Increased voter registration in the City of Charlottesville in anticipation of the upcoming presidential election has the city facing the possibility of having to redraw voter precincts. Under Virginia Code section 24.2-307, if more than 4,000 registered voters cast ballots during a presidential election, the local government is required to redraw precinct lines.
Charlottesville General Registrar Sheri Iachetta said the city has always seen high voter turnout during presidential elections. In 2004, she said, 78 percent of the city’s registered voters cast their vote in the presidential election. This year, with an estimated additional 6,000 registered voters, Iachetta predicted that Charlottesville will see a voter turnout near 80 percent. While citizens only have 13 more days to register to vote in the commonwealth of Virginia, three precincts in Charlottesville are likely to surpass the 4,000-voter limit in the upcoming November election, Iachetta said, noting that the city’s precincts “have all grown exponentially” in recent months. As of yesterday, the precincts of Recreation, Venable and Jefferson have 4,456, 4,571, and 4,655 registered voters, respectively. If 80 percent of these registered voters show up on Election Day, each precinct would be only a few hundred voters shy of the 4,000 voter limit.
“I think people are really excited about the ticket, the entire ticket,” Iachetta said, adding that voters continue to register even as Election Day nears. “We’re so overwhelmed, but it’s so exciting.”
Should a city precinct see more than 4,000 voters Nov. 4, the city will have to redraw that precinct by February, Iachetta said. Jackie Harris, a consultant to the Virginia State Board of Elections, said redrawing the city’s districts could be a difficult process. When redrawing districts, she said, officials use census data and carefully analyze the communities and voting blocks within each precinct. The community also plays an important role in the process, Harris said, because the city “passes the precinct by ordinance and holds public meetings and includes community representatives in order to make sure the plan is good for [Charlottesville] City Council.”
Harris noted that such a drawn-out process takes time, which could pose yet another obstacle for Council should Charlottesville be required to redraw its voting precincts. Because of a recent Virginia law that prohibits the redistribution of precincts between Feb. 1, 2009 and May 15, 2011, in response to the upcoming census, Harris said, it would seem that Charlottesville officials will have about 90 days following the November election to redraw precincts in which more than 4,000 voters turn out in November. However, the Voting Rights Act of 1965 requires all voting district plans to be reviewed by the Department of Justice in order to ensure precincts are non-partisan, according to Harris, and that means the city could have far less time than the 90 days until February to redraw its voting precincts. The Department of Justice has up to 60 days to review the new plans and to decide if an objection should be made under the 1965 Act, so city officials could have less than a month to redraw and submit their precinct plans should changes be required, he said.
Harris said drawing up new, non-partisan precincts would be difficult to do in 30 days or less, but noted that they only other option available to the city should more than 4,000 voters turn out in any of the precincts would be to wait until 2011. He said the city could redraw its precincts following this extended freeze period.
Iachetta said the precinct issue is not a new one in the city. Although by law the general registrar is only required to notify Council when the number of registered voters in a precinct approaches 5,000, the city has been exploring the possibility of redrawing precincts for the past couple years, she said, and continues to do so.

McCain-Palin. Obama-Biden. Nader-Gonzalez?
Perhaps to the surprise of some, there are four campaigns aside from the Democratic and Republican ones vying for the White House this November. These campaigns are working to elect candidates — sometimes referred to as “third-party candidates” — who do not associate themselves with either the Democratic or Republican parties.
Among these third-party presidential candidates are independent Ralph Nader,  Cynthia McKinney of the Green party — who, according to her Web site wants equal pay, an end to the war on drugs, a decrease in militarism and better environmental protection policies — and Bob Barr of the Libertarian Party, whose Web site states his campaign stands for reducing government spending, allowing more privacy for individuals and developing more consumer-oriented health care. Chuck Baldwin of the Constitution party is also running in the upcoming election; his Web site states that his main platform goals include maintaining personal freedom for all Americans, allowing Americans to choose their own health care and preserving of America as an independent nation. Calls to the Green party, Constitution party and Libertarian party were not returned as of press time, but The Cavalier Daily was able to speak with a representative from Nader’s campaign.
