Cavalier Call-in Highlights, 10/20/03

From the office of Head Coach Al Groh, Mac McDonald welcomed the listeners and kicked off the show by asking Coach
Groh about the start of this week’s practice. Groh said that they still have a long ways to go but that the team was
upbeat and ready to move on.

Mac said that he had the chance to study the second half of the Florida State game and commented that there were
opportunities that the team just missed on. Groh then added that in Miami’s win over Florida State, they blocked a
punt for a touchdown and intercepted a pass for a touchdown as part of their 22 points. He then pointed out that UVa
came very close to blocking a punt in the end zone and nearly intercepted a pass that could have resulted in a
touchdown. “It’s these type of game changing plays that a team must make to win,” he said.

John from Roanoke got in the first call of the night, and he commented about how good the crowd was for the FSU
game and wanted to ask Coach Groh if they had ever thought about awarding helmet stickers for good plays. Groh said that
he preferred the helmets plain, but that he had asked his wife about it before, so it is something they have thought
about.

Groh then went on to discuss John’s comment about the crowd and he praised the crowd and especially the students
for their turnout. He said that when they opened the student gates that the students were racing down the Hill and down
the steps to get the best spots to watch the game.

Groh then added that there were many very good recruits at the game and that they all commented about how great the
student body and crowd were. Groh said that one of the recruits indicated to the staff afterward that he was making a
point to visit schools during the season so that he could compare the crowds at games, and when Groh asked him how
Virginia compared to the SEC schools that he had already been to, he told Groh that this was great.

Mac then took the time to point out that Alvin Pearman’s 16 receptions set a new school record.

“The President of Wilk Hall,” Darren from Winchester was the next caller and he thanked Mac for
stopping by the Wilk Hall tailgate, thanked Groh for recognizing the students and fans, and wanted to know if we could
expect to see more of the freshman wide receivers. Groh responded by noting that Deyon Williams and Fontel Mines are in
the active rotation now, and as time goes by they will get more opportunities during the games.

Dave from Richmond checked in next, and he started out by saying that he would never boo a Cavalier player, and
that he wanted to thank the players for what they do. Groh immediately thanked him for making this statement and said
that is not something he would have brought up right after complimenting the crowd on how good they were, but he asked
that fans put themselves in the place of one of the players and imagine how they would feel to be booed by the home
crowd. Dave said if you want to boo, then boo the ref.

Dave’s question was about the defense tiring out near the end of the game and if there was anything that could be
done about it. Groh said that one of the biggest factors is increasing the time that the offense has the ball, and that
sometimes they call plays on offense to try to maximize the amount of time that the drive consumes. He then pointed out
that the FSU defensive line rotated every three plays during parts of the game and that they were able to do this due to
stockpiled talent and that the Cavaliers are working to get to the same point. Groh reported that FSU used ten defensive
linemen and six linebackers in the game Saturday.

Coming back from a commercial break, they played the highlight of Heath Miller’s touchdown catch and Mac took the
opportunity to point out that with that catch, Heath set a new ACC record for career touchdown catches by a tight end in
just a year and a half of action.

Nathan from Richmond was the next caller, and he began by commenting that this was the first game versus FSU that
was competitive since the win in 1995. Groh said that he doesn’t want to become complacent, but that there certainly
were positives during this game.

Nathan then asked Groh what he thought were the missing pieces that would allow Virginia to continue to be
competitive against Florida State in the future. Groh said that “raw speed at the wide receiver and secondary
positions” were the areas where Florida State had the biggest advantage over other teams, and that they are working
to improve in these areas.

Jay in Richmond asked Groh to switch back to the gray sweatshirt. Groh said that he probably would and the reason
he had gone away from it was because he was asking the fans to wear orange so he thought he should also.

Jay then wanted to know if there was one player who had surprised Groh with their performance so far this year. Groh
said that it isn’t really a surprise to him, but Jamaine Winborne has really stepped up his play this year. He said
that Jamaine was forced go out and start at cornerback a few years ago with little or no experience at the position and
no one ahead of him in the system to look up to and learn from. Groh said he has really come into his own as a
cornerback and is having a very good year.

Mac asked Coach if he wanted to make Jamaine his BB&T Student Athlete of the Week and Groh agreed that he would
be a good choice. He said that Winborne had a good game against the Seminoles and did a good job of preventing the FSU
wide receivers from getting the deep pass.

