2-2... 4-2

Our next two games are at home, the first this weekend against super-shitty Kent State, a team that a crappy Ohio State team boat-raced to the tune of a 66-0 final score.  The Buckeyes piled up 628 total yards of offense and held the Golden Flashes to 126.  Of course, Kent State has had a bye week to prepare for UVA, and remember, we've had specific trouble with the MAC in recent seasons.

All of that being said, I think it's a very safe bet that Virginia wins this game and gets to 3-2 on the season.  If you skipped the link I just provided, the consensus line is Virginia (-26.5).  That's a big line, bettors.

Cool uni, though

Anyway, we beat Kent State going away.  Then we get to what - in my opinion - is the most pivotal game of the season, and thus, in Mike London's coaching career -- the October 4 night game against Pittsburgh.  We'll get to that in more detail next week, but for now, know: that Pitt game is a big fat *MUST WIN* if Mike London wants to get to 6+ wins on the season.

As we already established, London needs at least a 6-6 season and a bowl game in order to retain his job.

I'm trying to stick to the good win / sinful loss plus-minus scoreboard I outlined last week.  The BYU loss was neither a good win nor a sinful loss, so London still sits at minus-5 for his UVA career.  Get to a plus-minus of 0 for me to buy back in, Coach.

Aside from the plus-minus, I simply need 8-4 or 8-5 this season to buy back in.  8 wins this season, or a few seasons of 6- or 7-win football back-to-back-to-back.  I'm trying really hard to not be a stick in the mud about this, but I stand by my belief that no coach should be able to survive a 2-10 season at a power conference school that fancies itself a player on the national scene.

The BYU loss wasn't a bad loss, but it was still a loss.  And while the kool-aid crowd will say "we're a pair of close 8-point losses away from being 4-0 right now," I'd counter with "we're a lucky-ass Louisville muffed punt away from being 1-3."  The line, it is razor thin.

So we beat Kent State, and then find a way against Pitt, and we're 4-2 with bowl eligibility in the crosshairs*.

Saturday's game against the Flashes should be fun.  I suspect we'll see all three of the running backs get up to around 100 yards, and Daniel Hamm might get some burn too.

Anyway, in my meandering thoughtwave diatribe, I've maneuvered myself to thinking about 2015.  If we're able to maintain this 2011 New York Giants thing and parlay it into the 6+ wins London needs to keep his job, do things look brighter for next year?  Will he have a chance to build on modest success this season?  Riffing off of the depth chart for Kent State and the Official Football Roster and the cumulative season stats, and assuming no attrition, a quick position-by-position look...

Quarterback -- Greyson Lambert and Matt Johns are both back, and Turtle will be coming off of his redshirt season.  For the first time in London's tenure at UVA, we *should* be in good shape at this spot.

Running Back -- KP and Khalek Shepherd will both be gone, and this will be Smoke's backfield.  I think that [currently redshirting] Jordan Ellis will play a role, and of course, Daniel Hamm.  CWR should continue to be a mainstay at fullback, and should continue to improve with all of the on-field experience he's getting.  Still, RB has to be considered a question mark for 2015... at least until Mizzell begins to prove himself as a potential star (3.4 yards per carry so far this season is far from dazzling).

Wide Receiver -- We lose Miles Gooch and Darius Jennings, but Severin, Levrone, Keeon Johnson, Doni Dowling, and Dockins are back, along with big-time talent Jamil Kamara.  I like the continued upside of this group, despite the lack of a legit downfield burner.

Tight End -- Ugh, bare cupboard here.  Rob Burns, [current redshirt] Evan Butts, and some true freshmen.  Look for a lot of 3- and 4-wide sets, and further minimization of the tight end position at UVA.  Lacking an in-line blocker at this position kind of limits our potential as a pro-style power running outfit.

