach, Cotton, Fiesta. (Sorry Orange bowl… you suck and until you play somewhere not twenty miles away from everywhere you are dropped down a tier.)

Tier 2 Bowls: Orange, Citrus, Hall of Fame, Sun, Holiday.

Tier 3 Bowls: Gator (even though it sucks), Music City (one of my favorite bowls), Liberty, Alamo, Insight (just for additional western exposure).

Frankly, after Tier 2 does anyone really care? For those of you saying "But Doug, my crappy 6-6 team deserves to get a chance to beat another crappy 6-6 team!" Hey no problem… These are supposed to be exhibitions, so feel free to schedule pre-season games at these locations. It is already happening (see Fed Ex, Dallas, and Atlanta.) If there ever is a playoff, you can look for these bowls to move to beginning of the season. It is the colleges' way of having their cake and eating it too.

Kendall sez: But Doug, my crappy 6-6 team deserves a chance to beat another 6-6 team!

All joking aside, riffing off of what you said and looking at it like this: In the NFL, 12 of the 32 teams go to the playoffs. That's 38%. College football should mirror that percentage and invite 46 of the FBS-level teams to the bowl system. That means 23 bowl games (24 if you include the +1), spread across five tiers, with each tier's teams drafted to play the games in a rotating system of draft order. That gives you new matchups every year, and gives the bowls the ability to select teams that would be regional draws. The same drafting occurs at each tier, with a selection committee placing teams in the pool for each tier's games to draft.

I'm not sure if any of that made sense, but imagine if on Selection Sunday, 8-4 Virginia had been chosen by the selection committee to play in Tier Three (boo, hiss, we deserved Tier Two this season!) It's the Belk Bowl's turn to make the first pick in that tier in 2011, so knowing they stand a good chance of drawing a big crowd to Charlotte for the game, they choose Virginia vs. Vanderbilt for their game. The Holiday Bowl has the second pick in Tier Three, and they choose California vs. San Diego State... et cetera.

This system combines America's love for the NCAA Tournament selection process with America's love for the NFL draft. Imagine the spectacle. And it allows bowl games to establish better regional games on a more regular basis, which improves attendance and increases bowl game reputations. It's not a playoff, but in some ways it is better. The bowl games are left intact, but there's no more same-ol', same-ol' recycled matchups, and conceivably no more empty stadiums and no more astronomical travel budgets. The schools might actually be able to make money on their bowl games! How novel!

Ah, screw it. Let's do a 16-team playoff.

But this, of course, is the dream.

7) Is Seth Greenberg the right coach to lead Virginia Tech basketball for the next decade-plus? Explain.

This is one of those look in the mirror type questions. Here we are sitting at 1-5 in the ACC and on the outside looking in at the NCAA Tournament again this year. On the surface it would seem the answer to this question is a NO, Greenberg is not the right coach. That being said, lets dive into the VT basketball program and be honest about where expectations should be set for this program.

Virginia Tech doesn’t have the rich basketball history of many of the other ACC programs. This is a program that has to fight for every piece of news in light of big brother, the football program. This is a campus that despite its size is in rural SW Virginia and 40 miles away from what could be considered an urban environment. While this can work in football, it is definitely a hindrance to the basketball program. This is a program that just updated its facilities, but still has one of the older arenas in the conference. Looking at all this, I would say the BCS conference basketball programs it is most comparable to would be programs such as Nebraska, Penn State, and Clemson. Not exactly murderers row in basketball.

As a VT fan, the sooner you can put your expectations in line with reality, the sooner you can answer this question. There is no doubt this team is not what it was supposed to be when it was put together last spring. Allen Chaney, who was considered an NBA talent, has never played a second for VT, and poor J.T. Thompson has now missed his second season with an ACL tear. Erick Green - our best player - has missed a couple of games, one of which was BC. (Win that game and you can still consider yourself in the tournament discussion), and Dorenzo Hudson has been hobbled all season as well. This is a team of mostly freshmen so it should not come as a surprise that we have struggled.

Seth Greenburg is a great recruiter. I can see that his coaching style can wear on the players, but winning games cures all that. I feel he has done a tremendous job in getting VT where they are today. You can usually count on some surprise losses (BC) and surprise wins (UVA) every year. Greenberg may not be able to take us to the next level, but he at least deserves the shot. Honestly though, I don’t see him staying much longer… the fans are have too much of a “football mentality”. One loss and the fans turn on their own. I would like to see him stick around, but my guess is he will move on to a Northeastern school within the next three years. Then I think VT fans will see just how difficult this VT job is. So yes I think he can be the right coach, but I don’t think he will end up being it.

Kendall sez: I know Greenberg is a New York guy, and in that way it seems like a weird fit in the southern part of Virginia. But you're right, the guy has had surprising success being able to recruit players to Virginia Tech. That said, the proof is in the pudding, and the pudding tastes like one tournament appearance in nine seasons. Despite however you might feel about the recent tournament snubs, that's not enough trips to the Big Dance. Bottom line. If I were a Virginia Tech basketball fan, I'd be ready to move on. Old gym, wishy-washy fans, whatever, Virginia Tech is still an ACC job, and that carries enough sway to get an up-and-comer with the potential to do a little bit better.

Meanwhile, you mentioned Dex's sideline demeanor in one of the questions above, so I'd be remiss if I didn't mention Greenberg's courtside demeanor here. I am absolutely not an unbiased observer, but the guy is an embarrassment to your school and to the conference on a far-too-regular basis. And that includes his interviews on Selection Sunday. I think VT can do better than that, Doug. I really do. You have to be getting tired of the "be sure Greenberg is miked up on Selection Sunday!" jokes. Beamer is a classy guy, a southern gentleman, and Greenberg just doesn't fit that same mold. If I were a Virginia Tech fan, I'd be glad to bid him adieu to St. John's or wherever he's going up there. To me, Greenberg is like a more successful version of Dave Leitao... just not the right fit at a Virginia school that aspires to relevance within the storied ACC.

Good enough for Virginia Tech? Maybe, maybe not...

8) Virginia Tech has become the poster child for sitting on the bubble and being snubbed by the NCAA Tournament selection committee. In your opinion, what do the Hokies need to do to avoid that fate in the future? How can Virginia dodge that situation?

Well it seems that every year there is a new criteria that VT just didn’t meet. One year it is number of wins, then it is last 10 games, then it is top 100 opponents. I don’t think we need to worry about this year. Although we are playing better right now, there is no way VT is in that discussion this year. The ACC going to the 18 game schedule (when Syracuse and Pitt join) helps. I think that will be a nice RPI boost for all the teams. Play some out-of-state mid-majors on the road and try to get in one of the holiday tournaments every year. I would avoid playing the instate mid-majors as they treat it like it is the GD superbowl. Finally, for God sakes, stop playing RPI 300+ teams. You are better off playing a Division 2 team that doesn’t get factored in the RPI. Additionally it would be nice to get someone on the NCAA committee that actually tried to help out the conference for a change. Just like football, though, this will improve when the ACC starts playing better basketball. Right now there is UNC, Duke, UVA, FSU and NC State playing decent basketball. The rest of the conference needs to step up.

Kendall sez: I definitely agree with you there. Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, and Maryland need to step up. FSU and UVA need to stay solid. Miami needs to stabilize as a .500 team in conference. Pitt and Syracuse will help a lot. The ACC needs to get back to the days when 9 conference wins guarantees a tournament bid.

STEP IT UP, slackjawed Yellow Jackets.

9) The word on the street is that conference expansion will eventually lead us not to 16 teams per conference, but 18 (EIGHTEEN!?!) Pretend you are John Swofford, and hand-pick the four schools that would receive invitations to join the ACC (and please -- realistic choices only!) Explain your choices.

Ugh… It was hard enough to pick two additional teams that meet the ACC’s requirements. So let’s see obviously any new team has to bring something to the table in terms of football and basketball (FBS/D-1A level on both), while at the same time being in at least the eastern most two time zones and at least requiring a pulse to get into the school. Additionally, I won’t consider any school that just changed or is in the process of changing conferences (i.e. WVU, TCU.) Kendall says keep it realistic, so I need to set aside my Florida, Georgia, etc. thoughts and come down to reality. Keep in mind these are not my choices, but what I would see as the most likely targets.

1) First and foremost, any expansion to that level will have to require Notre Dame, otherwise it makes no sense to me. I don’t think it is as unrealistic as others may think. If you get ND, then you can go ahead and fill the rest up with Big East spare parts.

2) Rutgers would appear to be the next most likely although I am not really sure they bring a lot to the table athletically.

3) Connecticut -- Obviously the basketball programs are top notch and then there is the ESPN proximity, never a bad thing to have in your corner.

I have to admit after much thought I am struggling with who #4 (#18) would be. You could make arguments for and against South Florida, East Carolina, Cincinnati, Louisville, and Southern Miss, none of which make a huge smile come to my face. My guess is it would be one of the first two -- USF or ECU.

Just for fun if I had to go try to turn a school to the ACC from another non-Big East conference, I would in order go:

Penn State – With ND and any two crap schools, it will work for me.

Kentucky – Awesome basketball.

Keep in mind as a VT fan I have no interest in going to 18 as I am keenly aware that puts us right back in the Big East and not playing our new-found ACC conference mates. Honestly I don’t see how going to 18 really is beneficial and I could see the setup lasting one TV contract before falling apart.

Kendall sez: Doug, I know you're not a realignmageddon geek like I am, so I apologize for hitting you with this question. My personal picks to go to 18 are as follows: Notre Dame, which I honestly think is a fairly realistic pull. After ND joins the ACC, Penn State becomes viable... especially after all of this recent controversy (the B1G could easily go in a different direction.) PSU still has a lot of value for the ACC because of football cred. My pick for #17 is Temple. Good school, good hoops, and the infrastructure to be the college football school in Philly. Not sure if PSU would try to block Temple's inclusion, but I'd love to see the Owls in the ACC. #18 is tough. I think Miami and FSU would block USF/UCF from inclusion, and Rutgers doesn't move the needle for me at all. UConn is probably the best choice, but don't sleep on Memphis. It would be good to gain an ACC toehold in the state of Tennessee, and in a big media market like Memphis. Plus, Memphis basketball. I think Memphis Tigers football is a bit of a sleeping giant, as well. Okay, final answer: ND, PSU, Temple, and UConn, with Memphis being a backup option. All of that being said, I think 14 has as much chance of being the next 16 as 18 has. (If you have no idea what that sentence meant, you need to read Wahooze more often.) Notre Dame and Penn State or bust!

Dream of a day when this is an ACC game. It could happen!

10) You are chosen to replace Craig Littlepage as Virginia's Athletic Director. What are the three items atop your to-do list?

1) Indoor practice facility – This appears to have been addressed. No excuse for a BCS level team to practice on a concrete floor when the rain comes. Pathetic.

2) Survey the football fan base – I actually went to a few games this year. This season was by all accounts a success, yet the GT, USM and Duke games were terrible in terms of attendance. Figure out what to do to get the fans back. Bottom line is this, UVA fans, and you may not like hearing this… If you don’t show up next year, then you frankly don’t deserve to have a good football program. Stop blaming Al Groh for everything that is wrong in the world and get back to the games.

3) Beef up the men’s basketball schedule. Let’s face it, the non-conference schedule was weak this year. Losing to VT did not help the situation. UVA needs to win 11 ACC games to assure themselves of an NCAA bid. 10 ACC wins no longer guarantees anything, as VT so unfortunately showed in 2009.

Kendall sez: #1 is on its way, #2 is the most confounding thing ever, and #3 could be argued but I do tend to agree. Good list.

It's coming, Doug. BACK OFF!

