One's first reaction may be to blame the Virginia defense for losing Saturday's 43-7 blowout against No. 22 Florida State. After all, the Cavaliers did surrender 205 yards passing to Florida State redshirt freshman quarterback Chris Rix and allow a Seminoles' running back, sophomore Greg Jones, to gain over 100 yards on the ground for the first time this season.
But the defense was the main reason that Virginia was still within striking distance in first half. Despite spending more than two-thirds of the first half on the field, big plays by Virginia defenders held the Seminoles to a meager 10 points. With 7 minutes, 35 seconds left in the first quarter, junior cornerback Shernard Newby ended a 12 play, 49-yard Seminole drive by intercepting Rix's pass at the Virginia 10-yard line. Junior safety Chris Williams spared the Cavaliers from another Seminoles' score by stepping in front of Florida State wide receiver Javon Walker and picking off Rix's pass in the end zone with 4:45 left in the half. Newby and Williams' heroics held Florida State at bay, 10-7, heading into the second half.
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The Virginia defense, however, proved to be human in the second half. Persistent pounding by Seminole running backs Jones, Nick Maddox and Eric Shelton that began immediately after the opening kickoff eventually wore the Cavalier defenders down in the third quarter. After stopping 29 Florida State runs in the first half, the Cavaliers' defense could not prevent fullback William McCray from charging into the end zone to give the Seminoles a 17-7 lead halfway through the third quarter. By the start of the fourth quarter, the Seminole running game had exhausted the Virginia defense by giving Florida State a 28:18 to 16:42 edge in time of possession.
In the end, all the effort and determination the Virginia defense exhibited against the gifted Seminole offense was wasted by a single offensive mistake. After valiantly holding their ground against the bruising Seminole run, the Cavaliers' defense could only watch helplessly from the sideline as Florida State cornerback Abdual Howard picked off a Matt Schaub pass and returned it 80 yards to put the game out of reach, 26-7. Virginia's defense gave its offense the opportunity to catch up to the Seminoles, but Schaub and Co. ended up handing Howard the hammer that drove the final nail into Virginia's coffin.
But Schaub should not be made the scapegoat for Virginia's loss. Neither should wide receiver Billy McMullen, who was limited to four catches for 25 yards by Florida State's double coverage. Tight end Chris Luzar kept many Virginia drives alive with key catches, none more impressive than his 27-yard rumble to the Florida State 35-yard line that helped set up the Cavaliers' only score.
If fingers must be pointed, direct them across the field to the opposing sideline. Though hard times may have befallen the once-invincible Seminoles, they proved on Saturday that Florida State still belongs among the nation's elite. Bobby Bowden showed once again why his team has not lost consecutive games in the past 10 years. Florida State burst out of the gates on Saturday with the conviction and skill that the most stalwart Virginia defense may not have been able to stop.
Therefore, the Cavalier defense should not be blamed for surrendering 43 points. They should receive hearty congratulations for slowing the Seminoles down for three quarters.
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