To play or not to play—that is the question.
After too many games against Akron and Richmond, the Virginia Cavaliers have decided it may be time to upgrade their out-of-conference football schedule.
This move will begin a little less than two months from now when Virginia takes on the USC Trojans.
Even though fans may not hold out much hope for an upset win, you can be assured Scott Stadium will be sold out and rocking with the chance of seeing once and for all how the Cavaliers stack up against one of the top teams in the country.
It is the kind of matchup Virginia fans love to see.
You cannot blame the Virginia athletic department for looking for top 25 teams to bring to Charlottesville.
However, apparently you can blame them for their latest pick.
While this has yet to be confirmed, there is a strong indication that Virginia will be looking to set up a series against the West Virginia Mountaineers in the near future.
The boys from Morgantown, as you may recall, were just one game away from playing in the national championship before an improbable 13-9 loss at home in the season finale against Pittsburgh.
After the news broke of Rich Rodriguez’s departure to coach at Michigan, West Virginia was able to rebound and win convincingly against the third-ranked Oklahoma Sooners, 48-28, in their BCS bowl with veteran Bill Stewart at the helm.
The Mountaineers last played the Cavaliers in the 2002 Continental Tire Bowl, a 48-22 thrashing by Virginia, which led to heightened optimism for the up and coming ACC team which had finished in a tie for second after being picked next to last by the preseason ACC media.
However, the fallout from that game has been two teams going in different directions.
Despite the loss, West Virginia has gone 49-14 since that game, including 33 wins the last three seasons. The Cavaliers have gone 36-25 since that big win.
That game also marked the death of the Virginia pep band. A halftime routine spoofing “The Bachelor” and the “Real Life Beverly Hills” raised the ire of West Virginia fans. It even resulted in West Virginia Governor Bob Wise condemning their actions and led to the rise of an official Virginia marching band for the first time in school history.
Obviously the two schools are not big fans of one another, but Athletic Director Craig Littlepage could never have imagined the resentment most Virginia fans appear to have towards this proposed match up.
Just a quick glance at Virginia’s fan site The Sabre shows the football board simply exploding over whether the Cavaliers should play West Virginia.
The excuses seem to be plentiful, but the fact that even the mentioning of a potential contract causes such fervor demonstrates why this series should happen.
Teams do fans a disservice by scheduling weak out-of-conference opponents. There is no buzz generated by the fans, and that trickles down to the players. They play at a very lethargic level, and everyone is left with a disheartening, boring game that may have done more harm than good.
If you want to impress the national pollsters, go out there and play someone worthy of getting attention.
The ACC has certainly become an open race the last few years, as evidenced by Wake Forest’s shocking run just two years ago.
The Cavaliers have had great talent under the Al Groh era, but they have struggled against the top teams in the conference.
That is because Virginia simply had not prepared itself by scheduling opponents that matched the speed and athleticism of Virginia Tech or Florida State.
If the Cavaliers truly want to compete for the ACC title, why not take the risk?
West Virginia may not have the same prestige as USC, but they certainly feature a great deal of skill and athleticism.
Even though the Big East gets a lot of grief for its lack of depth and quality teams, the ACC is the conference that has gone 1-9 in BCS games and winless since the expansion.
It is far better to gain experience against a high-quality team early to help you down the road. Other teams have begun to figure this out.
Texas beating Ohio State in 2005, and then Ohio State flipping the script the next year, led to a great deal of confidence and set the table for runs to the BCS title game.
Even the Cavaliers' arch rival, the Virginia Tech Hokies, have begun to stop scheduling cupcakes like William and Mary and Ohio University all the time and now bring teams like LSU and Nebraska to the schedule.
So it’s time to get off the high horse.
If Virginia wants to claim it has a great school, tradition, and fan base, then let’s prove it.
Instead of worrying about fans and safety, worry about being a good example yourself.
By doing so, Virginia and its fans can get what all teams really want: Respect.
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3 months ago
I'm not EVEN going to bother checking out "Wahoo Nation" excuses. I can just imagine that there is simply more of the same utter garbage spewed about how Morgantown isn't safe and that WVU has inferior recruiting standards, etc, etc. Why not face the FACT that the WVU football program is among the best for the budget (we don't have USC bucks!) anywhere in the land!? And when I say best I do mean on the field AND in the classroom. You can see for yourself that WVU has lead the BE since joining in All-BE Academics.