Ashley Sanders, the youth spokesperson for the Ralph Nader campaign, said among the most important parts of Nader’s platform are single-payer health care, cutting the military budget, complete corporate and military withdrawal from Iraq, a green infrastructure and a “crackdown on corporate crime” on Wall Street.
On Grounds, some students, such as third-year College student Eric Montgomery, have identified themselves as supporting the idea of having third-party candidates in the November election.
Montgomery said although he does not believe a third-party candidate will win a presidential election anytime soon, he does think their campaigns are important because they give voters more options.
“I feel that when a third-party candidate runs and gives voters the option beyond the Democrat and Republican, it allows voters to make it clear that they are not happy with the two main choices,” Montgomery said.
Sanders also noted that many people who cast ballots for third-party candidates are displaying their dissatisfaction with the two main political parties.
“Most people who vote for third parties are so frustrated with two-party politics that they would register a protest vote by staying home [instead of voting for another candidate],” Sanders said.
Overall, Montgomery said while he has not seen a “huge presence” of third-party student support on Grounds, he does know of a few students who have aligned themselves with third-party candidates.
“There are at least a few people I know that would probably identify themselves as Libertarian and a decent number of people who would probably have voted for Ron Paul [who now] will probably vote for Obama or McCain since [Paul is not on the Republican ticket],” Montgomery said.
Dan Keyserling, deputy director of communications at the University Center for Politics and former executive editor of The Cavalier Daily, said he too, has not seen much of a third-party support presence on Grounds.
“I think it reflects their prominence on the national scene too,” Keyserling said, regarding the limited presence he has seen of third-party supporters at the University. “Unlike several presidential elections in the past, this year, third-party candidates have been almost completely marginalized.”
Keyserling added that he does not believe the third-party candidates will have much of an effect on the election or on taking votes away from Obama or McCain.
“In a lot of states they are not even on the ballot,” Keyserling said. “I don’t think you’re going to see an measurable impact from third-party candidates this year.”

Institutions of higher education should place less of a focus on standardized testing when it comes to admissions decisions, according to a Commission on the Use of Standardized Tests in Undergraduate Admissions report published by the National Association for College Admission Counselling.
The report notes that external factors can and will affect how well students score on standardized tests and also states that these tests do not holistically measure students’ capabilities.
“Access to test preparation will always be differentiated based on family income, school setting, and other variables external to the student,” the report states, outlining the faults it finds with standardized testing. “There are limitations to what admission tests measure, a point on which the Commission is in agreement. A growing field of research, in education and psychology, suggests different approaches to evaluation that may allow for broader and more inclusive review of individual talents.”
Arthur McCann, associate director of college counseling at the Master School in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y., worked on the commission — led William Fitzsimmons, head of admissions and financial aid at Harvard University — and said the report suggests that colleges and universities should place less emphasis on tests such as the SAT, perhaps even making those tests optional. According to McCann, many admissions and higher education experts are already noticing a national trend toward optional standardized testing. Universities such as Wake Forest University and Smith College have made the standardized tests optional already, along with a number of other higher education institutions.
“Optional testing is something that is increasingly popular,” McCann said. “Colleges do perform research and do prove that the greatest indicator of success in college is not standardized testing but essays, extracurriculars and performance in the classroom.”
According to McCann, the report also explains that high school students who show a desire to spread out their interests and properly budget their time will continue to do that in college.  
Robert Schaeffer, public education director for the National Center for Fair and Open Testing, said the University of Virginia could take the report’s suggestions into account.
“There is no reason why a highly competitive school like U.Va. cannot take the lead in adopting the test-optional image,” Schaeffer said. “The high school record, leadership, community service and extracurricular activities suffice because [the admissions officers] already have all the info they need in evaluating applicants. Test scores are not necessary.”
Associate Dean of University Admissions Parke Muth said the University already takes multiple factors into account when evaluating student applicants.
