Schaub-less UVa smothers Duke

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA. -- The Virginia and Duke football teams spent most of Saturday's game without their marquee offensive players. Cavalier quarterback Matt Schaub and Blue Devil tailback Alex Wade watched most of the game from the sidelines, nursing injuries. Judging by the results, Virginia can still win without Schaub. Whether the Blue Devils can win, with or without Wade, remains to be seen.

  The Cavaliers destroyed Duke, 27-0 Saturday in both teams' season opener at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Va. With Wade playing a minimal role for the Blue Devils and Schaub missing more than three quarters for Virginia, the game became a battle of field position, with Duke unable to get anything of substance done on either offense or defense.

  "We know we can't play much worse than that," Duke head coach Carl Franks said. "We know we should not play like that at all." Duke only gained 272 yards total during the game, while giving up 373, and punting nine times. They converted on only three of their 15 third-down, and never made it inside Virginia's 20-yard line, while Virginia was 100% from the red zone. In addition, starting quarterback Adam Smith only logged 47 passing yards.

  The Cavaliers' first drive began on their own 19-yard-line. After stalling out at its own 38, Al Groh's squad employed a trick play to get out of a jam on fourth and one. Punter Tom Hagan completed a 9-yard pass to Marques Hagans, breathing new life into the Virginia attack. The Wahoos then made the most of their second chance, with Schaub passing for a total of 84 yards on the game's first drive. Schaub's efficient play and the dazzling runs of sophomore tailback Wali Lundy led Virginia to the Duke 1-yard-line.

  Rolling out and looking for an open receiver, Schaub was dragged down from behind by sophomore linebacker DeAndre White for an eleven-yard loss. The Heisman candidate was shaky getting up, and left the field as the Cavalier field-goal unit took the field. The initial drive netted Virginia three points, but it cost the Cavaliers their star for the remainder of the game to a shoulder injury. It is not known exactly what is wrong with Schaub at this time.

  "I guess he just landed on that shoulder wrong" Franks said. "I hope Schaub's alright."

  Although three points would have been enough to cook the Blue Devils, Virginia added three touchdown and another field goal. At the opening of the second quarter, replacement quarterback Anthony Martinez (6-for-15, 76 yards) threw a screen to wide receiver Art Thomas, who broke tackles down the field, traversing 39 yards before being knocked out of bounds at the Duke two-yard-line. Lundy, who gained 88 yards on 21 carries, followed up with an easy trot into the endzone.

  Virginia head coach Al Groh had nothing but praise for Martinez, who he said "brought his team home under difficult circumstances."

  Neither Lundy nor Martinez nor tailback Alvin Pearman (68 yards on 13 carries) had a stellar individual performance, but each of them contributed to an inexorable Virginia assault that torched Duke early and often.

  The battle for field position was a losing fight all night long for Franks' squad, who started four drives inside its own 10-yard line and only two past its own 25-yard line.

  "The effectiveness [of Hagan's punting] was tremendous," Franks said "You don't get many 95-, 92-, 98-, 99-yard drives; the odds are against it."

  It was particularly tough for Duke to get any offense going, given that Alex Wade only touched the ball once, gaining a meager four yards.

  "Alex has had a little bit of a problem with a hamstring," Franks said. "He played a little bit here and there; we needed to make sure we had him for the rest of the year."

  Duke will face a considerably easier opponent next week, when they face Division I-AA Western Carolina.

  "Losing's always a bad thing," noted tailback Chris Douglas. "But it helps you put things in perspective."