Lalich denies using drugs

With a bright, boyish smile on his face, Virginia quarterback Pete Lalich strolled into the press room at John Paul Jones Arena.

During a candid 20-minute interview, the sophomore discussed his progression as a first-time starter, broke down the intricacies of defensive formations and even offered an opinion on who should be starting at quarterback for the Washington Redskins.

All of that, however, failed to catch the attention of the small media contingent on hand to the degree that a 12-word sentence did.

“I have not smoked or done any drugs while on my probation,” Lalich proclaimed.

Lalich currently faces a charge of failure to obey a court order while on probation. A document in Charlottesville General District Court showed that the charge is based on his admission to violating a requirement that he not consume alcohol or other drugs.

That document has since been sealed. Although still in the court’s file, it is no longer available to the public.

The document showed that Lalich, 20, admitted on Aug. 26 to violating the order. The voluntary admission came during a regular probation interview with officials from the office of Offender Aid and Restoration/Virginia Alcohol Safety Program. According to a source, Lalich has claimed that he misunderstood the timeframe in question during his interview.

On Aug. 26, Lalich was unable to provide a suitable urine sample that day for drug testing, according to the documents. However, he returned to the office the following day and provided a sample that proved negative for alcohol and drugs.

Lalich is scheduled for a hearing on the charge at 11 a.m. on Sept. 26, records show. Virginia is slated to play at Duke on Sept. 27.

The quarterback was arrested at 13th Street N.W. and Wertland Street on July 13 and given a summons for possession or purchase of alcohol while being underage. During a July 21 hearing in General District Court, Lalich was given deferred judgment on the charge, providing he completed supervised probation. He also had his driver’s license suspended until Aug. 8, 2009, court records show.

Lalich’s first public denial stemmed from a question he was asked near the end of the press conference.

“On a more serious note, did you admit to smoking marijuana while on probation? What do you have to…”

The question from a television reporter was promptly interrupted by Jim Daves, Virginia’s assistant director of athletics for media relations.

“[Lalich] has not commented that that’s what he did,” Daves stated before Lalich answered. “That’s an allegation so I would like you to rephrase your question.”

The reporter shifted gears, asking in a different fashion.

Without hesitation, Lalich proceeded with his proclamation, which upon completion drew another statement from Daves.

“This is a legal matter. It is in the court system,” Daves said. “He has a court date due, and I think it is fair to Peter to allow that court date to come up and let him have ... his due process as well at the same time regarding this matter.”

While the matter will likely linger until the court date on Sept. 26, Virginia coach Al Groh sided once again with Lalich, shifting blame to the media.

“In life, whatever circumstances any of us are involved in, certainly in any of those circumstances all of us bring some of it on ourselves, whether it’s good or bad,” Groh said. “In this particular case it seems like in some circumstances a rush to pile on.”

Virginia tight end John Phillips also showed full support for Lalich.

“With all of that, it is what it is. He has gone to every meeting, he’s taken every test, he’s done everything they have asked him to do. He has passed everything and done everything well. We have confi-dence in our quarterback.

“It’s your guy’s job to write the stories. We are his family and we are his support. You have to lean on your brothers in times like this. We are a family so that’s what he did.”

On the field, Lalich admitted that he is a work in progress.

After playing eight games as a reserve last year as a true freshman, Lalich has started the first two contests this season and ranks sixth in the ACC in passing yardage per game with an average of 179.5 yards per contest. He also thrown three interceptions and lost a pair of fumbles.

Last week in a 16-0 victory over Richmond, Lalich was 21 of 39 passing for 204 yards. Those numbers were soured by a shaky second-half performance.

“I think I just lost patience, because I felt like we were completing a lot of balls but the points weren’t on the board,” Lalich said. “I think I started going back to my high school gunslinger-deep kind of thing instead of being patient in the offense.

“That is something that I am working on right now, and I will be able to be more disciplined.”