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THE WAHOO WEEKLY

2012 Virginia Cavaliers Football

The 2012 season is here and there is a sense of optimism on the campus of the University of Virginia. The Cavaliers are coming off an 8-5 season (5-3 in the ACC) that culminated with a 43-24 loss to Auburn in the Chick-fil-A Bowl but the feeling is that the program is heading in the right direction. Head Coach Steel Pitt takes over the program after several successful seasons in upstate NY with the Syracuse Orange. The Cavaliers have upper class experience at key positions, speed weapons at the skilled positions and a favorable league schedule that does not include Florida State or Clemson in cross over games.

SCHEDULE / RESULTS (14-0 Overall / 9-0 Conference)
BCS National Champions

Week 1: at Missouri (W 21-17)
Week 2: vs Ole Miss (W 35-14)
Week 3: at Georgia Tech (W 42-24)
Week 4: vs Ohio State (W 17-3)
Week 5: at Florida (W 23-7)
Week 6: at Duke (W 56-46)
Week 7: vs Maryland (W 46-45) (Homecoming)
Week 8: vs Wake Forest (W 41-10)
Week 9: BYE
Week 10: at NC State (W 38-35)
Week 11: vs Miami (W 38-21)
Week 12: vs UNC (W 63-24) (Senior Day)
Week 12: at Virginia Tech (W 31-14)

ACC Championship Game: vs. Florida State (W 30-10)

BCS National Championship Game: vs. Kansas State (W 49-30)

Red indicates Conference Game
Blue indicates User Game

Outlook: OFFENSE

Key Players: LT Oday Aboushi, TE Colter Phillips, RB Perry Jones



Head Coach Steel Pitt has become adept at running a Pro-Style offense geared towards a 2 Back running attack and conservative play from the QB in the passing game. However, even Coach Steel Pitt has admitted that there is a lot of talent on this offense, particularly at the skilled position and to confine that talent to a 2RB, 1TE, 2WR sets may not be the best way to utilize this talent. When facing the Cavaliers expect to see 3 and 4 WR sets, designed QB runs and plays that get the ball into the hands of its playmakers quickly so that they can do what they do best … make plays. At the helm will be transfer QB Phillip Sims who transferred from Alabama, was ruled eligible to play this season and was named the starter during Spring Ball. Sims was a Virginia HS star and one of the most highly rated recruits coming out of High School. Phillip Sims has all the tools to run the offense that Coach Steel Pitt wants as he can run the Read Option, make all the throws in the passing game and has the legs to make something happen when plays break down. Sims has the benefit of having 2 of the best bookends in college football with RT Morgan Moses and future top 10 NFL draft pick LT Oday Aboushi. The backfield for the Cavaliers is small in stature but big in production as both RB Perry Jones and RB Kevin Parks stand only 5 feet 8 inches tall but they can both send defenders to the trainer with broken ankles. While defenders are busy chasing around Jones and Perry they better not get lazy in the secondary as the Cavaliers will line up with 3 WR that all possess speed and hands in Tim Smith, Darius Jennings and Dominique Terrell. They say a QB’s best friend, besides a quality LT, may be a reliable TE in the passing game and Virginia possess that and then some. TE Colter Phillips may be one of the best in the country. He’s a willing blocker who really excels in the passing game. The Cavaliers offense looks to have a big year in 2012 as they have skill and depth at the skilled positions. If QB Phillip Sims can keep turnovers at a minimum the Virginia offense has a chance to be the best in the ACC Coastal Division as they should be able to gain big yards both on the ground and through the air.

Outlook: DEFENSE

Key Players: LB Steve Greer, LB LaRoy Reynolds, CB Demetrious Nicholson



While the offense looks to be explosive this season, the defense should be stout and capable. The front 7 is formidable especially at the LB spot. LB Steve Greer is the senior leader of the defense and gets after it in the running game. The Cavaliers should be fine against the run but the real questions are vs the pass. The Cavaliers have talent on the back end but it is all young and inexperienced. All of the Cavaliers CB’s are Freshmen and Sophomores, while Junior FS Rijo Walker is the elder statesman in the secondary.