Offensive Line -- All of the current starters (other than middling RG Conner Davis) are back, Whitmire should return from injury, hopefully Adeosun too, and some young talent will hopefully be ready to play.  The OL hasn't been good this season, but it also hasn't been the unmitigated disaster I predicted... so I'm reasonably optimistic that it'll continue to improve and gel and give us a potential bright spot in 2015.

Defensive End -- Unless Eli Harold gets froggy and decides to test the waters of the NFL, everyone will be back.  And a year older.  And a year stronger.  And a year more seasoned.  And a year better.  Excited about this unit.

Defensive Tackle -- Everyone is back, and Andrew Brown should be ready for a bigger role.  Boner.

Linebacker -- Big losses here.  Henry Coley and DaDa Romero are adios.  Valles is back (which counts more at DE than anything), and there are some nice-looking young guys being groomed.  Still, it'll be difficult to replace our best player (Coley) and one of our top-five players (Romero).

Safety -- We lose Anthony Harris, which is a big loss.  Quin Blanding is back, and should be ready to step into a starring role.  I happen to think that Kelvin Rainey will be ready to step right in at that other safety spot and produce good results.  So I think this unit will take a small step back, but still be pretty good.

Cornerback -- Tra Nicholson will be gone, unless we squeeze a medical redshirt out of this situation, which seems unlikely.  Brandon Phelps and DreQuan Hoskey will also be gone.  So that's a lot of loss.  Maurice Canady will be back as the headliner, and Divante Walker and Tim Harris should be ready for increased roles.  I'm most interested to see what the influx of young talent can offer us at corner -- Kirk Garner and Darious Latimore will be needed.

Kicker/Punter -- Ouch, we lose Voz.  But Frye is back, as is long-snapper Tyler Shirley and holder Matt Johns.  So we'll have to replace an All-ACC candidate at punter.  Nick Conte, step on up.  Oh, and Dylan Sims should continue to be an excellent kickoff specialist.

Add It Up -- We'll be better at QB, OL, DE, and DT, worse at RB, LB, and CB, wash at WR, TE, S, K/P.  Sum of parts, I think improved quarterbacking coupled with improved play on the lines spells a more successful team.  The 2015 OOC schedule is a monster --- @ UCLA, Notre Dame, and Boise State (plus William & Mary).  The ACC schedule gets a lot lighter --- we trade F$U for Syracuse, which is a significant downshift.  I'd say 6-6, 7-5, or even 8-4 is possible, given our returning talent and the schedule we'll face.

On the Calendar -- Greyson Lambert, Smoke Mizzell, Max Valles, Eli Harold

In the NFL -- Henry Coley, Anthony Harris

*
2-2 now, six wins in the crosshairs...

• Kent State -- win, 3-2
• Pitt -- pivotal game, has to be a win, 4-2
• BYE
• @ Duke -- we have 2 weeks to prepare, they're coming off a game against GT's wishbone, win, 5-2
• UNC -- if we're on a 3-game win streak, momentum carries us to another W, 6-2
• @ GT -- tricky road game, call it a loss, 6-3
• @ F$U -- loss, 6-4
• Miami -- no momentum, but London is good at beating Miami... still, a loss against superior talent, 6-5
• @ VT -- it's a win, Hoofans, it's a win, 7-5

Baseball Scrimmage Report

The following scrimmage report was submitted by an anonymous member of Wahooze Nation.  Thanks Anonymous!  To everyone reading --- ENJOY!!

Hello Wahooze Nation!

The following report is respectfully submitted regarding the exhibition baseball game on Tuesday, September 23, 2014. We watched 11 out of the 14 innings so we didn’t see the last pitcher. I couldn’t tell who was warming up for those last few, but it wasn’t Kirby, Waddell, or Sborz….

Pitching:

Connor Jones opened with throwing two balls, but settled in for a commanding three-inning outing. His fastball was clocked at 92-94 mph, plenty zesty. After that first batter, I think he only got behind on one count. He induced several grounders, played really well defensively as a few choppers were either played directly by him or played by Matt Thaiss (who was playing first base) with Connor covering. He looked good, strong, comfortable.

