Dear Old U.Va.

The Nightmare (Finally) Ends

Tuesday, December 01 2009 by Tiki

I suppose that title could refer to the end of the Al Groh era, but this is (mostly) going to be about the 2009 season. I want to take a look at what went wrong, what (if anything) went right and maybe why. Also, we will take an early look at what we can expect next season.

The season started with a good deal of hope. Obviously, coming off a down year, optimism was guarded. But, with a new offensive system in place, and a lot of young talent impressing in the spring and fall camps, there was potential…And then the season began.

The opening game was against I-AA William & Mary, a matchup the Hoos were supposed to win easily. Things opened well, with the defense forcing a 3 and out, and Vic Hall scoring on a 34 yard TD on the offense’s 3^rd play. It appeared as though the route was on. Sadly, this would be the team’s lone highlight. The offense bogged down, recording one more TD drive, along with 7 punts, 7 turnovers and 2 drives ending on downs. Seriously, 7 turnovers.  Aside from the 2 scoring drives, the Hoos had 16 drives accounting for just 140 yards. That includes 10 drives which failed to record a first down. Again, this is at home against a team from a lower division.

The offensive woes would continue, as the Hoos finished 118^th out of 120 teams in total offense, with 269 yards per game. The rushing game ranked 110^th (99 ypg), while the passing game finished 104^th in yards (135 ypg), but 113^th in efficiency. The average DI-A team had 378 yards per game, a number which the Hoos passed just twice. In short, this was a terrible offense.

Before the season began, I ran the following chart, showing our offense’s rankings the past 3 seasons.

Following the chart, I wrote these exact words: “it is obvious that Brandon, at the very least, can’t be any worse than Groh.” The Groh I was referring to there was Mike, the ousted offensive coordinator. It seems I was mistaken.

The Hoos opened the season running Greg Brandon’s spread offense, which had been installed during the offseason. After 2 weeks of minimal offense, they gave up on it, and went back to a more traditional offensive scheme. For a few weeks, it worked. Against Southern Mississippi, the offense racked up 390 yards and 34 points. Against a very good UNC defense (6^th in the country), it was 254 yards and 16 points (just 13 yards and 1 pt under their season average). Then against Indiana on homecoming weekend, the Hoos offense broke out for 536 yards and 47 points. That, however, was the end of the Hoos offense, and the last time they would break 300 yards of total offense.

The season’s low point came on November 7^th in Miami. In 2007, we went down to Miami and beat them 48-0 in the Orange Bowl’s finale. This year, in a different stadium, we saw a vastly different result. Miami dominated the game, winning 52-17. The Hoos accounted for just 149 of total offense, one of an amazing 4 times the Hoos failed to break 200.

The season, in some ways, mirrored the Al Groh era. We started off slow, as Groh did in 2001 and the beginning of 2002. Then we had a great run in the middle of the season, as Groh did in 2003-2005. Finally, we finished poorly, as Groh did. And so the Al Groh era ends with the worst season of UVA football since 1982.

Let’s look at some specifics.

What went wrong this year? I mean, other than everything.

• The spread offense never got going, and was dropped before it had to chance to click.
• The offensive line struggled with the new scheme and the wider splits. This, too, was dropped before it had a chance to improve.
• Far too many redshirts were burned needlessly. I have no problem with Tim Smith playing for example, because he was ready, and he was among the best WRs we had. But Paul Freedman had his redshirt burned in the 8^th game of the season, and for only a handful of plays. Lavonte Battle and Javonti Sparrow both burned their shirts just for a few special teams plays. If this was a 9 win team, I could see maybe it being worth it. But isn’t it likely that a 3-9 team would’ve been 3-9 without these guys playing?
• Once it was clear that this team was bad (and this was clear during the 2^nd half of the opener), why didn’t more underclassmen see real playing time. I find it unconscionable that a 3-9 team couldn’t get a single snap for an underclassman QB. Marc Verica is the only returning QB with any experience next year, and he will be a senior. Late in the Miami game, for example, was it really impossible to get a few snaps at QB for redshirt freshman Riko Smalls? Or Quentin Hunter, a true freshman who had already played at WR.
• Offensive playcalling, as well as execution, struggled. The wildcat, with Mikell Simpson taking direct snaps, was successful at times. But it wasn’t used nearly enough. With 2, and sometimes 3, QBs on the field (Jameel Sewell, Vic Hall and Quentin Hunter), we couldn’t get more “trick” plays? The TD from Vic Hall to Joe Torchia in the Clemson game was a great play. Why wasn’t that play used more? Why save that play for the 10^th game of a lost season? Why not break it out earlier, in a situation that could’ve make a difference.
• We saw several young players get hurt, including Matt Conrath, Javaris Brown, Torrey Mack, and Dominique Wallace. Hopefully all these guys will be fine for next season, but to see them go down at all is hard, and if that hurts us in the future, it will be even worse.
• Keith Payne left the program, after never really getting a chance to show his abilities.
• Some players were jumped on the depth chart, without really ever getting a chance. Payne is one of them, as are Max Millien and Terrence Fells-Danzler.
• Quality seniors like Chris Cook, Vic Hall, Nate Collins, Aaron Clark, Jameel Sewell, Mikell Simpson and Rashawn Jackson ended their careers far too soon.
• We sucked.  Really sucked. 

