For the past few weeks, I have spent some of my spare time trying to figure out what went wrong with Virginia football.

From all accounts, Marc Verica is the odd man out.

Today, at the annual ACC football kickoff, the media’s preseason predictions will be announced for the 34th straight year with Virginia widely expected to be pegged to finish fifth or sixth in the Coastal Division.

Just hours after leaving the Charlottesville General District courthouse Thursday, embattled University of Virginia quarterback Peter Lalich was removed from the team — the latest in a series of legal and team woes for the Cavaliers.
“I made a mistake,” Peter Lalich said. “I’m very sorry about it.”
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In case you haven’t had the pleasure of meeting Todd Lalich, you’re missing out. He’s the last guy in the state of Virginia that would want to be in the news this week, but his hand has been forced.

“I could have sworn that I had another half sack,” Clint Sintim yelled. “I thought I actually had two.”

The hush policy will likely continue until a candidate is named publicly or emerges to take the first snap against third-ranked Southern California on August 30.

It was not the impending thunder or lightning that shortened the session, but rather Virginia’s elder statesman at quarterback, Scott Deke, that delivered a booming announcement.

Virginia coach Al Groh said Deke, who will turn 23 in November, was given the honor based on his “seniority” over sophomores Pete Lalich and Marc Verica.

After the grades from the first semester were compiled, Sewell was placed on an academic suspension for the next two consecutive semesters, meaning he would miss spring practice and this coming season. So, Groh and his staff were forced to find another quarterback and return to a different style of play.

When incumbent quarterback and two-year starter Jameel Sewell was declared academically ineligible after UVa’s loss in the Gator Bowl, the focus turned toward Peter Lalich, one of the nation’s most highly sought-after prospects two years ago, and his fellow quarterbacks.