Cavs looking at the team in the mirror

Is it a sign of how far Virginia has fallen?

Or perhaps it is an indication of how Duke has climbed out of the cellar to provide respectability to a once-doomed program.

Regardless, Virginia (3-4, 2-1 ACC) and Duke (4-3, 2-1), the two teams from the conference to miss the postseason last year, are near mirror images on paper.

As the Cavaliers opened the season with a stunning loss to William & Mary, an FCS team, the Blue Devils returned the favor with a loss to Richmond.

Both teams rebounded eventually, thanks in part to wins over Maryland, and currently reside in a cluster of one-loss teams in the ACC’s Coastal Division.

“Duke is playing good football right now,“ Virginia quarterback Jameel Sewell said. “They have really turned things around.“

Duke coach David Cutcliffe has been equally impressed by Virginia’s resurgence over the past four games, although the Cavaliers have done it with defense and the Blue Devils with their passing attack.

“[Virginia] got off, like we did, to a slow start,“ he said, “but they have played special football as of late.“

With challenging games on the horizon against ranked foes, both teams know what is at stake with Saturday’s game.

With a loss, Virginia would need to finish 3-1 to return to the postseason for just the second time in four years.

Falling to the Cavaliers would force Duke to finish .500 with games remaining against Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Miami and Wake Forest.

“You’ve got two good football teams that obviously have the opportunity to get a step further in the conference,“ said Duke quarterback Thaddeus Lewis. “And I think you have two hungry football teams. “Something like ‘Clash of the Titans.‘ It’ll all boil down to who wants it the most.“

Turning things around at Duke started at the top - the Blue Devils went outside the box, hiring Cutcliffe before the 2008 season.

“As we understand it, [Duke] has upgraded its commitment to being successful in football,“ Virginia coach Al Groh said. “That’s always part of it. And usually, it’s more than just the coach. They’ve upgraded their commitment to being successful and done some things in that direction.“

Before heading to Durham, Cutcliffe gained respectability as the offensive coordinator at Tennessee head coach at Mississippi.

“David was very successful in a very challenging conference when he was the head coach at Ole Miss,“ Groh said, “and probably was unjustifiably released from that position. He had his team in the Cotton Bowl. I think they won 10 games.

“So he’s a quality coach [and] knows how to run a real good program. It was expected, and he had a positive attitude, but demanding standards. He’s done a very good job with their team. We’re very respectful of it.“