Did anything go right this year? I think a few things.

• Two freshman RBs, Dominique Wallace and Torrey Mack looked good at times. Young WRs Kris Burd, Javarris Brown and Tim Smith all showed talent as well.
• Joe Torchia had some big catches, although also some drops. Colter Phillips and Paul Freedman also showed ability, so we look to be set at the TE position for the foreseeable future.
• The secondary was solid overall (T-42^nd in interceptions, 21^st in pass defense). If Ras-I Dowling returns, we will still have a very good secondary, and even if he doesn’t they could be pretty good.
• PK Robert Randolph had a fantastic year and was named a semi-finalist for the Lou Groza award.
• I hated burning so many redshirts in a lost year, but at least the incoming coaching staff will have film to watch on many of the young players.
• Steve Greer lived up to some considerable hype, leading the team in tackles.
• Nate Collins played both DE and DT, and had a fantastic year, solidifying himself as an NFL draft prospect.
• Vic Hall proved to be a weapon at WR, and may get some NFL looks as well.
• Al Groh was fired, if a year too late.

A Look Forward

Enough about the past, let’s look forward. Is the program really in as bad a shape as everybody seems to think? After all, many people (myself included) were optimistic about this year. There still appears to be talent on the team, much of it still young and developing.

I am going to attempt a shot at next year’s 2-deep. Keep in mind that some of these guys may not be here for various reasons, and I have no idea what kind of system a new coach might introduce. I am going to use a 3 WR set, mostly because I don’t see a true FB on next year’s team. And I am going to use a 4-3 defense, because frankly I am tired of the 3-4.

Offense

QB: Marc Verica, Ross Metheny

RB: Torrey Mack, Dominque Wallace

WR: Tim Smith, Jared Green

WR: Kris Burd, Dontrelle Inman

WR: Javaris Brown, Riko Smalls

TE: Joe Torchia, Colter Phillips

LOT: Oday Aboushi, Lamar Milstead

LOG: Austin Pasztor, Isaac Cain

C: Jack Shields, Anthony Mihota

ROG: BJ Cabbell, Aaron Van Kuiken

ROT: Landon Bradley, Matt Mihalik

Defense

DE: John-Kevin Dolce, Will Hill

DT: Matt Conrath, Buddy Ruff

DT: Nick Jenkins, Zane Parr

DE: Aaron Taliaferro, Jake Snyder

OLB: Cam Johnson, Tucker Windle

ILB: Steve Greer, Darnell Carter

OLB: Terrence Fells-Danzler, Bill Schautz

CB: Ras-I Dowling, Dom Joseph

CB: Chase Minnifield, Mike Parker

S: Corey Mosely, Ausar Walcott

S: Rodney McLeod, Lavonte Battle

Again, this is just my preliminary guess. I have never seen Riko Smalls or Ross Metheny play QB. I left Smalls at WR, mostly because Metheny was a higher rated QB recruit, and Smalls has the ability to play WR, while Metheny does not. Much of this was obvious, such as the secondary. There may be some question with the backups, as guys like Trey Womack and Devin Wallace have a chance to make the 2-deep. But, unless Ras-I leaves for the NFL, it seems like the 4 starting DBs are set.

Depending on the scheme the new coach wants to run, I expect Conrath and Parr to move inside. They probably aren’t quick enough to be 4-3 DEs, and they may be better suited as 4-3 DTs anyway. My inclusion of TF-D at OLB may be wishful thinking, as I just really want to see him on the field. We also may see some of the younger OLs get a shot, but since I haven’t seen them play, I couldn’t very well include them. Considering the performance of the OL the past couple of years, perhaps we should be hoping that the younger OLs get a shot.

Regardless of how right or wrong I am with this 2-deep, a lot of this years players are going to have big roles again next year. It is debatable if this is a good thing or not. Either way, it will be a daunting task for whomever we bring in at head coach.