Bob from Lynchburg wanted to know why there has been a decrease in the running game in the last two weeks, who is
responsible for the offensive play calling, and whether Groh might look at putting in a new punter after last week. Groh
said that the reduction in the running game is due to the fact that against Clemson, the Tigers did a very good job of
taking away the run and against Florida State, they determined that the best way to achieve ball movement was by
throwing the ball. He noted that Miami had difficulty running the ball against the FSU defense the week before and that
they wanted to reduce the chances of being in second and long situations. Groh also said that they realize there is a
problem in the kicking game, and they are always looking for the best players at each position.

In terms of play calling Groh noted that Coaches Ron Prince and Mike Groh work together in the booth, with Prince
calling the main sequence of plays and most of the passing plays being called by Groh, and that Al offers his input from
the sideline from time to time. He said that during the week they draw up the plan and script a lot of the early plays
so most of the play calling early in the game is predetermined.

Mac informed the listeners that tickets for this week’s Homecoming game against Troy State are still available for
the 3:00 PM game.

Brad from Charlottesville called in next and wanted to know if Tony Franklin’s role would be expanded. Groh
said that Tony is doing a good job so far in his positions as backup cornerback, extra defensive back in the
“Dime” package and on special teams. He added that Tony is being worked into the rotation much like some of
the young players before him were like Elton Brown and Brad Butler. Brad’s second question was why Groh feels that
people wearing neckties don’t cheer as loud as people who don’t. Groh said maybe it was a “Pavlov
identification with the necktie.”

Jermaine from Grafton wanted to know if Groh is recruiting players to be game breakers on special teams like Tony
Franklin. Groh said that they don’t recruit players solely for special teams, but that they have identified players
who can be special teams standouts in addition to their regular positions on offense and defense. He pointed out that
Tony Franklin was a standout running back in high school.

Mac commented that if he could run, he would want to return kickoffs, because you have the potential for the
“home run” on every play. Groh asked him if he was tough enough and sure about that, and said he has guys that
can run that don’t want to return kicks. Mac went on to cite Ryan Sawyer as one of the team’s best special teams
players, and Groh pointed out that probably the team’s two best special teams players are the starting wide receivers,
Ryan Sawyer and Ottowa Anderson.

Tommy in Roanoke called in and wanted to thank Coach Groh for taking time to stop and talk to him Saturday during
a big game. Tommy asked about Kenneth Tynes and whether he is back with the team. Groh said that he is back with the
team and that he is working out with the defensive backs.

The Red Zone Call of the Week segment was next, and for the first time this year they highlighted a play that didn’t
result in a touchdown. This week’s highlight was the fourth down pass to Brandon Isaiah that set up the Heath Miller
touchdown pass. It was a play fake to Pearman that even faked out Mac on the radio call, and Groh commented that Matt
Shaub and Alvin Pearman did a great job on the fake and Isaiah did a great job of selling the block to his man and
getting open.

Brent from Charlottesville wanted to know what the thought process was on the two fourth down situations in the
fourth quarter, when they elected to punt instead of going for the first down. Groh said that they were playing the
field position game and that they didn’t want to put the defense in a bad field position situation, since they had
been on the field for a long time already. He said he thought they still had time for a defensive stop to let the
offense get the ball back.

Tyler in Charlottesville said on several occasions during the FSU game it looked like the FSU defenders hit the
UVA receivers before the ball got there and he wanted to get Groh’s feeling about that. Groh said “there were a
couple pretty tight plays” but he tries not to complain, because if you do “you become a whiner.” He
added that “It looks like instead of trying to win a game you’re begging for a call.” Groh went on to say
that if there is a call that he feels is wrong, particularly pertaining to the ball, that he will let the official know
about it.

Mac asked about the interference call against Muffin Curry and said he thought Muffin played it pretty well. Groh
said “Actually Mac, one of these days it will be worth the fine to say what I think.”

In the Look Ahead to Next Week segment, Groh noted that Troy State was a 1-AA championship caliber team when they
decided to make the jump to 1-A. He pointed out that they have been very aggressive in their scheduling by playing some
very good 1-A teams, and Groh said that he hopes they will find the Cavaliers to be a lot like those other teams. He
also requested that the fans continue to come out and support the team as they have been doing in the first three home
games.

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Cavalier Call-In can be heard on the Virginia Sports Network every Monday at 7:06PM EST throughout the season. Please turn to www.virginiasports.com for affiliate stations or listen via their live online broadcast. Click here to listen to their archived broadcasts or view the schedule for future shows.