After a dominating win on the road against a struggling North Carolina team, the Virginia Cavaliers (4-1, 3-0) will face the Clemson Tigers (3-2, 1-1 ACC) in a critical conference matchup. The Tigers are coming off a disappointing showing against Maryland (a 21-7 loss) in College Park, and they will be looking to strike back after suffering two straight losses to Virginia.
The Tigers have plenty of talent on a team that had a dominating 39-3 win over an up and coming Georgia Tech squad, and they just might provide the toughest test yet for the Cavaliers. Head coach Tommy Bowden has had a tough time living up to expectations in his tenure as a coach, and a victory Saturday could be a big step in finally reaching those expectations. Quarterback Charlie Whitehurst has become the leader that Bowden has coveted the last couple of seasons.
Whitehurst made his college debut against Virginia in Scott Stadium last season, and has never let go of the position. For the rest of the season, the young QB had a chance to show his stuff, and was set as the quarterback for the Tigers for the rest of his career. So far this season he hasn’t disappointed, as he ranks second in the ACC in passing yardage and third in the ACC in quarterback efficiency.
In his first five games, Whitehurst has thrown 10 touchdowns compared to only five interceptions, completing 63 percent of his passes for 1,368 yards. While the numbers certainly have been impressive through the air, Whitehurst also has the ability to move the ball on the ground. While he doesn’t look like the most mobile of signal callers, he has been able to gain 100 yards on the ground.
Unfortunately for the Tigers, his offensive line has given up 12 sacks this season, which has lowered his net gain to only five yards. Nonetheless, Whitehurst has the total package and will be a tough man to stop Saturday in Death Valley.
“I think this guy has a chance to be the next star in the league,” Virginia head coach Al Groh said at the beginning of the week. “He throws a really good deep ball.”
With that said, there is a small chance that Whitehurst will be unavailable for Saturday’s game. He injured his left ankle late in last Saturday’s game against Maryland, and his status will be a game-time decision. Chances are good that Whitehurst will find a way to play, especially considering the magnitude of the game.
“We’ve got to be ready to play when we go down there,” senior corner Muffin Curry said. “They have a good quarterback just like last week (against UNC) and we have to be ready to take him on.”
While Whitehurst has had a solid season so far in 2003, it has come without the benefit of a rushing game. Clemson would be at the bottom of the ACC if not for the Tar Heels and their inept running game that the Cavaliers shut down last week. With Yusef Kelly injured, Duane Coleman has taken over the rushing duties, and he has performed admirably, rushing for 259 yards on 59 carries (4.4 ypc) so far this season.
On the whole, however, Clemson rushers have only averaged 2.9 yards a carry, which is a number they must improve going up against Virginia. Chances are good that Kelly makes his return this weekend, which will certainly boost the running game, but even with the addition of Kelly, the Tigers will need their offensive line to step up big and open some holes.
The offensive line is a big, experienced group that is led by fifth year seniors William Henry and Gregory Walker. Three of Clemson’s offensive linemen weight in at over 300 pounds, and they all have the ability to cause some problems for Virginia’s front seven. How the Tiger O-Line holds up will play a big part in Saturday’s game. If they are able to give Whitehurst, or whoever starts, enough time to stand in the pocket, he will have a field day throwing to his trio of wide receivers.
Fifth year senior Kevin Youngblood and junior Airese Currie have given opposing secondaries plenty of fits this season, as both players are ranked in the Top 5 of the ACC’s leading receivers. When you add in flanker Justin Hamilton , who is third in the league in receiving yards a game, the Tigers have a terrific set of wide receivers that can wreak havoc on opposing secondaries.
“The three wide receivers are quite a trio,” Virginia head coach Al Groh said of the group. “They’ve got some size. They are hard to deal with.”
The three have combined to haul in 83 catches for 1,122 yards and seven touchdowns this season, which makes them far and away the best trio of wide receivers in the ACC this season. The only problem is that Whitehurst has not thrown more than 10 completions to any other player this season. Virginia will need to shut down the group of wide receivers if they hope to escape Death Valley unscathed.
