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Aug. 3, 2004
Charlottesville, Va. – Virginia football players LB Darryl Blackstock, G Elton Brown, QB Marques Hagans, S Jermaine Hardy and TE Heath Miller will be appearing at Charlottesville’s Fashion Square Mall Wednesday evening from 6-8 p.m.
The quintet will be located in front of Sears at the north end of the mall. The players will be signing autographs, posing for pictures and greeting Cavalier fans. Complimentary posters, schedule cards and schedule magnets will be available to those attending.
Blackstock, a junior from Newport News, is a Butkus Award candidate as the top linebacker in the nation. Known primarily as a pass rusher, he shares the school record with Wali Rainer for most career sacks by a linebacker (16). Last season nearly 20 percent of his tackles (16 of 85) were behind the line of scrimmage.
Brown, a senior co-captain from Hampton, is considered one of the top guards in the country. A preseason All-American, he is a top candidate for the Outland Trophy as the nation’s outstanding interior lineman. He won the Jacobs Blocking Trophy last season as the ACC’s top blocker in voting by the league’s defensive coordinators.
Hagans, a junior from Hampton, moves from wide receiver/punt returner to quarterback this season. He is expected to take over for record-setting QB Matt Schaub. He has started one game at quarterback each of the last two years. Last season he guided the team to a 59-16 win over Western Michigan in place of an injured Schaub. For the season he completed 17 of 26 passes for 218 yards and three touchdowns.
Hardy, a senior from Roanoke, is recovering from offseason knee surgery but is expected to be a starter for the second year in a row. In his first season as a starter last fall he made 97 tackles, fourth most by a defensive back in school history. He has intercepted five passes in his career, the most by an active Cavalier.
Miller, a junior co-captain from Swords Creek, is the top tight end in the country. The leading candidate for the John Mackey Award, given annually to the nation’s best tight end, he joins Brown as a preseason All-American. He earned first-team All-ACC honors last season after catching 70 passes for 835 yards and was the nation’s leading tight end. In addition to his outstanding pass-catching skills, he is also a devastating blocker.