Huge conference road wins haven't come easy for the Cavaliers under Virginia coach Al Groh, but the Cavs came through with a 30-10 triumph over Georgia Tech in Atlanta Saturday, moving themselves up to 5-2 in the conference. They remain tied for second place in the ACC with Miami and Florida State and are still eligible for a conference title and a Bowl Championship Series Bowl.
Led by senior Alvin Pearman's 91 yards on the ground, the No. 16 Cavaliers (8-2) outrushed the Yellow Jackets 207 to 86 and won the total yardage fight 378 to 312. The defense held Georgia Tech (6-4, 4-4) to three of 12 on third-down conversions and racked up six sacks, three of which came from linebacker Darryl Blackstock. But the major difference in the game came from four Yellow Jacket turnovers and Virginia's victory in the special teams battle.
Led by freshman punter Chris Gould, who made his first career start Saturday, Virginia won its first battle of net punting average. Gould averaged 43.7 yards per punt and had kicks of 52 and 51 yards.
Against a highly touted Yellow Jacket run defense, Virginia put the ball in the hands of the ACC's leader in pass efficiency, quarterback Marques Hagans. A week after only completing 10 of his 25 passes against Miami, the junior was 19 of 28 for 171 yards and also rushed for 40 more. Senior Michael McGrew led the way with a career record eight catches for 55 yards.
"I think personally to myself, I felt like the last couple weeks, I really haven't produced like I thought I would," Hagans said. "I just wanted to get out to a good start early, and coach allowed me to do that by getting me out of the pocket. ... I did play with a little chip on my shoulder [Saturday]."
One of Hagans' biggest plays occurred on Virginia's first possession of the second quarter after the Cavaliers jumped out to a 7-0 lead with a Pearman six-yard touchdown run in the first. The Cavaliers had a third-and-seven from their own 32, and Hagans rolled right and got surrounded by a bunch of Jacket defenders near the right sideline. But the junior broke the tackles of defensive tackle Joe Anoai and linebackers KaMichael Hall and Gerris Wilkinson and scrambled back across to the left where he found a wide open Wali Lundy near the left sideline. Lundy fought through two tackles near the first down marker to make the third down conversion, and Connor Hughes eventually added a 33-yard field on an eight-minute drive to give Virginia a 10-0 lead.
"He sparked the team in his fashion -- he had Marques Hagans plays," Groh said. "The QB's got to run his team. They need a general out there, and today he was that."
Before the game, the Cavaliers had been leading the ACC with a league low eight turnovers but were in last place in turnovers caused with 11. This week was a different story, as Virginia defensive back Marcus Hamilton, who was displaced in the starting lineup two weeks ago versus Maryland, picked off two Reggie Ball passes Saturday and the Cavaliers recovered two Georgia Tech fumbles.
Georgia Tech had the ball on the Virginia 33 with a first-and-10, down only 10-3 after a Travis Bell 34-yard field goal to kick off scoring in the second half. Ball had just completed a 20-yard pass to wideout Calvin Johnson a play earlier and tried to find him again in the right corner of the end zone. But Hamilton was able to pick off the short throw, and Virginia took the ball 80 yards on the ensuing possession. McGrew caught the ball on four of five plays during one sequence, and Lundy capped the drive with a 32-yard touchdown run to give the Cavaliers a 17-3 advantage.
On the next kickoff, returner Levon Thomas fumbled, and Brandon Isiah recovered the ball for the Cavaliers to give them possession at the Georgia Tech 12-yard line. Hughes booted a 27-yard field goal three plays later.
"Quick field position turnarounds come from takeaways and they come from special teams," Groh said. "We were able to get a number of those. ... That was a big key to getting the field position that made the game swing in our favor."
Pearman added his second touchdown of the day to put the Cavaliers up 27-3 in the fourth quarter with a one-yard score. The touchdown came after a screen pass that Pearman took 45 yards down to the Virginia one-yard line in which he wasn't touched until he has pushed out of bounds.
Hamilton got his second interception on Georgia Tech's next possession, and Hughes capped the Virginia scoring with a 43-yard field goal. Reggie Ball got into the end zone for the Jackets on an eight-yard touchdown run with 6:16 left in the game, but by then the outcome was already decided.
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