Virginia offense grows teeth

If Saturday’s spring fling was any indication, the days of Virginia’s offense being the caboose of NCAA statistical data are over.

New offensive coordinator Gregg Brandon gave us a taste of what Cavalier football is going to look like come September and the taste offered a sweet glimpse into the future.

Yes, Al Groh’s defense was impressive and so were Ron Prince’s special teams, but in today’s world, most eyes are on the offense in college football. Saturday, there was plenty to see.

Options under center

Six quarterbacks rotated series in the scrimmage. Fans focused on Vic Hall, who finished the season with a spectacular showing against archrival Virginia Tech out of UVa’s “Hoocat” formation. They wanted to see if the 5-foot-9 QB could throw as well as he could run.

They focused on Jameel Sewell, who started as Virginia’s quarterback for nearly two years before having to sit out last season with academic issues. Was he rusty? Was he better? More mature?

Fans were curious about Marc Verica, who received baptism by fire last season when he became the lone option at quarterback. Had he eliminated his penchant for throwing interceptions?

Then there were Riko Smalls and Kyle McCartin, who got some action.

All of the quarterbacks were impressive — but, hey, this was a spring game.

The five QBs combined to completed 35 of 53 passes for 337 yards and a TD, with three interceptions out of the new, no-huddle, spread offense brought to Wahoo Country by Brandon, who once brainstormed the scheme along with Urban Meyer at Bowling Green.

Dual threats

While the passes were impressive, what further impressed this columnist was the scrambling ability of those players, particularly Sewell and Hall, who were both adept at running the ball, which is an integral part of Gregg’s offense.

Because it’s spring, there were quick whistles on the quarterbacks, who all wore orange jerseys and were off limits to the hitting portion of the game. It has been that way all spring.

Any time a defender came close to a quarterback, the action was stopped even though it was clear there was no “touch sack,” that prevented the QBs from picking up major yardage.

Virginia media relations director Jim Daves jokingly credited a couple of the sacks to Claude Rains, an award-winning English actor whose career spanned 47 years, but was most remembered for his role in the original “Invisible Man.”

“It was one of the worst feelings when I first walked into the locker room and saw I had an orange jersey,” Sewell said. “I kinda went, ‘Oh my gosh. I can’t believe this ... orange jerseys again.’”

However, it was evident to the estimated 7,900 fans that no matter who lines up at quarterback this fall, they should bring another dimension to Virginia’s offense.

“The defense isn’t set up to keep the quarterback from scrambling,” Sewell said. “When you have someone who can scramble it makes a big difference.”

Yes, there was scrambling and some designated runs, and a little option thrown in to spice things up. You can bet there will be more designated runs when they line up for real.

Brandon wasn’t about to show much of UVa’s offense this early.

Groh said the plan is to definitely utilize the running ability of the quarterbacks, but pointed to former Oregon star Dennis Dixon as a cautionary tale.

“The upside is when a quarterback has [running] as part of his skill set, it puts them in harm’s way a lot,” Groh pointed out. “A couple of years ago with Oregon, the Dixon kid, who could run and throw, had everyone talking about a national championship. Once he got hurt, they lost three of the next four and it changed the whole team.”

As Groh explained, having two players with those diverse skills on the same team gives the coaches a higher comfort level to turn those players loose, knowing there’s another waiting in the wings should one not be able to answer the bell.

If nothing else, it appeared that the Cavs were having fun on offense.

“This offense is so much fun to play in,” said wide receiver Jared Green. “The quarterbacks fit in so well with this offense. We’ve got short stuff, we’ve got a lot of long stuff, we’ve got a lot of trickery. Today was somewhat generic, but when it’s ready, the team will be ready.”

Hall, who completed 11 of 16 passes for 98 yards, said he felt good passing the ball and said that his size has nothing to do with his downfield vision. However, he did point out that the new, wider offensive line splits should help him and others running the ball.

Groh wouldn’t commit to whether or not Virginia would use different quarterbacks for different circumstances this fall. He wouldn’t divulge whether Hall and Sewell could be on the field at the same time, but grins every time that possibility is mentioned.

Hall did mention that it has been a great advantage to him to learn the entire offense from the quarterback’s perspective.

Could this mean, he could line up at quarterback, running back, wide receiver, or as the “Hoocat?”

“As long as Vic is on the field we have a great chance of winning, no matter where he’s lined up,” said Sewell. “You could put him at left tackle.”

Not.

Even Sewell grinned after that quote.

“Hey, as long as you get the ball in [Hall’s] hands, that’s all you need,” said Sewell, who passed for 61 yards on a 7 of 11 performance.

A multitude of receivers were impressive, including redshirt freshman Javaris Brown, who caught five passes for 36 yards. In all, 11 receivers, some you’ve never heard of, hauled in passes.

It also looked like tailback Mikell Simpson was back to his old self.

He touched the ball only six times, but rushed for 64 yards on five carries and caught one short pass. He darted through the defense on a 48-yard touchdown burst that was reminiscent of his runs of 2007.

“Mikell is playing much faster than we saw him last year,” Groh said. “Whatever happened between ‘07 and ‘08, we saw someone else was living in that jersey.”

Simpson starred in ’07, literally coming out of nowhere on the depth chart and ending up with some of the most impressive performances by a back in Wahoo history. Inexplicably, last season, he was a bust from start to finish.

One of the neat things about this offense, which UVa fans will love and opponents will hate, is the ability to make adjustments leaving the defense at a disadvantage.

You’ve seen teams do this on TV and it probably has driven you crazy. The offense will be at the line of scrimmage and the offensive coaches read what the defense is giving up. Suddenly the offense looks to the sideline as the offensive coaches switch to a better play.

“It’s great,” Sewell said.

That’s exactly what happened when Verica, who completed 14 of 19 for 148 yards and a TD (one pick), backed off the original call late and dumped a short pass to converted running back Raynard Horne (now a wide receiver) for a 21-yard score.

“We’re one-third through the practices that are allowed before the first game,” Groh said. “It we make twice as much progress in the second third as we did in the first third, then that will give us a chance to be ready on Sept. 5. The groundwork has now been laid.”

Insert your own hallelujah chorus here.

Virginia’s offense is back.