National Signing Day is over. Spring practices are over. The team's annual feel-good event is over. All this to say - it's basically summertime for the Cavaliers now (Yes, we are aware that it snowed no less than two weeks ago). But with summer comes a long offseason of waiting. And unfortunately for Virginia fans, spring practice provided very few answers.
No full on depth chart here, but in a media teleconference earlier today, London told the press that, to no one's surprise, there's still no real frontrunner. London lists in the first group Michael Rocco and Ross Metheny, both of whom took snaps this year.
As a true freshman this past year, Rocco completed 13 of 25 passes for 143 yards over six games. He threw two interceptions, but he also threw for a touchdown in his college debut.
Metheny was a redshirt freshman this past year, and played in five games, completing 13 of 17. He amassed 171 yards and threw for three touchdowns and only one interception. He went 2-of-2 for 50 yards and a touchdown at No. 13 Virginia Tech.
Coming in as what London calls "the second group" are Michael Strauss and David Watford, neither of them have taken snaps.
"Those guys are in a bunch or in a clump," London said. "These guys are continuing to be evaluated, but somebody has got to separate themselves."
Strauss took a redshirt last year, but prior to that, in high school, was a multiple All-Florida First-Team selection. He and Jacory Harris are the only two players in Dade County to have thrown for over 3,000 yards in a single season.Watford is a January 2011 enrollee and will be a freshman come fall. He was ranked the No. 29 QB in the country by Rivals, and many thought he would be a viable candidate to get the starting nod from the get-go, but it looks like, at least as of this very second, this doesn't appear to be the case. By the way, he's the cousin of former UVa hot-footed quarterback Marques Hagans.
So it looks like it's going to mostly be a two-man race to start as quarterback. For me, it's six of one, half dozen of the other. I didn't find that either QB had a particularly convincing season in 2010, a season that for me, was spent mostly scouting for 2011. Metheny may not have taken as many snaps as Rocco did last year, but my instinct tells me that I feel slightly (and I really do mean marginally, in a minuscule fashion) more comfortable with him at the helm. Of course,both quarterbacks threw crucial red zone interceptions last season.
"I feel like age doesn't matter when you get in the huddle, it's just the position that you play as quarterback. And you're the commander of the huddle," Rocco said.
"All I can do is control what I can control and that's my own performance and me getting better. You know you can't worry about who's getting reps, when they're getting reps and things like that. It's what you make the most of the rep you have then," Metheny said.
So that's it on the quarterback situation for now. Before spring practice: it can be one of four candidates. After spring practice: it can be one of four candidates. Work will be done independently this summer, but I have a feeling we won't know until just before the kick-off against William & Mary on September 3.
"It'll be interesting to see who emerges for the team and is going to take this and improve and develop their game without coaches staring at them."