BONUS: Flip the script. You are chosen to replace Jim Weaver as Virginia Tech's Athletic Director. What are the three items atop your to-do list?

1) Increase recruiting budgets for football and both basketball programs. I would like to see us cast a little wider net.

2) Figure out a way to move men’s lacrosse to varsity level. VT is very close to prime recruiting area and I think that we could have a good program very quickly.

3) Increase the money spent on men’s baseball in terms of scholarships and facilities.

Kendall sez: It would be great to see Tech's lacrosse come up and baseball solidify -- there's no good reason why both of those programs couldn't quickly become assets to the ACC. Especially VT baseball. It's in a region of strong high school baseball, and in a conference of fantastic college baseball. As for the wider recruiting net... I'm all for it if it means you'll back off the in-state recruits a little bit, ha ha.

Step 1: Never wear these uniforms again. Ever.

And that's it. I really want to thank Doug again for his time and effort in answering these questions. I think it gives us Virginia fans a lot of good perspective on things. Thanks Doug!

Wahooze Weekly Picks -- FINAL STANDINGS!

2012-02-01T11:17:00.000-05:00

I almost completely forgot about this! Luckily, Mike reminded me this morning, so we spent some time reviewing all fifteen weeks of picks and points, including the picks from the bowl games.

BOWL-O-RAMA Picks
Kendall -- 14 points
Pierce -- 12 points
Jeff -- 8 points
Mike -- 8 points

SEASON TOTAL
Kendall -- 116 (out of 210 total available points), 55.24%
Pierce -- 112, 53.33%
Guest Pickers -- 104, 49.52%
Mike -- 96, 45.71%

Turns out, Pierce and I are pretty good at this. Pretty good, but not great. Bottom line, we'd be making money in Vegas if picking college football games ATS were our job... Our guest pickers put up a good fight, and some were definitely better than others. But overall, nice showing. And finally, Mike sucks at this. Like really bad. Embarrassing performance this season, really.

But speaking of the guest pickers, how did they fare? Who hit the best percentage and has earned Wahooze lunch at the China King Buffet?

Kung POW!

Here is the ranking of our 15 guest pickers, based on percentage of total points against available points:
#1 Doug -- 12/16, 75.00%
#2 TJ -- 11/16, 68.75%
#3 Joe -- 8/13, 61.54%
#4 Charlie -- 9/15, 60.00%
#5 Rookie -- 10/17, 58.82%
#6 Sparkle -- 7/13, 53.85%
#7 Havens -- 7/14, 50.00%
#7 (tie) Caleb -- 6/12, 50.00%
#9 Jeff -- 8/17, 47.06%
#10 Phil -- 7/16, 43.75%
#11 Keens -- 5/12, 41.67%
#12 Ben -- 6/15, 40.00%
#13 Dennis -- 3/13, 23.08%
#13 (tie) Tripp -- 3/13, 23.08%
#15 Kato -- 1/8, 12.50%

Congratulations to Doug, our best guest picker of the year!

Congrats also to TJ, Joe, Charlie, Rookie, and Sparkle, who get to join Pierce, Doug, and myself in Las Vegas. The rest of you have to stay home with Mike.

And just for gits and shiggles, here's a look at whose guest pickers performed the best:
TEAM KENDALL -- 12/16, 8/13, 10/17, 5/12, 6/15; 41/73 total, 56.16%
TEAM PIERCE -- 11/16, 7/14, 6/12, 8/17, 3/13; 35/72, 48.61%
TEAM MIKE -- 9/15, 7/13, 7/16, 3/13, 1/8; 27/65, 41.54%

So not only did I win the season-long Wahooze Weekly Picks contest, my friends proved to be the best guest pickers! Mwah-hah-hah-hah-hah! Back to the drawing board, Pierce. And Mike... just give it up, dude.

Doug, let us know when you want to dine with the Wahooze staff. Mike will hang up your coat for you.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the picks, and good luck on the Wahooze Bracket Contest, coming soon!

Virginia 65, Clemson 61

2012-01-31T23:33:00.000-05:00

A few thoughts from tonight's game:

-- 18 wins at the end of January. Pretty freaking good. I know our SOS isn't the greatest, but... c'mon! 18 wins!

-- Mike Scott was a beast tonight, as usual. I especially liked the hook over the 7-footer, the three blocks, and the clutch free throws at the end of the game.

-- Joey Hoops came through, big time. 5-for-6 from three. Sweet as Yoo-Hoo.

Kingpin quotes, anyone?

-- Really, really impressed with Akil Mitchell tonight. Kid made a bunch of crucial plays, especially defensively. Sank some key free throws, too. 35 minutes of action tonight, and it's not hard to squint and see a solid starter for next year.

-- Sammy: 1-for-7 from 3. Is the slump back on?

-- Are we a better team on the road than at home? We've played some flat games at home lately...

-- Tonight is a perfect example of why Jontel Evans frustrates the heck out of me.

-- The press made me very nervous. We need to shore up our ability to break the press.

-- Malcolm Brogdon showed me something in late game action. Kid was fearless. Didn't make all of the plays, but at least had the stones to try. I really like Brog's future... I just wish he'd drive the lane a bit more right now.

-- We need to squeeze more minutes from Darion Atkins and Paul Jesperson. 13 minutes between the two isn't enough. We're going to lose a game due to tired legs (Pete Gillenism!) if we keep doing the ironman routine with the starters and Brog.

-- Bring on the Noles. I like our chances in Tallahassee on Saturday. Golden opportunity to land a second marquee win and get off the bubble and improve our seeding.

GO HOOS!

Reinforcements!

2012-01-31T16:15:00.001-05:00

A quick wide-lens view of the 2012 recruiting class, which isn't likely to change between now and National Signing Day tomorrow...

Quarterbacks

Matt Johns

Greyson Lambert, 6-5 / 195, 3-star, Jesup, GA
Matt Johns, 6-5 / 200, 3-star, Warrington , PA
Lambert chose the Hoos over offers from Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, Miami, and a few other big-time football schools. Landing his golden arm was a coup for the program. Johns (who committed before Lambert) didn't blink when we landed the surprise commitment from Lambert -- I like Johns is unafraid of long-term competition from a more highly-regarded fellow recruit. I'm guessing that Lambert is on the trajectory to take over for Mike Rocco after Rock exhausts his eligibility in 2013, which would make Lambert the starter in 2014, 2015, and 2016... unless David Watford hangs in there and ends up starting during his senior season in 2014. Johns seems like a career backup, but that was the plan for Matt Schaub also, and we all know how that shook out. In any case, with this pair of incoming recruits (actually, Lambert enrolled for the spring semester this January and is already taking classes at UVA), our depth chart and succession plan at the quarterback position is finally repaired from the gross mismanagement of the late stages of the Al Groh regime.

Running Backs
Kye Morgan, 5-10 / 165, 3-star, Somerset, NJ

Kye Morgan

We pursued a number of power backs in this class - Imani Cross, Chris Mangus, and Nathan Staub namely - but came up short in those recruitments. Morgan is a fine consolation prize, chipped from the same block of chutzpah-marbled granite as Perry Jones. Morgan is not a between-the-tackles grinder, so that bellcow type back becomes an elevated need in the 2013 class. However, Morgan's versatility and receiving ability should be a very good fit in Lazor's offense, so don't sleep on this kid. He has quick feet, great cutting ability, and plus level instincts and timing. A good running back who emerged later in the recruiting process, we're lucky to have him. It's hard to say if he'll be more Perry Jones or Khalek Shepherd, but it's always good to have a full deck of aces in the backfield.

Wide Receivers
Canaan Severin, 6-3 / 215, 4-star, Worcester, MA
Anthony Cooper, 6-0 / 187, 3-star, Virginia Beach, VA
Mario Nixon, 6-4 / 216, 3-star, Norfolk, VA
Adrian Gamble, 6-2 / 175, 3-star, Fork Union, VA
Kyle Dockins, 6-4 / 200, 2-star, Virginia Beach, VA
Jamall Brown, 6-0 / 178, 2-star, Hampton, VA

Adrian Gamble

This year was the motherload of wide receiver recruits. Severin is the headliner, and he's an elite-level athlete; a big receiver who is really more of a WR/TE hybrid. The same can be said for Nixon (a basketball player turned wideout, sound familiar NFL fans?) and Dockins (an undersized tight end recruit moved to wide receiver). It seems to me like Lazor is sort of phasing out the true prototypical "6th offensive lineman" blocking-savvy tight end in favor of more Gronk/Graham type athletes. It's an interesting transition, and I can see how it could make our offense more explosive in the long run. In any case, it seemed like finding a few big receivers was a priority in this class. Mission accomplished. We are following the trail blazed by the Alshon Jefferys and Juron Criners of the world. Meanwhile, Cooper is a Kris Burd-type all-around receiver, Gamble is a wildcard after his prep year at FUMA, and Jamall Brown is the lightly-recruited darkhorse. This is a big haul of receiving talent, and I'm really looking forward to seeing how these guys fit with Darius Jennings, Dominique Terrell, Miles Gooch, and E.J. Scott over the next few seasons. The cupboard is now very well-stocked at wide receiver... I bet we're about to see a lot more 3- and 4-wide spread-like tendencies from our offense. Lazor wants the ball in the air, and now we're getting close to having enough studs to catch it.

Tight Ends
No Recruits
Kyle Dockins was technically a tight end recruit, but the staff already told him he'll be getting his first look as a wide receiver. Max Valles might also get a look here, but my thought is he'll end up on defense. So this is another year where the tight end position is lightly recruited, further proof that Lazor is moving away from the prototypical TE in his base offense.

Offensive Line
Andre Miles-Redmond, 6-4 / 260, 3-star, Richmond, VA
Mike Mooney, 6-5 / 265, 3-star, Malvern, PA
Sean Karl, 6-6 / 284, 3-star, Manorville, NY
Ryan Doull, 6-3 / 305, 2-star, Fork Union, VA
Jackson Matteo (recruited walk-on / blueshirt), 6-5 / 276, 2-star, Ashburn, VA
Just like at the quarterback position, the o-line had an alarming lack of numbers after Al Groh razed the depth chart on his way out the door. Recruiting the big uglies has definitely been a focus for Mike London, and he landed four OL recruits in the 2011 class, and now five more in 2012. Consider the line re-stocked and the pipeline flowing again. This year's haul is slanted a little bit toward the interior of the line, so finding legit tackle prospects could be a key to next year's recruiting class. In any case, this is a talented, athletic group of linemen that will help the Virginia offensive line continue its solid play in the future.

Defensive Ends
Eli Harold, 6-4 / 215, 4-star, Virginia Beach, VA
Mike Moore, 6-4 / 255, 4-star, Hyattsville, MD
Courtnye Wynn, 6-6 / 240, 3-star, Norfolk, VA

Eli Harold

Any 4-3 defense worth its salt has the ability to put two good edge rushers on the field at the same time, in the two defensive end spots. The big, run-stopping pluggers are also important, but it's the juice around the edge that really elevates this base defense into something special... and it's edge rush talent that our team has been lacking since Mike London took the reins and switched things over from Al Groh's 5-2 base... sorry... 3-4 base. Anyway, with Cam Johnson gone and Bill Schautz working to return from a gruesome broken leg, it's important that we find some edge rush talent from our incoming freshman class. Enter Eli Harold. He's a little on the skinny side and will need to add some weight, but there's no way he redshirts. Dude's the top recruit in our class, and the top recruit in the state of Virginia this year. He's a terror around the edge, and I'm sure there's a niche role Jim Reid can carve out for a guy like that, despite his lack of beef. Moore and Wynn are also good pass rushers, but they are more all-around talents that could play LDE, or in the case of Moore, bulk up a little and slide inside to tackle. This is a top-notch trio of d-end recruits, and I am very excited about these guys joining the team.