“For us, the most important thing is the academic program and performance,” he said. “The other factors we consider are recommendations from teachers, coaches and employers; short-answer questions and essays, which tell us a bit more about the student and allow us to hear his or her voice. We look at honors and awards from students who bring more than just academic preparation. And then we also ask students who have special talents to let us know about them.”
In response to the report’s claims, The College Board released a statement mostly agreeing with the commission’s findings. According to the statement, The College Board acknowledges that test preparation varies depending on a student’s financial situation and school setting and that preparation in turn nominally affects standardized testing scores. Furthermore, according to the statement, The College Board strongly supports NACAC’s “decision to further study the efficacy of commercial test preparation and agree with the need to educate students and families about current and future findings regarding commercial test preparation” and strongly agrees “with the Commission that the SAT should not be the sole determinant of college admissions.”
The College Board’s statement also notes, however, that the SAT remains relevant and important.
“Hundreds of national research studies show that the SAT is a valid predictor of college success, and it also serves the important function of guarding against grade inflation at the high school level,” the release states. “We have long advised that the best use of the SAT in the admission process is in combination with high school grades. The SAT and high school grades are both very predictive of first-year college success and, because they are slightly different measures, together, they are extremely powerful.”

Since returning to Grounds this fall, University Judiciary Committee members have been working toward settling a large case overload from last semester. Of the 105 cases filed last spring, only 78 had been resolved as of Aug. 31, but as of Sunday, UJC had settled a total of 96 cases.
To wrap up all of the cases, UJC members said they have been holding two trials a night.
“We’re double-booking,” Vice Chair for Trials Grayson Lambert said. “The fact that we can do that is a testament to how hard the Executive Committee is working.”
Of the 96 resolved cases, 90 students were either found or pled guilty. As some cases involved more than one student and more than one violation, 34 students were found not guilty of charges or had charges dropped completely.
Committee Chair Merriam Mikhail said the case overload may stem from the organization’s new online case-reporting system, which is more accessible and allows students to report cases with more ease.
“This is a dramatic rise in case filing,” Mikhail said.
As a result of the increase in the number of cases filed, UJC has seen an increase in its average case-processing time, the time that spans from when a case is filed to when it is sent to a trial or a hearing panel to be resolved. As of Sunday’s UJC meeting, the mean and median case processing times were both 35 days.
Mikhail said UJC’s goal is to have cases sent to trial or hearing panel within 14 to 21 days.
“We are trying to do our best to clear our docket so that we can have our 14-day goal be a reality for us,” Mikhail said.
From the 96 cases that UJC has so far resolved, there have been 116 violations of the Standard 6 conduct, a violation of University policies outlined in the Undergraduate or Graduate Records, which deals with policies governing and regulating University housing. Mikhail said she was not surprised by the figure.
“It is a very frequent trend,” she said.
Of the 116 Standard 6 violations, 77 resulted in the student being found or pleading guilty to the violation and the remainder were dropped or resulted in a not guilty verdict for the accused.
Mikhail noted that she was somewhat surprised by the number of Standard 2 violations. UJC has resolved 25 cases that violated the Standard 2 conduct, which is misconduct that intentionally or recklessly threatens the safety or health of any University member or University property, according to the UJC Web site.
“It’s a high number of Standard 2 charges being brought,” Mikhail said. She added that she recalled former UJC Chair Connor Sullivan saying last year that they had been seeing an increase in the number of student assault on police officers, which could have contributed to the high number of Standard 2 charges.
Of the 25 Standard 2 violations, 13 resulted in the accused being found or pleading guilty, and the remainder were dropped or resulted in a not-guilty verdict.
The committee has nine remaining cases, three of which will be resolved by the end of the month. The remaining six of the nine cases are currently on hold. A case is put on hold if the charge is filed after the student has left the University. If the student wishes to return to the University, for graduate studies for example, the committee will then hear those charges.

College and high school students now have a new way to keep track of important deadlines, following the recent launch of a free, nationwide master calendar and information system for higher education institutions.