Adam Haseley – For his three innings, Haseley’s fastball was sitting at 86-87 mph (plenty fast for a college pitcher), but he threw lots and lots of balls. Somehow, held the Blue Jays to a zero. He was huge defensively. He successfully handled three bunts and he had a great catch of someone stealing (the runner headed for second and instead of panicking, Haseley zinged the ball to Thaiss who gunned it to second and they caught the guy in a run-down). Although smaller than O’Connor’s usual two-way player (Haseley is listed at 6-1, 195), he kind of looks like a two-way player to me (see hitting).

Alec Bettinger – Good to see him out there. Fastball at 89… sweet 1-6-3 double play in there...

Jack Roberts – Really wanted to see him play, but two of the three innings he played were very rough. I think he walked five or six batters, and yet his middle inning was something like a 4-pitch outing. How the Blue Jays only scored two against him is a mystery. He was quite good defensively and got himself out of a few pickles with fewer opposing runs than could have realistically been feared at that point, but that probably isn’t the definition of a great pitcher. His appearance looked big, strong, and imposing, but he couldn't locate the zone and was visibly frustrated and uncomfortable.

Bennett Sousa – WOW. Tight, efficient, fastball at 91. I was really impressed with this freshman. Looked like he wants to earn a role in the 2015 rotation.

Derek Casey – Shaky start for our big-name freshman, but he struck out a few including one after a 3 and 0 count.

Bennett Sousa

Defense:

Interesting to see Thaiss at first base. He is a strong dude. Pinero? Poetry in motion. Several 6-3 combos equaling outs. Catching? Coman looks great. 

Given the pitching, there was not much chance to showcase anyone else on D…

Robbie Coman

Hitting:

[Freshman] Pavin Smith hit a home run that I think must have landed in the Cage lot. No kidding. He was solid all around, and that blast was impressive.

Thomas Woodruff -- Great to see him hit a homer as well (left field bleachers).

Solid hitting delivered from Matt Thaiss (he is a strong dude), Joe McCarthy (what do you expect from a Greek God?), Pinero, Clement (love that we have an Ernie) and Haseley had a great approach. I think we scored something like 11 runs while we were there watching.

Joe Mac

Issues:

Jack Gerstenmaier suffered what appeared to be a pretty painful looking hamstring injury. He was playing second and made a sliding catch heading away from first base and wanted to get up and throw back to first base. His inertia kept him going and it looked like his foot may have planted oddly and he must have pulled the hell out of his hamstring. Poor kid got up and tried to throw… he crumbled painfully. He left the field and came back in shorts, on crutches, with a 10-pound bag of ice on his hamstring. He was hitting pretty well up to that point and doing well at second, so it was a bummer to see him go down. Let's hope the injury isn't too serious.

Jack Roberts – His outing was pretty ugly.


Unkowns:

No preview of our pitching stars… 

It'll be interesting to see if Thaiss stays on first. He is a strong dude.



Hope you have enjoyed this report!

Thanks, Anonymous!  That was great!

Busy day on the blog...

...but I have two more quick nugs:

1) After drawing major heat from Texas during their coaching search, it sounds like Brian O'Connor has inked a six- or seven-year extension to remain as Virginia's head baseball coach.  The deal is set up a lot like Tony Bennett's, in that it is structured to elevate over the course of the contract, and it is also built to help compensate the assistant coaches.  BOOM.  It's probably not the blank check I have been lobbying for, but it's a good thing - a REALLY good thing - to have a fantastic coach locked up long term.  I couldn't be happier!