Defensive Tackles
Tyrell Chavis, 6-3 / 300, 3-star, Richmond, VA
Chavis is a wide-body zero-technique or one-technique nose tackle; the type of recruit that is really hard to find. He would have been a great fit as a nose in Groh's 5-2... er... 3-4. Under tackles (the smaller / lighter DT in the two-DT formation) are much easier to find, and in many cases defensive ends grow up into unders (see also: Matt Conrath). Therefore, it's less important to find those under tackles in recruiting. But the big baby behomth nose tackles... you gotta recruit those as is, and they are rare. Chavis moonlights along the offensive line, but he's a nose tackle recruit for us, all the way. He's a bit unheralded, but Boston College and Vanderbilt were on him hard, and he's a well-regarded recruit in coaching circles. Good enough for me.

Linebackers
Kwontie Moore, 6-2 / 243, 4-star, Norfolk, VA
Mark Hall, 6-4 / 225, 3-star, Virginia Beach, VA

Max Valles, 6-5 / 210, 2-star, Hammonton, NJ

Kwontie Moore

If Eli Harold is the recruit I'm most excited about in this class, Kwontie Moore is a close second. THIS is what I wrote when he first committed, and nothing has happened in the eight months since to make me change this opinion: "Mike London is a defensive coach, and he now has his defensive centerpiece. I don't want to overstate it, but imagine the day the Baltimore Ravens drafted Ray Lewis." Yep, just dropped the Ray Lewis bomb. Again. Boom. Meanwhile, HERE is what Mike had to say about Mark Hall, a guy who projects to be a very good player at either outside linebacker position. Valles is a raw athlete who could end up at tight end or defensive end, but my guess is outside linebacker. Make no mistake, he's a project who could really land anywhere on the roster once his physical development trajectory is set. Linebacker is one of our more thin positions in terms of the overall depth chart, so I am surprised we aren't seeing more recruits at this position in this class. That said, Moore and Hall are two big-time recruits that should solidify our defense as future starters.

Safeties
Demeitre Brim, 6-3 / 215, 3-star, Lakeland, FL

Demeitre Brim

Brim's recruitment was a bit of a roller-coaster, as he emerged from darkhorse status amid offers from Miami, Florida, and a full-court press from UCF. He broke his jaw and missed a big chunk of action on the field, but his stock continued to rise. It's a bit of a miracle that we were able to hang on to his commitment. Beating Miami at Miami and then Florida State at Florida State with Brim in attendance for both games definitely helped. Is this late bloomer a future star at safety? Who knows. Heck, he might not even end up at the safety position, as he's already almost too big for that spot... he could easily bulk up to linebacker (think LaRoy Reynolds.) I'm listing him at safety here, mostly because we desperately need safeties on the roster, and partly because safety is the position Brim played in high school.

Cornerbacks
C.J. Moore, 5-10 / 165, 3-star, Buford, GA
Maurice Canady, 6-0 / 160, 3-star, Richmond, VA
Kelvin Rainey, 6-1 / 174, 3-star, Houston, TX
Divante Walker, 5-10 / 157, 2-star, Virginia Beach, VA
Wil Wahee, 5-11 / 179, 2-star, Norfolk, VA

Divante Walker

Along with wide receiver and offensive line, this is the most exciting numbers haul in the 2012 class. This class of corners includes a bunch of athletes slotted at cornerback -- Canady, Walker, and Wahee all fit that description. Moore and Rainey are more traditional cornerback recruits, though both saw mysteriously light pursuit from schools in their home state (GT didn't recruit Moore, and Georgia never offered; only Rice delivered an in-state offer to Rainey.). I'll admit, this group feels a bit like "throw something against the wall to see what sticks," which I am totally fine with. One or two of these guys (Canady, specifically) might be able to move to safety, one might land at running back, and those that don't stick on defense will at the very least be plus-level contributors on special teams. The hope is that we find two serviceable cornerbacks from this group of five, and I think that's a lock. Canady, Walker, and Wahee are all Virginia guys who have earned a lot of accolades as underrated prospects, so I'm excited about that. It will be interesting to see what comes of this group of recruits as their UVA careers progress. (Note: for some strange reason, I have a very good gut feeling about Maurice Canady. Not sure why. Just some of the comments I've read about him have made me feel especially optimistic. I felt the same way about Perry Jones when he was an incoming recruit.)

Specialists
Dylan Sims (recruited walk-on / blueshirt) -- Kicker, Lynchburg, VA
James Coleman (recruited walk-on / blueshirt) -- Punter, Martinsville, VA
Hallelujah! Two specialists, zero scholarships out of the chute. Gone are the days when Al Groh would toss around all-important grants-in-aid to lure kicking prospects. Gone are the days when good in-state kickers went to other schools over UVA. Gone are the days I'll need to hate our kickers just because. Sims has a booming leg and might handle kickoffs as a true freshman. Coleman will compete for the starting punter job as a freshman. Bring 'em on!

What is a "Blueshirt?"

2012-01-31T12:18:00.000-05:00

Consider this a Wahooze terminology lesson.

In the world of big-time college football recruiting, we already know what a "redshirt" is (when a player sits out a year but retains that year of eligibility, yet is able to practice / work out with the team.) We also know what a greyshirt is (when a player delays his enrollment at his future college so that his eligibility clock will not start ticking until he arrives on campus during the second semester of the year.) But what the heck is a "blueshirt?"

It's a term I just recently heard bandied about. I didn't know what it meant, so I looked it up. Basically, a blueshirt is a player who arrived on campus as a "preferred" or "recruited" walk-on and then eventually earns a football scholarship.

Interesting concept. We actually have three blueshirt candidates (maybe more) in this year's recruiting class: kicker Dylan Sims, punter James Coleman, and offensive lineman Jackson Matteo.

Propers to Pre-Snap Read for spelling out the system, explaining the history of the practice at New Mexico State (where the term originated), and illuminating the potential problems the NCAA could face with blueshirting. It's a good read, I'd recommend checking it out.

The Last (First?) Piece from North of the Border

2012-01-31T09:23:00.000-05:00

The Football staff has been flirting with 6-3 235 Canadian Athlete Trent Corney since Mid-January and it looks like both sides are ready to pull the trigger. Sources are reporting that Corney has been extended an offer to join the Hoos next January. While this seems strange it is most likely the best solution for all parties involved.

This process is called "grey-shirting" which is a term used to designate an incoming freshman who waits until the second semester to enroll rather than the fall. College athletes are allowed a five year calendar to play four seasons. The calendar begins once one is enrolled. By waiting until the spring to start college, a player will be playing his last season in the sixth year after high school rather than the fifth. This is especially appealing to a player like Corney because his football experience has not been the best, since he is from Canada. Corney is most likely headed to Fork Union in the fall.

Corney is being mentioned as a potential linebacker or fullback, but if I had to guess I would say he is going to play fullback. Mostly due to the positional scarcity on the roster. UVA will most likely start a walk on this season.

Huge Win 3: The Return of Sammy Z

2012-01-30T09:13:00.003-05:00

After bouncing back with a win against BC earlier in the week, UVA's basketball team went down to Raleigh this weekend and escaped with a hugely important win. Despite having the lead for the majority of the game, there can't be anyone who was confident in the team pulling it off until the final horn. NC State swarmed the paint all game, dominating the glass on both ends and out-rebounding the Hoos 42-25. The Pack's athleticism really highlighted the disadvantage Virginia faces now that they're down to eight available scholarship players. Without their 7-footer, the Hoos big men were left winded and in foul trouble, allowing the Pack to run a tip drill every time they missed a shot inside. That all being said, we won. So how'd the guys pull it off?

Mike Scott donates his swag to the less fortunate. (Photo: AP/J.Bounds)

Shooting. That's right, our offense won the game for us. The Hoos shot a cool 44% from the floor for the game, but more importantly, a staggering 46.7% from beyond the arc. After the display the team put on against VPI (and a couple other recent games for that matter), 46.7% ON THE ROAD is nothing short of remarkable. Such is basketball though, droughts come and go. But if this team looked to make the Big Dance in the first time in forever, it needed the drought to end quickly. And boy, did it end convincingly. Zeglinski got back to form, after a stretch of 5-6 games where he couldn't throw the ball in the ocean, Sammy started the game off right by burying a three on the first possession. He finished 4/5 from downtown, while Joe Harris chipped in a couple. With teams focusing on Mike Scott all game, it's absolutely critical that the Hoos score regularly from outside and as we saw against State, outside shooting success can win games. This isn't to say that the team blew it on defense (they held the pack to 13.3% from downtown), but without their sharpshooting, the Hoos go home losers.

No ACC road victory is unimportant, but this one was particularly critical. While the team's record is impressive, the resume is not. After losing to the lowliest-of-lowly Hokies (AT HOME) in what can only be described as "The Worst Display of Anything Remotely Resembling Organized Sports in the History of Things with Long Titles," the Wahoos needed to steal a win away from home against a quality opponent. Recent shellacking by UNC aside, State is a quality team. In fact, if they shot near their usual FT % on Saturday, the Pack would have won. But the Hoos were due a payback poor-shooting game, so it's all a wash to me. By the way, I want to root for the Wolfpack to do well, I generally like their fans and support anyone giving Duke and UNC trouble, but man am I unimpressed with Mark Gottfried. Not that he's a bad coach, but he's teetering towards "unrootable" status as a competitor.

A little too much whining and posturing. (Photo: AP/J.Bounds)

So where does this all leave us? I think Kendall is spot-on in his prediction: if the Wahoos go 6-4 down the stretch, they're definitely in. I'd bet on 5-5 working out for us, but it'd be really stressful up until Selection Sunday. The next step is taking care of business at home tomorrow against Clemson. Unless we steal a game from FSU or UNC, things are going to be really tight down the stretch. Should be fun.

Dreams of a 2012 Big Man

2012-01-27T13:05:00.000-05:00

Wahooze, this is Charles Mitchell, Charles Mitchell, Wahooze. I would love to give us the oppurtunity to get to know each other better, say over the next 4 years? That sounds good.

Mitchell is a 6-7 250 pound bruiser out of Marietta, Georgia and quite possibly might be the best shot we have at getting a premier big man. When Kendall and I discussed Mitchell previously Kendall mentioned that Mitchell looked a lot like DeJaun Blair. I am going to one up Kendall and say the Mitchell reminds me quite a bit of Sir Charles Barkley. That's high praise, but let's look closer.

Mitchell is a big kid. Not very tall for a Power Forward but he is a load on the block. Mitchell is a true back to the basket scorer who understands his role in an offense like ours. When doubled down Mitchell appears to have tremendous vision to be able to find the open man. Are you intrigued? Well it gets better. Mitchell can also demonstrate a very high basketball IQ by being able to read when and if a team is going to double down on him, which not only makes it easier to find the open man, but also makes him a great Bennett-Ball style forward. That intelligence will help on the defensive end as well, especially if he is call on to be the hedge on a guard screen like Mike is this year, though I think Justin Anderson has that locked up.

The biggest knock on Mitchell is obviously his conditioning. Throughout his high school career Mitchell has gotten into and out of shape multiple times. He also doesn't get much lift or have much range on the glass which limits his effectiveness on the defensive end. Having said that this is a perfect Jerome Meyinsse situation all over again. Get that kid on a conditioning program and watch him blossom.

