ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, November 6, 1996 TAG: 9611060038
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE
SOURCE: DOUG DOUGHTY STAFF WRITER
THERE'S NO LONGER ANY QUESTION about Virginia's quarterback situation. The coaches say Tim Sherman is their man - and has been for some time.
George Welsh isn't sure when the music stopped.
All Virginia's football coach knows is his Cavaliers aren't playing musical chairs with their quarterbacks anymore. Tim Sherman occupies the last seat and has been sitting in it for several weeks.
``We never really made a hard decision,'' said Welsh, who has discussed the situation weekly with offensive coordinator Tom O'Brien and quarterbacks coach Joe Krivak. ``The attitude was that we'd let Sherman go. I wasn't going to change if things were going well.''
Sherman, a fifth-year senior, has not been outstanding. He ranks ninth in the ACC and is not among the top 50 quarterbacks in NCAA Division I-A in pass efficiency, a statistic based on yardage, completion percentage, touchdown passes and interceptions.
But, while Sherman has a 108.2 pass-efficiency rating, back-up Aaron Brooks is further down the charts at 88.2. He didn't help that Saturday at Duke, when he completed one of four passes, for minus-1 yard, and was intercepted once.
Sherman was 16-of-26 for a career-high 253 yards, but the coaches aren't just looking at statistics.
``He does a good job of running the team,'' Welsh said of Sherman. ``He gets the team in and out of the huddle, he changes the snap count, he gets the checks, he sees things. He understands. Mentally, he's been very sharp.
``When he's seen the blitz coming, he's helped himself and us by checking out of some things and going to others. We're still calling some of the runs at the line of scrimmage. He's been good on all that.''
In other words, Sherman has given Virginia everything it could have wanted before the snap.
``That's where his biggest advantage is over Brooks right now,'' O'Brien said.
Sherman does not have Brooks' arm strength and has shown a tendency to throw into double coverage. He does have an edge in experience, but only a slight one, having attempted only 24 passes in his career before this season.
Sherman admits his confidence has been up and down, which is why a performance such as Saturday's was so beneficial. While the rest of the team was making mistakes, as evidenced by 12 penalties and four turnovers, Sherman was solid.
``I said after the game, the biggest thing we needed was completions and we got that,'' said Sherman, whose previous high was 14. ``The yards will come when we do that.''
Until Saturday, every ACC team but Virginia had a 200-yard-plus passing game out of one of its quarterbacks.
``I knew about it,'' said Sherman, who had combined with Brooks to throw for 307 yards in a 45-6 victory over Wake Forest. ``It really didn't bother me as long as we were winning. I figure, if I do get over 200 yards passing, it's going to help, so I'm going to shoot for that.''
Sherman received an unexpected endorsement at midweek from Duke coach Fred Goldsmith, who resisted any comparisons with his quarterbacks, given the Blue Devils' 0-7 record and Virginia's 5-2 mark.
``He came up to me after the game, while we were shaking hands, and told me some things,'' Sherman said. ``I appreciated that. Coach [Bobby] Bowden did the same thing after the Florida State game.
``Coach Goldsmith said that I'd taken a lot of heat for things that were going wrong and he said, `I've seen you on tape. I've seen what you've done. I think you're doing a heck of a job.' Coach Bowden was more impressed at how I hung in there.''
Sherman didn't hesitate to take the blame after Virginia's 13-7 loss at Georgia Tech, but he had a different attitude after the Florida State game, even though the media jumped on the UVa quarterbacks after their 10-for-32 passing performance.
``Obviously, this is my first year in the starting role, so I didn't know what to expect,'' said Sherman, son of UVa receivers coach Tom Sherman. ``I can't say I was surprised. I knew coming in that you get too much praise when you win and too much blame when you lose.
``I had no expectations of going through this year as the [media] darling. After the Georgia Tech game, it was pretty rough. That's a game we should have played better and we should have won that game. I was kind of surprised, after the Florida State game, by the reaction we got.''
Sherman, as a one-year starter, isn't going to break any career records. He isn't likely to pass for 2,000 yards, a figure reached by four other Welsh quarterbacks. He realizes he will be judged solely by UVa's won-lost record and a vote of confidence - such as it is - can only help.
``There's never been anything said,'' he observed. ``It's just been how it's turned out. It's good to know that you're going to be in there the whole time. Mistakes happen. This means you don't have to look over your shoulder.''
BYRD OUT: Welsh announced Wednesday that junior Derick Byrd has been suspended for the next two games for an unspecified violation of team rules. Byrd has 12 receptions, tied for fourth on the team, but only one has come in the past three games.
LENGTH: Medium: 98 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: DON PETERSEN\Staff. 1. Tim Sherman is not among the topby CNB50 quarterbacks in NCAA Division I-A in passing efficiency, but
UVa's coaches are looking at more than just the fifth-year senior's
stats. color. 2. (headshot) Sherman.