Matt Schaub might have been the pregame center of attention, but some unlikely characters stole the show to make Schaub's return a victorious one.
Sure, Schaub started out strong with 200 first-half passing yards. The gutsy Schaub also led with his injured right shoulder to run in a big two-point conversion and drove Virginia down the field when he had to in the fourth quarter. But he seemed to tire as the game went on, throwing three second-half picks.
But he had help from special teams and defense, something that wasn't always true last year. Sophomore kicker Connor Hughes quickly earned the nickname Connor "Huge" as he remained perfect on the season, hitting all four field goals he attempted, including a 53-yard game-tying bomb and the game-winner.
Hughes has stabilized what was a woeful kicking game, having made 12-of-13 field goals since taking over the placekicking duties against Penn State last season. Hughes has been outstanding, and the sophomore has the leg, potential and makeup to become an All-American before he leaves Virginia.
But what won the game yesterday for the Cavaliers was the "Orange Crush" Defense, which made three big defensive stands late in the fourth quarter, including a fourth down stop inside their own 10.
"You tend to remember those kicks and the passes that got you there," Virginia coach Al Groh said. "But there were guys at the bottom of the pole on that fourth-and-two that had as much to do with this victory as anybody."
Virginia seemed to control the Deacon attack in the first half, and then senior cornerback Almondo "Muffin" Curry picked off Wake quarterback Corey Randolph's first pass of the second half. But after forcing a punt on the next possession, things started to go downhill for Virginia.
Wake Forest scored on three straight drives, all over 50 yards. The 17 points they put on the board gave them a 24-21 lead.
So when Schaub threw an interception on the ensuing possession, with 9:46 to play, it seemed like trouble.
But the Virginia defense stepped up. Freshman sensation Ahmad Brooks made a big third down sack to force a punt.
But Schaub threw another pick, which Wake returned to the 16-yard line.
The defense had its back to the wall. After three straight runs, however, Wake faced fourth-and-two from the Cavalier eight and went for it. But the defense said "No!" Linebackers Raymond Mann and Rich Bedesem stuffed Deacon tailback Cornelius Birgs at the line.
"We kind of knew what was coming at us," Virginia defensive end Chris Canty said. "We had a sense of urgency and understood that we needed to have a stop here if we were going to have any chance to win the ball game, and we did."
After Hughes hit his 53-yard bomb to tie it, Wake Forest moved the ball up to its own 46 and seemed to be in position to get into field goal range. But, on third-and-10, Randolph was flanked out of the pocket. Under pressure, he threw across his body, and senior cornerback Jamaine Winborne picked it off.
Three great opportunities for Wake Forest. Three fourth quarter stops for Orange Crush.
"We knew we had to" step it up, Canty said. "If we wanted to win this game, the defense was going to have to be a major part of it. Wake Forest is definitely a field position team, and we gave away some of that field position, so naturally we had to fight for that back in the fourth quarter."
This is the type of closing that a defense can build on. The ACC's second-worst defense last year, Virginia's beleaguered unit started the season out right with a shutout of Duke. But then Virginia allowed 261 yards on the ground in Columbia, S.C. Since then, Orange Crush has come back with a vengeance, led by its senior cornerbacks.
This was Curry's third straight game with an interception, and Winborne has played a role in four turnovers over the past two weeks.
"Those guys have been tremendous playmakers," Canty said of Curry and Winborne. "There's nothing else I could say about those guys. They're leaders."
And they have to lead, because other than the secondary, in which junior Jermaine Hardy starts at safety, this is a very young defense. Brooks is starting as a true freshman, and two sophomores -- Darryl Blackstock and Brennan Schmidt -- join him in the starting lineup. Freshman Kai Parham sees significant time, and sophomore end Kwakou Robinson had two big tackles inside Virginia's own 10.
The victory yesterday was a team effort. But no one would have cared about Hughes' kicks or Schaub's return or Wali Lundy's career-high rushing total if Orange Crush didn't clamp down when it had to.
Offense may win games, but defense wins championships.
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