Mitchell would be a great final piece to add to 2012, however almost every team that still needs a big man will most likely be knocking on his door. Mitchell currently holds offers from UVA, Georgia, Clemson, Tennessee, Alabama, and Virginia Tech. That being said UVA has two major things to offer Mitchell. First is obviously PT. Mitchell would most likely be a key part of UVa's rotation next season, unless Coach Bennett decides he needs to redshirt to get in better playing shape. That being said we are most likely not the only school that is going to say the word redshirt to him, and since we are the most in need of a solid PF, we might be the one that offers him the best shot at some early PT. The second big thing we can offer is Coach Bennett's track record with making marginal bigs into good bigs. I really think that Mitchell is one of those players that can explode when he gets the right coach, and hopefully Coach Bennett is that coach.

Go Get HIM!

The Gus Malzahn Story

2012-01-26T17:04:00.000-05:00

After watching Gus Malzahn's misdirection offense methodically pick us to pieces in the Peach Bowl, I've added his offensive genius to the list of coaches - namely Mike Leach and Chip Kelly - I follow, read about, and study. True innovators at a time of rapid-fire football innovation. It gets me excited. I'm a football offense geek.

Today, I stumbled across this awesome piece from SI's George Schroeder. If you're curious why a clear offensive wunderkind like Malzahn ended up at podunk Arkansas State... take a few minutes and read:

Once the next hot head coach, Malzahn lands at Arkansas State

I am now a Red Wolves fan.

1000 words? No, this picture says it all.

New 2012 Targets enter the crosshairs

2012-01-26T14:44:00.000-05:00

In case you haven't heard Greg Schiano has been hired by the Tampa Bay Bucs to be their next head coach, a move that perplexes me a little bit but that is neither here nor there. What matters most is that now there is a free for all in New Jersey, and for all the Rutgers recruits, which believe it or not are fairly numerous and high in quality. Two players in particular have grabbed our coaches attention. Let's look at them a little more closely.

Quanzell Lambert (LB) 6-2 240 Sickleville, NJ
Lambert was a player that UVA desperately wanted, but missed out on. He would make a great strongside lineback to play alongside Kwontie Moore. At 6-2 240 Lambert already fits the part, making it obvious why UVA would be so high on him. Lambert is an excellent tackler and excels in run support, which I think makes him and excellent cantidate to play on the strong side to help take some of the pressure off our smaller DE's, especially if Harold remains as slight as he is. Having a sure tackler in run support behind you makes it a little easier to rationalize having lighter DEnds in for a more aggressive pass rush. All that being said I don't think we will see Lambert jump ship. There are stories written about how Lambert is now recruiting other talent in New Jersey to come on board. That being said Virginia has the same advantages on the depth chart that Rutgers had, so it will be interesting to see if Coach London can work some magic here.

Chances we can get back in: 2/10
Chances we can land him: 1/10

Chris Muller (OL) 6-6 287 Boyertown, PA
Muller is a more likely prospect to come on board, but UVA will have to get in line here too. It'd hard to believe but scouting reports say that once this kid fills out he could be a mauler. Think a more athletic Austin Pasztor. Muller has the strength to bowl kids over and the speed to get out to the second level. UVA is in the fortunate position to not have Muller be a need to get kind of kid, but is he a want to get? Absolutely. In the 2 hours after Schiano took the Tampa Bay job Muller had 28 missed calls and 18 voicemails. Must be nice!

Chances we can get back in: 6/10
Chances we can land him: 4/10

There are some other prominent kids from New Jersey that were considering Rutgers including 2 big time stars that UVA had offered in Devin Fuller and Darius Hamilton, but both those players had eliminated the Hoos. Fuller seems now destined to Nebraska, his only other official visit, while Hamilton will most likely head to Florida, though Miami is still in the mix. It will be interesting to see how this all shakes out. I personally think all these kids will wait to see who is hired before they sign. That being siad with it so close to signing day, this could be one of the more interesting stories we've had in a while. It all is going to hinge on a few guys, I think if Lambert jumps ship, there will be a big time exodus. If he can convince Hamilton and Fuller to commit, then nothing will change. Should be fun!

Hoo to Follow

2012-01-26T10:03:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the stupid title, but it felt appropriate. I have fallen into the twitter trap (@mikev1b, follow me!) and have decided this might be a good time to tell everyone who they absolutely must be following on twitter to get some good info/entertainment regarding UVA sports.

1. LaRoy Reynolds (@Rampagee9)

Favorite Tweet of late: We in there tonittttteeeee !!

About 95% of the time I have absolutely no idea what LaRoy is talking about. He will tweet the most random stuff providing absolutely no context for it. Case in point the example above. He's always good for a head scratcher at least once a day, though recently there has been some sort of strigfe involving a girl that must have lied to him or something. I have been glued to the twitter for updates.

2. Mike Scott (@MScottuva23)

Favorite Tweet of Late: My pops txted me shm .. lol I said, its SMH dad lol wow

Mike is great. He will twitpic everything he does, which is always a treat. He also seems to shake his head at everything. EVERYTHING. The best part about Mike is that he will follow you back, no matter who you are. Plus his shit is hilarious.

3. Eli Harold aka Swaggdaddy GQ (@Medgar_Harold)

Favorite Tweet of Late: Errythings purple errythings purple swagg swagg swagg swagg!

If your phone does push notifications you should a) change that, and b) not follow Eli. Kid is a machine on the twitters. Also tweeting some of the dumbest things I've ever read but does occasionally tweet at other recruits. It's well documented that he is recruiting kids to UVA almost as hard as the coaching staff, so at least for this class, it's fun to see who he talks to. Current targets appear to include Salem QB Bucky Hodges, and Bayside RB Smoke Mizzell.

4. Jamie Oakes/Wahoos247 (@JamieOakes247/@Wahoos247)

Favorite Tweet of Late: UVa is in the hunt for 2013 Gladstone (N.J.) Gill St. Bernards four-star point guard Jaren Sina ...

Jamie is the moderator of Wahoos247 which Kendall says is the best recruiting site out there and I am starting to agree. His stuff is always solid and seems to be able to scoop everyone else. If you have the spare cash to invest in this and love recruiting, do it. It's well worth it.

5. Virginia Baseball (@UVABaseball)

Favorite Tweet of Late:Just 24 days til the UVA baseball season opener ... and only 4 weeks until the home opener vs W&M!

If you like baseball you have to. It is very well done and keeps you up to date on everything.

Those are just a few. If you know of some that I missed drop it in the comment section. Twitter is actually a surprisingly useful tool as a sports fan which I am finally using. If you don't use it, give it a try! No one says you have to tweet anything...

Welcome to the Bubble

2012-01-25T15:41:00.001-05:00

Virginia fans aren't used to being on the bubble. It's been a long time since we've been there.

Note: just found THIS PAGE on ESPN.com. It's worth a click.

Looking back in time, we weren't close in either of the last two years, and Dave Leitao's last season (2008-09) was a disastrous 10-18 grease fire. 2007-08 was Sean Singletary's last year (wow, it's been that long???), which ended up a disappointing 17-16 with an "epic" run in the CBI. 2006-07 was our last trip to the Tournament (wow, it's been that long???), but we were never really on the bubble that season, with a hearty 11 wins in the conference before we wilted a little bit down the stretch. 2005-06 and 2004-05 were .500-type seasons. The last time were were kinda on the bubble was 2003-04, when we won 17 games, but only managed six ACC wins. We were on the bad side of the bubble that year; it was more wishful thinking than actually being in tourney contention. 2002-03 was also a .500 season, and 2001-02 was a 16-11 season that culminated in the NIT. 2000-01 was the last time we were on the bubble - and I mean really ON THE BUBBLE - and we ended up making it in as a 5-seed despite losing eight of our last 11 games. You might remember that season was the year we got dumped out of the postseason via the 5-12 upset against Gonzaga. Our prior NCAA Tournament appearance was in 1997, when the Harold Deane / Curtis Staples / Courtney Alexander / Norman Nolan team was crushed by Iowa in the first round. 1995, of course, was our last impressive run, turning a 4-seed into an upset over 1-seeded Kansas and an Elite Eight appearance. But I digress...

It hasn't been a good 17-year run for our basketball program since that '95 team's success, but this year it seemed like we finally had the substance to make a return trip to the Big Dance and maybe make a little noise once we got there. We were (still are) ranked and had earned some degree of national respect. Things were looking very good... until we crapped the bed at home against the Hokies on Sunday night. So welcome to the bubble, Virginia fans. Our RPI is decent, but our strength of schedule sucks and our "quality wins" are losing their quality. We are a bubble team. We ARE a bubble team. Poke it HERE and take a look for yourself.

With the book on how to defend us (double and triple team Mike Scott, force our ice-cold shooters to make shots) now in mass production and distributed to every coaching hack on the East Coast, the time to circle the wagons and embrace bubblehood is upon us.

The reason I'm posting this now is make sure that everyone in Wahooze Nation (that's right people, we're a freaking nation now) is self-aware of the situation the Virginia Basketball team is now in. The margin for error is shrinking, and with FSU and NC State on the come, the road ahead is not easy.

It's a freaking battle that lies ahead. A knuckles-bloodied, jaw sore, skin-under-the-fingernails fight for survival. It's a soul sucking siege from today to Selection Sunday. And if we want to see our beloved Cavaliers in the NCAA Tournament, it's going to take some boys becoming men on our basketball team, along with the second testicle descending for our basketball fanbase as well. No more losses in JPJ Arena, no more losses to inferior teams. It's a fight for survival. Kill or be killed.

Eight more wins. That's what we need to get to the Dance. Eight more wins.

Any fewer than eight?

Pop.

Wahooze Baseball Preview

2012-01-25T14:43:00.000-05:00

Can you feel it?

Hello Wahooze and welcome to my domain, the baseball diamond. This is the insanely, overly in depth, Wahooze baseball season preview. There is nothing I love more in this world than baseball and that will slowly become apparent as the spring/summer progresses. Without further ado let’s get into this. Here is a tip on how to read this:

Before every entry there will be a boldface overview of the player that has an L/L, L/R, R/R, R/L, S/L, S/R. That notation is for Bats/Throws and tells you what the players bat and throw. So L/R means they bat left and throw right.

The Studs:

These are the players that are returning starters that will be looked to to continue the UVA winning tradition as upperclassmen leaders. All these players have considerable experience that hopefully will translate into a passing of the baton from players like Hicks and Proscia.

Reed Gragnani (3B/RF) S/R 5-11 180 Richmond, VA

I really like Reed’s game, especially in the outfield. In the blue orange world series he was starting at third base and hitting in the middle of the order. I don’t necessarily agree with putting him at third, but I have learned never to doubt Coach O’Connor. Gragnani to me is the perfect 2 spot hitter. While he is not without power he is more of a gaps hitter which plays well in the second spot. Also having a lefty bat in the two hole is huge to take advantage of the larger gap left between the second and first baseman with a runner on first. I fully expect Gragnani to break out this season and turn into one of our more productive bats. I also suspect that he will return to the outfield at some point this season. Especially with the new talent coming in (more on that later.)

Jared King (1B) R/R 6-1 195 Radford, VA

There is no one on this team I was more happy to see do well last season than King. I won’t go into all the details but Jared has had a roller coaster ride while he has been here. King has shown glimpses of being the power and RBI man for this team this season and it is to be expected that he settle into that role. While he doesn’t have the raw power of a Steven Proscia he has enough polish as a hitter to assume the number 4 spot and excel in it. This is not going to be an SEC type offense full of power hitters who can knock the cover off the ball. We will be a smart, gap hitting team that takes extra bases and sac bunts and all the stuff that makes baseball a thinking man’s game. And Jared King is the perfect cleanup hitter for that.

