GREENSBORO, Ga. -- Virginia tight end John Phillips may never see a time when teammates stop kidding him about his Bath County roots.

Phillips was on his way to a table set up for player interviews when teammate Clint Sintim, who had arrived first, exchanged their place cards.

"Hi, I'm John Phillips from Bath County," said Sintim, greeting reporters with his best attempt at an Alleghany Highlands drawl.

Nobody laughed any harder than Phillips, whose mountainside upbringing has never been a hindrance.

That was apparent when teammates elected Phillips, a fourth-year junior, as one of their co-captains. He and Sintim represented the team Sunday at the ACC Football Kickoff, a media event at Reynolds Plantation.

"It's a comfortable position for me," said Phillips, whose selection as co-captain was ratified by head coach Al Groh. "I've always worked hard. I feel I've earned the respect of a lot of guys on the team. I kind of expected it.

"Tom [Santi] was a guy I was always around and I watched his leadership. I've gotten a lot more vocal the past two years."

Santi was one of UVa's co-captains in 2007 and combined with Jon Stupar and Phillips to provide 93 receptions from the tight end position. Phillips had 17 receptions for 193 yards and has the potential to catch 50 passes or more this year, according to Groh.

"I'm ready to catch the ball," Phillips said. "I look forward to that."

With the return of a pair of 600-yard rushers in Cedric Peerman and Mikell Simpson, Virginia won't be quick to abandon the run, but the Cavaliers often were protecting leads during a 9-4 season in 2007 and ball control was the prescribed strategy.

There has been less optimism surrounding this season following the departure of a pair of first-round NFL draft picks in defensive end Chris Long and offensive tackle Brandon Albert.

On top of that, the Cavaliers lost six underclassmen to various academic and disciplinary issues, including two-year starting quarterback Jameel Sewell and promising defensive end Jeffrey Fitzgerald.

"You can't dwell on things like that," Phillips said. "They're great guys; we've stayed in contact with them. They're still part of the family; they're just not part of the team.

"Everybody's going to have obstacles. That's life. We understand who we are. Last year, we were a team that was going to battle until the last two minutes of the game and then try to win it. We hope that carries over to this year."

The chemistry of Virginia's 2007 team was evident when Long went to New York for the NFL Draft and 15 of his teammates accompanied him, including Phillips. Long pointed at the Cavalier contingent when he was chosen second overall by St. Louis.

Phillips also has taken teammates back to Bath County on hunting trips and Long was scheduled to attend a ceremony at which Phillips' Bath County jersey was to be retired "but it got postponed and he couldn't make it the next time," Phillips said.

Of the 41 Virginians on the Cavaliers' roster, none comes from a more mountainous area than Phillips. The Cavaliers once had another fine tight end from the state's mountainous coalfields region, current Pittsburgh Steelers standout Heath Miller from Russell County.

"Everybody has their own backgrounds," Phillips said, "We embrace that."