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Sept. 6, 2004
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia opens its Atlantic Coast Conference schedule at home against North Carolina Saturday afternoon in the 109th meeting between the two schools in what is the South’s Oldest Rivalry.
ABC-TV will televise the Sept. 11 game which begins at 3:30 p.m. at the Carl Smith Center, home of David A. Harrison III Field at Scott Stadium.
The two schools have met every season since 1919 and there have been only four seasons since 1900 when they didn’t meet (1906, 1909 and 1917-18, when football was postponed at both schools due to World War I). Both teams are coming off wins last weekend. The Cavaliers posted a resounding44-14 win over Temple, while the Tar Heels rallied from a 10-point second half deficit for a wild 49-38 win over William & Mary.
This is the first time since 1996 that both teams have come into this game above .500. In that game eight years ago the Tar Heels were ranked sixth in the country with an 8-1 record, while the Cavaliers stood at 6-3 and ranked 24th.
Head coach Al Groh has a long historical view of the series from the perspective of both teams. He was on the Cavalier varsity from 1963-65 that defeated North Carolina his last two seasons. Early in his collegiate career he coached the UVa defensive line from 1971-72 that lost to UNC both years. He moved to Chapel Hill to coach linebackers from 1973-77 as the Tar Heels won four of five match-ups. He coached Wake Forest from 1981-86 and faced UNC each year, winning once. Since returning to Charlottesville to guide the UVa program, the Cavaliers have won two of three meetings.
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