Keith Werman (2B) L/R 5-7 150 Vienna, Va

I have had to listen to how good Keith Werman is since 9^th grade. As a catcher (I’ll pause to let you wrap your mind around that) in high school Keith allowed 0 past balls in his entire career and was All State his senior season. That is an obsene amount of praise for a 5-7 catcher. I don’t understand him, it upsets me greatly, but today I will admit that Keith is pretty damn good. Will he ever knock the cover off the ball? Probably not. Is he going to play in the pros? No chance. But is he exactly the kind of player this team needs? Absolutely. Keith brings an intelligence to the game that is so important. He knows situations and knows exactly how to handle them with a level of expertise that is such a luxury to have on a team, especially with a Coach like Coach O’Connor. Anyone can figure out a bunting situation, but he can figure out where it needs to go to get the optimal results. I fully expect Keith to end up as a GA somewhere and I really hope that it is here. That being said as far as this season goes, I expect him to hold down the number 9 spot as always and be a stalwart defensively.

Chris Taylor (SS) R/R 6-0 170 Virginia Beach, VA

Chris is our best player. That became apparent towards the end of the season. I fully expect an All-ACC season out of him this season. Chris will most likely hit number 3 and be relied on to drive in a good chunk of the teams runs, and if he keeps up the torrid pace he was on at the end of the season that should be absolutely no problem for him. Taylor brings something that John Hicks couldn’t to the three spot and that is a good bit of speed. I think this year’s team, as I stated before, is going to be much more based on taking extra bases and flying all over the field, and having a player like Taylor in the three spot is a great luxury to have. Think a poor man’s Asdrubal Cabrera, not doing anything great, but does everything very well.

The Aces:

While we have lost quite a bit of talent from the rotation, well all the talent, the cupboard is far from bare. Branden Kline and Kyle Crockett will anchor what should be one of the more devastating one two punches in the ACC and maybe even the country this season. The best part about that tandem at the front of the rotation is how complimentary they are to one another. While Kline is a traditional Friday night power arm who will strike a ton of guys out and look absolutely dominant on the mound, Crockett will rely more on deception and pitch movement to confused and frustrate his opponents. Two completely different styles that make it extra frustrating for any team that has to prepare to face the Hoos this season.

Branden Kline (SP) R/R 6-3 190 Frederick, MD

No one on this team has bigger shoes to fill than Branden this season. The challenge of replacing the best player in program history is one that could make one buckle under the pressure. That being said there is absolutely no reason to expect that to happen this season. Kline showed in the extra innings South Carolina game in the College World Series that he has the stuff to rise to any challenge. While he was a dominant closer it was apparent to me at least that Kline was better suited for the rotation. Had Will Roberts not stepped up to the role of Sunday starter I wouldn’t have been surprised to see Kline get a shot for that job. Watching Kline pitch it always took him a batter or two to really get his stuff going the way he likes it which is indicative of a starting pitcher over a reliever. Think Justin Verlander getting stronger as the game goes on. I think that if the CWS performance was any indication we will be in for a great season out of Kline, and once again have a dominant Friday night starter anchoring the rotation.

Kyle Crockett (SP) L/L 6-1 160 Poquoson, VA

By no means am I comparing myself to a division 1 athlete, but Kyle Crockett throws the exact same way I used to in high school making him my favorite player on this team. Kyle goes into this season with high expectations and firmly entrenched as the team’s Saturday starter, which in my opinion might be the most important game of the weekend. While Kline relies on power to get people out and will most likely rack up the strikeouts (1.3 K/9) and get all the acclaim, Crockett relies more on movement and deception to get his batters out. Crockett will never light up the radar gun but he will frustrate the hell out of almost every batter he faces. If he can learn to master the movement of his pitches, and Coach Kuhn can teach him how to approach the game mentally, Crockett can turn into one of the most productive pitchers we’ve had in a while. And if Kyle decides to gain any weight anytime soon he can only get better.

JT Thompson (RP) R/R 6-1 195 Danville, VA

Thompson has a shot to get the closer role for this season but if I had to guess I would say he is staying in the set up role as Chris Fern who was the Florida JUCO closer of the year is poised to take over the team. Thompson however will be a key cog in the bullpen this season. While most are not terribly excited to see him in that role I think Thompson has the stuff to excel, the key question is will he be able to mentally put his past shaky appearances behind him and be a strong veteran in the bullpen that we need. Also I’m hoping he got a haircut.

The Next Men Up:

The departure of David Coleman, John Hicks, and Steven Proscia left three giant holes in the field that will need to be filled with new players who are not only capable of, but hungry for success in their new roles. While some of these positions could be filled with players from the stud recruiting class Coach O’Connor has brought in there are two players we are going to highlight that should immediately step in and be great.

Colin Harrington (OF) R/R 5-10 170 Johnstown, PA

Harrington was used primarily in the DH role last season but also saw time in the outfield. While he is never going to blow you away with power or speed he is a solid player who will contribute. He hit .353 last season and was 5/6 on stolen base attempts. If you need a dominant player to carry your team, Harrington is most likely not going to be that guy, but if you need a guy that can be a solid contributor every game, then he is perfect. Harrington will most likely be starting in left field and batting in the 6-8 spot. Harrington will be the perfect guy to either lay down a bunt if you need, situationally place a ball in a spot you need, or keep a rally going to roll the lineup over. Anything you need

Mitchell Shifflett (OF) R/R 6-1 180 Midlothian, VA

Shifflett is easily the fastest player on the team. He might even be one of the faster players on the football team. Shifflett will be taking over for Chris Taylor in the leadoff spot and will instantly improve the lineup. Assuming he gets on base (.326 OBP last season) Shifflett will be on third most likely within two pitches. Shifflett was 9-9 in stolen base attempts last season. A player with that kind of speed allows Coach O’Connor to do even more with his lineup than he could last season. Paired with Reed Gragnani in the two spot we should expect to see a ton more hit and runs put on with the very distinct possibility that Shifflett will be able to score from first on anything in a gap. That kind of speed also widens the 1^st base gap at first as the first baseman will have to monitor Shifflett closer than normal. This will help Gragnani and Taylor even more. Shifflett has game changing speed, and if he can improve his on base percentage, it will be greatly utilized this spring.

Call to the Pen:

This is the one area where we will need some guys to step up. The strength of last years team has now become the biggest question mark going into this year. The rotation has two strong aces at the top but the depth is somewhat questionable. That being said I have absolute faith in not only the talent on the roster, but also the coaching staff, to be able to turn this rotation into one of the great ones again this season.

Whit Mayberry R/R 6-0 185 Alexandria, VA

Whit is from the same area I am so my friends and I know a good bit about his style of pitching. He is yet another different style of pitcher for this rotation. My friend Steve Kouril who was a walk on at UVA described Whit as throwing a “heavy” ball, which is pretty accurate. Whit gets hit, but the ball doesn’t go very far. That’s how a heavy ball works. Whit will pitch to contact but hitters will never seem to be able to really get a hold of a ball. It is incredibly frustrating, just ask Steve. While Mayberry will not be lighting up the gun he is the perfect starter for a Sunday, a day that is traditionally ruled by the offense. Having a pitcher that people can make contact with but can’t get the kind of explosive results they expect will be the perfect end to a weekend that will most likely leave the teams we play both confused and annoyed, and lead to a bunch of Cavalier victories.

Scott Silverstein L/L 6-6 235 Brookeville, MD

Silverstein will most likely be the midweek starter. At 6-6 235 Silverstein looks every bit the part of a legit D1 starter, which is what makes him perfect for the middle of the week when we play smaller programs. There is something to be said for the intimidation factor that Silverstein brings to the table in games that will most likely be the toughest that these smaller colleges will play all season. Silverstein is a huge wildcard since we do not know much from last season’s performances. Silverstein missed all of 2010 with shoulder issues and his limited time in 2011 may not be indicative of his future success on the hill. Look for Silverstein to battle Mayberry for the Sunday spot.

The Fresh Faces:

The 2011 recruiting class is an interesting bunch. Coach O’Connor has brought in a very solid trio of outfielders as well as a SS/3B that should be the foundation of the roster to come.

Derek Fisher (CF) L/R 6-3 210 Lebanon, PA.

Fisher is a stud. An absolute stud. Read this article if you don’t believe me. Picked in the 6^th round by the Texas Rangers, Fisher decided to turn down the big dollars and enroll at UVA, where he could very well secure himself a starting spot in the outfielder. In his senior season Fisher hit .484 with 12 home runs and 31 RBI in his senior season and was named Pennsylvania state player of the year. Fisher will be looked to to eventually replace the power in the lineup that left with Steven Proscia and John Hicks last season, and could be in line to make a run at the RBI record that Proscia currently holds if he gets off to a hot start. Keeping with the theme of the kind of baseball Coach O’Connor likes to play Fisher is no slouch out in the field , which could very well accelerate his path onto Davenport Field. In fact Coach O’Connor offered him a scholarship after seeing him go hitless at the plate but play outstanding defense. It will be interesting to see where he ends up this season.

Nick Howard (3B) R/R 6-3 215 Olney, MD.

Howard is a highly touted recruit out of my neck of the woods and St. John’s High School in Washington DC. Though the WCAC is mostly known for its football and basketball prowess they are no slouch on the diamond either. And St. John’s is consistently one of the top teams in the conference. Howard was named All-WCAC twice during his high school career and was rated as the number one prospect in Maryland by Perfect Game, the preeminent baseball showcase camp. Howard was also named All-Met as one of the best players in the DC Metropolitan area. Howard hit .403 with 28 RBI and 20 stolen bases his senior season and could challenge Reed Gragnani for the vacancy left at third base this season, allowing Reed to move to the outfield. Howard boasts a tremendous amount of arm strength and solid footwork so the transition to third should be an easy one. And the inexplicable absence of Stephen Bruno at any point last season is also playing into his favor. It will be intriguing to see how Coach O’Connor decides to use him, especially since if Chris Taylor has another big season, this could be his last in Charlottesville.

Mike Papi (OF) L/R 6-3 190 Tunkhannock, PA.

Papi just looks like a good player. I realize that is a very stupid statement to make but it’s true. He is most likely going to play right field for the Hoos at some point in his career. Papi has plus carry on his throws from the outfield, meaning he has a cannon, and decent speed. Papi projects as a top or bottom of the order kind of hitter. If I had to guess I would say his future will be in the number 2 hole, where is it advantageous to have a solid lefty bat that hits for average and has some pop to it. Papi to me projects as a gaps hitter, whereas his outfield counterpart Derek Fisher will provide the punch. Papi’s approach at the plate has been described as calm and simple, the signs of a good gap to gap hitter. Papi batted .531 with six home runs, 24 RBI, and a .708 on base percentage and was named All-State in Pennsylvania in senior season. He’s no slouch.

Brandon Downes (OF) R/R South Plainfield, NJ.

Downes is the third of the top outfield prospects the Hoos brought in this season. Boasting a sweet swing from the right side of the plate Downes looks like the real deal. He is also easily the smartest of the palyers we are bringing in this season boast a 4.95 GPA out of 5 in that stupid New Jersey grading scale. This is a point that cannot be overlooked because as seen with Keith Werman last season, being a smart player is just as important to Coach O’Connor as being a physically gifted player. Downes was named all state his senior season Downes brings a strong bat and glove to the table. He finished one home run shy of the New Jersey state record during his junior season. Currently Downes plays left field but could shift to center depending on how the lineup shakes out. I don’t expect much playing time for Downes this season just based on the amount of outfielders we currently have on the roster but I would expect to hear from him in the future.

Nate Irving (C) R/R 6-0 220 Yonkers, NY

Does the prospect of a true freshman catcher scare you as much as it scares me? Well I'm not entirely sure it should. I went through the Orange and Blue World Series and Irving had what I would describe as a good game in 4 of the 5. While it would be nice to have a solid veteran behind to plate with all the transition that is going on it might be a blessing to have a young catcher who is able to learn on the job. Offensively Irving's game is all there. He collected 8 hits in the 5 games of the Orange and Blue World Series. It will be interesting to see how he handles the staff. Look for Coach Kuhn and Coach O'Connor to have a good deal of influence on pitch calling this season, and for the whole staff to grow together along with Irving. This will especially benefit the younger pitchers who will develop with Irving and may reinvigorate the staff to get the kind of season we had last year.

