HOT SPRINGS, Va.

There will be quite a bit of change when the 2005 ACC football season opens on Sept. 4. Boston College joins the league to give the conference the much sought-after 12th team and allow for two divisions (Atlantic and Coastal) and provide additional revenue with a title contest in Jacksonville. The league will also debut instant replay, modeled after the Big Ten’s system that was unveiled last fall. And last year’s top three schools of Virginia Tech, Miami, and Florida State will all sport new signal callers to lead their prolific offenses.

In this year of uncertainty the Virginia Cavaliers possess what the Big Three lack: a veteran quarterback. One year after trying to fill the huge void left by current Atlanta Falcon quarterback Matt Schaub, senior Marques Hagans gives the Cavaliers much needed stability.

“It’s an interesting year because Florida State is going to have a new [quarterback], and Miami is going to have a new one operating,” Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer said. “[Marcus Vick] is a little bit past that. But still, it’s the first time it’s his team, he’s the guy, he’s the starter… There’s no question how our quarterbacks play will determine a lot as to whether we can finish as high as we want.”

While some may question how far the Cavaliers can go with Hagans at the helm, those same people should realize what a luxury it is to return such a dynamic player. Hagans’ 2,024 yards passing, nearly 400 rushing yards, and 13 touchdowns don’t do justice to the man’s versatility and his ability to make up plays on the run in what coach Groh has termed, “Marques plays.”

But the Cavaliers will need more than just Marques being Marques to have a successful 2005 season. This year they will not only face Coastal Division rivals Virginia Tech, Miami (away), and Georgia Tech — all three of which are ranked in the top 25 in some preseason polls — but they will also butt heads with the top two programs from the Atlantic division: Florida State and Boston College (away).

At the same time the pressure seems to be mounting for head coach Al Groh to win a big game versus one of the big three this season. Although I would be reluctant to say his job is anywhere near in jeopardy, a triumph at home versus the Hokies or Seminoles would go a long ways towards silencing the skeptics.

I have to wonder, however, where the improvement will come from for those Cavs. While the two Florida schools have no problems replenishing their talent lost to the NFL each year — seven ‘Canes and ‘Noles were picked in the first three rounds of the 2005 NFL draft — Virginia’s loss of ten starters leaves some gaping holes that are not as easily filled. Two of the most missed will be Andrew Hoffman at critical nose tackle position of the 3-4 defense and Mackey award winner Heath Miller at tight end — Hagans’ favorite target.

But maybe worse, critics have to question if the Cavaliers can improve at wide receiver and secondary, where they were plagued by inferior play last fall. In the secondary, returning junior starters Marcus Hamilton and Tony Franklin will anchor the corner spots, but Virginia will have to rely on Lance Evans and Nate Lyles to man the safety spots, each of whom didn’t start one contest last season.

On the offensive side of the ball, Theirrien Davis showed signs of life at the very end of last year, and the return of Ottowa Anderson, who caught 33 catches in 2003, gives some fans reasons to believe this year will be different.

But again, the success of this year’s squad will rely heavily on Hagans and the running of Wali Lundy and Michael Johnson behind the Cavaliers’ strong offensive line.

This year will be as exciting as any with Hagans leading the team for the second straight season. What he will give most to the fans and his teammates is the knowledge that with him under center, virtually anything is possible.

As Brock Berlin picked apart the Virginia secondary last November in Charlottesville and effectively killed Virginia’s chances of winning the ACC title, I couldn’t help but say to myself ‘Phillip Brown was supposed to solve this problem.’

The cornerback was the number one ranked recruit in the state of Virginia coming out of high school in 2003. After initially failing to meet the minimum NCAA academic eligibility requirements, Brown spent a year at Hargrave Military and arrived at Virginia for the 2004 season with high expectations.

Unfortunately, Brown looked nothing like a superstar phenom during his time on the field this past season. He got the starting nod at the end of September, but it only took a couple of games before he was back on the bench playing the role of reserve. Brown didn’t even make the trip to Virginia Tech for the Cavaliers’ final regular season game for reasons coach Al Groh would not disclose.

Brown won’t be making any trips with Virginia this season and once again Groh isn’t filling anybody in on the details. But it doesn’t take a detective to figure out what’s likely going on here.

The sophomore cornerback’s name was mysteriously absent from Virginia’s 2005 roster when it was released at the ACC Football kickoff earlier this week, along with offensive lineman D.J. Bell, linebacker Devonta Brown and wide receiver Ron Morton. Although I can’t say for sure, the overwhelming consensus among the local sports media is that academic problems have left these players ineligible for the 2005 season.

