Sabre Edge Features 
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From the opening kickoff of Virginia's 16-10 loss to Wake Forest on Sunday, changes were evident on special teams as the Hoos unveiled a different alignment to receive that kick. Unfortunately, the scheme shift was more sanguine than successful as a multitude of errors proved costly again on special teams. The Sunday Sampler takes a closer look at that and the game against the Demon Deacons.
Virginia's 2012 season has become a broken record and that is heart-breaking for Wahoos everywhere. Turnovers, penalties, special teams miscues, and a points-averse offense wiped out UVa's chances of a win against Wake Forest on Saturday as the Demon Deacons grabbed a 16-10 victory. Those same issues have reigned supreme for much of the season and the Hoos have six straight losses to show for it.
Another week, another read option team. The Virginia football team welcomes Wake Forest to Charlottesville this weekend and the Demon Deacons will bring variations of the popular spread offense and read option schemes to town. What are some other wrinkles this week with Wake? The Watch List takes a peek at some items to keep an eye on this week as UVa tries to snap a five-game losing streak.
In high school, Eli Harold admits, it was easy to rush the quarterback. He often was just faster or stronger than the opponent so he could get into the backfield and make plays regularly for Ocean Lakes High School. Now a college freshman at Virginia, things aren't as simple, but the elite recruiting prospect is starting to catch on now.
In what seems to be a habitual issue, the Cavaliers can't seem to put all three elements of special teams, offense and defense together in one game. UVa has had one game this season where all three units received an above average grade, but Maryland was not it. At some point in time, the coaches need to be held accountable for the performance. That time is now. Let's take a closer look at the Maryland grades and prepare for Wake Forest with a look at some trends.
Rinse and repeat. For the fifth straight week, the Virginia football team must try to bounce back from a loss. Mired in a five-game losing streak, the next opportunity to snap out of the slump comes against a Wake Forest team with its own issues. The Game Preview takes a closer look with Editor Kris Wright's Keys to the Game and his pick for the week.
Virginia is in the midst of a five-game losing streak headed into this Saturday's matchup against Wake Forest. With just five games remaining on the schedule and a 2-5 record, the Cavaliers' bowl hopes are dwindling fast. While not yet mathematically eliminated from postseason play, the team has to improve greatly to avoid a losing record this season. The Hoos talked about dealing with adversity and more during Monday's weekly press conference.
That. Was. No. Fun. Am I referring to the end of the season for my beloved Cincinnati Reds or Virginia's game against Maryland? Is there any way you possibly can tell? Since I have neither the inclination nor the ability to break down why the Reds couldn't win one stinkin' game at home against the Giants, I suppose I will break down Virginia's effort against Maryland instead.
The Virginia football team continues to struggle on the scoreboard, posting just 20 points in a 27-20 loss to Maryland on Saturday. There are plenty of areas to analyze - offensive line inconsistency, dropped passes, penalties - that contribute to the scoring woes, but the bottom line is that UVa doesn't put up enough points on a regular basis. The Sunday Sampler takes a close look at the offense's issues.
The losses and frustration are starting to mount for the Virginia football team. That's what happens when each week features games plagued by turnovers, critical penalties, poor blocking, dropped passes, red zone inefficiency, big plays allowed, and overall inconsistent play. All of that reappeared once again this Saturday as UVa dropped its fifth straight game, trailing from wire to wire in a 27-20 loss to Maryland.
The rest of the October schedule features home games for the Virginia football team. The Cavaliers hope some hometown magic can help stop a four-game losing streak after another road loss at Duke last week. In order to get a win, the Hoos must deal with a stout Maryland defense and an offense with a lot of variations. The "Watch List" breaks down some wrinkles to keep an eye on during this week's game.
Akil Mitchell has some pretty big shoes to fill this season. With the departure of senior post leaders Assane Sene and Mike Scott, and the transfer of James Johnson, Mitchell now becomes the only true veteran in the post. While Coach Tony Bennett suggests offense will now come from a "committee" of players, there's no doubt Mitchell will be called upon to do a lot of the dirty work in the paint (i.e. rebounding and defense).
Justin Anderson, Taylor Barnette, Evan Nolte and Mike Tobey are the newest additions to the University of Virginia men's basketball program, which held its media day on Wednesday. All four freshmen, as well as red-shirt freshman point guard Teven Jones, who enrolled at UVa last January, discussed their impressions of UVa and look ahead to the 2012/2013 season.
The Hoos netted their worst combined grade average of the season as the defense, offense and special teams averaged a dismal 68.5 average. There were some bright spots with the offensive line play and Phillip Sims did some nice things in his debut, but for the most part the issues that have kept the Hoos in the loss column for four consecutive weeks simply have not gone away as we will see in this week's report.
Stop the slide. For Virginia, this week's mission is really simple. Stop a four-game losing streak. While the last three opponents during the Cavaliers' skid own a combined 14-2 record, any hopes of salvaging the 2012 season rest on finishing October with two wins in two home games. The next comes against Maryland on Saturday.
The Virginia men's basketball team likely will look much different in March than it does in November. Two factors lead to that hypothesis: injuries and inexperience. Cavalier coach Tony Bennett addressed the challenges presented by those two big I's as the Hoos gathered for their media day on Wednedsay. The UVa coach is looking for another I - improvement - to be the path for this year's team.
Mired in a four-game slump, the Virginia football team has tried to stay positive and focused on small goals to turn the tide. For now, UVa coach Mike London said Monday during his weekly media meeting, the Cavaliers have dialed into this month and the two home games left on the October slate. The Hoos face Maryland this weekend and Wake Forest next weekend before their bye week on the schedule.
A rough few weeks, eh? No argument there. Breaking down another loss might not be the most fun task, but it is the task before us nonetheless. So let's look a few things that I learned from the Duke game this past weekend.
Fans are frustrated. Losing to Duke, improved and 5-1 or not, does that to people. Ultimately, however, the single loss isn't what has ruffled feathers so far in 2012. No, the perceived lack of improvement and margin of defeat along with some disturbing patterns six games into this season are what's truly bugging fans thirsty for sustained football success.
For the fourth straight week, the Virginia football team fell behind by at least three scores in the second half and lost in disappointing fashion. The Cavaliers continued struggling to score and lost the turnover battle again as they got beat in all phases of the game in a 42-17 loss to Duke on Saturday. The Blue Devils have three straight victories in Durham against Hoos.
Virginia has lost to Duke in its previous two trips to Durham, but this week's game is a big one for both teams' hopes of chasing down bowl eligibility. What can the Cavaliers do to snap a three-game losing streak and get back to .500 on the season? The Watch List takes a look at some of the match-up areas in Saturday's game between UVa and Duke.
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