Those are the 4 players I expect to have an immediate impact on the program. If I had to guess I would say Irving, Howard, and Fisher have the best chance of cracking the starting lineup this season. Virginia also brought in some intriguing arms this season but with the exception of Kyle Crockett and Branden Kline Coach O’Connor and Coach Kuhn have been hesitant to throw young pitchers to the wolves before they are ready (we’re a fragile breed). That being said UVA signed3 lefties and 2 righties, including one giant Brett Lisle from Colorado who is listed at 6-9 who has me intrigued, and Chris Fern, who some think may challenge to replace Kline as the team’s closer. UVA also added 2 infielders and 2 catchers. The team has certainly been restocked for the future with this class.

Depth Chart:

This is the depth chart I think that the coaches have in their office at the moment. I'm not sure how long this Gragnani at third experiment is going to last but I fully expect Gragnani to end up starting in right and having Nick Howard emerge as the starter at third.

C: Nate Irving/Chase Mitchell

1B:          Jared King/Kenny Towns
2B:          Keith Werman/Stephen Bruno
SS:          Chris Taylor/Brandon Cogswell
3B:          Reed Gragnani/Nick Howard
LF:          Colin Harrington/Derek Fisher
CF:          Mitchell Shifflet/Reed Gragnani/Brandon Downes
RF:          Shane Halley/Mike Papi

Rotation:

Friday:                  Branden Kline
Saturday:             Kyle Crockett
Sunday:                Whit Mayberry
Weekday:           Scott Silverstein
Set Up:                 JT Thompson
Closer:                  Chris Fern

Batting Order:

This is the order I think we should roll out on opening day. Whether or not this is what is going to happen is up in the air but this is my post so this is what I am putting up there.

1.       Mitchell Shifflett              CF
2.       Reed Gragnani                  RF
3.       Chris Taylor                         SS
4.       Jared King                           1B
5.       Derek Fisher                      DH
6.       Nick Howard                      3B
7.       Nate Irving                          C
8.       Colin Harrington               LF
9.       Keith Werman                   2B

Strengths and Weaknesses:

This team is extremely right handed. With only one switch hitter (Gragnani) and one lefty (Fisher) projected in the starting lineup this could turn into a bit of a problem for Coach O'Connor. I would not at all be surprised to see a platoon develop in the outfield to see Mike Papi get more playing time. The platoon would be in left field involving Harrington, Fisher, and Papi.

Team speed has become a big strength of this team, which is good because we are losing a lot of big bats. Look for the Hoos to be much more mobile on the basepaths this year stemming mostly from Mitchell Shifflett at the top of the order. This will also lead to more tinkering from Coach O'Connor which will lead to a much more exciting style of baseball, and more intelligent too. Look for more close games where it will come down to coaching. And man does that give us the upper hand.

Quite possibly the strongest part of our team is the front end of our rotation. Kline and Crockett have a chance to be one of the best in the ACC if not the country. That being said the back end of the rotation has a lot to prove. If they can step up this team can be dangerous, if they falter, we could be in for a long season.

Prediction:

I think we have the 5th or 6th best team in the ACC this season. Georgia Tech and UNC are unbelievably stacked and will be the class of the conference. The next tier is FSU and Miami who are somewhat flawed but have the raw talent to overcome their problems. UVA and Clemson are in the 5/6 range and will most likely battle it out all season. UVA gets GT, UNC, and Clemson at home. We NEED to beat Clemson, and possibly sweep them, as well as hopefully stealing a series against GT or UNC. We have to hit the road to both Florida schools. Stealing a series there would be nice but not getting swept by both would be ideally what we should shoot for. If I had to guess I would pick us to finish 4th in the ACC and get a 2 seed in the NCAA tournament.

This entire season lies on how quickly the team can gel with it's new pieces and how well those pieces can adjust to college. If they all play up to their potential they will be great. If they struggle so will we. I think Fisher will develop nicely this season into one of our main cogs, and Howard will show flashes as well. Look for Papi to steal the job from Harrington and Gragnani to finally move to the outfield where he should be.

The Wahooze writers will be in the very underrated right field bleachers this season which is not only close to the bathrooms but also the under utilized first base line snack bar. Come sit with us!

Go Hoos

Tim Thomas Stiffs the White House

2012-01-24T10:41:00.000-05:00

I know this is a UVA blog but I need to get something off my chest here so we are going to venture into the realm of the NHL for a minute. The Boston Bruins, last year's Stanley Cup Champions, visited the White House this week and one prominent member was conspicuosly absent. During his speech President Obama made reference to one player in particular, one of only two Americans on the Bruins roster that season, and a rare American Stanley Cup MVP. That player was Tim Thomas. The quote is below:

Tim Thomas posted two shutouts in the Stanley Cup Finals and set an all-time record for saves in the postseason and he also earned the honor being only the second American ever to be recognized as the Stanley Cup playoff's MVP

There was only one problem. Tim Thomas wasn't there. Just as a refresher for those of you that don't know me that well I grew up literally right across the River from Washington, so this might make me a little more upset than most just becuase I get beaten over the head with political stuff on a daily basis. To me this is a huge sign of disrespect to your country. Thomas released a statement that amounted to his decision not to go being based on his belief that the Executive branch has gained too much power, and while I respect his beliefs, I think that you honor the office of the president, especially if you are one of the lone Americans on your team and probably one of the best known American hockey players period. Lots of people disagree with any president, but in my opinion it's still and huge honor and you still respect the office and go.

Signing Day Celebration!

2012-01-24T10:04:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to share this info, if anyone out there is interested in attending...

5-star defensive end Eli Harold

Virginia To Hold Football Signing Day Celebration at JPJA on Feb. 1
Head Coach Mike London and His Staff Will Announce Class of 2012

Charlottesville, VA – Virginia head football coach Mike London and his staff will announce the Cavaliers’ 2012 recruiting class at a National Signing Day celebration to be held at John Paul Jones Arena on Wednesday, Feb. 1. The event is free of charge and open to the public and parking in the arena’s main lot (west lot) is also complimentary.

Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. and the one-hour event will begin at 6 p.m. London and his staff will provide commentary and recruiting insights about each of the Cavaliers’ prospects.

All fans attending the event will receive a voucher good for a hot dog, bag of chips and a Pepsi product courtesy of the Virginia athletics department. A number of current freshmen and sophomore members of the football team will be greeting fans as they enter the arena.

3-star running back Kye Morgan

Fans in attendance will also receive raffle tickets and have the opportunity to win two tickets to each 2012 home game (seven total winners), a tailgate experience for the Richmond game, a signed Chick-fil-A Bowl game helmet and signed footballs. UVa students can win $300 gift certificates for books, the chance to be the Guest Coach for a game and a signed Chick-fil-A Bowl game helmet.

The Cavalier Team Shop will also be open and feature special sale merchandise during the evening.

“We are really looking forward to the opportunity to talk about the young men who will be the future of Virginia football and sharing this day with our fans,” London said. “I know our fans are interested in our recruiting efforts and we are very limited on what we can say until this day. There are some very fine young men who make up this class and there are some interesting stories about their recruitment. We are looking forward to sharing those experiences with our fans.”

Fans unable to attend the event will be able to watch the event live online at VirginiaSports.com. A link will be featured on the Signing Day Central web page that will be updated during the day as each student-athlete’s National Letter of Intent is received and certified by the athletics department’s compliance office.

Fans can also submit questions for London to address through the Signing Day Central page on VirginiaSports.com as well as the Virginia Cavaliers Facebook page.

4-star wide receiver Anthony Cooper

Fans in attendance will also have the opportunity to mingle with the Cavalier coaching staff and several current junior and senior members of the UVa football team following the program.

WINA radio (1070 AM) will broadcast its popular “Best Seat in the House” show live from the event and the Charlottesville Newsplex stations will also provide coverage of the event.

Getting a Break

2012-01-23T10:10:00.001-05:00

Remember when we were concerned about the lack of depth on this team after the transfers? Remember when we all thought if those kids stuck around you never know what would have happened? Well last night was the first time that really came back to bite us. Square in the ass. While James Johnson would immediately have become a bigger part of the rotation with the injury to Assane Sene, the player we really miss now is KT Harrell. I’ll explain why.

Grab some bench

Sammy Zeglinski has become an iceberg. In his last 4 games he is shooting a whopping 19% from the field and an even more astounding 17% from long distance. At this point I’m not sure he could hit the ocean off a boat to use a terrible cliché. Not only that Sammy is only adding 2.5 rebounds and 2.25 assists per game over that span. So in reality he is not doing a whole lot to make up for his poor shooting. While we can absorb the black hole of points that Jontel Evans is because of how tough he is on the defensive end, we can’t make that same compromise with Sammy. So why do we still roll him out every night? Simple, because we have no other option at this point. We can’t roll out a true freshman 2-guard and expect him to adjust right away to the rigors of ACC play. The only kid that could reasonably replace a senior on the court in the thick of the ACC season is a player that has been there before. A player that could be motivated to perform and prove himself, and a player that could excel as the third option in an offense. A player that I personally thought KT Harrell was.

So screw you KT and James. Stick around and you finally could get what you wanted all along. But you had to be pussies and go crying home to your mommies instead of working hard and hoping for a break, something that almost always comes. I hope we can somehow turn this into a positive, but right now it’s just pissing me off.

Didn't think I could hate you more.
I was wrong.

Two Numbers...

2012-01-23T09:55:00.001-05:00

First Number: 1-for-14 from three. 7.14%

Second Number: 8 missed free throws. 14-for-22 from the line. 63.64%

Despite Sammy Zeglinski's illness and continued slump, we would have won that game last night if Joe Harris (0-3), Paul Jesperson (0-1), or Malcolm Brogdon (0-2) had been able to connect on any of their three-point attempts, or if Jontel Evans (1-5) and Joe Harris (2-4) hadn't sucked from the line. (Or if Jontel Evans had been willing to dish to a teammate on the fast break, but that might just be me piling on a player I do not like.)

I hate losing to Virginia Tech. HATE it. It's like an ingrown toenail, or a fuzzy tongue after burning your mouth on coffee that's too hot. It stings, and the loss sticks with me for a few days.

Boston College on Thursday. If we don't handle business in that game, time to raise the red flag. For now, I'm willing to chalk last night's loss up to poor shooting and bad luck against a team that had its back up against the wall after starting 0-4 in conference play.

This is how things go with Bennettball. If shots aren't falling, we're susceptible against athletic teams that can get to the rim. VT fits that description. besides, we did hold them to 47 points... given an even mediocre offensive performance, we would have won that game by double-digits.

Unlucky 13

I think Mike is about to submit a post suggesting we bench Sammy and longing for KT Harrell or some such nonsense. Obviously, Zeglinski's 0-for-6 from downtown hurt us last night, but he's a streak shooter who's just ice cold right now... gotta let him gun through the slump and get back on track. At least he's not a QUITTER like Harrell is.

Examining Bennettball

2012-01-21T20:19:00.000-05:00

I'm not exactly sure where I want to take this, other than to take a look at Tony Bennett's success at Washington State, then dissect how he's winning at Virginia right now, whether or not that success is sustainable via recruiting, the model for how he wants to put his team together, and what the future holds for Bennett and Virginia Basketball. Whelp, looks like I actually do know exactly where I want to take the post, after all. (I honestly never know until I start writing.)