More than 1,500 four-year colleges and universities, including the University, are now involved with the “College Life is Cool” Web site, www.theclic.net, which provides students, high schools, colleges and community programs access to information about scholarships, financial aid and application deadlines, according to CLIC network CEO Donna Michelle Anderson.
“The CLIC is a useful resource for students because it allows them to access information about any college from just one Web site,” she said.
The site is also useful, Anderson said, because it helps students judge and compare different aspects of the college application process, from scholarships and financial aid packages to the individual schools themselves.
“It’s easier to compare [schools],” Anderson said. “Students can use their time to explore instead of to do research.”
With so many opportunities at different colleges and universities, finding the right information can often be difficult and overwhelming, Dean of Admissions John Blackburn said. He said the CLIC should help students identify and consolidate this information.
According to Anderson, though, The CLIC network is not just about providing admissions and scholarship information for students and allowing them to learn more about different schools. She said it is also intended to make the world of college admissions more equal, providing high school students with a free, detailed informational tool that is financially accessible for everyone, not just those who can hire a private counselor.
Not all high-school guidance counselors are created equal, Anderson said, pointing out that “some schools are overwhelmed with around 400 kids per counselor.”
Similarly, Blackburn said the University saw value in the CLIC for this same reason.
“Whatever we can do to help students who don’t have good [high school] counseling helps the whole country,” Blackburn said.
Though similar online networks are available, Blackburn said, the CLIC stands out because it is free and easily accessible.
“The next step is to get more students to use it,” he said.
The CLIC is still an evolving resource, Anderson explained. Improving the site has been a collaborative process between users and those who run the site.
“We get a lot of feedback.” Anderson said. “Students, community programs, and schools tell us what they need, what we can make easier and better. It’s been very helpful for us.”
In the future, Anderson said, the CLIC plans to expand its network with resources for students applying to graduate schools.

Over the next four years, selected students enrolled in the University’s Early Childhood Special Education Program will be able to alleviate fifth-year tuition costs by tapping into an $800,000 U.S. Department of Education grant recently awarded to the Education School.
“The purpose of the grant is to attract students into the teaching field who are interested in early intervention and early student education,” said Asst. Education Prof., Tina Stanton-Chapman, one of the co-applicants for the grant.
The money will become accessible after Jan. 1, 2009, she said, and the Education School is in the process of reviewing potential recipients of the funds.
The grant, announced in August, is large enough to finance 12 students per year but will expire after four years, at which point the University will need to apply for the grant again. Stanton-Chapman said she plans to reapply for the grant once it expires.
Students awarded the grant will receive a full year’s tuition, Stanton-Chapman said, in addition to a living stipend, the value of which has yet to be determined. In exchange, Stanton-Chapman added, these students must agree to teach for two years upon graduation in a special education program at the school of their choice. According to a University press release, students will also be eligible for two years’ worth of funding provided that they teach for four years in a special education program.
To qualify for the grant, students must apply for enrollment, or already be enrolled, in the Early Childhood Special Education Program and must have a 3.0 GPA.
Education Prof. Martha Snell, co-applicant for the grant, explained that the grant is meant to ease the financial woes of paying for an extra year of schooling, since the program spans a total of five years.
The Early Childhood Special Education program is open to undergraduate as well as graduate students, Stanton-Chapman said, both of whom may apply for the grant. Undergraduates who complete the five-year program will receive a bachelor’s degree from the College of Arts & Sciences, as well as a master of teaching degree from the Education School. Students who already have a bachelor’s degree and want to pursue a master’s degree in education or a teaching degree may enroll in the two-year program.
“It’s a sign of our commitment to supporting children with special needs in the schools,” Education Dean Robert Pianta said of the grant. “And [it] is a terrific way to support our U.Va. students who want to take that career path.”

Virginia’s volleyball team opens its conference schedule tonight with a match against Virginia Tech in Blacksburg.
The match — in which the Cavaliers (8-4) will seek to improve upon a 1-2 performance in the Wildcat Classic — will also be the ACC debut for the Hokies (9-2).
