University of Virginia Library

Relief Pitching

Winning—
The Ultimate
Flash

By John Markon

WHAT CAN YOU SAY about a game with VMI. That
we beat them? That we were able to run up the score? That
we were able to do it with a first-year quarterback who was
seeing his first minutes of varsity action? This seems almost
enough to me.

Virginia just crushed them. The Keydets were out-rushed (12
yards to 198), out passed (110 yards to 266), out first-downed
(9 to 23), outscored (14 to 42) and generally outplayed by the
Cavaliers. Virginia dominance was total with VMI's only
defiant rumblings coming in the first quarter when the
undersized Keydets were still rather fresh and hadn't yet been
worn down by the bigger, stronger Wahoos.

VMI's two touchdowns both came on passing plays
executed by the Keydets' resilient sophomore quarterback,
Tom Schultze. A strong Wahoo pass rush forced Schultze to
throw almost all of his passes under pressure and, considering
both that and the dubious quality of his receivers, he did a fine
job to complete 12 of 25.

TRAGICALLY ENOUGH, Schultze was injured midway
through the fourth quarter when his right ankle emerged
second-best in a collision with Cav linebacker Ron Morley.
What Schultze was doing in the game at this juncture, his team
down by 31 points, still remains a mystery to me.

As for the rest of the VMI players, they appeared to be the
usual Keydet-type ball club: dedicated, fired-up young men
ready to play against Virginia, now the "Big Game" on their
schedule, Virginia Tech having dropped them. Almost sadly, I
kind of wish that the University would do the same. At least
some of the games should be held in Lexington, anyway. A
yearly Scott Stadium date with VMI is rather a waste.

IT'S BAD ENOUGH THAT, for economic reasons, Cavalier
fans never get to see teams like Clemson and South Carolina in
Charlottesville but it seems patently unfair to me to ask them
to watch a VMI game every year. 19,000 fans showed up
Saturday and, while they seemed to revel in the 'Hoos' victory,
the football they were seeing wasn't worth the seven bucks
some paid to get in. We have the Keydets on the schedule for
the next six years and at least three of those games should be
at VMI. If the series can't stand up on a home-and-home basis
it should be dropped. Charlottesville and the University
shouldn't be asked to support it.

Well, now that I'm off the rag about that subject, I can get
down to a review of the Cavs' performance on the gridiron,
which was, by the way, more than adequate. Our defense,
smallish by almost all college standards, seems to have a way of
dominating other small teams and VMI was no exception.
Coach Don Lawrence substituted liberally, making individual
standouts hard to find, but the line and linebackers turned in
good performances and the pass defense, the most tested unit,
did pretty well. Substitute of the Week honors should go to
number 19, Carl Barile, who played well at cornerback and was
a tiger on special teams.

OFFENSIVE SUB OF THE WEEK was doubtlessly QB
Scott Gardner, a first-year man from Sarasota, Fla. Gardner's
ability to throw the ball long distances was his chief advantage
over starting field general George Allen, who's only at his best
when throwing passes under 25 yards. The long gainers were
there for the taking on Saturday as Gardner proved on several
long strikes to end Dave Sullivan, one of which was a 39-yard
scoring play as Sullivan, seemingly well-covered, just broke past
Keydet defender Gene Williams by turning on the speed,
leaving poor Williams standing around wondering what was
going on.

With receivers wide-open all afternoon, it seems surprising
that five Wahoo tosses were intercepted. VMI plucked off three
Gardner aerials and one each from Allen and Jim Pruner,
another first-year man.

ONE WAHOO QUARTERBACK who has some experience,
I'm speaking of Harrison Davis (remember him?), was in the
game but playing at a wide receiver spot. He may be ready to
resume quarterback duties on Saturday in Clemson but the
odds are against it. A better bet would be Homecoming
weekend against Maryland. Our other injured backs, Kent
Merritt and Greg Dickerhoof, didn't play at all but Merritt
dressed out and should play against Clemson. "Dicker",
however, will probably sit that one out as well. His back-up
Mike Lacika, busied himself against VMI by carrying for 57
yards on only 12 attempts.

Gardner, though, was the team's leading rusher with 61
yards on only 12 carries. Scott, as any other 18-year d under
similar circumstances would, looked less-than-polished on
many occasions but it's obvious he has great potential. Logic
would seem to dictate his starting against Clemson in lieu of
Allen if H. Davis is still unable to play. That game could let the
Cavs begin the season over again if victory is attained. I'm sort
of looking forward to it. I think Scott Gardner is, too.