Flash back to Sept. 12. No papers. No midterms. Maybe a fallen horseman here or there, but on the whole, life was good.
Except for that 30-0 fourth quarter deficit Virginia faced against TCU. If you invest any emotional energy into the Virginia football team, life was decidedly awful that day. You may have considered flushing your head down the toilet. Nothing like some self-inflicted water-boarding to put a loss in perspective.
Many factors contributed to this all-around debacle. When I think of the number eight, good things generally come to mind: The all-time great Baltimore Oriole, Cal Ripken, Jr., roughly the number of times Kate Winslet reveals herself in "The Reader," etc. When this beautiful digit is associated with the amount of sacks Virginia allowed, it loses most of its lust(er). Then there was a hesitant quarterback protected by a porous offense. And above all, Virginia's performance against TCU lacked any attack that could conceivably be called a "running game."
After that game, it was clear that offensive coordinator Gregg Brandon's spread wasn't cuttin' it. Change was needed, so changes were made. This is the impeccable logic of coach Al Groh.
And at halftime of Saturday's contest against Indiana, Virginia reversed that lopsided score: Cavaliers 30, Hoosiers 0.
So, um, what happened? How does a team that loses its season-opener to William & Mary suddenly knock off an ACC opponent on the road and absolutely obliterate a Big Ten team that took Michigan to the wire at the Big House?
Virginia was averaging 272.2 yards of total offense and 93 rushing yards through its first four games - good enough for last in the ACC. To post 231 rushing yards and 536 yards of total offense - nearly doubling its four-game average - is, well, let's just say the thesaurus is bursting with words to describe the reinvigorated offense: robust, poised, invigorated, dynamic ... alive ... TRANSCENDENT!
But I only need one. It's not an adjective - or adverb, if you're keeping score. It's a nickname: Juice. Senior running back Mikell Simpson, that is.
Sure, the offensive line is integral to any running back's success. And Virginia's men up front have done a fine job the past two weeks. Though they yielded four sacks to North Carolina, much can be attributed to senior quarterback Jameel Sewell's questionable decision-making at times. This week, they only allowed two sacks - notable, considering both Indiana defensive ends are listed on virtually every award watch-list known to mankind.
Now, I'm not a football genius. Nor do I religiously watch the guards and offensive tackles interact with one another to block the pass-rush each play. But it's fairly evident that the offensive line has made a few changes since September to distance itself from that daunting number eight.
"We're continuing to find things that fit our players," Groh said. "We had some success here with a play that has been quite good for us over the years and we got that going pretty well today. As we always say: Those holes look pretty good when the guys moving them out of the way - they really did a good job with that."
Groh's analysis seems to acknowledge that Brandon's spread schemes did not fit Virginia's personnel very well. The fact that the team used a play against Indiana that has worked well "over the years" suggests a reversion to Groh's pro-style offense. The linemen were pinched closer together - or so I'm told - and Sewell had fewer receivers split out wide. Whatever the changes, the improvement was apparent.
"The offensive line was playing pretty physical," senior fullback Rashawn Jackson said. "Those guys were smacking people around - they were playing Big-10 football, I guess."
No one has benefited more from this transformation than Simpson. Against TCU, he was hardly involved in the offense, carrying the ball only eight times and tallying just two receptions. And after sitting out against Southern Miss because of injury, it seemed the tailback was headed for a disappointing senior season.
Pardon the interruption - North Carolina, meet Juice - he's gonna run all over you today. Twenty-four touches for 145 total yards later - Mikell is back on the map. He didn't miss a beat Saturday against Indiana, either.
"Awesome," Sewell said of Simpson's performance. "He got the great looks; guys like [senior right tackle] Will Barker and the rest of the offensive line just played so physical, played so smart. Juice found the creases and he just hit 'em."
It was clear from Virginia's opening drive, which was jumpstarted by sophomore safety Rodney McLeod's fumble recovery and subsequent 32-yard dash down the sideline, that Virginia was going to run Juice all day. After Sewell found sophomore receiver Kris Burd for a 22-yard gain to the Indiana 16-yard line, Simpson finished the drive. On his first carry, he easily ran past Hoosier defenders to the right for 11 yards, then waltzed into the end zone on the next play, almost untouched.
A few minutes later, after senior Vic "Do-It-All" Hall made his first trip into the end zone as a receiver, Simpson ran left and made a nifty cut back to the right for a six-yard gain, aided by a Sewell block. Although it did not translate into points, this tough, physical play - marked by the quarterback's determination to sacrifice his body and allow Simpson to gain as many yards as possible - demonstrated to everyone in attendance that the Cavaliers were going to keep pushing pedal to the metal. This was the kind of game they had yet to play this season.
"We didn't play as physical, we didn't play eye-ball that we know we can play, as far as being physical," Sewell said, referring to the team's previous four games. "You know, we're a hard-nosed, pounce-at-the-point-of-attack, keep-pounding-the-ball type of team, and that's what we've done lately."
Simpson wasn't done scoring touchdowns quite yet. After junior cornerback Ras-I Dowling gave the offense favorable field position with his first interception of the year, Sewell took the snap on first down from the Indiana 42-yard line, danced away from the pocket, escaped the pass-rush and slung a pass to a wide-open Simpson downfield. The senior weaved his way through the secondary and made a strong cut to the right, advancing the ball all the way to the Indiana five. The result was a foregone conclusion: Juice 14, Indiana 0.
Perhaps it is this dual threat Simpson poses that makes him such a dangerous weapon. When the pocket collapsed, Virginia's veteran tailback found an opening and hauled in Sewell's longest pass of the day. For a team whose receiving corps primarily consists of inexperienced underclassmen, it is especially important that Simpson plays a role in the passing game. Indeed, he is the Cavaliers' second leading receiver behind Burd, with 16 receptions for 148 yards.
But just when it seemed Simpson was on the cusp of a career day, already accumulating four touchdowns on 15 carries for 83 yards, as well as four receptions for 66 yards, he went down.\nAnd he didn't get up.
"I told him, 'Man we got you, we're gonna pray for you, we're gonna seal the deal for you,'" Sewell said. "'Just take your time man, just get right.'"
After the game, Groh said the team's initial impression of the injury was positive, adding that it was "above the shoulders."
Although the freak play was a sobering moment for Virginia during its finest day, it certainly inspired Jackson, who - along with redshirt freshman Torrey Mack - carried the load in Simpson's absence.
"That's my friend, that's my brother," Jackson said. "I've been here with him for five years. It was a sad moment, so it was kind of a gut-check. I just wanted to finish the game strong for him because I know that's what he would've wanted me to do."
Virginia's ability to run the ball after Simpson was carted off the field demonstrated the team's depth, as well as the offensive line's strength. A 33-yard burst for Jackson, followed by a 22-yarder for Mack led to another touchdown and provides hope that - if Simpson misses significant time - the Cavaliers will be able to make up for his production.
For now, however, the resurgence of the Cavaliers should be seen as the resurgence of Mikell Simpson. Here's to you, Juice.
Read More
Payton Cormier breaks Division I goals record
By Michael Liebermann | 9 hours agoCormier has forever cemented his legacy as one of the greatest lacrosse players in NCAA history.
Cavaliers advance to NCAA Championship with second place finish at Baton Rouge Regional
By Stephen O'Dea | 10 hours agoVirginia will head to the National Championship in Carlsbad, Calif., with a chance to make history.
Thank you, Reece Beekman
By Ben Istvan | YesterdayBeekman will leave Charlottesville as the program's all-time leader in steals.