One of the Cavaliers’ losses in Chicago  was a Friday afternoon 0-3 match against UCLA. Senior middle hitter Shannon Davis, who was selected as a member of the all-tournament team, noted that the team learned a lot from the contest.
UCLA is “very good at ball control,” Davis said. “They dig well, they pass well. Even when they don’t, they get back into system easily, which is something all the great teams do.”
Virginia coach Lee Maes said the more disappointing loss was the Cavaliers’ 2-3 narrow loss against Northwestern later Friday.
“After the loss to Northwestern, we really spent some time assessing individually what needed to improve,” Maes said.
Virginia bounced back to defeat Georgetown 3-0 the next day. The Cavaliers then turned their attention to the upcoming match and its quest for an ACC title.
Although Virginia defeated Virginia Tech in Charlottesville last season, sophomore right side hitter Kendahl Voelker, who ranks second on the team with 85 kills so far this season, will look to avenge the Cavaliers’ loss last season at Cassell Coliseum.
“We want to beat them,” Voelker said. “Especially at their home.”
The Hokies are off to a fast start this season, tying the school’s record for most wins in the first 11 matches of the season.
Maes noted that one reason for the Hokies’ success is the  team’s creative style of offense, using two quick hitters.
“Having a chance to watch them on video, they’re a very dynamic offense,” Maes said. “When you have two quick hitters in your offense, it makes it difficult to defend.”
The Cavaliers’ preseason play had its ups and its downs, but Maes and several players were quick to reiterate their confidence in the team’s system, which includes an emphasis on overall efficiency. Areas of focus in practice have included serving, passing and blocking.
“If we have great serving, you can make any good team average,” Maes said. “For us, if we can do a great job in the passing lane, then we will be a lot more efficient offensively.”
Though the match against the Hokies takes place in the middle of the week, it will likely feature the most hostile environment yet seen by Virginia under Maes’ coaching. Members of the coaching staff and players, however, are viewing the environment as a positive compared to the neutral environments of the preseason tournaments.
“We have to feed off the energy of their crowd,” Voelker said.
Maes said he values any opportunity for the team to play in an “intimate” and “energetic” environment, regardless of for whom the crowd cheers most.
The Cavaliers will have little time to recover from the match, as play continues this weekend in Memorial Gymnasium against Georgia Tech and Clemson, picked in the preseason by pollsters to finish second and first, respectively, in the conference.
The Cavaliers, however, are taking one match at a time and have been focusing on downing their in-state rivals.
“I think we’ll be excited when it comes down to it,” Davis said. “Especially [against Virginia Tech].”
The athletes, however, have not been shy in discussing their long-run goal for the season.
“We want the ACC Championship, first and foremost,” Voelker said.

It seems like the turning point has finally been realized — and it couldn’t have come at a better time for the Virginia men’s soccer team.
Virginia (3-3, 1-0 ACC)  enters tonight’s home game against Central Connecticut State University (4-1-1, 0-0 Northeast Conference)  fresh off an impressive win against N.C. State, which the Cavaliers blasted 5-0 Friday night at Klöckner Stadium. Freshman midfielder Tony Tchani, an emerging star in Virginia’s offense who scored two goals and added one assist in the contest, now leads Virginia in scoring with five goals overall. Heralded freshman forward Chris Agorsor also added a goal against the Wolfpack, his fourth of the season. Virginia’s offense was firing on all cylinders Friday night, putting up more goals than in any other game this season.
Defensively, Virginia also recorded its first shutout of the season behind a standout performance from junior goalkeeper Michael Giallombardo and the Virginia defense. Giallombardo, recording his first start of the season, tallied four saves to give Virginia the impressive win.
“I like to say we were due this kind of game … but when you start five freshmen and you count on them to get a lot of minutes and goals … you kind of hold your breath sometimes,” Virginia coach George Gelnovatch said. “Tonight they stepped up.”
The challenge for Virginia, however, will be to sustain that success. Tonight’s game against CCSU will be an important test. The Cavaliers have two tough ACC road contests looming against Virginia Tech and North Carolina, and they will need to come out and establish themselves early on against CCSU in order to maintain the momentum they gained Friday night.
