ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, October 29, 1996 TAG: 9610290087
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: UVA NOTES
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
There is one personal goal that drives Tiki Barber more than any other, and it's not the Heisman Trophy.
Barber wants to finish his college football career as Virginia's all-time leading rusher, no small feat for a player who carried 16 times for 41 yards as a freshman.
The senior tailback passed No. 3 Tommy Vigorito this past Saturday and needs 411 yards in the last four games to break the record of 3,348 set by Terry Kirby from 1989-92. Johnny Papit is second, with 3,238.
``My eyes are only on the top guy, Terry,'' said Barber, who was on his recruiting visit when he met Kirby in 1992. ``I haven't reached my goal if I land anywhere in between.''
Barber has 909 yards. He came into the season needing 1,320 to break the record, which seemed unlikely given a Virginia offensive line that lost three starters. Although Barber rushed for 1,397 yards in 1995, that was with the benefit of a 12-game season.
``I expected at the beginning of the season that it would be tough to get 100 yards every game,'' Barber said, ``but, actually, I might be on pace to rush for more yards than last year.''
Barber has rushed for at least 100 yards in each of Virginia's seven games, including a high of 150 on Saturday in the Cavaliers' 31-24 loss to third-ranked Florida State. In three games against the Seminoles, he has carried 64 times for 451 yards and scored three touchdowns.
``I don't think there could be any question in the eyes of the Heisman voters that he's as good as we say he is,'' said George Welsh, UVa's coach. ``If we were in games where we could give him 10 more carries, his numbers would be astronomical.
``We gave him the ball only seven times in the second half Saturday and maybe that was a mistake. I didn't want to get him killed early in the season, because our offensive line wasn't good enough, but not now. Whatever it takes now.''
Barber rushed for 185 yards in 1995 against this week's opponent, Duke, but chances are his record quest will come down to the last game. Barber didn't have to be reminded where that one is.
``Yeah, Blacksburg,'' he said.
Virginia Tech was the school where his father, J.B., played running back in the early 1970s, and the Hokies were the last team to hold Tiki to less than 100 yards. It could be interesting.
``I feel I can do something about the Virginia rushing record,'' Barber said. ``The Heisman is an objective award. The rushing record is something tangible I can strive to get.''
*Welsh said the Cavaliers need to do a better job of involving Barber in the passing game. Barber has 11 receptions for the season, none against Florida State.
``He was open,'' Welsh said. ``This is not a criticism of the quarterbacks, but he was open a couple times Saturday in the flat and they don't get him the ball. And, he's part of the progression. That's not very smart.''
MORE ON THE FAKE: Bobby Bowden, Florida State's coach, said Saturday that the Seminoles weren't thinking return or block when they thwarted Virginia on a fake-punt attempt with FSU leading 24-17.
``We called for `punt safe,' which is what you use when you think the other team might be up to something,'' Bowden said. ``Our people were yelling, `Watch for the fake,' but that might just have been sideline talk.''
BIG PLAYS HURT: Virginia, despite yielding a season-high 217 yards on the ground, held Florida State to 2 yards or less on 26 of 52 running plays, including 11 for losses.
The Seminoles' Warrick Dunn, who had a 65-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, did not have another carry for more than 9 yards. However, FSU had the ball for 35 minutes, 36 seconds and enjoyed an 88-67 advantage in plays.
TACKLE MACHINES: Senior linebacker James Farrior was credited with 18 tackles Saturday, equaling his career high and establishing the high for the Cavaliers this season. That effort made him an ACC player of the week.
UVa's other outside linebacker, Jamie Sharper, had 11 tackles and moved into second place on the Cavaliers' all-time list with 378. First-place Charles McDaniel had 432 from 1982-85.
TICKETS AVAILABLE: Virginia fans without tickets for upcoming games never will have a better opportunity than Saturday. Duke attracted a listed crowd of 18,751 on Saturday for Maryland.
This week's game marks the first time since the opener against Central Michigan that Virginia won't be on television. The Cavaliers are 37-1 in non-televised games since 1989.
ODDS 'N' ENDS: ABC announced Monday that Virginia's game Nov. 9 with Clemson will be televised regionally (WSET Channel 13) at 3:30 p.m. Florida State's average margin in five games with Virginia is plus-13 points. The Seminoles have won their other 32 ACC games by an average of 33 points. Duke, which is 0-7 for the first time since 1983, never has been 0-8 in 85 years of football.
LENGTH: Medium: 93 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: chart - UVa Rushing Leaders STAFF KEYWORDS: MGRby CNB