UVa notes

Virginia coach Al Groh did his best to sound upbeat after his team’s 31-3 loss at Duke on Saturday.
“The only thing that really counts is what’s up on the scoreboard. That’s what we play for,” Groh told reporters. “Despite what we see up there, in a lot of different areas we saw some positive movement with the team.”
UVa played without its best tailback, senior Cedric Peerman, a pregame scratch because of a lingering leg injury. Even so, the Cavaliers got strong performances from Rashawn Jackson and Keith Payne and finished with a season-high 110 yards rushing.
Payne, who didn’t carry the ball in the first three games, took advantage of the absence of another injured tailback, Raynard Horne. Payne gained 36 yards on five carries, but he suffered an injury on the game’s final play, apparently to his left wrist or hand.
“Defensively,” Groh said, “we were able to do a number of things that we thought were important to do in the game. But we had too many turnovers and too much bad field position.”
Groh noted the number of true and redshirt freshmen who played for UVa.
“We’re trying to bring the team together from two different directions,” he said. “We have a hard core of senior players who have had very productive and positive careers here, from whom we need a top-level performance every game. And we have a large number of young players that need to grow up into those roles in a hurry. We had 19 freshmen here today, at least 12 of whom played in the game.”
Among the redshirt freshmen who played for Virginia were wide receivers Kris Burd (three catches, 31 yards) and Jared Green (two catches, 17 yards), safety Corey Mosley, nose tackle Nick Jenkins, defensive end Matt Conrath and cornerbacks Chase Minnifield and Dom Joseph.
Burd is a Matoaca High graduate. Mosley, a former Henrico High star, and Jenkins made their first starts for UVa.
McLeod gets his shot
Rodney McLeod, a cornerback from DeMatha High in Hyattsville, Md., became the fourth true freshman to play for UVa this season. McLeod played on the kickoff-coverage team and as one of the six defensive backs in Virginia’s dime package.
McLeod didn’t look out of place. In the second quarter, on fourth-and-9 from the Virginia 39, Duke punter Kevin Jones gathered in the snap and took off on a fake. He was stopped for a 3-yard loss by McLeod, whose open-field tackle was flawless.
The other true freshmen Groh has used this season — punter Jimmy Howell, outside linebacker Cam Johnson and offensive guard Austin Pasztor — also played significant roles Saturday.
Shaky start
For the second time in eight seasons under Groh, the Cavaliers are 1-3 after four games. That also happened in 2006, when UVa finished 5-7.
This has been a trying season for the older of his two sons, too. Mike Groh is the Cavaliers’ third-year offensive coordinator, and he’s also been a target of intense criticism from fans.
Virginia’s offense continues to rank among the nation’s worst. In four games this season, it has produced three touchdowns and three field goals. (In Virginia’s 16-0 win over Richmond, junior cornerback Vic Hall returned an interception for a touchdown.)
Saturday, the Cavaliers totaled a season-high 304 yards but turned the ball over six times. On fourth-down conversions, Virginia was 0-for-2. For the season, it’s 1-for-7 in that situation.
Cramping problems
Neither cornerback Ras-I Dowling nor linebacker Clint Sintim has a history of cramping up, Groh said, but each missed about a quarter in the second half Saturday after being stricken.
“I’ve never been an injury guy,” Sintim said. “I’ve never been a guy that’s missed too many plays around here. So for me to come out when the game’s on the line, it kind of feels like I’m letting my teammates down. I’d like to think they know that’s not the case, that I want to be in there with them, but unfortunately circumstances led me to come out of the game. I just hope it doesn’t happen again.”
Game ball
Duke’s players — none of whom had ever participated in an ACC victory in football — gave the game ball to their first-year coach, David Cutcliffe.
“That goes in the office,” Cutcliffe said. “It is a tribute to all of our players. These kids, they believe in each other and they believe in this staff.”