See the title of this column? Sub in coach Al Groh for Forrest, and that’s the message I have for the U.Va. football team. It worked for Mr. Gump, and it can work for the Cavaliers, too.
Let’s put everything out on the table right now. It’s been really hard to watch Virginia football this year. I mean, really, really hard. Two blowout losses in three games is not how any team wants to start a season, especially for a team that went 9-4 a year ago. And the quarterback situation only makes things worse. I don’t need to go into any detail on that, but I will say that I support Peter Lalich, and sitting him against Connecticut didn’t make any sense.
But what gets me angry more than anything else? The disappearance of the running game. I don’t want to inundate you with numbers, but after putting together some research I think there are some stats you simply need to see. Let’s get to it.
Last year, Virginia racked up 1,763 net rushing yards in 13 games. Running backs Cedric Peerman, now a senior, and Mikell Simpson, now a junior, comprised 65.5 percent of that rushing offense, while then-sophomore quarterback Jameel Sewell ran for 15.8 percent of those yards. As you know, Sewell is not playing for Virginia this year, and the quarterback position this season will likely not match his production. But, let it suffice to say, the core of the running game came from the tailback position anyway.
In the 2007 season, Virginia out-rushed opponents in 9 games (and tied the other team in rushing yards in one more). Virginia had more than 100 rushing yards in nine games. Virginia won nine games. See a trend here? In only one game did the Cavaliers out-rush the opponent, rush for more than 100 yards and lose ... and that was against Texas Tech in the Gator Bowl. And, in only one game did the Cavaliers not out-rush the opponent, rush for less than 100 yards and win (in the game against Wake Forest). So, I’m convinced that running the ball effectively had something to do with Virginia winning football games.
This year, Peerman and Simpson are still here. Junior fullback Rashawn Jackson is still here. Sophomore fullback Keith Payne — who comprised 12.4 percent of the rushing offense as a tailback last year — has moved to fullback, but is still here. Yes, Sewell is gone, as is Andrew Pearman, who was the main running back in only one game last year, against Connecticut. But the backfield is essentially the same this year as it was last year.
And yet ... we stopped running. In Virginia’s game against Richmond, the Cavaliers ran 38 times for 91 yards, and won. One week later, at Connecticut, Virginia ran only 14 times. Fourteen! That’s just strange to me. Where’s the faith in the running game? I’m not claiming to be able to coach, but I can’t be the only one who sees that when Virginia runs the ball, it does better than when the Cavaliers don’t run. You might say Virginia ran less against Connecticut because it was playing from behind the entire game, but I say that if the team ran the ball from the outset, maybe things wouldn’t have been so ugly.
Is the concern surrounding the offensive line so great that Virginia simply stopped running the ball? Obviously you need a decent O-line to run the ball well, but I find it hard to believe that Virginia doesn’t have enough talent on the line and in the backfield to muster more than the 31 rushing yards amassed this weekend. Senior left tackle Eugene Monroe is projected to be a top draft pick. Junior right tackle Will Barker started all 13 games last year. The others on the line might be inexperienced, but is that really a reason to not run?
You saw how good Peerman and Simpson can be last year. Each played six games as the main tailback and each averaged around 19 attempts per game. Peerman averaged 97.5 yards per game in his six games, including the meager 19 yards he netted in his sixth game when he got injured. Simpson recorded 96.5 yards per game in his six weeks as the feature back. What do these numbers say? Just give them more chances, coach! Fourteen rushing attempts as a team just won’t cut it!
The running game could be the bread and butter of Virginia’s offense but, for whatever reason, the play-calling isn’t letting that be the case. Virginia has two weeks to prepare for Duke, which should be like studying for your little brother’s sixth-grade math test. While Duke is 2-1, the Blue Devils allowed 188 rushing yards to James Madison. If we can’t outrun JMU ... well, simply, we can.
So, coach Groh, I implore you. Run the football. Things can’t get any worse if you do.
Read More
Virginia men’s golf loses in final match after historic run at NCAA Championship
By Ben McNiff | 2 days agoVirginia made history, and then some more, before falling in the final.
Virginia baseball excluded from NCAA Tournament
By Xander Tilock | 4 days agoThe Cavaliers' season is over.
Scott Stadium selected to host 2026 NCAA Men’s Lacrosse Championships
By Michael Liebermann | 6 days agoThe biggest event on the college lacrosse calendar will unfold on Grounds.
