UVa NOTES: Cavs perplexed by replay penalty

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — There was mass confusion.

Coaches scurried for answers. Players looked on in disbelief. Fans at Land Shark Stadium cheered wildly.

On a pivotal sequence in the third quarter, Virginia linebacker Cam Johnson raced around the Miami offense line and dropped quarterback Jacory Harris to the ground.

To complete the sack, Johnson pulled the back of Harris’ helmet, forcing it to come free.

Harris promptly fumbled the ball and the two players wrestled on the ground for it.

After Harris secured the ball, Harris and Johnson exchanged pushes, drawing respective unsportsmanlike penalties. Harris said that Johnson had head-butted him as they fought for the ball.

That’s where the story gets confusing.

The game’s referee, Tom McCreesh, announced over the stadium public address system that the play was being reviewed to locate the spot of the ball following the fumble.

When he returned from wearing the headset that communicates with the replay official, McCreesh relayed an additional facemask penalty on Johnson.

It left many to ponder how a replay official had that power.

Virginia coach Al Groh, who admitted he had never seen that happen before, begged for an explanation.

Did he get a response from McCreesh?

“Not a satisfactory one, no,” he said.

Johnson was just as dumbfounded, but avoided the question to a certain degree.

“I wasn’t expecting [the penalty], but the referees did a great job and made that call,” Johnson said. “If it was there, then they did a great job.”

Did Johnson grab the facemask?

“I don’t know, but I guess if they called it then it was there,” Johnson said. “I guess I grabbed his facemask.

“That is their job. They get paid to do it. They are professional at it — if they see it, they call it and that is fine.”

Block party

While many of the special teams operations floundered in the 52-17 loss at Miami, Virginia managed to dive into the record books by blocking a pair of punts in the opening half.

It marked the first time in 13 years that the Cavaliers had blocked a pair of kicks in a game, a stretch that dates back to Virginia’s 62-14 victory over N.C. State in 1996.

Virginia’s first punt on Saturday came in the first quarter as sophomore Terence Fells-Danzer outstretched his hand in time to block Matt Bosher’s punt out of bounds at the Miami 45.

Oddly enough, it was the first time Virginia had blocked a punt since Josh Zidenberg altered a punt in the final game at the Orange Bowl in 2007.

The Cavaliers were not done yet. In the second quarter, junior Trey Womack raced past the long snapper untouched and blocked Bosher’s punt with the top of his helmet.

The football squirted to Womack’s left and into the hands of redshirt freshman Bill Schautz, who raced into the end zone from 20 yards out. Virginia’s last blocked punt for a score came in 2002 after Alex Seals blocked a kick against Akron that was returned for a score by Darryl Blackstock.

“What we do here is focus on putting our face on the ball,” Schautz said. “I didn’t see it, but I am sure he got his hands or his face on the ball.

“Trey made a great play, and luckily, the ball bounced right to me. It was a good play to help out the team.”

Virginia’s punting unit, which included Nathan Rathjen and later Jimmy Howell, did not fare as well.

The two combined to punt nine times for an average of 35.1 yards.

Forced to kick into the wind in the first quarter, Rathjen had a 12-yard attempt and averaged just 25.8 yards per attempt.

Extra points

Virginia lost the time of possession battle for the sixth time this season, falling to 1-5 on the year when that occurs. … UVa linebacker Steve Greer registered 14 tackles, the most in his career. … Former UVa star Chris Long was on the sidelines during the game. Long’s St. Louis Rams are on a bye ... The Cavaliers are 1-16 in the state of Florida, with the lone win coming Nov. 10, 2007 against Miami in the Hurricanes’ last game at the Orange Bowl.