Virginia fans know how much of a nuisance these “academic standards” can be. The absence of starting forward Jason Clark left a gaping hole in the men’s basketball starting lineup, a hole coach Pete Gillen and the Cavaliers were unable to fill. Virginia failed to qualify for postseason play for the first time this decade and Gillen is now out of a job.

Brown’s absence won’t likely have the same kind of impact as Clark’s sudden departure did. In fact, there’s a good chance that Virginia fans will barely notice that he’s missing. But the fact that multiple players failed to meet the academic standards to play raises some questions about what standard student athletes should be held to, especially at a competitive academic university like Virginia.

Groh and his staff were able to land the top ranked recruit in the Commonwealth in 2002 (Ahmad Brooks), 2003 (Brown) and 2004 (Olu Hall). Each year, however, the highly-touted recruit failed to meet the minimum NCAA academic requirements and were forced to spend a year at prep school to get their scores up. It’s not just that these players failed to qualify academically to attend Virginia, they failed to meet the minimum standard to play at any Division I institution.

While I don’t think this is the case for most athletes, some of the most talented recruits in the big revenue sports are able to come to play at Virginia despite having nowhere near the kind of academic credentials as the average U.Va. student.

As a student here, this is frustrating to me. But I understand that the reality is that these players will continue to matriculate at this university because of their speed and strength, and I accept that as part of the territory here at a big time ACC school. It’s not something I’m proud of, but it’s the way that things work.

The important thing is that once these student athletes start taking classes here at U.Va., they are held to the same standard as any other Virginia student. And I have no reason to think that this isn’t the case here, which is reassuring to me.

When I saw that Jason Clark was going to miss the rest of the basketball season last year I was disappointed — as a fan. But as a student, it gave me hope that the system is working. Student athletes here are going to be treated like students and if they can’t get the kind of grades they need, there will be consequences.

Some big times schools offer classes specifically geared toward student athletes in order to avoid the kind of problem Philip Brown find himself in right now. At Ohio State University, players could get four credits just for being on the football team and can get three more by taking head coach Jim Tressel’s Coaching Football class. When running back Sammy Maldonando transferred from OSU to Maryland after playing for the Buckeyes for two years, his new school recognized only 17 credits as legitimate.

Thankfully, no such joke classes exist at Virginia.It may be a small victory, but it’s a victory nonetheless.

The Virginia secondary may be one cornerback short for this year, but I can honestly say I will rest easier at night knowing that even a hyped-up recruit like Philip Brown has to meet some sort of academic standards during his time here or face legitimate consequences.

HOT SPRINGS, Va. — To say that from the day Brennan Schmidt arrived at Virginia he has been a staple on the football field would be a massive understatement. Starting all 39 games of his career has earned the left defensive end a reputation of being much more than a staple. Hard worker? Check. Defensive force? Absolutely. Leader? Without a doubt.

So it came as no surprise when Schmidt was named a 2005 team captain. Over three years in the trenches the 6-foot-3-inch Schmidt has amassed 224 tackles and six sacks, his tackle total ranking seventh best in Virginia history.

His production hasn’t gone unnoticed by the coaching staff.

“Brennan’s one of the real beavers on the team,” Virginia coach Al Groh said. “If any player wants a good example of how to go about it and really apply himself to the nth degree, whether you’re a defensive end or wide receiver, Brennan Schmidt is a good guy to follow around.”

Two budding players who might want to heed Groh’s advice are fellow sophomore defensive ends Chris Johnson and Chris Long. The similarities between the two exist well beyond their shared first name. Both players are of local origin, Johnson from Charlottesville High School and Long from St. Anne’s Belfield and in ensuing years, both were named the Central Virginia Defensive Player of the Year by the Daily Progress. Johnson earned the distinction in 2002 as a senior and proceeded to red-shirt his freshman year at U.Va. while Long also won as a senior in 2003.

Due to an injury that sidelined starting defensive end Chris Canty, Johnson started the final three games of the regular season as well as the MPC Computers Bowl. On the season he recorded 27 tackles, tops among freshman. Long had five tackles and one sack in six games but missed five games midway through the season due to a case of mononucleosis.

When questioned about Long’s potential at the ACC Media Kickoff last weekend at The Homestead, Groh answered with cautious optimism.

“Chris Long has certainly shown at every stage that he can be a very good player,” he said.