2) My prediction for tomorrow's game against BYU...  The defense fights hard and does a great job of dirtying up the game.  We keep it close throughout.  Then BYU takes a late 7-point lead, and Greyson Lambert has the Hoos on the move with about 2:00 left.  Not sure if he gets us into the end zone or not, so I'll let you take your pick from these three outcomes:

BYU 24, Virginia 17

Virginia 38, BYU 34 (2OT)

BYU 38, Virginia 34 (2OT)

Introducing: The Good Deed Win / Sinful Loss Scorecard

"Hooooo boy, I bet you wish you had gotten season tickets now, dont'cha?"

Et cetera.

Herp a derp.

Yeah, look, it was a big win over Louisville.  It was a big win, and I was excited.  I'm still a huge die-hard Hoofan, guys.  Ride or die.

My thing is that I want something better than praying for a 6-6 or 7-5 season.  I want something better than maybe getting lucky and having the #21-ranked team muff a punt and hand us a win.  I want something better than our fans rushing the field when we beat a team the stature of a Louisville.

I know this makes me sound like a massive douche; like just a giant stick in the mud.  I promise I'm not!  I'm really, truly excited about what I'm seeing on the field right now!

Greyson Lambert seems to be taking control of the QB Carousel.

The defensive front seven is playing lights out.

Our 2014 football team reminds me - very favorably - of the 2007 and 2011 New York Giants --- mediocre teams carried to championships by a dominant pass rush.  Now I don't think there's a national championship (or an ACC championship, or a Coastal division championship, or a Commonwealth Cup championship) in the cards for this season, but I do now foresee a winning season and a bowl game.  The defense is just too good, and the rest of the ACC too weak, for us to lose 7+ games from here on out.

Yeah, I openly admit that I think we're pretty good this season.

But I'm not taking down the Countdown to the Firing of Mike London, nor am I taking down the "Hire This Man" picture of Pete Lembo (even though Ball State just lost to Indiana State from the FCS).  I'm not taking that stuff down, because ultimately, I want something bigger and better than praying for a 6-6 or 7-5 season.  You get it.

At what point to I take that stuff down and get back behind Mike London and the current football administration (Jon Oliver)?  When their good deeds outweigh their sins, that's when.

The current regime has made too many in-game gaffes (think usage of timeouts), too many errors in roster planning (think failure to recruit the OL), and too many boneheaded decisions (think constant QB carousels, spinning out of control).  But in the end, it all distills down to wins and losses, right?  Win enough games, and your mistakes are overlooked.  Lose too many games, and your small successes are forgotten.  It's not a complicated equation.  It's really a lot like a hockey plus-minus.

So I'm keeping a scorecard.  Once the "good deed wins" (the pluses) outnumber the "sinful losses" (the minuses), I'll be back on board with Mike London and the boys.  Good deed wins are upset victories or blowouts over otherwise decent teams (crushing FCS foes doesn't count, nor does barely beating teams a decent P5 program would defeat by 3+ TDs).  Sinful losses are embarrassing upsets suffered, or getting annihilated and humiliated by opponents we should really have kept it closer against, or games that we lost due to some crazy coaching mishap, or games in which the team just clearly quit (aka, the glass jaw shattered).

Let's take a look at where the scorecard currently stands, following the "good deed win" over Louisville.


GOOD DEED WINS

• 2010: Virginia 24, Miami 19 -- Mike London's first big win at Virginia.
• 2011: Virginia 24, Georgia Tech 21 -- I shed a few tears when we won this game, over a ranked GT team.  Boom.  This win helped us turn the corner and put together a very good season.
• 2011: Virginia 28, Miami 21 -- A good, solid win over a quality opponent, definitely cause for celebration.
• 2011: Virginia 14, Florida State 13 -- Insanity.  Entrenched LaRoy Reynolds as one of my favorite players of the London Era.
• 2012: Virginia 17, Penn State 16 -- It was ugly, but a big win over a quality opponent (the Nits went 8-4 that season.)
• 2012: Virginia 33, NC State 6 -- We were in a fiery death spiral... and then this huge win on the road.  It was sweet nectar.
• 2012: Virginia 41, Miami 40 -- London has a knack for beating Miami.
• 2013: Virginia 19, BYU 16 -- Another ugly OOC win, but a big win over a quality opponent (BYU went 8-4 and played in the Fight Hunger Bowl).
• 2014: Virginia 23, Louisville 21 -- Just enormous, given the state of affairs over the course of the last two seasons.

