[caption id="attachment_660" align="alignright" width="300" caption="The Cavaliers became bowl eligible for the first time since 2007. Photo / Virginia Media Relations / Jim Daves"]
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Pack your bags - the 'Hoos are going bowling! It's been a long, difficult wait for avid Wahoos who haven't had a chance to see their Virginia Cavaliers participate in post-season play since the 2007 season. On Saturday, however, second year coach Mike London was able to shed a 4-year November losing streak and put together impressive back-to-back ACC road victories to give the Cavaliers their sixth win on the season. Going up against a beaten and battered Maryland Terripin squad, many were unsure what to expect from a Virginia football team that has been consistently unpredictable through 9 weeks of play this season. The Cavaliers calmed those nerves early, following a 48-yard opening kick off return by Khalek Shepherd with a 47-yard touchdown scamper by Perry Jones on the game's first play from scrimmage. Though the second quarter was marred by mistakes, Virginia was fueled by a tremendous defensive goal-line stand at the emd of the first half and rode Rodney McLeod's 3 interception performance to a 31-13 victory in College Park.
Superman Strikes Again
[caption id="attachment_661" align="alignright" width="237" caption="Perry Jones went over 1,000 all-purpose yards against the Terripins. Photo / Virginia Media Relations / Jim Daves"]
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Perry Jones continued his stellar Junior campaign, rushing for 139 yards and 2 touchdowns on the day. Jones took his first handoff 47 yards to the house on Saturday, beginning what would be a 100 yard first half performance. More importantly, Jones' ability to create running room early opened up the passing game for Mike Rocco in the second half, who took advantage of the opportunity to the tune of 110 yards and 1 touchdown on 8-of-10 passing in the third quarter. Though Perry had much less impact in the passing game compared to previous efforts, his 10 yard reception on a critical third-and-two from Virginia's own 14 resulted in a key conversion, keeping alive what would end up being a 94 yard scoring drive that would put the Cavaliers in complete control. With his performance against Maryland, Jones went over 1,000 total yards on the season (1,106). Even more impressive are the 218 yards Perry needs on the ground in the season's remaining 3 games to become Virginia's first 1,000 yard rusher since Alvin Pearman in 2004. Of course, his best chance to chip away at that mielstone will come against Duke next week in Scott Stadium.
Secondary Steps Up
[caption id="attachment_662" align="alignright" width="234" caption="Rodney 'Hot Rod' McLeod had 3 interceptions against the Terps. Photo / Virginia Media Relations / Jim Daves"]
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Friday's pre-game article spoke to the importance of Virginia's secondary in shutting down Maryland's passing game. Mission accomplished. The Cavalier defensive backfield was able to hold Maryland under 300 pass yards and generated 3 turnovers on the day, all at the account of senior safety Rodney McLeod, whose 3 interceptions were the most by a Cavalier defender since legend turned coach Anthony Poindexter did the same in 1996. First-year cornerback Demetroius Nicholson continues to progress, with his most notable play coming on a key pass break-up on a third and goal that resulted in the Terps settling for an early field goal. If there is any complaint with the secondary's play on Saturday, it would be with the two long completions allowed on third-and-nine and third-and-six in the first half - each moving the chains and contributing to a Maryland scoring drive. Virginia needs to do a better job of guarding the deep ball when they have their opponent backed into a corner.
Rocco Remains Steady
[caption id="attachment_663" align="alignright" width="248" caption="QB Mike Rocco topped 300 yards passing and tossed 2 touchdowns on the day. Photo / Virginia Media Relations / Jim Daves"]
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Hello, Mike Rocco. In his second game as a 'full-time' starter, Mike Rocco continue to impress, passing for 307 yards and 2 touchdowns on the day while involving 8 different receivers in the process. Rocco again displayed brilliant pocket presence, with no play showing it off more than his hitting Kevin Parks in perfect stride for a 34-yard touchdown pass on a pivotal third-and-four late in the first half where the Terps were brining heavy pressure. Quite frankly, Mike occo looks like a completely different quarterback than than the one we saw splitting reps with David Watford during the season's first 7 games. Since taking over full-time against Miami, Rocco has thrown for 533 yards, 4 touchdowns and just 1 interception in leading the Cavaliers to two straight ACC road victories - he had thrown 4 touchdowns to 8 interceptions in the previous 7 outings. While there is no doubt that Rocco has benefitted from a strong running game and ample time in the pocket, his ability to manage the last two football games has resulted in the Cavaliers acheiving bowl-eligibility.
Odds and Ins
[caption id="attachment_664" align="alignright" width="231" caption="Khalek Shepherd has been a surprising spark for Virginia's special teams. Photo / Virginia Media Relations / Jim Daves"]
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- How clutch has Khalek Shepherd been this season? The redshirt freshman is averaging just shy of 28 yards per kickoff return has been a breath of fresh air for UVA's struggling special teams play this season. His contributions to the Cavalier's field positon the last couple of weeks should not be overlooked.
- Virginia had two receivers (Kris Burd and Tim Smith) go over 100 yards receiving on Saturday. Yes, you read that correctly.
- It's been a year of ending streaks for the Cavaliers and now, with the nagging November and bowl streaks behind them, one has to wonder if it's too early to start thinking 'what if' when looking forward to the match up with the Hokies after Thanksgiving. I'm just saying...
- Speaking of breaking streaks, let's start with ending the 3 year slide against the Blue Devils this weekend first. Yes, I'm taking about football.
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