Schmidt voiced the same opinion regarding both Johnson and Long.

“They’re both doing a great job,” he said. “They work very hard in the off-season and I know they see the opportunity ahead of them and they really have both impressed me, especially Chris Long in spring practice and stuff like that. I know they’re ready and I know that they just can’t wait for the opportunity to show what they can do.”

Long shared a similar sentiment with his senior teammate.

“We [Long and Johnson] felt like we had some opportunities last year but we couldn’t take full advantage of them,” he said. “Chris [Johnson] did that more-so than me. We both look to step into more important roles this year and were excited about it.”

Although Johnson finished out the 2004 season as the starting right defensive end, the pre-fall depth chart in the 2005 Virginia football media guide has Long listed as the starter while senior Kwakou Robinson is listed as the back-up. The nose tackle, a position vacated by the departure of Andrew Hoffman, will likely be filled by either sophomore Keenan Carter or junior Ron Darden. The 6-foot-1-inch, 324 lbs Carter is listed as the starter on the pre-fall depth chart.

The July 14, Sports article titled, “New student fan group gears up for approaching season,” inaccurately stated the University has not had a University supported fan group in the last 100 years.In fact, during the 1992-1993 season, the athletic department approved of a fan group for men’s basketball. It was also called the “Hoo Crew.”

The article last week, “House set to decide on student loan changes,” incorrectly stated that the House of Representatives was set to reach a vote on the HR-609 bill. The bill had to be approved by the Education Committee before reaching the House Floor. The committee approved the bill on July 22.

University officials announced yesterday the hiring of Darlene Scott-Scurry as the new director for the Office of Equal Opportunity Programs.

Scott-Scurry comes to the University from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, where she held a similar position –- including implementing the school’s first comprehensive affirmative action plan. Her position with the University will begin Aug. 15.

Scott-Scurry said she plans to make the University’s EOP services the benchmark for other institutions.

“I see that position as one to advance the goals and missions of that office to approve equal opportunities to faculty, staff and students,” she said. “We will provide services of excellent and exceptional programs. Other universities will want to use us as a model for the way they provide services.”

In a press release, University President John T. Casteen, III stressed the qualifications for the position and touted Scott-Curry’s personal character.

“This job requires thorough grounding in the administrative processes by which laws and policies are implemented, successful prior experience — because research-intensive universities pose complex challenges — and a range of human strengths, not least of them habits of fairness, persistence and compassion,” Casteen III said in the release. “The search committee and I believe that we have found the right person in Ms. Scott-Scurry, and we are pleased that she is coming.”

Scott-Scurry said her previous experience working with affirmative action at Missouri-Kansas City, and analytical skills honed as an attorney will come aid her while heading the EOP office.

Scott-Scurry will replace University Ombudsman Brad Holland, who served as interim EOP director, according to University News Services Senior Writer Anne Bromley.

Holland had served in the interim after the departure of former director Karen Holt in 2003, Bromley said.

Scott-Scurry said she was attracted to the University after taking trips to the Charlottesville area while living in Washington, D.C.

“I was always very impressed,” Scott-Scurry said. “U.Va. has a very rich history.”

Virginia Department of Health officials announced last Thursday that a pool of standing water in Henrico County tested positive for the mosquito-borne West Nile Virus (WNV).

According to the VDH, Henrico officials collected mosquitoes on July 13. The state’s Division of Consolidated Laboratory Services reported that the mosquito pool tested positive for the virus on July five days later. VDH officials found that no humans were infected with the virus.

This most recent incident marks the reappearance of WNV, which has been detected every year in the Commonwealth since 2000.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), over 15,000 people in the U.S. have tested positive for the infection since 1999, including over 500 deaths. About one in 150 people infected with WNV will develop serious illness, including inflammation of the brain.

Severe symptoms include high fever, headache, disorientation, vision loss and paralysis. The effects may last several weeks and can cause neurological damage.

Earlier this month, the VDH issued a public health advisory for Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) in the Hampton Roads area of Virginia. Mosquitoes contracted the virus from horses and other livestock. While vaccines exist for horses, humans remain at risk.

Executive Director of Student Health James Turner stressed the need to eliminate mosquito breeding grounds to prevent proliferation of West Nile.

“To avoid mosquito bites, we must remove any standing water from our homes,” Turner said. “There can be no water in old tires or children’s toys, and screens must be functional.”

Infected mosquitoes are the most common transfer of the infection. The parasite spreads the illness it acquires from infected birds to humans and other animals.

