Cavaliers no match for Seminoles in London’s ACC debut
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – When Virginia scored a cosmetic touchdown late Saturday against Florida State, the band struck up an altered version of Auld Lang Syne. Old acquaintance indeed. The Cavaliers’ 34-14 loss to the formerly dominant Seminoles was very much like old times before 47,096 at Scott Stadium.
Missed tackles, blown assignments, costly penalties, and ineptitude on offense were the signatures of Saturday’s ringing defeat as the Cavaliers were laid bare and exposed in coach Mike London’s Atlantic Coast Conference debut.
Virginia (2-2) was beaten in every phase. FSU (4-1) dominated the line of scrimmage, racing to a 27-0 lead in the first half. The Seminoles out-gained the Cavaliers on the ground, 256 yards to 25. They also registered six sacks against a pair of harried Virginia quarterbacks.
“It’s easy to get discouraged and throw players and coaches under the bus,” said London. “But we’re not going to do that.”
FSU scored the first four times it touched the ball. Meanwhile, Virginia mustered just one first down and 17 yards in its first four possessions. Late in the first half, when the Cavaliers finally forced the Seminoles to punt, it was hard to tell if the cheers were in jest.
“This wasn’t our team today,” said senior guard B.J. Cabbell. “We didn’t play to our full potential.”
Quarterback Christian Ponder (17 of 29, 172 yards, touchdown) and running back Jermaine Thomas (16 carries, 122 yards, 2 touchdowns) were the primary weapons for the ‘Noles.
Thomas gave FSU a 10-0 lead midway through the first period, when he turned upfield on Virginia sophomore cornerback Devin Wallace and broke free up the sideline on a 70-yard scoring sprint.
“They captured the edge a couple times,” said London. “We kind of missed some tackles.”
Botched tackles and blown opportunities were the theme for the Virginia defense. On FSU’s first possession, Wallace and junior cornerback Chase Minnefield dropped interceptions, allowing the Seminoles to sustain a drive that produced a 37-yard field goal by sophomore Dustin Hopkins.
“There were three in our hands that we dropped, and two fumbles that we should have had,” said London.
FSU expanded its lead to 17-0 on the first play of the second period, Ponder floating a 15-yard touchdown pass over Wallace and into the hands of sophomore wideout Willie Haulstead on a third-and-8 play, capping an 86-yard march.
Meanwhile, Virginia was struggling on offense, gaining 42 net yards on 27 plays and failing to convert on all seven of its third-down opportunities. Senior back Keith Payne was the only Cavalier who thrived in the first half, gaining 38 yards on five touches.
Operating against an FSU defense that leads the nation in sacks, senior quarterback Mark Verica was under siege in the half, completing 4 of 15 passes for 27 yards. The pressure came from everywhere throughout the game, as six different Seminoles registered sacks.
“We came out flat,” said Verica. “I wasn’t playing with the right tempo and the ball wasn’t coming out quick enough.”
On his first pass of the second half, Verica found junior wideout Kris Burd wide open for a 76-yard touchdown pass to give the Cavaliers’ life. But on two of Virginia’s next three possessions, Seminoles sophomore cornerback Greg Reid picked off Verica, who finished 14 of 30 for 211 yards before giving up the reigns to freshman left-hander Ross Metheny.
“The quarterback shouldn’t see the pass rush. He should be looking down the field,” said Virginia offensive coordinator Bill Lazor. “I feel like they played a great game against us. They played fast. They ran to the football and made the tackles when they got there.”
Virginia tries to regroup next week at Georgia Tech, with a more realistic opinion of itself.
“That wasn’t the type of effort indicative to the type of team that we have here,” said London. “You’re not as good as you think you are sometimes, and we’re not as bad as what people think sometime.”
