Live Blog | UVa.-Virginia Tech

The day is here, and ACCVirginia.com will be live in Scott Stadium in Charlottesville for the annual in-state rivalry game between the University of Virginia Cavaliers and the Virginia Tech Hokies.

Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. The game is being broadcast on ABC-TV.

Editor Chris Graham will be live in the press box providing score updates, observations, commentary and analysis.

Join in with your own thoughts on the game.

Live Blog - UVa. vs. UNC

The AFP will be courtside for tonight’s men’s basketball game between UVa. and #5 North Carolina.
The game is set for a 9 p.m. tip. It is being broadcast nationally on ESPN.
AFP editor Chris Graham will be in the John Paul Jones Arena and will be blogging live with commentary and analysis from the game.
Please join in with your thoughts and observations.

Tigers rally, hold off Cavs, 58-56

A 14-2 run gave Virginia a 56-52 lead and had the Cavs in the driver’s seat. And then they couldn’t finish the deal.
“I’m obviously disappointed, particularly with our inability to play a game from start to finish that we prepared to play,” said UVa. coach Dave Leitao, whose Cavs could not score in the final 2:30 en route to a disappointing 58-56 loss to Auburn in front of 11,070 at the John Paul Jones Arena on Saturday. Read more

Groh, or no Groh?

It appears at this point that at least one and maybe both Grohs will be back in Charlottesville next fall.
Should they be? Or should the University of Virginia go in a new direction - either by forcing Mike Groh out as offensive coordinator or Al Groh out as head coach?
What do you think?

The case for Groh Must Go

Notre Dame is about to begin its third coaching search in eight years after going only 54-42 and enduring three losing seasons in that span from Bob Davie to Ty Willingham to the now-embattled Charlie Weis. And Auburn is thinking about replacing Tommy Tuberville, who has gone 71-30 the past eight and stumbled only this year, going 5-7 after a 9-4 2007 that had the Tigers in the top 15 in the final national polls. And then there’s Phillip Fulmer, 68-34 at Tennessee since 2001, with two losing seasons in that period, but a national title in 1998 and a 152-52 record overall, including 98-34 in SEC play, who is already out of a job.
And you still think Al Groh, 56-44 in eight years at Virginia, with three losing seasons at a school that hadn’t had a losing season in 15 years before his arrival, shouldn’t be on the hot seat? Read more

Stop the Presses | Not looking forward to the rivalry game

AFP editor and UVa. alum Chris Graham can see the writing on the wall. Another big loss in the big game looms for his beloved ‘Hoos. How will he cope? Length: 2:05. Read more

Podcast | Groh talks about Clemson, future

Clemson ended Virginia’s faint ACC title-game hopes on Saturday with a 13-3 win in Charlottesville. AFP editor Chris Graham reports on the postgame with audio from UVa. coach Al Groh’s press conference on Clemson and the future of the Virginia football program. Length: 19:16. Read more

Cavs hold on for win in opener

If Virginia coach Dave Leitao needed something to get his attention on his season-opener, he got it Friday night. “Obviously it was a little bit of a wakeup call,” Leitao said of the 111-103 win posted by his Sunday opponent, VMI, over national power Kentucky in Rupp Arena. Two Saturday practices and a couple of lineup changes later, and the Cavs still got all they could handle from the Keydets in a 107-97 win Sunday afternoon in the John Paul Jones Arena that wasn’t settled until the final minute. Read more

Live blog | UVa.-VMI Live Blog

We are live at the John Paul Jones Arena in Charlottesville for the 2008-2009 men’s basketball season opener between the University of Virginia and Virginia Military Institute. Read more

Podcast | Dave Leitao talks about his ‘Hoos

The ‘08-’09 UVa. men’s basketball team is heading into uncharted territory with star point guard Sean Singletary now in the NBA. Virginia coach Dave Leitao discusses his new-look ‘Hoos on the eve of their Sunday season opener against VMI. Commentary and analysis from AFP editor Chris Graham. Length: 10:18. Read more

College Football Saturday (And Thursday!)

College Football Saturday begins with a preview of the Thursday-night national-TV matchup between Virginia Tech and Maryland and continues with a look at Saturday’s UVa.-Wake Forest game in Winston-Salem. Hear from the coaches and from AFP editor Chris Graham with commentary and analysis. Length: 10:11. Read more

Missed opportunities doom Cavs

Most of the second half was played on Miami’s side of the 50. When the ‘Canes finally got on the plus side of the field, they made things happen.
“Unbelievable,” UM coach Randy Shannon said after his team’s improbable 24-17 come-from-behind win at UVa. on Saturday in Charlottesville, in a game that the Cavs seemed to control throughout. Read more

College Football: UVa.-Miami Live Blog!