Outlook: Overall

Things are looking good for Virginia and they are heading in the right direction. Last year was a big stepping stone as they earned a bid to the Chick-fil-A Bowl but expectations are greater for this year’s squad. The offense will be explosive and high scoring and it may need to be if the Cavaliers cannot stop opponents passing attacks. If they don’t get swelled heads because of the high expectations and focus for each game I expect this team to be in Charlotte for the ACC Championship Game at the end of the season.

Virginia Claims Commonwealth Cup With Victory Over VA Tech



The stage was set for an epic game at Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, VA as rivals Virginia and Virginia Tech squared off in their annual meeting. The 94th meeting between these two rivals would be the first meeting with both teams entering with a Top 5 ranking. Not only was the ACC Coastal Division crown on the line and a spot in the ACC Championship Game, but the winner had a legitimate at playing for a National Title if they can win next week vs Florida State. They say big time players come up big in big games and this was no different today for UVA sophomore QB Phillip Sims. The Heisman candidate didn’t have his best game of the season, but he performed great and provided his team with big plays when they needed them. The UVA defense came out playing well slowing down the run the game and putting pressure on VA Tech QB Logan Thomas. After an opening 3 and out, UVA drove down the field and opened the scoring on a 34 yard FG by Ian Fyre. Late in the first quarter with the score still 3-0 and facing a third and 12 on their own 19 yard line, Sims made his first big play as he threw a picture perfect pass to WR Tim Smith who was running just a step ahead of the CB in man coverage. Smith took it to the house for a 10-0 UVA lead after one quarter of play.


Smith finished with 5 catches for 197 yards and 2 TD

After VA Tech cut the lead to 10-7 on a beautiful 31 yard scoring run by Michael Holmes, it was time for Sims to step up again. Facing a third and 5 and possibly having to kick the ball right back to VA Tech, Coach Steel Pitt put the ball in the hands of his playmaker and called for a QB Read Option. Sims ran it to perfection as he read the DE, kept the ball and raced down the sideline for a 76 yard TD run and a 10 point halftime lead.

Once again, late in the game following a VA Tech scoring run by Logan Thomas which cut the lead to 10 (24-14), it was Sims that ultimately put this game away as he threw another strike to Tim Smith for a 79 yard score for a 17 point lead with only 3 minutes remaining. With the win Virginia finishes the regular season a perfect 12-0 (8-0 ACC) and will play Florida State in two weeks in the ACC Championship Game. The winner of that game could be playing for a spot in the National Title Game.

FINAL SCORE
Virginia Cavaliers 31
Virginia Tech Hokies 14

PLAYER OF THE GAME
QB Philip Sims
8/16 for 231 Yards Passing
2 TD
1 INT
8 Rushes
106 Yards Rushing
1 TD

Virginia Cavaliers Win ACC Championship



On a beautiful day in Charlotte, NC as the Virginia Cavaliers met up with the Florida State Seminoles for the right to be crowned ACC Conference Champions. The Cavaliers came into the game with one of the best offenses in the country, led by Heisman candidate QB Phillip Sims, but it was the defense that shined bright today. Virginia’s defense, led by All-American candidate MLB Steve Greer came out strong forcing three straight three and outs. The Virginia defense pitched a first half shutout which allowed the Cavaliers to build a 17-0 lead at the break.


The UVA defense did not allow a single third down conversion while registering 4 sacks and 2 INTs

EJ Manuel tried to get his team back into the game as he led FSU to a TD drive to open the second half capped by a FB Lonnie Pryor 1 yard TD run. That excitement was short lived, however, as Phillip Sims found WR Tim Smith behind the secondary for a 57 yard TD strike on the ensuing drive. FSU would score another 3 points before the end of the quarter to cut the lead to 14, but the UVA defense stepped it up again posting a doughnut in the fourth quarter as they went on for the 30-10 victory and almost certainly clinched a spot in the National Title game in the process.

FINAL SCORE
Florida State Seminoles 10
Virginia Cavaliers 30

PLAYER OF THE GAME
MLB Steve Greer
7 Tackles
2 TFL
1 Sack

Virginia Cavaliers Quarterly Update
Final Report

Hello Wahoo Faithful! What a season … and it’s not quite over yet as the best is still to come. The Virginia Cavaliers are undefeated ACC Champions with one game remaining and that being the National Title Game. Coming into the season there was reason for optimism coming off an 8-5 season and some key part returning, but the consensus was that this team was still a season away. This Cavaliers team was talented but it was also young in some key spots such QB where they started a RS Sophomore transfer in Phillips Sims. Two of his top three WR in the depth chart were true Sophs. The defensive front seven was expected to be stout but the back line of defense was manned by three sophomores and junior. This team couldn’t possibly compete for a conference title? Well not only did they compete for and win the ACC Championship with a 30-10 victory over Florida State, but they also ran the table and find themselves one win away from a National Title as well.