TOTAL GOOD DEED WINS: 9


SINFUL LOSSES

• 2011: Southern Miss 30, Virginia 24 -- The reality is that this was a bad moment in an otherwise good season.
• 2011: NC State 28, Virginia 14 -- We really should not have lost this game at home.  This loss was offensive.
• 2011: Virginia Tech 38, Virginia 0 -- 2011 was great... until we went belly-up against our biggest rival.
• 2011: Auburn 43, Virginia 24 -- 2011 was great... until we went belly-up against our biggest rival, and then shit the bed in the bowl game.
• 2012: Georgia Tech 56, Virginia 20 -- Our defense - London's calling card - was downright putrid in this game.  I dropped more than a few F-bombs.
• 2012: Louisiana Tech 44, Virginia 38 -- Awful.  I still have nightmares about those bubble screens we couldn't stop (or contain, or predict).
• 2012: Duke 42, Virginia 17 -- Anytime you lose this bad to Dook, it's an embarrassment.  And this was before Dook was even good!
• 2012: Maryland 27, Virginia 20 -- Nope, can't lose to the Terps, ever.
• 2012: Wake Forest 16, Virginia 10 -- Special teams blows it yet again.
• 2012: North Carolina 37, Virginia 13 -- The effort level was nonexistent.  What a shame.
• 2013: Pittsburgh 14, Virginia 3 -- The offense was DOA.  This is when London lost me.
• 2013: Ball State 48, Virginia 27 -- In my opinion, the worst, most damning loss of the Mike London Era.  It was after this second half collapse (when the team just completely laid down and quit) that I decided that I had had enough of Mike London coaching the program I love.
• 2013: Duke 35, Virginia 22 -- Another glass-jaw-shattered loss for London, UVA.
• 2013: North Carolina 45, Virginia 14 -- Another no-effort loss to the Tarholes.

TOTAL SINFUL LOSSES: 14


So by my admittedly subjective count, London's plus-minus is currently a minus-5.  That means he needs to find five more good deed wins this season, without suffering any sinful losses, to come out at even-steven and earn another season as UVA's head coach... and earn back my die-hard support.

Remaining Opportunities for Good Deed Wins:

• 9/20, @ BYU
• 10/4, vs. Pitt -- But only if we crush them.
• 10/18, @ Duke
• 10/25, vs. North Carolina
• 11/1, @ Georgia Tech
• 11/8, @ Florida State -- Ha ha ha, yeah right.
• 11/22, vs. Miami
• 11/28, @ Virginia Tech

Remaining Opportunities for Sinful Losses:

• 9/27, vs. Kent State
• 10/4, vs. Pitt
• 10/18, @ Duke -- If they blow us out.
• 11/28, @ Virginia Tech

So the opportunity is there.  Will London get it done?  CAN London get it done?

Bullet Points. No Pictures.

Howdy, WahoozeNation.

Apologies for the recent lack of podcasts. I travel for work this time of year - makes the logistics of casting very difficult. That said, we'll be back soon, don't worry. Since I don't want to deny the masses both my soothing voice and sparkling wit, here you'll have plenty of the latter in the form of a bulleted list of my thoughts.

