Thursday, September 07, 2006
Cavs shouldn't forget about Vic Hall
Olsen not lost for the season
Doug Doughty
Doug Doughty's UVa Insider is exclusive to roanoke.com and is posted by 5 p.m. Thursdays in season.
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Upon returning to the downtown Pittsburgh Hilton after Virginia’s opening-game loss to Pittsburgh, I noticed UVa fan Tim Quick and a bunch of his Waynesboro and Staunton buddies sitting in the lobby.
It was a lot of the same guys who always congregated at the portal leading to the press table at University Hall and, to me, they’ve always been a good gauge as to what’s on the mind of the UVa fans.
Remarkably, the same thing was on their mind that was on mine:
Vic Hall.
Let me start out by saying that Christian Olsen, starting for the first time in his fifth year, deserves more than a one-game look.
Let me say also that junior Kevin McCabe and redshirt freshman Jameel Sewell should not be evaluated on the basis of their performance in a 38-13 loss to the Panthers, when both played for one only series.
But, as a whole, the quarterbacking was in stark contrast to what the Cavaliers had come to expect in the two seasons that Marques Hagans was behind center. Hagans, now on the St. Louis Rams’ practice squad as a wide receiver and return specialist, is listed at 5 foot 10 and 205 pounds.
UVa head coach Al Groh has let it be known that his picture of the ideal Cavaliers’ quarterback would be former ACC player of the year Matt Schaub (6-5, 237) or 2007 recruit Peter Lalich (6-5, 225), but Groh was more than happy to “settle” for Hagans the past two seasons.
Hagans had a strong and underrated right arm but what scared opponents the most was his scrambling ability. At 5-9 and 184 pounds, Hall clearly mirrors Hagans in stature, but his passing pedigree is just as impressive.
At Gretna High School, Hall not only passed for a state-record 8,731 yards and 104 touchdowns, but he also ran for more than 5,000 yards.
When injuries left Virginia strapped at cornerback early in the 2005 season, Hall was given a crash course at cornerback. He remained at corner in the spring and, from all indications, was pressing for playing time in the preseason.
As opposed to 2005, when UVa had little depth in the secondary, the Cavaliers currently have at least five cornerbacks that they consider game-worthy. Hall got on the field for 12 plays at Pittsburgh, most – if not all – of it on special teams. He is also the back-up holder.
Five years is a long time and it’s worth noting that Hagans didn’t become a full-time starter until his fourth year, although he started once as a sophomore. He also started once as a sophomore but only after Anthony Martinez bombed at South Carolina. That was after he had been moved to wide receiver in the preseason.
The Cavaliers never said “never” with Hagans and ought to take the same approach with Hall. Of course, Lalich and/or Sewell project as the quarterbacks of the future but, if the play of the offensive line last Saturday is any omen, UVa might need a quarterback with some wheels.
“If you know Vic Hall, Vic Hall is a competitor, man,” said Robert Prunty, who coached Hall for one year at Gretna and then watched him from fairly close proximity at Hargrave Military Academy. “If given a chance, Vic Hall will succeed.”
Those were comments from Prunty in response to reports that Hall was bidding for playing time at corner. Then, at Hargrave’s media day in late September, Prunty was asked about Hall as a quarterback.
“You want to know my real opinion on it?” Prunty asked. “If Marques Hagans can play quarterback for UVa, then I don’t see why Vic Hall can’t. I think Vic Hall was a better passer than Marques Hagans.
“After four years of weights, you’ve seen the way Vic Hall looks right now. I don’t see a huge falloff from Marques Hagans to Vic Hall but that’s coach Groh’s team and he does what he wants to do with coach Groh’s team.
“But, of course, that’s [Hall] my guy and I’m going to be biased for my guy.”
The last thing Virginia needs is a quarterback controversy and I’m not trying to start one. But, if the Cavaliers get to Week 9 or 10 and nothing is working, they should remember Marques Hagans. And Vic Hall.
THE RUMORS ABOUT Christian Olsen’s phantom ankle injury had subsided long before Thursday, but it was worth resurrecting them during a teleconference in order to get a rise out of Groh.
Not having spent much time on Internet boards early in the week, I confessed to Groh that I had been “behind the curve” on a possible season-threatening injury.
“You’re not behind any curve,” Groh said. “There was no injury. There is no injury.; There is no threat. I just laugh because it’s just another indication of how stories get started.
“I just want to clarify here. Even though I seem to have a penchant for not talking about injuries [and] I may not bring them up, I don’t lie about them.”