Virginia appears a year ahead of schedule in winning the ACC Championship

The senior leadership and production on this team helped ease the pain of starting so many youngsters. On the offensive side of the ball, seniors RB Perry Jones, TE Colter Phillips, OT Moses Morgan and OT Oday Aboushi helped stabilize the offense. Led by the All-American and Outland Trophy winner Aboushi the ground attack featured a 1000 yard rusher in Jones and saw the team run for over 20 TD on the ground.


The mammoth Tackle took home the Outland Trophy for his mauling efforts

On the defensive side of the ball there were moments when the defense looked lost and was bailed out by the O, but one person that never looked lost was senior MLB Steve Greer. Greer was all over the field making tackles, stuffing the run, harassing the opposing QB’s and making plays in the pass game. Those efforts earned Greer the College Football LB of the Year Award.


Steve Greer made plays all over the field in earning the LB of the Year award

While the seniors played big all year, the Cavaliers wouldn’t be in this position if it weren’t for their young guys, most notably their hometown hero Phillip Sims. Sims transferred from Alabama to play closer to home and the folks in Charlottesville will be forever grateful. Week in and week out Sims continued to amaze us with his arm and his legs as he accounted for over 3800 yards and 44 TD passing and rushing. Not even a dreadful 9 INT game vs. Maryland could keep him down as he led the team back to a historic victory after being down by 31 points on two separate occasions. The people of Charlottesville weren’t the only ones to recognize and appreciate his performance as he was voted this year’s Heisman Trophy winner.


Phillip Sims becomes Virginia’s first Heisman Trophy winner

But the job is not done as the Cavaliers get ready to do battle with the Kansas State Wildcats out of the Big 12 for the right to be called National Champs. From everyone here at the Wahoo Weekly we say good luck to the Cavaliers football team.

Award Winners

Heisman Trophy – QB Phillip Sims
Outland Trophy – OT Oday Aboushi
Best LB – MLB Steve Greer

All-ACC First Team

QB Phillip Sims
RB Perry Jones
WR Tim Smith
TE Colter Phillips
OT Oday Aboushi
OG Jon Gross
OT Morgan Moses
DT Justin Renfrow
MLB Steve Greer
OLB Daquan Romero
K Ian Frye

All-ACC Second Team

OG Matt Mihalik
DE Jake Snyder
DE Bill Schautz
DT David Dean
CB Brendan Morgan
CB Demetrious Nicholson
FS Rijo Walker
SS Anthony Harris
Ret Kevin Parks

All-American First Team

OT Oday Aboushi
OT Morgan Moses
MLB Steve Greer

All-American Second Team

QB Phillip Sims
OLB Daquan Romero
K Ian Frye

All-American Freshmen Team

OT Jay Whitmire
DT David Dean
K Ian Frye

Virginia Team Leaders

Passing

Name……………..…Rating………Comp…….Att………Yards……..TD…..INT…….Yds/Game…..Comp%
QB Phillip Sims…..213.6……….153………..242……….3401……….34…..17………..261.6………….63%

Rushing

Name…………………Att………Yards…….Yds/Rush………TD…..Yds/Game
RB Perry Jones…..237……….1248..…….5.2………………10………95.9
QB Phillip Sims…….82……….477…………5.8………………10………36.6

Receiving

Name……………………………Rec………Yards…….Yds/Rec………TD…..Yds/Game
WR Tim Smith…..………....42…………1019……….24.2…………..11.…..78.3
WR Darius Jennings………35…………..720……….20.5…………….7……..55.3
TE Colter Phillips…………..26………..…502……….19.3…………….7..…..38.6
WR Dominique Terrell…..25………...681……..….27.2………….…6……..56.7
RB Perry Jones…..………...19………….345……….18.1…………….2.…...26.5

Defensive Leaders

Tackles………………MLB Steve Greer (95)
TFL…………………….MLB Steve Greer (19)
Sacks…………………MLB Steve Greer (8 )
INT…………………….CB Demetrious Nicholson (5)

Looks good! Great season!