• Remember that time Kendall picked the Louisville upset? Stunning optimism. Gutsy call. I was not a believer, but the Wahoos proved me wrong.
• I'm not a believer this week either. I think BYU really is too tough a road test for this team.
• However, BYU's achilles heel is their proclivity for turning the ball over. Who's really great at forcing turnovers? Hoos are.
• Greyson Lambert looks like a whole different Greyson. How great was it to see him open the game last week with a bomb down the left sideline? Finally, the prophecies are coming true...
• After the UCLA game, I was admittedly on #TeamMattyFootball - feed the hot hand and all. Currently, the hot hand is clearly #TeamLambert. Let's hope it stays that way and the QB controversy fades away.
• Eli Harold is faster than you are.
• Henry Coley is the hero UVA fans need and the hero they deserve.
• So a Heisman-hyped top-ten-team QB and a Bobby Petrino-coached top-25-team QB both looked horrible against our defense...but Michael Strauss clearly has had the best game against us so far. Hmmm.
• HOW ABOUT THOSE BALTIMORE AL EAST CHAMPION OOOOOOORIOLES Y'ALL?
• How'd the Cubs do this year? Does anyone know? Leave comments plz.
• It's too early to be drinking pumpkin flavored things. It's always too early to drink pumpkin flavored starbucks creations.
• UVA basketball will probably be a preseason top 10 team. I love having the hype and the respect and having media talk about us - but if I were voting, I'd probably still have them closer to 15.
• Keys to beating BYU: turnover battle. beat up their oline. take care of the ball. score some touchdowns. force some fumbles and interceptions. don't die in the high altitude. score more points than the other team. when we have the ball, don't give the ball back to them, but rather make the opposite happen when they have the ball.
• My favorite part of staying in Hampton Inns is the free cookies. My second favorite part is how they always wash the duvet covers. Did you know not all hotels do that? Ew.
• Yes, I still want a coaching change. If we win tomorrow, I will still want a coaching change. This doesn't mean I'm rooting for losses. I'm rooting for the team and as such I'm rooting for Coach London to win. Doesn't mean I don't want a different coach. Love the one you're with, right?
• Things are going to be weird when there's no more NFL.
• Never have I been so disappointed in a 3:30 kickoff than when it conflicts with the annual beer festival. The struggle is real.

Virginia Beats Louisville!

You heard it here first (or second, or third, etc.).

Virginia 19, Louisville 17

Jon Tenuta dials up enough exotic blitzes to keep Will Gardner off balance, our safeties do a good job on [star L'Ville TE] Gerald Christian, and the Lambert/Johns pu pu platter does enough (with enough ball security) for the Hoos to put four field goals on the board to go along with a defensive score.

It's a huge win for Mike London and a massive complication for the FIRE LONDON crowd.  But I think the guys get it done this weekend, with major kudos to Tenuta.

Three Interesting Columns...

... to tide you over until we unleash this week's post / podcast / whatever the heck we're going to do.

From Old Virginia: $#!T or get off the pot

Augusta Free Press:  Must-win game for UVA: with emphasis on must

Rick Bozich: How good is Virginia? Louisville wins if Cards score 27

That last one is a little bit insulting... until you consider the fact that it's all correct.  Ugh.

WahoozeCast - September, 4th

Get ready to feast your ears, WahoozeNation. We're back - and we let Kendall talk this time! For your listening pleasure: UCLA recap, QB carousel, Mike trashes his wife, Basketball tidbit, NFL rambling, and Richmond Spiders Preview. [WARNING.  THE FOLLOWING CONTENT INCLUDES PLENTY OF COLORFUL ADULT LANGUAGE]




For enhanced listening features, check this picture of Ty Jerome:

Be sure to come back next week, where we're certain to be just as charming and hilarious.

Thoughts on UCLA, Richmond

BULLETED LISTS!

On UCLA...

• Sorry, needs to be said: UCLA is not a top-10 team this season.  We hung tough against a pretty good team, but no way the Bruins are quote-unquote "elite."  They looked like a 7-5 kind of Pac-12 team to me.
• Sorry, also needs to be said: While we out-gained them yardage-wise (386 to 358) and outscored their offense, we also cheated them of three possessions by coughing up turnovers for touchdowns.  Take a look at this statistic, stat-heads: Virginia -- 26 yards per possession, UCLA 33 yards per possession.