While the Clemson offense has certainly played well so far this season, it is the defense that has carried the team over the course of five games. On the whole, the Tigers rank third in the ACC in defense, only giving up 316 yards per game and more importantly, only 17 points a game, which ranks fourth in the ACC.
The success on defense all starts with the Clemson secondary, which includes shutdown corners Justin Miller and Toure Francis. While the duo have no interceptions this season – the team only has two all year – Miller and Francis have been able to shut down the wide receivers in their opponents’ passing game. Miller has six passes defended on the season, while Francis has broken up four balls thrown his way.
Safeties Jaamal Fudge and Travis Pugh have also contributed to the third best pass defense in the league, as both have come up with the team’s lone interceptions. The two young guns also rank third and fourth on the team in tackles, so both players are well versed in finding the ball on the field.
“It’s going to be a tough test,” senior quarterback Matt Schaub said of going up against the Clemson secondary. “We are going to have to play well again this week if we are going to have a chance at a win down there.”
While every member of the Tigers’ secondary has played extremely well this season, junior linebacker Leroy Hill has played even better. The young man has astounding numbers this season as he leads the team in tackles, tackles for loss, sacks and fumble recovers. Hill always seems to find himself in the opponent’s backfield, as he has come up with 12 tackles for loss and four sacks on the season. Hill must have another big game against a solid Virginia offensive line if he wants the defense to play as well as it has so far.
Surrounding Hill at the linebacker positions are whip linebacker Eric Sampson and John Leake. While Hill leads the team in tackles, Leake is not that far behind, as he checks in with 52 tackles on the season, five of which have resulted in losses. Sampson, who is a junior, has also stepped up his role this season and impressed the Clemson coaches.
The big guys in the trenches have certainly helped in Clemson’s pass defense as well, as they have been able to get to the quarterback frequently. The four starters on the defensive line have combined for six sacks and eleven tackles for loss. The D-Line is an experienced group that consists of two juniors and two seniors.
Defensive ends Maurice Fountain (6-4, 250 pounds) and J.J. Howard (6-3, 245 pounds) are not the biggest of defensive linemen, but they have used their tremendous speed rush to get to the quarterback and running backs. On the inside big men Donnel Washington (6-6, 320 pounds) and DeJuan Polk (6-2, 285 pounds) have been able to eat up the middle of opponents’ offensive lines.
While the group has certainly been impressive in getting to the quarterback, they have had a tougher time defending the run. Five games into the season, Clemson ranks fifth in the league in rush defense, and they will have their hands full against the best rushing attack the ACC has to offer in Wali Lundy and the Cavaliers. However, Virginia head coach Al Groh knows that the Clemson front will be tough to take on.
“They’ve got the most athletic front line that we’ve seen this year,” Groh said of their defense. “They [also] have the best corner we’ve seen this year.”
The Low Down
When a team goes down to face a “sea of orange” in Death Valley, they are happy to take a win no matter how they get it. This year’s Clemson squad has plenty of talent and firepower to give the Cavaliers a very tough game. If the contest were to be played in Charlottesville it would certainly be easy to see a comfortable win for the Cavaliers. As it is, the game is in Death Valley, which has been none too kind to the Cavaliers, excluding their improbable win there two seasons ago.
This is a critical game early in the ACC season for both of these teams, as Clemson can move to the top of the standings with a win, while Virginia could start off their tough run of games with a bang. A loss would certainly hurt the Cavaliers more, as it would be tough to make a title run with the schedule they have the rest of the way in the ACC.
It seems as though the game, as is true with most football games, will be won and lost in the trenches. Both teams have very good secondaries that can shut the other team down if the front seven helps out. Whichever defense can get to the opposing quarterback on Saturday will most likely come out the winner, which means that Virginia must establish its league-best rushing attack early to take some pressure off of Matt Schaub.
Editors Note: Be sure to check out the links below for game notes, weather info, internet radio broadcast link, roster card, depth chart and more!
