In the midst of a six-game winning streak and the excitement of a critical win at home against the University of Connecticut last weekend, the Virginia football team will travel to College Park to face Maryland (4-2) Saturday night.
Maryland is coming off a bye week and a home win a week before against Georgia Tech, a team the Cavaliers have also defeated.
Virginia, 2-1 on the road, will look to its defense to shut down a top-notch Terps offense and running game led by senior running backs Keon Lattimore and Lance Ball.
"They've got size, they've got elusiveness [and] they've got speed," Virginia coach Al Groh said. "Anytime backs are productive to the degree that they have been, obviously there has got to be a lot of good work going on up front. It's a real good group of tight ends, a good line. It's just a good, solid offense and a good, solid running game."
The Cavalier defense will be led by senior defensive end Chris Long, who has been has been named a Mid-Season All-American by Rivals.com and Phil Steele's College Football Preview, and will look to capitalize on its versatility. Whether junior cornerback Chris Cook will play Saturday, however, is still uncertain.
"When you've got your first-team players and your star players taking on whatever task that you ask them to, it shows the mind-set of the entire team," Groh said, "When guys like Tom [Santi] are doing it, Long's on the field goal team, [and] Nate Lyles is on two or three special teams, then they set the way for everybody."
Defensively, Virginia has held all its opponents to 23 points or less. Long and sophomore defensive end Jeffrey Fitzgerald have combined for 12 sacks and 18 tackles for a loss. The defense has also recorded five interceptions this season. These takeaways have proven remarkably significant in Virginia's winning formula.
Although a win in week five against Rutgers earned the Terps' some national respect, the Cavaliers hope to rattle their confidence and remain undefeated in the ACC. Virginia's offense will play a critical part in doing that.
Considering junior running back Cedric Peerman and sophomore fullback Rashawn Jackson are unlikely to play, the offense will look to sophomore quarterback Jameel Sewell to produce however he can.
"Jameel's a great athlete. You put the ball in a great athlete's hands, and he's going to make plays," junior tight end John Phillips said. "We're behind him 100 percent. We know he's going to make plays and [that] everybody makes mistakes. He's just in a spotlight role, so when he makes a mistake he gets criticized a lot."
Virginia's offensive line must also contribute and provide Sewell with plenty of protection. They will have to block well, minimize mistakes and create opportunities in order to overcome Maryland's size and power.
Maryland has "got two good defensive tackles that are over 300 pounds, probably the biggest line that we've faced all year," junior offensive guard Branden Albert said. "Especially ... Jeremy Navarre, he's a very good defensive end. I think he's one of best defensive players in the ACC."
Look for key plays from junior running back Andrew Pearman, who has averaged 75 total yards in the last two games, and freshman running back Keith Payne, whose first touchdown this season came against Connecticut.
This season tight ends Santi, Phillips and senior Jonathan Stupar have a combined 53 catches for 540 yards and six touchdowns. In order for the Cavalier offense to get into a rhythm, the tight ends will need to catch short passes from Sewell to avoid third-and-long situations.
The Cavaliers are eager to avoid a repeat of last year's 28-26 loss to Maryland, a game in which they held a 20-0 lead at halftime.
"We had a lot of mistakes last year that allowed them to get back in it and allowed them to win," Phillips said. "So this year we're focused on not making those mistakes. The big emphasis on our team is not give any points away like we did last year ... We're real focused on controlling the game ourself."
The Cavaliers have won 11 of the last 15 meetings against Maryland. They'll look to make that 12 of 16 tomorrow night in College Park.
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