First off, however, an acknowledgement: I've gone on record a few times saying I didn't really enjoy watching Bennettball. That's true, I admit it. I came up as a young pup loving Arkansas Basketball under Nolan Richardson, so the "40 Minutes of Hell" style of stifling full-court pressure, steals, dunks, jams, and pull-up 3s in transition is still what really gets my blood pumping. Playing fast and reckless, but killing teams with defensive intensity. I've always hoped we'd eventually get a Richardson protégé here at Virginia, without really knowing if the style/system would work in the ACC or if this school could recruit those types of basketball players out of Duke, UNC, Maryland, and Georgetown's back yard. 40 Minutes of Hell at UVA was always my dream. Only now am I realizing that my yearning was really not for that specific system, but instead for an identity - any identity - for Virginia basketball, with bonus points if that identity feels a little bit exciting and sexy.

We're halfway through Tony Bennett's third season at UVA, and while it's not exactly exciting, the packline defense has somehow become sexy. Fans are embracing it for its extremely low points yields, its consistency and reliability, its ability to travel to away games, and mostly for the wins it generates. The basketball-savvy media (Andy Katz!) pounding the defense drum and heaping praise on Bennett and his rebuilt program certainly doesn't hurt, either. At its core, Virginia is a basketball school, and Virginia has smart basketball fans who know quality when they see it. Tony Bennett's packline defense is quality... and it is now officially sexy to Virginia basketball fans.

Bennettball and the packline is not 40 Minutes of Hell. In fact, it's pretty much the opposite. But I (like most Virginia fans) am eagerly embracing what Tony Bennett is doing with this program right now. Scoring 45-50 points in a loss really sucks, but scoring 55 points in a win is a lot more fun than scoring 75 points in a loss. The key word is and will always be WIN.

Okay, back to the script laid out in the first paragraph...

Tony Bennett's Success at Washington State

Sometimes it's easy to forget that this is Tony Bennett's sixth season as a head basketball coach. Just six. Granted, he was groomed for the job for many years under his legendary dad Dick Bennett, but this is just his sixth season as a head coach, and his third at the helm of a program he built from scratch himself.

In his first year as head coach at Wazzu, he took the Cougars to the second round, and in his second year the Sweet Sixteen. Both years they won 26 games, tying the Washington State all-time single season wins record. Those Cougar teams were built around two star players -- Derrick Low and Kyle Weaver. Low was a sweet shooting 6-2 combo guard with a good stroke from the perimeter and Weaver was a wiry 6-6 stat-stuffing wing who scored, hit the glass, and played great defense. Both guys were good ballhandlers, both were facilitators and playmakers, both could score, and both played exceptional defense.

C'mon, you remember Derrick Low.

Aron Baynes, Taylor Rochestie, and Robbie Cowgill played key complimentary roles on Bennett's two tournament teams at Wazzu. Baynes was a solid 6-10, 250-pound bang-minded big man; good rebounder, good low post defender (held Tyler Hansbrough relatively quiet in the Sweet Sixteen), good shot blocker... but not an exceptional athlete. Rochestie was a 6-1 point guard with nice touch from beyond the arc. Cowgill was a skinny, athletic 6-10 power forward who played D, blocked shots, and rebounded. He scored most of his points on stickbacks and garbage plays around the basket.

Washington State IS NOT a basketball school. Bennett found this success with players his dad recruited to the Palouse to play the packline defense. None of these guys were hotly coveted coming out of high school, they just fit the systems being run by the Bennetts.

Kyle Weaver was always the key.

The interesting thing is that with Low, Rochestie, and Weaver on the floor together, Bennett had three guys adept at handling the basketball. All three could shoot from the perimeter, as well (that was a trait that each developed under Bennett's coaching -- none were deadeye shooters prior to their Washington State careers). Basically, two combo guards and a "point forward" type of wing. Cowgill was the energy/glue guy on the interior, and Baynes was the classic back-to-the-basket big man.

This team, with no real superstars and nothing but a lot of grit, a good defensive system, and a penchant for taking care of the basketball and getting good shots on offense somehow won 52 games over the course of two seasons, earned a 3-seed and a 4-seed in back to back tournaments, and won three games in tournament play. Not bad.

Baynes and Rochestie returned in 2008-09, but without Low and Weaver - the real engine driving those Wazzu teams - the Cougs went 17-16 (8-10 in the Pac-10) and lost to St. Mary's in the first round of the NIT. That seemed to be the floor for a program now rooted in Bennettball philosophies.

In sum, Bennettball was able to quickly elevate the Washington State program to heights it had never experienced (three NCAA tournament wins all-time prior to Bennett, three NCAA tournament wins during this two-year run). Tony Bennett's systems took average talent to the top-25, but it still relied on experienced upperclassmen in Low, Weaver, and Cowgill to make it all work. Keep that in mind as you think about Bennettball from a Virginia perspective --- experience is key, as is cohesive play from the players on the team. Chemistry, if you will.

Dissecting How Virginia is Winning Now

We hold opponents to an average of 51 points per game on 38% shooting (26% from 3). We out-rebound our opponents by an average of over six boards per game. We hold opponents to just seven assists per game (a remarkable number). We average just 11 turnovers per game. We shoot an efficient 46% from the field. We knock down free throws at a nice 73% clip.

Basically, we control pace and play a brand of defense that forces our opponents to be patient and selective with their shots (a feat many college teams simply cannot accomplish on a regular basis). We find points from Mike Scott, with Sammy Zeglinski, Joe Harris, and Malcolm Brogdon providing balance from the perimeter, and get junk scoring from the rest of our bigs. 65 ppg doesn't set the world on fire, but it's more than enough when you're holding the enemy to just over 50 ppg.

Mike Scott once urinated in a semi truck's gas tank as a joke...
that truck is now known as Optimus Prime.

This is Bennettball. It was the same way at Washington State. It's packline D -- preventing the dribble-drive, sealing the baseline, hedging at the top of the key, making carefully-orchestrated defensive rotations, forcing bad perimeter shots, and putting the entire team in favorable position for rebounding. It's one shot per possession. It's valuing our own possessions on offense, grinding along to find good shots via screening for screeners, running curls, passing. It's patience at all times. It's control. It's taking the shot clock down to force opponents to get gassed playing defense. It's keeping scores low and close, and trusting our senior leadership and solid free throw shooting to win games at the end. It's forcing teams into the uncomfortable situation of playing to our pace, with minimal "easy" buckets and very little chance to get out and run. It is not always pretty... but it's pretty damn effective.

Does this work in the ACC? Night in and night out, yes. There are enough teams in our conference that rely on talent and athleticism and are willing to put inexperienced / unintelligent / impatient players in key roles, which plays right into our hands. (See also: UVA 70, Georgia Tech 38 on Thursday night.) Against well-coached, ubertalented teams like Duke and UNC... jury's out. I think Bennettball gives us a relatively low ceiling, but always gives us a very high floor. Mostly, it allows us to compete favorably with more talented teams on a regular basis. Bennettball takes the pressure off of recruiting and puts it on player development and experience. It's working, we're winning. With two 5th-year seniors, one true senior, and a junior in the starting lineup, we're winning. The systems look good, the style is effective, we're generating national pub, we're earning cred as a program, and we're winning. And winning is always going to be the only thing that matters.

Is Bennettball's Success Sustainable at UVA?

Yes.

But look, most hotshot basketball recruits don't want to play in a system that limits possessions and intrinsically prevents gaudy stats. Bennettball is not a stepping stone to the NBA. If you follow recruiting closely, you are going to see UVA fail to attract top-notch recruits, and you are going to see a lot of attrition from within the program. KT Harrell and James Johnson are not the exception, they are the rule with this type of system. Jamil Tucker, Jeff Jones, Sylven Landesberg, Calvin Baker, John Brandenburg, Tristan Spurlock, Billy Baron, and Will Regan all left early with eligibility remaining under Tony Bennett's watch. Most of today's basketball players just do not want to play in a system-driven, defense-first program, especially one that requires so much skill and rehearsal, with minimal room for improvisation. Big-time recruits don't want to put in the YEARS of hard work required to properly learn the intricacies and nuances of the packline defense, and you don't see much playing time for Tony Bennett if you aren't proficient running his defense. Recruits want to put their athleticism on display, and they want to run and jump and dunk and score. Shooters want the freedom to jack up shots in volume. Therefore, once the new car smell wears off on Bennett and his Virginia program, I think you'll see us settle onto a plateau of recruiting players just barely inside the nation's top 150 (in the 75-150 range), and players outside the top 150 who are good fits with the system. Our recruiting rankings are really good right now, but in another few seasons I fully expect those rankings to drop.

Don't get me wrong. There are plenty of players out there who are perfect fits for this system. Workers who just want a chance to compete at the highest level of college basketball. Guys like Sammy Zeglinski, Joe Harris, Paul Jesperson, and Akil Mitchell. These players will find their way to Virginia, and Tony Bennett will be able to solidify the program with high-effort players who possess just enough talent to win games in the ACC. I see a future of good shooters, good ball handlers, defensive specialists, raw athletes with no other ACC-level offers, and bigs who want to play early in their careers. (Did I just describe every single player on our current roster?) We won't see one-and-done players who bolt for the NBA, we won't see supremely talented scorers, we won't see can't-miss big men, and we won't see explosive wings who can jump out of the gym... except for Justin Anderson. But more on him later.

Justin Anderson: our next superstar!

Mike Scott might be a flash in the pan for Tony Bennett, but Anderson is on his way (more on him later). We'll get lucky and land a stud every few years, and we'll develop a homegrown stud every few years, as well. They key is keeping those guys integrated into Bennettball and happy with their roles on the team... and happy playing a brand of team ball that leads directly to winning games.

We'll be a .500 type team at worst, with spikes up to 22-26 wins and 3- or 4-seed status every few years when the experienced upperclassmen stack up on our roster; when we get a raw Jerome Meyinnse-type big man who develops into a legit, go-to double-double machine.

Is Bennettball's success sustainable at UVA? Yes. Any system built on defense and intelligence is sustainable because you don't need transcendent athletes to make it work. Taking the onus off of recruiting and putting it on player development is a good idea for a basketball program like Virginia. We'll never be able to out-recruit Duke and UNC, and with the cohesive and effective Bennettball systems in place, we won't need to kill ourselves trying to compete with those blueblood programs on the recruiting trail.

Key 2014 recruit Devon Hall

Recruits like Paul Jesperson -- limited athletically, but possessing good size, a nice shooting stroke, high basketball IQ, defensive acumen, and a solid work ethic -- ranked in the 75-150 range of the overall national top 150, are going to be the bread and butter recruits of Bennettball. These are the types of recruits Bennett can attract to his system, simply by being able to offer playing time in a vogue conference like the ACC, and by being able to offer the old-school team experience that so many other basketball programs cannot deliver.

A quick look at all of Bennett's recruits to UVA:

Will Regan -- 2010, 148 overall
Joe Harris -- 2010, 119 overal
KT Harrell -- 2010, 30 overall
James Johnson -- 2010, 108 overall
Akil Mitchell -- 2010, not ranked in top 150
Billy Baron -- 2010, not ranked in top 150
Malcolm Brogdon -- 2011, 104 overall
Paul Jesperson -- 2011, 136 overall
Darion Atkins -- 2011, not ranked in top 150
Justin Anderson -- 2012, 35 overall
Teven Jones -- 2012, not ranked in top 150
Evan Nolte -- 2012, 120 overall
Mike Tobey -- 2012, 109 overall
B.J. Stith -- 2014, top 150 not yet ranked

Jesperson is the prototypical Bennett recruit.