According to the CDC, a small number of cases have come through blood transfusions, organ transplants, breastfeeding, and even pregnancy. West Nile, however, is not spread through casual contact.

Randy Buchanan, environmental engineer for Henrico County’s Standing Water Initiative, said he believes knowledge of the environment remains the best course of action for preventing WNV infections.

“People should not panic and instead remain aware of mosquitoes in their surroundings,” he said. “Nearly 85 percent of mosquitoes are breeding in hidden locations.”

Local doctors warn that no matter how a person contracts WNV, symptoms should be addressed quickly.

“Often times the patient feels some sense of weakness or paralysis, and they should see a doctor immediately,” said Bill Petri, division chief of Infectious Disease at the University Medical Center. “We don’t know if there is an effective remedy for West Nile Virus, so the earlier the treatment, the better the outcome.”

The CDC cautions that while people over 50 are more susceptible to West Nile, simply being outside puts anyone at risk.

“Walk your property once a week, and empty anything with standing water,” Buchanan said. “Mosquitoes can live in as little as two tablespoons of water.”

The CDC Web site also lists steps to prevent mosquito bites and the West Nile Virus in addition to removing sources of standing water. These include wearing insect repellant containing the chemical DEET, wearing long sleeves, and avoid being outside during dusk and dawn — the times of highest mosquito activity.

According to the CDC, The West Nile Virus originated from an adult woman in the West Nile District of Uganda in 1937. In 1957, a case in Israel determined the illness a cause of severe human meningitis (swelling of the spinal cord) and encephalitis.The virus appeared in horses in the 1960′s and touched North American soil in 1999.

After months of watching the red circles hang on display, Charlottesville’s first Target officially opened its doors Sunday at 8 a.m.

The grand opening was, “fantastic,” said Amanda Lee, Charlottesville Target executive team leader for guest services. “We exceeded our goals and were very pleased with the turnout we had.”

The new store held its “quiet opening” July 20, as a dry-run for employees, in which the store opened for a day without publicizing and the turnout was “phenomenal,” Lee said.

The Charlottesville Target is a Target Greatland, the medium-sized store that includes a limited grocery selection of dry and frozen goods — without the production areas of bakery, meat and produce sections. The Target Corporation, based out of Minneapolis, has approximately 1,400 stores nationwide.

Located on U.S. Route 29, Kmart, Wal-Mart and Sam’s club all stand between the University and Target.

“I guess everyone in retail is a little leery when someone new is opening in the area,” K-mart Assistant Manager Carol Fernandez said. “You never know what it’s going to do to your store. It hasn’t really affected us that much, thank goodness.”

Wal-Mart management declined to comment.

The decision to use Hollymead Town Center for a Target location was made on a corporate level, Lee said.

“It’s a great location,” she said. “There’s not a Target here, and the nearest is about an hour away.”

Mark Graham, Albemarle County director of community development, said that the increase in traffic generated by the new Hollymead Town Center (in which Target is located) was addressed during the rezoning.

“It will generate additional traffic,” Graham said. “That’s why Rt. 29 was widened and additional traffic signals were required and installed.”

Graham said that construction for the shopping center has stretched over the last year and a half and planning began three years before that.

Regency Centers, the group that developed Hollymead Town Center proffered to participate in a community development authority — a funding mechanism through which the county could add transportation to that area in the future.

Interaction with the University community has not been formally made at this point, but Lee said they are still hiring.

“We do a pretty extensive recruiting,” Lee said. “Other Target stores work with the colleges in their communities for internships.”

The Charlottesville Pavilion, a $3.5 million joint endeavor between the city and local developer Coran Capshaw, opened on the Downtown Mall yesterday. Jazz group Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe launched the new venue with a free show. About 1,000 people were present at the show an hour after the gates opened, according to mustictoday.com representatives, who were in charge of distributing tickets.

The Pavilion “makes Downtown a destination for entertainment and arts,” said Kirby Hutto, general manager of the Charlottesville Pavilion. “That’s been a vision of city fathers for the past 25 years.”

The outdoor facility offers 2,800 covered seats, as well as a lawn seating area. When construction has completed, the Pavilion will be able to accommodate between 4,200 to 4,300 patrons.

According Hutto, the new site allows for live music in a covered, outdoor environment in all but the most extreme weather conditions.

“The overriding reason [for building the Pavilion] is to have a facility that is large enough for national acts and is covered so events will not be rained out,” Hutto said.

The Pavilion’s season will run from May to October.

