Thursday, January 03, 2008
Quarterback remains an issue for Cavaliers in 2008
Doug Doughty
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In the aftermath of Branden Albert’s decision to turn pro, an obvious conclusion is to say the offensive line will be the biggest question mark about Virginia’s 2008 football team.
Not in my mind.
Clearly, the Cavaliers have some holes to fill with the departure of O-line starters Albert, Ian-Yates Cunningham and Jordy Lipsey, but I keep coming back to the quarterbacks.
Let’s say that Kevin Ogletree returns from a redshirt year as the big-play receiver that Virginia could only dream about in 2007. Even if he is the kind of receiver who can create separation from defensive backs, will the Cavaliers be able to get the ball to him?
In watching sophomore Jameel Sewell in the Gator Bowl, it occurred to me that there simply are a lot of throws that Sewell can’t make.
Remember the seam route, the pass to a tight end streaking down the middle of the field that was a Cavalier staple during the Matt Schaub-Heath Miller era? Virginia had three quality tight ends this year – Tom Santi, Jonathan Stupar and John Phillips – but the seam route virtually disappeared from the Cavalier gameplans.
Why? I’m guessing it’s because Sewell either wasn’t comfortable throwing it or the completion rate simply wasn’t high enough.
Sewell completed nearly 59 percent of his passes this season and threw for 200 yards or more in four consecutive games in the middle of the season, but most of his accuracy stems from his choice of targets – mostly running backs and tight ends.
UVa’s top three receivers for the season were tailback Mikell Simpson with 43 catches and tight ends Stupar and Santi with 40 and 36, respectively.
Maurice Covington, the top pass-catcher among UVa’s wide receivers, finished the season with 21 receptions in nine games. He had one reception for 11 yards in a 31-28 Gator Bowl loss to Texas Tech. UVa’s longest completion of the game went to Simpson for 12 yards.
Sewell has a strong left (throwing) arm and his supporters would say that he needs some help from his wide receivers, but the 15- to 18-yard square-in or out is just not a high-percentage play for the Cavaliers.
I’m not suggesting that Peter Lalich needs to move ahead of Sewell on the depth chart. Lalich replaced Sewell in the fourth quarter in four of the last six UVa games and did not distinguish himself.
I attribute a lot of the fact that Lalich was a true freshman. None of the great UVa quarterbacks started as freshmen. Not Shawn Moore. Not Aaron Brooks. Not Matt Schaub. Heck, Moore and Schaub did not start as redshirt freshmen and Brooks was a fourth-year junior when he took over.
Ideally, Lalich would have been redshirted. That would have been possible if the Grohs – head coach Al and offensive coordinator Mike – had exercised a little diplomacy and convinced Kevin McCabe to return for a fifth season in 2007.
McCabe could have been an insurance policy this fall and allowed the Cavaliers to redshirt Lalich, thus creating two years’ separation between Sewell and Lalich, but the Groh critics already know this and the Groh supporters don’t want to hear it.
There is talk of Lalich redshirting in 2008, but how can that happen? Sewell’s surgically repaired left wrist held up surprisingly well this season, but that could flare up at any time, Groh conceded early in the season. Throw in an assortment of physical issues that sent him to the sidelines this season and UVa hardly could expect to go an entire season without needing Lalich.
This year’s No. 3 quarterback, Scott Deke, has taken only four snaps in his first four years. Who knows if Deke would want to come back for a fifth year, even if invited? Marc Verica got some good reviews for his work with the scout team, but even Al Groh admits that Verica was signed as a project.
Did anybody mention Vic Hall?
A healthy Sewell and a redshirted Lalich would appear to be the best-case scenario for Virginia in 2008, but until the Cavaliers can start completing 15- and 18-yard routes, not to mention an occasional long ball, problems will persist.
