With sophomore Marc Verica stepping into the starting quarterback role this weekend, the Cavaliers head north to take on Big East foe Connecticut.
Last season, Virginia was able to pull off one of its many, last-second victories against the Huskies because of its gritty defensive play and a 79-yard drive resulting in a field goal with 3:20 left to play in the fourth quarter. This season, the Cavaliers (1-1) are looking to repeat their winning performance.
Although Connecticut (2-0) got all it could handle from a gritty Temple squad last week in a 12-9 overtime win for the Huskies, the Cavaliers have a tough challenge ahead of them.
“Last year, it took everything that we had to win by 1 point at home,” coach Al Groh said, also noting that while less than half of last year’s Cavalier starting lineup has returned this fall, Connecticut has retained almost its entire starting lineup, including its quarterback.
Not only is Virginia’s starting quarterback not last year’s starter, it is Verica’s first game as a starter and the second game of his college career in which he has seen time. Verica saw the field for the first time at the end of the Cavaliers’ loss to No. 1 USC. Sophomore quarterback Peter Lalich’s absence may also open the door for other players — such as third-string quarterback Scott Deke, a fifth-year senior — to make their marks.
Another player to be given a chance Saturday is sophomore cornerback Mike Parker, who started last season in place of Chris Cook in the Gator Bowl. Though Parker did not get the nod against USC, he will hold on this week to his recently regained starting spot from the Richmond game.
“At cornerback right now, we’ve got a lot of good players right there, so it’s a lot of good competition,” Parker said. “Every day at practice, you’ve got to play hard to get time during the game.”
Defense and special teams really made the difference last weekend in the Cavaliers’ victory against Richmond and could be critical against Connecticut as well, especially if the Virginia offense continues to struggle like it has thus far this season.
In addition to a defense that sacked Richmond redshirt junior quarterback Eric Ward six times and held the Spider offense to under 200 total yards, Virginia blocked two field goals against Richmond, which allowed the Cavaliers to keep their precarious 3-0 lead throughout most of the game.
“This is probably one of the faster starts we’ve gotten off to with game-changing plays,” Groh said. “To have two plays like [the blocked field goals] in the same game ... was like taking an eraser and putting it on the scoreboard.”
Virginia’s punt coverage was extraordinary against the Spiders, only allowing 1.3 yards per return on three returns. Observers may note that the Cavaliers are using a different punt formation than in previous years.
“It’s a critical unit,” Groh said. “The system is kind of set up to be an excellent coverage system. We did a lot of visits and a lot of research during the winter on it and decided to commit to it.”
Last week’s play against Richmond served as a morale booster for the Cavaliers. The Cavaliers hope to continue this success against Connecticut, their last non-conference foe before conference play begins. Virginia does face another non-conference foe in East Carolina after two ACC contests, but the Pirates have been impressive in consecutive wins against Virginia Tech and West Virginia. To remain competitive, Virginia will seek to step up its play and make a statement against the Huskies.
Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m. and the game is being televised on ESPNU.
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