Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, August 26, 1995 TAG: 9508280041
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITE|
DATELINE: ANN ARBOR, MICH. LENGTH: Medium
He's not going to let it jeopardize the rest of the Cavaliers' season.
That's why wide receiver Patrick Jeffers will be in street clothes today at noon when 17th-ranked UVa opens the season at No.14 Michigan.
Sophomore Germane Crowell will start in place of Jeffers, who has been slowed by a hamstring injury suffered at the beginning of preseason drills.
``A recurring hamstring injury, if you pull it again ... now, that's bad,'' Welsh said. ``It was tight again Monday and I said to the trainer, `It's a 12-week season and one game isn't worth it to that kid.'''
Jeffers, a fifth-year senior, had 33 receptions last year and stands 12th on the Cavaliers all-time list with 74. He has 12 touchdown catches - four more than all of UVa's other receivers and running backs combined.
``He's our best receiver [and] the most experienced,'' Welsh said. ``It's a loss, but we all go through these things. He might be able to help us, but you don't know. You might lose him for a month.''
Clearly, Welsh is looking at the long haul, which is one reason he agreed to play at Michigan, which has more victories and more home victories than any team in college football.
``I don't think we need the exposure anymore,'' said Welsh, pointing out that Virginia and Michigan are two of the eight Division I-A programs with seven or more victories in each of the past eight seasons.
``I thought it would be a good game for us because, even if we lose, a game like this will help us when we get into the conference schedule. A lot of our toughest conference games are on the road.''
Virginia visits North Carolina, North Carolina State and Clemson - three of the top contenders behind prohibitive ACC favorite Florida State. The Cavaliers play a total of seven 1994 bowl teams, including Texas on the road.
Generally speaking, Welsh's teams have benefited from a tough early test. UVa went 8-2-2 in 1984 after losing the opener to Clemson 55-0; 10-3 in 1989 after falling to Notre Dame 36-13; and 9-3 last year after a 41-17 setback at Florida State.
Although Welsh has quizzed other coaches about the secrets to a fast getaway, first impressions may not be as important to him as they are to Wolverines' head coach Lloyd Carr.
Carr was promoted from defensive coordinator May 16 when Gary Moeller was fired following an incident at a suburban Detroit restaurant, where he became loud and disorderly.
Michigan has said only that Carr will be the head coach for the 1995 season, although a strong performance by the Wolverines would enhance his chances of getting the job on a full-time basis.
``I guarantee you I am not relaxed,'' Carr said Friday at Crisler Arena, site of a luncheon attended by school officials and backers. ``I know [Friday night] I will have a thousand things going through my mind.''
The Wolverines have posted back-to-back 8-4 seasons that have been viewed with some disappointment by their fans, but they are a 71/2-point favorite to beat the Cavaliers.
``I don't think a lot of people back home think we have a chance,'' said Tiki Barber, a junior from Roanoke who will make his second career start for the Cavaliers at tailback.
Virginia's biggest victory over an intersectional opponent under Welsh was in 1989, when it came back from the loss to Notre Dame and beat 12th-ranked Penn State 14-6 in State College, Pa.
Welsh said the Cavaliers' schedule, including eight ACC opponents and archrival Virginia Tech, does not allow great flexibility. The Pigskin Classic is one of the few instances in which Division I-A football teams are allowed to play a 12th game.
The Pigskin Classic was held for five years in Anaheim, Calif., where a crowd of only 28,513 watched Ohio State defeat Fresno State 34-10 last season. More than 100,000 are expected today.
At that, it may be the first game not to sell out at 102,501-seat Michigan Stadium since 1991, a span of 20 games. School officials were attributing that to the absence of Michigan students, whose ticket package does not include the Pigskin Classic.
The biggest crowd ever to see a Virginia game was at Tennessee, where the Cavaliers beat the Vols 16-13 before 94,333 in 1980. That was before the arrival of Welsh, who turns 62 today.
``It's nice that 100,000 are coming to help me celebrate,'' said Welsh, who brought five Navy teams to Michigan Stadium between 1973-81, ``but [the birthday] will be the furthest thing from my mind.''
by CNB