Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, August 28, 1995 TAG: 9508280158
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: ANN ARBOR, MICH. LENGTH: Long
``I've been around too long,'' said Welsh, whose Virginia football team almost presented him with the ultimate 62nd birthday present, a victory over Michigan. ``I'm not going to have a heart attack.
``I said, in the beginning, that I didn't necessarily expect to win the game. One of the reasons I took the game is, I think it will help us down the road.''
The UVa players, without the benefit of their coach's historical perspective, were disgusted by the way they squandered a 17-0 lead and lost 18-17 on the final play of the game.
``To be up 17-0 and and let it go in the fourth quarter like that, it hurts,'' senior defensive back Percy Ellsworth said. ``It really hurts.''
Ellsworth had a key interception in the third quarter, when he picked off a Scott Dreisbach pass in the end zone after the Wolverines had recovered a Kevin Brooks fumble at the UVa 17-yard line.
The Cavaliers led 14-0 at that point and were clearly in command until Michigan scored three touchdowns in the final 11:36, the last with no time on the clock.
Ellsworth was on the opposite side of the field when Mercury Hayes scored the winning touchdown on a 15-yard pass from Dreisbach on fourth-and-10, but no one was spared from Michigan's passing barrage.
Dreisbach passed for 231 yards in the fourth quarter against a UVa defense that has led Division I-A in interceptions the past two years and returned three starters in the secondary.
``Our pass rush was not very good in the fourth quarter,'' Welsh said. ``The quarterback had a lot of time. The guy skipped around and shifted and it's hard to hold up that long.''
The Cavaliers played only three defensive tackles and three defensive ends and Welsh later conceded that they may have gotten tired in heat that sent 50 spectators for first-aid treatment.
``You could say that maybe we should have played four tackles and four ends, but things were going so well,'' Welsh said. ``I told you we didn't have the depth we had last year.''
But, one wonders how much fatigue was a factor, considering the UVa defense was on the field for less than six minutes in the fourth quarter. The players weren't making any excuses.
``I didn't come here to lose,'' Ellsworth said. ``I didn't come here to be competitive. I came here to beat Michigan.
``To have it right there, where the game is in your grasp [and] all you have to do is stop them on fourth-and-10, is really frustrating. There are no more moral victories for this program.''
Welsh's aim was to improve on a succession of uninspiring first-game performances, but more critical has been UVa's inability to hold big leads. Saturday's game marked the ninth time in the 1990s that the Cavaliers have blown a lead of 10 points or more, resulting in eight losses and a tie.
``I thought we had it,'' sixth-year offensive tackle Chris Harrison said. ``I guess it just wasn't meant to be. It's the first time since I've been here that we've played well in an opening game.''
UVa played most of the second half without its No.1 quarterback (Mike Groh), its No.1 tailback (Tiki Barber) and No.1 receiver (Patrick Jeffers). A hamstring injury kept Jeffers in street clothes, but the Cavaliers hardly skipped a beat.
Everything had to go right for Michigan to have enough time to score its fourth-quarter touchdowns, including a UVa punt that bounced over the head of Sam McKiver, who was in position to down the ball inside the Wolverines' 5-yard line.
``I think he could have caught it,'' Welsh said. ``You're allowed to catch the ball. ... I knew it wasn't over. It's not over till its over, but if we'd gotten one more first down on our last drive, I don't think [the Wolverines] would have had enough time.''
The Cavaliers got as far as the Michigan 28, where they failed to capitalize on a second-and-2. After a busted play and an incompletion, Welsh sent out punter Will Brice with 2:43 left.
``I made up my mind when it was third down that I was not going to try a 49-yard field goal,'' Welsh said. ``I've kicked 49-yarders before with [Rafael Garcia] and one 50-yarder. But, at the 32-yard line and with the possibility of a block, I thought punting was the thing to do.''
It appears that Garcia will have to regain Welsh's trust after missing field-goal attempts of 38 and 39 yards in the first half. When asked if the misses had come back to haunt the Cavaliers, Welsh responded, ``They usually do.''
Nevertheless, UVa was in position to win the game on defense and couldn't prevent the Wolverines from going 80 yards in 16 plays in the final 2:35. Michigan, with one timeout at its disposal, went 60 yards in the last 1:06.
``We were the game of the day in college football,'' Ellsworth said. ``Everybody was watching this one and it was a chance for a lot of people to make a name for themselves. Coach Welsh said it was a big game and he doesn't usually say that.
``This was our vehicle for getting a little recognition. We talk about getting some more respect, but to get respect, you've got to earn it. Beating Michigan at Michigan is earning respect, not letting them come back from 17 down.''
by CNB