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After struggling mightily against Georgia Tech last week, the Virginia football team flew west in search of a bounce-back game on Saturday. The Cavaliers didn't find any redemption medicine, however, as TCU's success at home continued in a 27-7 victory. The Horned Frogs own the nation's longest winning streak and have won 28 of their 29 home games. Virginia, which fell to 0-3 all-time in the state of Texas, has lost two straight games and owns a 2-2 record.
The Virginia football team travels to Fort Worth on Saturday to face a fast and tough Texas Christian squad. Throughout the week, much of the discussion has focused on TCU's strong defense that shuts down the run and makes it hard to score. But the Horned Frogs offers some other challenges too and this week's Watch List article takes a closer look.
In-state junior wide receivers Donovan Dowling and B.J. Farrow both seem likely to land scholarship levels on some level. Major FBS offers are not out of the question for either player, and both players -- Dowling for Varina and Farrow for Liberty Christian Academy --- have demonstrated their talents early in this season.
There really is no other way to say it, Virginia got beat in every phase of Saturday's contest with Georgia Tech. Out-coached, out-hustled and out-played. The Yellow Jackets were more physical too. JHoo's weekly column had it right when he wrote that this was a brutally difficult mismatch, especially the Tech spread-option against the inexperienced UVa defense. Can the Hoos regroup for TCU? Let's take a look at the grades and some things to keep tabs on in Texas.
Road redemption? Revenge for 2009? Maybe just a chance to forget about last week's 56-20 debacle at Georgia Tech? It's hard to pin down what this week's "theme" may be for the Virginia football team, but rest assured no one in orange and blue wants to get embarrassed for the second week in a row after the poor showing in Atlanta last week. The problem, of course, is that this week's trip to Fort Worth, Texas, isn't going to be any easier. In fact, it may be tougher.
For an offense that is struggling in several areas, Fort Worth isn't ideally where you'd start a search for answers. Fort Worth, after all, is home to the Texas Christian University football team and the Horned Frogs don't make things easy on opposing offenses. In fact, it's outright hard to score on the TCU defense.
DaeSean Hamilton considered making his college choice before the start of his senior season, but ultimately he was not ready. Mountain View's (Stafford, VA) star senior wide receiver/defensive back has no regrets, though, as he is managing the situation -- college coaches can now call once a week -- just fine.
For me, it just would have been better if this week of football hadn't happened. I mean, I thought the Chicago Bears game on Thursday night was bad - it was - but Saturday wasn't much better for the Hoos. Remembering the game won't be much more fun than watching the game was over the weekend, but that's the task before us. Here are some things I learned from the Georgia Tech game.
The Virginia football team did not play well Saturday in a 56-20 loss at Georgia Tech. That's an obvious statement. As coach Mike London said in the aftermath, "There are always things when you lose a game like this, you're quick to point fingers, you've got to do this, you've got to teach that." Certainly, a long list of issues could be compiled from the defeat: poor tackling, big plays allowed, no running game, inconsistent pass blocking, turnovers ...
The Sunday Sampler dives into some of the topics.
The fears of an inexperienced defense facing Georgia Tech's spread option offense turned into nightmares for Virginia on Saturday in Atlanta as missed assignments and poor tackling led to a big-play bonanza for the Yellow Jackets. So when the UVa offense struggled for the second straight week and a shootout didn't materialize, the scoreboard turned ugly in a 56-20 loss for the Hoos.
Virginia and Georgia Tech lock horns this week in a pivotal ACC Coastal Division showdown. The two teams have played some close contests over the years and UVa barely leads the series 17-16-1. In other words, the Cavaliers' first road game of 2012 could be a thriller in Atlanta. What do Hoo fans need to know about the details of the match-up? The Georgia Tech Watch List breaks it down.
It's been said that most teams realize the most improvement from week one to week two. Let's hope for the Cavalier offense that is more like week 2 to week 3. Aside from the three scoring drives, the Penn State game was an ugly, unimpressive performance by the Virginia offense. Of the team's 11 chartable offensive possessions, only three received an above average grade. Let's look at the grades at the trend report to prep for Georgia Tech.
LaChaston Smith's junior season ended prematurely because of a foot injury. Unfortunately, the South Iredell (Statesville, N.C.) linebacker's senior season began with an injury as well. Smith has been sidelined since his team's regular season opener, but he is on the road to recovery and there is hope that he will return to action soon.
In search of its first back-to-back winning seasons since 2004-2005, the Virginia football team opened on the right foot with a 2-0 start for the second straight year. Things get tougher this week for the Hoos as they open ACC play and hit the road for the first time as well. The Cavaliers face a powerful option attack and Al Groh's defense at Georgia Tech. Read about that, Demetrious Nicholson, Drew Jarrett, and more in this notes article.
The Virginia football team squeaked out a 17-16 win against Penn State on Saturday thanks to a late touchdown drive from the offense and quarterback Michael Rocco. Relive some of the action with this photo gallery that features 101 images of the Hoos, including Rocco, Steve Greer, Tim Smith, and more!
One week after receiving some criticism for their pass coverage performance against Richmond, Virginia's linebackers responded in a major way Saturday against Penn State. Starters Steve Greer, Henry Coley, and LaRoy Reynolds finished among the team's top four tacklers in the 17-16 win. Read about that and much more in The Sunday Sampler.
Saturday's outing against Penn State won't land in the top spot of worst offensive performances under the current coaching staff. It didn't miss by much, though. The Cavaliers struggled from the first play of the game on a day filled with penalties, turnovers, dropped passes, poor blocking, and more. So while the offense pulled a late-game rabbit out of its hat in a 17-16 win, plenty of work lies ahead for that unit this season.
The Virginia defense had a good day. Virginia's offense had a bad day. Penn State kicker Sam Ficken had the worst day of all. Those three factors came together to tell the tale as the UVa football team escaped with a nerve-rattling finish with a 17-16 victory on Saturday. It marked the second straight season that the Cavaliers defeated a Big Ten team on the last play of the game.
For the first time in the Mike London era all three operations, offense, defense and special teams finished a game with championship level marks in my postgame grades. Overall, there was plenty to like Saturday but several opportunities for improvement. Let's look at the UR grades as well as prep for Penn State with the Trend Report.
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