We are live at Scott Stadium for today’s game between the Virginia Cavaliers and the Miami Hurricanes.

The game is being broadcast in the Valley on NBC-29 at noon.

AFP editor Chris Graham will be reporting live from the press box. Feel free to join in the fun!

College Football: Can Cavs keep momentum going forward?

Story by Chris Graham
freepress2@ntelos.net

You hate to think that getting the doors blown off by the perennial league doormat was something that had to happen to get you where you are today. But when you’re Virginia, and you’ve run the table since losing 31-3 at Duke a month ago and are now sitting in first place in the ACC Coastal, you have to think, you know, maybe, just maybe …

“It was probably a more sense of players lacking confidence in themselves. I mean, there were some players who had never been in games before and no matter what any of us did for the first time, we were waiting for the first success. We are all reinforced by the first success. And when it comes, we feel a little bit better about the next time we attempt it,” UVa. coach Al Groh said of his Cavaliers (5-3, 3-1 ACC), who had been outscored by an average of 42-7 by its first three I-A opponents before its current four-game winning streak against two ranked teams that has seen the ‘Hoos outpacing opponents by a roughly 27-13 clip.

Read more

Webcast: An expanded College Football Saturday!

Today’s College Football Saturday includes more coachspeak.

- We talk with Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer and Florida State coach Bobby Bowden about the Hokies-’Noles battle in Tallahassee.

- UVa. coach Al Groh and Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson preview the ‘Hoos-Jackets showdown in Hotlanta.

- And JMU coach Mickey Matthews and Villanova coach Andy Talley get us ready for the CAA brawl upcoming in Philly.

Show Length: 17:15

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College Football: Virginia storms back in final moments, stuns UNC, 16-13

Story by Chris Graham
freepress2@ntelos.net

Al Groh’s ‘Hoos won five times in 2007 by one or two points. None was as dramatic as Saturday night.

“I’m happy for them that they got a chance to celebrate the way they did,” Groh said after his team’s improbable 16-13 win over 18th-ranked North Carolina that Virginia did not lead until the final play of the game.

Trailing 7-0 at the half after posting only three first downs and 59 yards on offense through two quarters, UVa. was down 10-3 with 2:22 to go in the game after a 40-yard Casey Barth field goal capped a backbreaking 15-play, 69-yard UNC drive that ate up 7:49 off the fourth-quarter clock and left Cavs’ quarterback Marc Verica with one timeout and a lot of real estate to force overtime.

Read more

Webcast: College Football Saturday

… And we begin with a team that has a bye this coming Saturday, James Madison, but the top-ranked Dukes played the game of the year last Saturday in beating #5 Richmond 38-31. We talk with JMU coach Mickey Matthews and the star of the game and maybe the season, kick returner Scotty McGee, who clinched the win with a 69-yard punt return TD with one second remaining. We also talk with Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer about the Hokies’ game at Boston College coming up this weekend and UVa. coach Al Groh about the Saturday test against #18 UNC.

Show Length: 27:22

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College Football: Can it get any worse for UVa. fans?

Column by Scott German

For those loyal Virginia fans that made the trip to Connecticut two weekends ago and watched in dismay as the Cavaliers were mauled by the Huskies 45-10, and then headed south to the Tar hell state yesterday to watch the same outcome in Durham, I have a bridge for sale I’d enjoy speaking to you about.

Fueled by a swarming defense that forced six turnovers the Duke Blue Devils completely destroyed Virginia 31-3, and in the process earned their first Atlantic Coast Conference win since 2004. Twenty-five straight conference defeats, and it all came to a grinding halt Saturday in ancient Wallace Wade Stadium against what appeared to be a completely uninspired Cavalier football team.

Read more

Leitao looks ahead to ‘08-’09

Story by Chris Graham
sportsdom@ntelos.net

Listen to today’s “SportsDominion Show,” featuring an interview with UVa. basketball coach Dave Leitao. Show Length: 11:20.

[audio http://thenewdominion.podshowcreator.com/mediaserver/enclosureRedirect.mp3?item_id=9E1F4E2C27294F648D5F9043EF9FF3CC]

Eleventh in scoring defense. Eleventh in field-goal-percentage defense. Eleventh in three-point-percentage defense.

Eleventh in steals. Twelth in blocked shots.

It’s hard to win when you can’t stop the other team from scoring.

This message was reinforced to Virginia basketball coach Dave Leitao this season.

And it will be a focal point for Leitao and his staff in the offseason.

“From this point where we’re at right now until school gets out after final exams, we can still have some semblance of organized not necessarily full-out practice, but organized basketball with coaching instruction. So obviously we’ll use that time judiciously so that we can make sure that we start the process of what I had said in getting our guys to refocus on what truly is important in terms of winning,” Leitao said today in a teleconference interview with reporters. Read more