As for Morgantown, the gameday atmosphere is tremendous. Period. Not to mention that Morgantown is routinely cited as a top 5 small town.
I would also laugh at anyone suggesting that BE competition isn't in the same league as the ACC. The facts are what they are. Look at the results since "the raid". Any of the BCS conferences are tough and I think we should leave it at that.
WVU has a very proud football tradition and UVA should be very pleased to get this proposed series. WVU and UVA are both flagship institutions for their respective states. There many, many great things happening at WVU. Suck it up Wahoos. You are not in any way superior to anyone else. Deal with it.
3 months ago
SPEED KILLS AND THE EERS HAVE PLENTY TO WHIP ANY TEAM IN THE ACC...BRING ON THE CAVS ....WOULD BE A SELLOUT AT BOTH PLACES ...LETS GO MOUNTAINEERS AND THE CAVS ..THIS WOULD BE A GREAT SERIES BETWEEN TWO FINE INSTITUTIONS.
errsfanalways.
3 months ago
Good luck to the Virgina fans. I will be there with two friend. I hope USC do not kill your qb too much.
3 months ago
I have witnessed the holier than thou attitude of the wahoo fans up close and personal since I live 30 miles away. The day is long past when ANY team in Virginia can look down their noses at the Mountaineers. WVU football has passed UVA and Virginia Tech. All the excuses about bad fan behavior (been to Bleaksburg lately?) and Morgantown being hard to get to are just that.....excuses. There is a reason Va Tech dropped WVU and it's NOT because of the conference shift. They saw the writing on the wall and wanted no part of Pat White and company. WVU's mantra is simple....."we'll play you anytime, anywhere".....Bill Stewarts wish to schedule regional non-conference games is now public. We'll see if the "flagship" programs from Virginia have the guts to step up and play
3 months ago
I am not quite certain why you think WVU is such a big change in UVa's OOC scheduling. During the Groh era, home-and-home series have been signed/played with Penn State, South Carolina, Pittsburgh, Wyoming, and Syracuse. Virginia has also played at Wisconsin. Additionally, when the contracts were signed, Syracuse and Pittsburgh were both consistently in the Top 25. I believe South Carolina was also ranked when Virginia played them. Furthermore, with the recent coaching change, there is no guarantee that WVU will be ranked when the proposed games are played (beginning in 2010). This season's schedule includes eight teams that went to bowls last year. WVU may be good, but they do not seriously upgrade UVa's schedule. Most UVa fans would prefer an intersectional matchup as opposed to an across-the-border romp. And, in case there are some that might suggest Virginia is intimidated by WVU, Virginia has won three straight against them (none by fewer than 20 points, including the bowl game). Their fans also lack any resemblance of a sense of humor.
from 3 months ago
Hunter, I certainly did not mean to suggest that Virginia has never scheduled tough out of conference opponents. However, as you mentioned, some of the teams that Virginia signed like Syracuse and Pitt did not turn out to be the same challenge they had originally anticipated. WVU has gone to three straight BCS games and even though the coaching change may bring about a different result I think it is a risk worth taking. West Virginia plays a very different style and their speed is something none of those teams you just mentioned can match. Obviously it would be wonderful to have an intersectional matchup but this is what Virginia fans are being offered and I think they should welcome it. UConn is a vastly underrated but they do not create the same buzz to fans and the media as this game would. Therefore, I think WVU is a good combination of talent and buzz.
from 3 months ago
Penn St, South Carolina, Pitt, Wyoming, or Syracuse? Multiple choice: Which of these schools have been ranked in the final top ten each of the last three years? Answer: None of the above. It is a "serious upgrade" when you play a top ten school. Don't ever put Wyoming in the same sentence with WVU.
3 months ago
West Virginia has become a perrenial power, easily better than any ACC school in recent years. They are also a rapidly rising academic and research school. The Big East has increased its recruitment standards, and teams no longer accept non-qualifiers. The Mountaineers will be at least a match for the Wahoos.
3 months ago
I live in Northern Virginia. Does UVA have a football team?
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