Zach561 wrote:Looks good! Great season!

Thanks man. It'll be great if I can get one more win.

National Champs !!!



The weather was perfect in South Beach, the talks of snubs and playoffs had died down and the only thing that filled the air was excitement as the #1 Virginia Cavaliers and #2 Kansas State Wildcats took the field to decide the 2012 BCS National Champion. There was no shortage of star power in this game as it featured three of the top 5 vote getters for the Heisman (including the winner, QB Phillip Sims), the Outland Trophy winner, the LB of the Year, the Maxwell Award winner, the Doak Walker Award winner and five first team All-Americans. As the final few notes of the national anthem were sung and the coin toss was completed, all that was left was to settle the issue on the field.


Steven Tyler sang and over the top version of the National Anthem and claimed the raspy-ness was intentional.

Virginia took the opening kick and looked sharp right out of the gate. RB Perry Jones picked up big chunks of yards on the ground running to the outside behind his mammoth All-American Tackles and Phillip Sims looked poised and relaxed from the start. Virginia drove right down the field and opened the scoring on a 14 yard off tackle TD run by Perry Jones. Well it didn’t take long for Kansas State to make waves, however, and the first wave came when they broke the huddle. That’s because All-American RB Angelo Pease was not starting at RB. That honor instead went to John Hubert who quickly showed the Cavaliers why they shouldn’t look at that as advantage as he took the first hand off and scampered 75 yards for the game tying score.


Hubert finished the game with 172 yards and 2TD

Virginia was sharp and ready for the challenge. Before the quarter was over, Phillip Sims showed the dual threat capabilities that made him the Heisman Trophy winner. First Sims capped off the ensuing drive with a 10 yard TD run on the Read Option. After forcing a three and out, Sims threw a perfect pass behind the CB and in front of the SS to WR Tim Smith for a 66 yard TD and a 21-7 lead after one quarter of play.


Tim Smith finished the season with Virginia’s single season receiving record

RB Angelo Pease did play in the game (99 yards rushing and 2TD) including a 59 yard run in the second quarter to bring the Wildcats to within 7 at halftime but it could have been closer had it not been for the curiously poor time management by Coach Bill Snyder to end the half. With Kansas State getting the ball to begin the second half, only a 7 point deficit and the ball with 1:30 left the Wildcats were in good shape to do some damage. Snyder instructed his QB to run the hurry which got the ball in FG range to the Virginia 30 with one time out remaining. With the clock winding down under 20 seconds after a Collin Klein scramble got them into FG range at the 27 yard line, Snyder opted against calling the timeout to attempt the FG and instead had Klein go on the ball and run a play. Klein dropped back but didn’t see anyone open so he decided to scramble. Klein picked up about 15 yards but was tackled around the 10 yard line with no time on the clock and a timeout in the pocket.

Kansas State got the ball to begin the second half but it was the Virginia Cavaliers that made the statement. The Cavaliers forced a three and out and on their first play of the second half, TE Colter Phillips got behind the LB and Phillip Sims found him for a 66 yard TD strike. The Wildcats managed to stay competitive thanks to 338 yards rushing as a team, but Phillip Sims showed why he was crowned the best player in college football as his 366 yards passing, 34 yards rushing and 4 total TD helped Virginia build a 42-23 point lead with a little over 3 minutes remaining in the game.


Sims accounted for 400 yards and 4TD

With time against them and the scoreboard heavily in Virginia’s favor, Colin Klein tried to get his team back into the game. On the next possession, Colin Klein dropped back to pass but couldn’t find anyone open so he took off to pick up some yards as he had done numerous times throughout the game. This time however he was blindsided 5 yards downfield by DT Justin Renfrow and nickel CB Brendan Morgan scooped up the ball and returned it 49 yards for the game clincher. Kansas State would tack on a late TD but it was not enough as Virginia won the game 49-30 and claimed the 2012 BCS National Title.

Highlights can be found on Dynasty Wire

FINAL SCORE
Kansas State Wildcats 30
Virginia Cavaliers 49

PLAYER OF THE GAME
QB Phillip Sims
14/17 for 366 Yards
3 TD
1 INT
7 Rushes
34 Yards
1 TD