Cavs hold Spiller in check

CLEMSON, S.C. — Virginia’s defense was clearly aware of the danger of C.J. Spiller coming into Saturday’s game.

The Clemson senior can hurt teams in so many ways — primarily as a running back, but he can also catch the ball, throw it and return kicks in dramatic fashion. UVa coach Al Groh, who has built a reputation for containing such threats with thorough defensive game plans, did it again.

Spiller came into the game averaging 195.2 all-purpose yards per game. He was Clemson’s leading rusher with an average of 83.6 ypg and the third-leading receiver with 38.2 ypg. The speedy back has scored 20 touchdowns of 50 yards or more during his career, including eight this season.

No wonder the visiting Wahoos were determined to keep Spiller from beating them.

While they slowed Spiller down, they still lost the game, 34-21.

However, the Heisman Trophy candidate didn’t inflict too much damage into Virginia’s effort.

The Cavaliers held Spiller to 114 total yards in the game — 58 rushing (19 carries), 39 receiving (five catches), and 17 yards on one punt return.

It marked the second straight season that Virginia has held Spiller’s numbers down. Last year, in a close Clemson win in Charlottesville, the Tigers’ star back had 57 total yards (18 rushing, 16 receiving, 23 in returns). He also threw a 15-yard TD pass.

“He’s a good player ... he’s a great player,” said UVa defensive end Nate Collins. “I don’t think he did anything extraordinary. Not to downplay him and what he’s been doing this year, but I feel like we did what we needed to in stopping him.”

In those two games, Virginia’s defense has held Spiller to a combined 76 yards rushing on 33 carries, well below his 5.5 average per carry this season.

“That’s what the game plan was,” said UVa senior linebacker Denzel Burrell. “It wasn’t really to contain Spiller, but just to make sure there weren’t any creases or holes for him to run in.”

Burrell said the Cavaliers’ defense watched a lot of game film from last year’s meeting, which helped their effort.

“We really kept a lot of the same game plan from last year,” Burrell said. “Don’t give him any easy runs and make sure everyone pursues the ball the right way, because he can cut back and outrun anybody on defense.”

While Virginia kept Spiller in check (he had a 26-yard reception and his longest run was for 14 yards), the Tiger star still set an ACC single-season record for all-purpose yards (2,066), breaking the previous mark held by UVa’s Thomas Jones (2,054) in 1999. Spiller also became the only player in the nation to score at least one touchdown in every game this season with a four-yard run in the second quarter.

Spiller and fellow senior Jacoby Ford, a Fork Union graduate who enjoyed a career-high in all-purpose yardage (195), posed quite a problem for UVa, as the tandem has for all Clemson opponents this season.

“Ever seen two guys that fast back there together?” Groh asked after the game. “They are the guys that put the pressure on you all the time. But we’re among the fortunate ones ... in two operations against C.J., it has taken everything we’ve had to get the results we’ve gotten. Everything the players could give. They’ve done a good job with him.”

Groh congratulated Spiller on a great season and called the Tiger one of the most remarkable players to ever compete in the ACC.

“But seeing the reaction of his teammates, the reaction of the fans, the things [Spiller] says, it’s really apparent what a great teammate he is,” Groh said. “Perhaps some players have had talent at that level, but few have been that extraordinary in their talent and been that great a teammate and done it with the humility that he has.”

With 6,974 all-purpose yards to his credit, Spiller needs only 26 yards to become the fifth player in major college football history to reach 7,000 all-purpose yards for his career.