It’s unclear what kind of a challenge CCSU will present. Implicitly, one might be tempted to overlook the Blue Devils based solely on the name of their school; however, that would be a grave mistake. The Blue Devils are marching through their schedule impressively so far, with big wins against Manhattan, St. Bonaventure, Marist and Holy Cross. On the other hand, CCSU suffered an 0-2  loss a week ago to Vermont at home.
CCSU is led by senior captain Yan Klukowski, who kicked the Blue Devils to victory against Manhattan Saturday evening. The Blue Devils are also led by junior goalkeeper Paul Armstrong, who is riding a hot streak with three shutouts in the Devils’ first six games.
Tonight’s game will be the first-ever matchup between Virginia and CCSU, and it’s anyone’s bet as to how the game will play out. Virginia, however, seems to have the certain edge and will look to put away the Blue Devils early on.
To do that, the Cavaliers will need to capitalize on scoring opportunities, which has been something of a problem for Virginia this year. The Cavaliers have routinely out-shot opponents yet still have come up with several losses because they were unable to finish scoring chances. Virginia, however, was able to capitalize on changes Friday night and put away N.C. State in the first half.
“We needed a breakout game in terms of scoring,” Gelnovatch said after Friday’s win. “We had [approximately] 19 shots against both VCU and St. John’s and zero goals.  Tonight we got five goals on [approximately] 14 shots … I think that’s going to do a lot for us moving forward.”
Tonight Virginia will hope to follow the same blueprint, but whether that happens remains to be seen.
“I think one thing that we do as a team which is important is that we kind of approach every game the same way,” Agorsor said.  The “ACC definitely holds more importance to us, but as far as preparation, we go into every game with a goal of winning the game.”

Any athlete or fan can tell you why he or she loves sports. The reasons vary, from answers like “They encourage us to try our best” to “They give me something to watch every day of the week.” Athletes and spectators alike become emotionally invested in sports not just because of the simple acts of throwing or catching a ball, but also because of what sports stand for.
So, every now and then, we need to step back and take a look at what sports can accomplish. Even on Grounds, various events are being organized as we speak to bring people together for great causes, and some of these use sports to accomplish that goal. While there are many fraternity and sorority charity events that fit this description, this column will shed light on two very different events at Virginia that use sports to foster philanthropy and friendship, respectively.

Lose the Shoes Barefoot Soccer Tournament
Mad Bowl will be busy Sept. 27, as it hosts the second annual Lose the Shoes tournament from 1-5 p.m. The tournament is as the name would suggest: barefoot soccer, played with a special, softer soccer ball. The games are played 3-on-3, and multiple fields are set up to allow for concurrent games. Last year’s tournament raised more than $3,000 after third-year College student Alex Beyard approached some friends with the idea, inspired by a non-profit organization called Grassroot Soccer.
The proceeds from the Lose the Shoes tournament are sent to Grassroot Soccer, whose mission statement is “Using the Power of Soccer in the Fight Against AIDS.” On the same day as the U.Va. tournament, other Lose the Shoes tournaments will be held at Brandeis University, Boston University and University of Wisconsin-Madison. These events are held across the country to benefit Grassroot Soccer, which works primarily in South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Simply put, the goal is to raise as much money as possible to fight AIDS in Africa.
The Lose the Shoes tournament is one of my favorite ways through which sports are used for a greater cause, because I love soccer, and I love the prospect of saving millions of lives. Somehow, I doubt I am alone in these feelings. And, I’m not, because third-year Commerce student co-founder Andy Roos feels the same way.
“The event is great because it brings a group of diverse people together for a fun afternoon in support of a good cause,” Roos said.
Prizes for the Lose the Shoes tournament include an iPod and University Bookstore gift certificates, and there will be live music, free food and T-shirts available for sale.