According to the company Web site, the venue hopes to present 20-25 larger shows per season, as well as continue the free Fridays after Five Concert series.

Although the facility will not be finished until 2007 when the permanent restroom facilities in the transit center are complete, the Pavilion has already booked a number of events for the remainder of the season. This year, country music star Loretta Lynn, Dwight Yoakam and the Violent Femmes will all headline at the Pavilion. Beginning this Friday, the facility will host the remaining ten performances from Fridays after Five.

Due to other city projects near the site, a number of concession stands at the facility have not yet moved in. According to Hutto, more vendors will open in the next four to six weeks as the construction finishes.

Another major project still underway involves the Pavilion’s roof, which was damaged in a storm earlier this month. According to Hutto, the replacement parts are en route from a factory in Hungary and will be installed next week.

Although the Paramount Theatre also recently opened downtown, Hutto says the Pavilion is not worried about competition because of the different seasons and types of events.

“There’s no other venue [our] size,” Hutto said. “The Paramount holds events primarily in the winter, and Ashlawn primarily in the summer. We feel very complementary.”

Larry Banner, vice president of the Charlottesville Chamber of Commerce, said the opening of the Pavilion will have a great impact on the downtown area.

“If people are spending time on the mall, then they’re spending money on the mall,” he said. “With the addition of a paying concert venue, people are making the choice to attend a musical event [Downtown]. They’re going to want to do something before and they’re going to want to do something after. Odds are that will include spending money on the downtown mall.”

Charlottesville Mayor David E. Brown, who attended the opening event, agreed.

“Before, the mall sort of petered out –- the mall gradually ended if you walked from the Omni [to the Pavilion's location],” Brown said.

Brown added that he expects people from all over the region to attend upcoming shows.

However, not everyone agreed with Brown and Banner’s point of view. Local resident Eric Moellering expressed criticism of the new pavilion’s size and ticket costs.

“For me, the small and local is what our country thrives on,” Moellering said. “This doesn’t seem to be small and local.”

While temperatures in the 90s and triple-digit heat indexes have many local residents concerned about outdoor health risks, 30 nine to thirteen-year-old students from the Higher Achievement academic program were treated by University Medical Center for heat-related illnesses Tuesday evening.

According to University spokesperson Carol Wood, the children were walking from the Gooch-Dillard Residence Halls to the McCormick Observatory for an event at 8:30 p.m. A small number of students with asthma initially started experiencing discomfort from the heat. Shortly thereafter, several other students reported heat-related discomfort which led staff members to contact University Police.

Police officials, along with city fire and rescue personnel descended immediately on-site and decided that nine of the students should be admitted into the emergency room, according to Wood.

As a precautionary measure, the group leaders and the police and rescue officers chartered a University bus to transport the remainder of the students to the Medical Center.

University Medical Center Public Relations Spokesperson Abena Foreman-Trice said that in a few of the cases, the students’ primary problem was dehydration, but by midnight all were in good condition and formally discharged.

While the area has been under heat advisories for the past two weeks, there are no signs of record-breaking temperatures — the notable characteristic is the extremely large amount of moisture in the atmosphere, according to Virginia State Climatologist Patrick Michaels.

“The dew points have been running in the high 70s, for much of the last two weeks,” Michaels said. “Normally, that’s about as high as the dew point gets here, but it usually does not persist.”

Michaels added that the high dewpoints can occur if there has been very little change in the vertical structure of the atmosphere for the southeastern United States on a day to day basis.

Officials are urging local residents to take precautions when participating in outdoor activities.

According to Medical School Prof. Ursulla Courtney, people are urged to refrain from outdoor activities during the middle of the day. If outdoor activity is required, Courtney recommends people should drink plenty of fluids and wear very loose clothing. People with serious medical conditions, such as hypertension and diabetes, senior citizens, infants, and young children are most susceptible to heat exhaustion.

“Everybody should wear sunscreenof at least SPF 15 and should wear a hat to prevent losing moisture from the top of the head,” Courtney said.

Relief may be in sight. Michaels said normally this is the hottest week of the year, but temperatures today are expected to be much cooler than yesterday. He added that temperatures are expected to remain cooler for the next few weeks.

The worst heat wave recorded in Charlottesville occurred in 1930 where temperatures were at least 100 degrees or above for thirteen consecutive days, with a record breaking temperature of 107 degrees, according to Michaels.

“We have simply never come that close to the extended heat of the summer in 1930, anywhere in the state of Virginia,” he said. “And that is quite an anomaly.”