University of Virginia Library

wahoos reign in tobacco bowl

helman, lacey spark romp
past vmi keydets, 28-10

Photos By Bob Gill

165 Pound Tailback Jimmy Lacey Pounds Into Keydet Line In Saturday Afternoon Action

Pennsylvania Native Gained 95 Yards For 9.5 Average In Cavaliers' Third Consecutive Win

It all started off in the way most
Cavalier football fans thought the
whole game would go. Virginia
managed to do everything to VMI
except run them out of Richmond's
City Stadium during the first quarter
while scoring three touchdowns.

The second quarter was not
quite so wild as the Wahoos added
another touchdown to put them
ahead 28-7 at halftime. There Virginia's
scoring ended; mistakes,
young inexperienced players, and
VMI's scrappy play contributed to
the steady decline of the Wahoos'
tempo.

For the fourth time this season
in as many games Virginia won the
coin toss. Flanker Chuck Mooser
took the kickoff on the five yard
line and returned it to his own 35.
There on the first play of the game
Helman, the sophomore running
sensation, took the ball around
right end and broke into the open.
He was headed for a touchdown
only to be tackled from behind by
a speedier Keydet defensive back.

But the gain was to VMI's 20
yard line, a pickup of 45 yards.
Wyncoop carried the next two
times, picking up 13 yards. Quarterback
Danny Fassio then kept the
ball going around right end for
eight yards and the first Virginia
touchdown. With 1:30 gone in the
game it looked as if Virginia might
make it a rout over the Keydets' so
far punchless defense.

After VMI took the ensuing
kickoff and was unable to move the
ball against Virginia's defensive line,
they were forced to punt, but the
Cavalier safety could not hold on to
the ball and the Keydets recovered
the ball on their 47.

But the threat did not materialize.
Break number two for the usually
luckless Keydets came when
they recovered a Helman fumble on
Virginia's 18, only to have Wahoo
defensive tackle Andy Selfridge recover
a VMI fumble two plays later
to destroy that threat.

Fassio and his crew went to
work again. Helman carried three
times for good yardage. A pass to
to Moschel was on target. The
attack bogged down; with fourth
and one Helman carried for the first
down.

Next came probably the most
exciting run of the day as Jim
Lacey scooted off left tackle, weaving
his way through tacklers, finally
making his cut right between two
VMI defenders to speed the remainder
of the 48 yards for the
touchdown.

With Virginia leading 14-0
Coach Blackburn decided to put in
his usual backup quarterback,
sophomore Mike Cubbage. On the
second play Cubbage put the ball in
the air to end Bob Bischoff for 14
yards. Helman then finished
Cubbage's first offensive drive as a
varsity player as he ran through
VMI's faltering defense for a 40
yard touchdown.

So the first quarter ended, Virginia
21, VMI 0. Helman had carried
the ball 12 times for 109 yards.

Then the music stopped or the
tempo slowed or something, as the
second period began.

As it turned out, VMI's biggest
break of the season so far was not
long in coming. Hal Trentham, Virginia's
punter, was unable to field a
high pass from center, and the Keydets
took over on Virginia's 28 yard
line. Here a few plays later VMI
quarterback Murphy Sprinkel
found split end Tom Leemon open
in the end zone and hit him for the
first Keydet score of the year. The
PAT was good and Virginia led 21-7.

Things continued to be uninteresting
until Wahoo defender
Selfridge pounced on his second
VMI fumble of the afternoon to
put Virginia 22 yards from a score.
Coach Blackburn decided to send
Fassio back in, and the senior
quarterback responded with a
touchdown toss to end Bill Davis
who made a complete 360 catching
the ball to go in about a step and a
half ahead of the Keydet defender.

That's the way it was at the

half, 28-7, as the feathered Ferko
marching string band strutted around
the field's perimeter, the Tobacco
Bowl queen was crowned and
bussed, and various other marching
outfits, a drill team and another
marching band, performed.

Not much followed after Pee
Schmidt kicked off to the VMI
squad. Neither offense could mount
an attack. Fassio continued to play
and his charges showed more than
their counterparts, but were still
unable to get on the score board
again.

Cubbage reentered the game late
in the third quarter, but no ensuing
touchdowns or wild offense happened.
In fact, at one time, due to
Cavalier mistakes and penalties, it
was third down and 50 yards.

During much of this time Dave
Wyncoop and Joe Smith were seeing
duty as the running backs while
occasionally Lacey and Helman
would shuffle in.

VMI got their offense in gear
one last time and, aided by a holding
penalty against Virginia, found
themselves eight yards from the
goal line. But the stubborn Wahoo
defensive line held and the Keydets
kicked a field goal to end all scoring,
Virginia 28, VMI 10.