University of Virginia Tri-Service Olympics
Air Force, Army and Navy ROTC students at the University will come together Nov. 8 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. to participate in the inaugural Tri-Service Olympics. The event will be a mock Olympic games, complete with a number of athletic trials and medals for the top three finishers in all events. According to third-year College student Dante Earle, the event coordinator, only ROTC students are participating, but all students are encouraged to come to the events and cheer on their peers.
You may ask, why is this important? Well, it’s highly uncommon for the three ROTC groups to come together for a day of fun competition.
“The public generally associates the three services with having an overly competitive spirit,” Earle said. “However, the very act of putting this event on as a joint force speaks to the unity inherent to the military as seen in this microcosm of Air Force, Navy, and Army ROTC units here at U.Va.”
As far as details go, the events include 3-on-3 basketball, 5-on-5 indoor soccer, singles racquetball and 10 distance running events, from the 100m to the 5000m race. The track events will have separate medals for men and women, while basketball, racquetball and soccer will have one set of medals each. An opening ceremony will consist of a few statements recognizing the fellowship of the games and a Tri-Service drill demonstration. The locations for the events span Grounds and range from Slaughter Recreation Center to Lannigan Field.
You can expect all the events to be scheduled on military time, so if you plan on attending, don’t let the times of 1300 or 1700 fool you.

Some of the high drama remains from last season’s theatrical performance by the Virginia football team; however, the story has changed. Instead of the team playing the role of the plucky underdog, winning game after game against unbeatable odds, the Cavaliers are acting the part of beleaguered losers. Now, they are  expected to turn to a new leading man, sophomore quarterback Marc Verica, to lead them out of the cellar of the ACC.
Verica was not supposed to be in this position: It is a surprise he is even seeing the field this season. First, Jameel Sewell was dismissed, then Peter Lalich. It has been a wild ride that has brought Verica into the spotlight, one that has left Virginia’s fans reeling. In Verica’s first start against Connecticut, the sophomore was 22 of 30 with one interception for 158 passing yards. All in all, the numbers don’t look any different than what Virginia has seen under its past two signal-callers.
“Overall he handled himself pretty decently,” Virginia coach Al Groh said. “It’s all relative, but all things considered, yes [he played well].”
During the off-season, it was a well-publicized fact that the quarterback position was wide open following the departure of Sewell. Lalich was the heir apparent, Groh mentioned that Verica had the quickest feet and fifth-year senior Scott Deke returned for his final year of eligibility to cloud the waters. Groh refused to name a starter until the Southern California game, but it really came as no surprise that Lalich was under center against the Trojans. Verica and Deke were relegated to the sidelines, with Verica seeing some time at the end of the game when the outcome was no longer in doubt.
When it was decided Lalich would not be making the trip to Connecticut, Verica assumed the driver’s seat against the Huskies.
“Coach Groh brought me into his office a couple days [before the UConn game], and sat me down,” Verica said. “He informed me that I was going to be the starter. It didn’t really change my preparation — I go into each game, backup or starter, trying to be prepared to play, so that’s what I did.”
Although the rest of the team’s performance against Connecticut was questionable at best, Groh seemed satisfied with his new quarterback’s effort. Verica completed his first pass and a total of four out of five on his opening drive.
“It led us to be hopeful that it might become positive production throughout the rest of the course of the game,” Groh said. “He did have some good throws, but in between some throws where there were incompletions or poor runs, we weren’t able to sandwich enough good plays in between the good plays to put enough drives together. But he had enough good throws in there to be productive. We just need more in between the throws.”
Deke saw time against Connecticut after Verica threw his first and only interception and the game was out of reach for the Cavaliers.
“You get Scott some plays, he’s not a player that’s ever played either,” Groh said. “Plus, at that point, we had no touchdowns. That’s how you judge an offense’s performance, that’s how you judge a quarterback’s performance — we had no touchdowns. I thought we’d see if we could get some touchdowns. Scott did a nice job — got us down there, got us one.”
Verica had a decent statline, but Deke led the team to its only touchdown. So who will be leading the Cavaliers in their first ACC matchup against the Duke Blue Devils? It is possible that everyone but Al Groh and the quarterback may be kept in the dark until gameday.