Average national ranking: 116 overall. These are not the marquee recruiting classes that you'll see at Duke, UNC, Kentucky, and Kansas. Just five of the nine Bennett-era recruits who made it to Charlottesville are still on the team today. So it's relatively low rankings with a high amount of attrition. Not usually a recipe for success, but I think it works for Tony Bennett because he hand-picks his guys, and those guys have to earn their burn. So the ones who make it, stick around on the team, and end up making a career-long impact are the guys who fit the system in the right ways. (Think Joe Harris.) Eggs break to make this omelet.

To the naked eye, it looks like throwing players at a wall to see what sticks, and in many ways that's what it is. But it's throwing players at a wall to see who's got enough toughness and desire to stick. KT Harrell didn't stick. Joe Harris did. James Johnson didn't stick. Akil Mitchell did. And so on and so forth.

Bennett doesn't bend and contort his philosophies or systems in order to accommodate his players. In fact, quite the opposite. He recruits into his systems. He's rigid in what he does. If the player doesn't end up being a good fit, he doesn't play, and behind closed doors is likely encouraged to move on to a different school. It's a harsh way to operate, but Bennettball is always going to be greater than the sum of the parts... which leaves no room for ego from those individual parts. Click into the machine or be replaced. This is where the cohesion happens, and this is where chemistry is developed. Team first.

Some recruits legitimately want to subject themselves to Bennettball. They want to learn to play within the constraints of true old-school team basketball, eschewing the running, scoring, glitz, and glamour of modern up-and-down full court hoops. Some recruits honestly want that deep down in their guts and soul, and some recruits honestly think they do. But once they are here and grinding through the constant defensive drills and being held accountable for those perfect defensive switches, that perfect positioning, those perfect decisions, they realize that it's not the right way for them. Bennettball is not about instant gratification.

I think about it kind of like I think about joining the military. Except there's no punishment for desertion or going AWOL from Bennettball. You just transfer to a different school, sit out a year, and you're on your way. That's why I think we'll always see a fairly high amount of attrition with Bennettball. But honestly, once you discover that a player is a bad fit, it's better for them to go ahead and leave. Otherwise, you end up with one of those situations (see also: Solomon Tat) where you get very little from the player and you just end up counting down the days until the scholarship cycles through the four years and is opened up for someone new. With only 13 scholarships to give, you have to hit on 50% of them in order to have a good team. If you're not a "hit" for Bennettball, it's best for the team if you move on and open up the scholarship for someone new.

At the end of the day, I think we'll continue to see big recruiting classes and a fairly high amount of attrition. It's just the way of life for an inflexible* system like Bennettball.
* I chose the term "inflexible" carefully here. It's a term with negative connotations, but like it or not, Bennettball IS inflexible. That's part of its blessing and also part of its curse.

All of the above being said, you still have to recruit talented players into your program. We can't beat Duke and UNC with Ivy League level players. That's why it's so important to land guys like Justin Anderson every once in a while, and make sure they have a defined role in the system so they will stick.

JA: our next superstar?

Justin Anderson? Yeah, he's a stud. An athletic freak whose game reminds me of Vince Carter's. Anderson is less of a shooter and stronger than was Carter, but they play the same style of ball -- above the rim. JA is probably the opposite of the prototypical Bennett wing player, but he brings a lot of things to the table that should play very well within the Bennettball systems -- strength, good defense, plus-level rebounding, determination, grit, a team-first mentality, patience, the willingness (eagerness?) to play a facilitator role for his teammates, and the list could go on and on.

To me, Justin Anderson is the ultimate experiment for Tony Bennett. Will he actually fit the systems? If he doesn't, will Tony bend the inflexible systems to make a stud fit? If not, what happens? Would Anderson cut and run? (He really doesn't seem like the type, but then neither did KT Harrell.) I can't wait to see Anderson in action next season, because he's the best recruit we've had since the '90s, and he's something entirely new for Tony Bennett... though I can see a bit of Kyle Weaver when I look at Justin Anderson.

The Roster Model

Based on his recruiting patterns and examples of composed teams he's been able to put on the court, this is how I think Tony Bennett wants to build his basketball team:

Backcourt:
Two interchangeable combo guards, or maybe a pure point and a combo. In either case, two guys capable of bringing the ball up the floor and making plays for teammates... and also knocking down the perimeter jumper and/or taking the ball into the lane as situations dictate. Shooting guards with zero handle need not apply. Sammy Zeglinski seems to be the model here, along with Derrick Low and Malcolm Brogdon. I don't think Jontel Evans is a guy Bennett would usually recruit, though Teven Jones is more Evans than Zeglinski. Mustapha Farrakhan had the defense and the shooting ability (though streaky), but I think his handle wasn't quite where Bennett wanted it. Bennett is currently recruiting a number of true point guards and combo guards in the 2013 and 2014 classes, after having terrible luck drawing a point guard into the 2012 class (Teven Jones was a late-blooming "plan B" type of recruit.)

Wings:
Tall spot-up shooting types, jack-of-all-trades types, and/or athletic 3/4 tweener types with a developing outside shot. Bennett can use one true wing or two (as I think we'll see next year), but he prefers his wing players to stretch defenses to the perimeter. The wings also need to be able to get in there and rebound the basketball. Bonus points if you have a plus handle and are a point forward type, like Kyle Weaver. Joe Harris and Paul Jesperson appear to be the prototype. Evan Nolte, also. Justin Anderson, not so much... though again, he could be our more explosive version of Kyle Weaver. Sweet shooting wings appear to be the easiest players for Bennett to find and recruit into the program, so it's easy to see a logjam develop on the roster at this spot. In fact, we're about to have one such logjam in 2012-13, with Harris, Jesperson, Anderson, and Nolte all pushing for playing time. The lack of bigs on the roster next season might open up the four-guard lineup, which is really more like two guards, two wings, and a power forward/center. I don't think that's exactly what Bennett wants, but he's comfortable using that look when he needs to.

Bigs:
One traditional banger and one athletic pogo stick. Strong rebounding is an absolute must. Good footwork and strong defensive instincts are also smiled upon. Back-to-the-basket offense seems to be the white whale here -- always sought, never found. Bennett has proven himself (and/or his staff) highly adept at developing raw bigs into good players (see also: Jerome Meyinnse, Assane Sene, Robbie Cowgill, Aron Baynes, and of course, Mike Scott.) Bennett also likes his big men to be able to shoot the mid-range jumper. He seems to like his 4s being able to shoot from 3, ala Will Sherrill and now Mike Scott. Will Regan fit the Sherrill mold, James Johnson was the back-to-the-basket white whale. Once his offensive game rounds out a bit more, Akil Mitchell is Virginia's Robbie Cowgill. I think Bennett took a shot in the dark on Mitchell, but that's something he's willing to do -- roll the dice on athletic guys with height beyond 6-8. I think Darion Atkins was recruited to be the athletic pogo stick type, but is showing flashes of being a bit more than that. Mike Tobey is another white whale, as was Marshall Plumlee when Bennett was putting the full-court press on him two summers ago.

Good bigs are always the toughest players for non-blueblood programs to find, and that's no different here at Virginia. What is different is that Bennett has a very good track record of being able to turn projects into players. That's the trait I'm most excited about with our basketball coach, perhaps even more than the effectiveness of the packline defense.

What the Future Holds...

Well, first and foremost, I think this year needs to culminate with an NCAA Tournament appearance. We're certainly well on our way, and probably only need to win another seven games or so to punch the dance ticket. Once that happens, Bennettball could easily make serious noise in March.

With a tourney appearance this season, I think any Virginia fans still sleeping will come out of their apathetic slumber and embrace what is happening in the JPJ. Virginia will return to full "basketball school" status, and will settle in as a team that consistently finishes in the top half of the ACC, though usually behind Duke, UNC, Syracuse, and Pitt. Look no further than Wisconsin in the Big 10 for obvious parallels.

Coach forever, Bo Ryan. Please.

Speaking of Wisconsin, that is our next serious roadblock to a period on sustained success on the hardwood. Bo Ryan is 65 years old, which means he doesn't have much more than 8-10 years remaining to patrol the Wisconsin sideline before retirement. Once Ryan steps down, the Badgers will come after Tony Bennett, and they will come HARD. Would Bennett be willing to step away from a program he built from the ground up at Virginia in order to take over the program his dad put on the map decades earlier? It might boil down to the money and fan support at Virginia.

If UVA fans buy in on Bennettball, and I mean buy all the way in, then Tony Bennett could be our Coach K. Cavernous JPJ Arena needs to be filled, and the basketball fan culture needs to get back to early 1980s levels for that to happen.

To me, Tony Bennett is going to write his own destiny at Virginia over the course of these next 5-7 years. He's going to win games and take us to tournaments, that much is given. If he wins enough in March, and takes Virginia to a few Sweet Sixteens... or even beyond (from my lips to God's ears)... to the tournament's third weekend... then the fanbase will solidify, the program will develop a bedrock reputation, and he'll be coaching at Virginia with a blank check in his pocket and a smile on his face for the next 30 years. If he can't gain much traction in the tournament, fizzling out in the second round a couple of times and failing to make it in off the bubble a couple more, then I think he goes to Wisconsin when they come calling.

That's it -- between now and 2020, if Bennett can take Virginia to FOUR NCAA Tournaments and advance to the Elite Eight once, then he's our Coach K. If not, he's our next Jeff Jones.

Conclusion

Bennettball is not 40 Minutes of Hell. It's not a pulse-pounding, exciting brand of basketball. But it is the first cohesive system Virginia Basketball has had since Terry Holland forged our identity around hard-nosed defense and rebounding. Bennettball can take us to heights we have not experienced since those teams of the early '80s, the key is for Virginia fans to properly embrace it for what it is, and for the right players to stick when Bennett throws those recruiting classes against the wall.

This is an exciting time to be a Virginia basketball fan. Can you sense that electricity? That's the goosebumps you're feeling about returning to relevancy in the ACC and in the college basketball landscape. With Bennettball at its core, Virginia Basketball is important again. Wahoowa and hallelujah.

GO HOOS!

Sene Out for Six Weeks

2012-01-21T08:17:00.002-05:00

Press release from UVA:

Senior center Assane Sene (Saint-Louis, Senegal) of the Virginia men's basketball team is expected to be out approximately six weeks after undergoing surgery on his right ankle Friday (Jan. 20).

The 7-0 Sene injured the ankle late in the first half of the Cavaliers' victory over Georgia Tech in Atlanta on Thursday (Jan. 19). X-rays on Friday showed a fracture and Sene underwent surgery.

"Assane is a senior and an integral part of our team," said Virginia head coach Tony Bennett. "In all my years of coaching, he is one of the most team-first players I've been around. I know he'll do whatever he can from a rehabilitation standpoint to try and return to action before the end of the season."

Sene has started all 17 games for Virginia this season. He is averaging 4.9 points and 3.7 rebounds a game and leads the team in blocked shots with 15. He is tied for sixth on Virginia's career list for blocked shots with 108.

This puts him on pace for a return to action in the March 5th season finale against Maryland. Basically, we'll be getting the big man back for the postseason.

I really feel horrible for Zu. He worked so freaking hard to get to this point, and then to have his senior season cut in half like this. Very disappointing for the young man. Here's hoping he comes back with a vengeance in six weeks.

Meanwhile, this forces Akil Mitchell and Darion Atkins to step up. That could help us come tourney time, and it will DEFINITELY help us next year, when those two guys are our only returning bigs. Getting extended PT this season will help to accelerate their development.

I hate seeing silver lining with something like this, but there it is.

Godspeed in your recovery, big fella.

Pace Picks Up at Davenport

2012-01-21T08:10:00.000-05:00

Here;s a good, short season preview piece from Jeff White. Invest five minutes in reading this:

Pace Picks Up at Davenport as Baseball Season Nears