ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, November 17, 1996 TAG: 9611180126
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
THE CAVALIERS pull off one of the most improbable comebacks in their history.
Virginia was finished. For the day, for the season, for the postseason. In fact, it was starting to get ugly late Saturday afternoon at Scott Stadium.
North Carolina, bidding for its first football victory in Charlottesville since 1981, was ahead by two touchdowns and had just returned an interception to the UVa 10-yard line.
The Tar Heels were headed for the Bowl Alliance and an $8-million payday - ``I can give you eight million reasons why North Carolina will beat Virginia,'' ESPN analyst Lee Corso had said - and Virginia was in full November swoon.
But, this was Carolina-Virginia and strange things tend to happen when the Tar Heels come north of the border, though none stranger than what transpired Saturday.
The No. 24 Cavaliers, who had scored one touchdown in the previous nine quarters, saw their fortunes turn on a 95-yard Antwan Harris interception return and rallied to beat No.6 Carolina 20-17 on a Rafael Garcia field goal with 39 seconds left.
``There were some tears in there,'' coach George Welsh said of a jubilant Cavaliers locker room. ``I told 'em that was one of the few times I've been close to tears in my career in 34 years.''
It was the first time since 1991 that Virginia (7-3 overall, 5-3 ACC) has won its final home game and it took the greatest fourth-quarter comeback in the program's history, according to preliminary research. Fans were streaming toward the exits before Harris' interception.
Obviously, word traveled fast, however, because the stands were once again full for the closing minutes and, if the UVa students were unable to topple the high-tech, Day-Glo goalposts, it wasn't for a lack of effort.
There have been other moments like this. Just last year, UVa handed then-No. 2 Florida State its first ACC loss, 33-28, but the Cavaliers led for most of that game and came within inches of blowing the win at the end.
``Today, we were down,'' Virginia co-captain Todd White said, ``and, just about out.''
However, that was through no fault of the Cavaliers' defense, which had seven sacks - four by senior linebacker Jamie Sharper - and held the Tar Heels to a season-low 165 yards in total offense.
UVa had six sacks in the first half alone, but, the pendulum seemingly had swung the other way when the Tar Heels drove 80 yards in 17 plays on their second possession of the second half.
Chris Keldorf's 7-yard touchdown pass put the Tar Heels ahead 10-3 with 5:31 remaining in the third quarter, and, less than two minutes later, Carolina made it 17-3 on an interception and 51-yard return for a touchdown by Dre Bly.
It was one of two interceptions for Bly, a redshirt freshman from Chesapeake, whose first pickoff had tied the ACC record of 10 interceptions in a season set by Bob Sullivan of Maryland in 1965.
If the Tar Heels (8-2, 5-2) could score on an interception return by a Virginian, the Cavaliers might say it was justice that Virginia scored on an interception return by a North Carolinian.
Two plays after Carolina linebacker Brian Simmons had returned an interception to the Cavalier 10, Harris, a true freshman from Raleigh, N.C., anticipated a slant pattern to Octavus Barnes.
``I didn't even know [Harris] was in the game,'' said Welsh, who leaves the defensive substitutions to coordinator Rick Lantz.
Welsh, on the other hand, retains final say over his quarterbacks. After Harris' return made it 17-10 with 10:02 left, North Carolina went three and out and UVa starting quarterback Tim Sherman trotted back on the field with 8:13 remaining.
Sherman had left the game, with no promise of return, after Bly's second interception. Aaron Brooks was no better, yielding two interceptions of his own, although he did make a touchdown-saving tackle on Simmons' return.
``I wanted to get the experience back in,'' Welsh said. ``Maybe I shouldn't have taken him out. I didn't take him out for the interception. We just weren't moving the ball and Brooks had a great week of practice.''
Sherman scrambled nine yards on the first play after his return and twice converted fourth-down plays, the first on a broken play, before scoring on a 7-yard run that enabled the Cavaliers to make it 17-17 with 3:07 left.
After another defensive stand, Sherman delivered again. His 41-yard pass to Germane Crowell, who outleaped Omar Brown and fellow Carolina defensive back Robert Williams, put Virginia at the Tar Heels' 15 with 1:47 left.
``We finally made a play,'' offensive coordinator Tom O'Brien said. ``We kept throwing the ball up till we caught it. It's a great tribute to Tim. He had some adversity, but, when he came back in, he led the team as well as he's ever done it.''
After working the team into the middle of the field, Sherman had one more big play left. He caught Dillon Taylor's snap at shoulder level and cleanly placed it on the turf for Garcia's final kick.
``It might have looked high but, from my perspective, that's nothing I can't handle,'' said Sherman, who was holding an ice pack to his right wrist, but had nothing but compliments for an offensive line that held Carolina without a sack.
The victory extended the Cavaliers' streak of seasons with at least seven victories to 10 and clinched no worse than a third-place tie in the ACC. Virginia has beaten only one team, Florida State, ranked higher than the Tar Heels.
``If you want me to be honest, I will say I am absolutely sick,'' said UNC coach Mack Brown, who is 2-7 against Virginia during his tenure. ``You know, I don't sleep till Tuesday after any game. This one, if I'm not careful, might last a little longer.'' see microfilm for box score
LENGTH: Long : 112 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: 1. DON PETERSEN STAFF Virginia defender Jamie Sharperby CNB(33) takes down UNC quarterback Chris Keldorf late in the second
quarter. color
2. DON PETERSEN STAFF UVa receiver Germane Crowell (center) wrests
the ball away from UNC defender Omar Brown (left) for a 41-yard gain
that set up Virginia's game-winning field goal. color