• We spent all Spring, all Summer, basically all offseason grooming Greyson Lambert to be the starter in 2014.  Then the hook not even all the way through the 2nd quarter of the first game?  I know that move was made to give Lambert a chance to calm down and see a little bit of the game from the sideline before being re-inserted into action, and I know Matt Johns was pretty good (not great) in relief, but COME THE FUCK ON.  I blame Mike London, because he's guilty of at least one of two things: 1) Being too quick with the hook and blundering into yet another quarterback controversy / carousel at UVA, and/or 2) making the wrong call on who should be Virginia's starting quarterback this season.  Neither mistake surprises me, given the shitshow this coaching regime has been.
• 0-1.  That's all that matters to me right now.  Moral victories are for losers, and there is surely no place for them in Year Five of a coaching regime.
• Where the hell was Keeon Johnson?  Darius Jennings, Canaan Severin, and Andre Levrone were good, but where the hell was Keeon Johnson?
• Okay, I'm ready to eat a smidgen of crow on this.  Our offensive line was surprisingly decent.  In pass pro, at least.  (Run blocking sucked, as we managed only 120 yards on 39 carries, 3.1 ypc.)  UCLA's defensive front is very talented, so the performance of the OL actually gives me some shred of optimism for the season ahead.
• Special propers to the left side of the line.  Mike Mooney and Ryan Doull played well in their first taste of action.

• For the record, Crazylegs Matt Johns is my QB of choice from this point forward.  Give me the gamer over the golden boy.  It'll take onions to lead this Virginia program out of the pit of despair, and I think Johns has about a bushel while Lambert has nada.
• Credit to the Virginia defense!  Five sacks, and looking downright nasty while doing it.  Max Valles looks like a blossoming superstar, and major kudos to Jon Tenuta for deploying Valles in exactly the right ways.  As a nickel rush end, he can be truly stellar.
• Henry Coley's 14 tackles and 2 sacks should not be ignored.  He's our best player.
• Voz: 7 punts for 322 yards.  46 yards per punt.  Echoes of Will Brice.
• Ian Frye was also good.
• Kickoff coverage was awesome.  Punt coverage, dismal.
• I thought we tried to force the issue with Smoke Mizzell too early, and too often.  Stick with KP, feed the beast 25 carries per game.  Don't get cute.
• I know "screen" is a four-letter word for Hoofans, but we went away from the running back screen too early in the game!  It was working!
• Good for you, Doni Dowling.
• Tip of the hat to Myles Jack.  That dude is good.
• I wasn't that impressed with Brett Hundley.  I know he's better than how he played, but that's no Heisman candidate.
• Once again, let me say: Moral victories are for losers.

On Richmond...

"It's an unhealthy environment for any quarterback at UVa"

~ Mike Rocco

• Hey, guess what, bitch?  We're counting on Eli, Max, and the gang creating an unhealthy environment for you this coming weekend.  Nice job not being able to win the starting quarterback job at an FCS school, by the way.  At an FCS school where your uncle is the freaking head coach, I should add.

• I enjoy the fact that [Richmond coach] Danny Rocco has opted to send Mike and Michael Strauss out for the coin toss, by the way.  Go ahead and make it personal, coach.  Can't wait to hurt your and Mike's widdle feewings this weekend.
• Heading into the season, I didn't really give a shit about this Richmond game.  But now I'm kind of fired up about it.
• Lambert and Johns are listed as "or" at the starting QB spot on the depth chart this week, yet Mike London insists "there is no quarterback controversy at UVA."  D'okay coach.  What the fuck is it then?

• I'm expecting both QBs to play in this game, as sort of an elongated live action audition for the starting job for the rest of the season (read also: the right to be the pink horse on the carousel).  Go Matt Johns.
• Here's a golden opportunity to get the o-line and a KP-led running game on track.
• Our defense is going to dominate this game.
• My pick for the game, before Vegas can put something out: Virginia 31, Richmond 10.