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Game Details
Date: Dec. 31, 2011
Time: 7:30 p.m.
Venue: Georgia Dome
Capacity: 71,228
Surface: FieldTurf
Series vs. Auburn: Series is tied, 1-1
Last Meeting: 1998 (UVa 19, @Auburn 0)

Television: ESPN/ESPN3D
Radio: Virginia Sports Network (affiliates)

Live Stats: Click here for the link to the live stats page.
Note: Link available approximately 30 minutes before kick-off. Allow 1-2 minutes for it to load at the start.

Rosters: Virginia | Auburn
Game Notes/Bowl Guide: Virginia | Auburn

Virginia and Auburn To Do Battle In 2011 Chick-fil-A Bowl On New Year’s Eve
• The Virginia football team will face Auburn in the 2011 Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta, Ga., on New Year’s Eve (Dec. 31) at 7:30 p.m. The game will be televised nationally by ESPN.

The Virginia-Auburn Series
• Virginia and Auburn have met twice, with each winning on the opponents’ home field in 1997 and 1998:

Season Location Result
1997 Charlottesville, Va. Auburn 28, Virginia 17
1998 Auburn, Ala. Virginia 19, Auburn 0

• Safeties coach and special teams coordinator Anthony Poindexter appeared at safety in both meetings with Auburn (1997 & 1998). Poindexter registered 10 tackles in the Scott Stadium game in 1997. During the last meeting with both teams, UVa’s 19-0 win at Auburn’s Jordan-Hare Stadium, Poindexter had four tackles and an interception.
• Other notables from UVa’s last meeting with Auburn were current Kansas City Chiefs running back Thomas Jones, who rushed for 100 yards and one score, and former UVa quarterback Aaron Brooks, who tossed for 220 yards and one scoring strike.

Virginia vs. the SEC
• Virginia is 31-47-6 all-time against current members of the SEC, however only 7-17 when the opponent was an active member of the SEC at game time.
• Auburn is the first SEC team UVa has played since facing South Carolina in 2003.
• Auburn marks the fifth time UVa has faced an SEC team in a bowl game. Three of those bowl games (1995 Peach & 1998 Chick-fil-A Peach, 2000 Jeep O’ahu) were against Georgia. The 1991 Sugar Bowl was against Tennessee.

Noting Virginia In Bowl Appearances
• UVa’s appearance in the 2011 Chick-fil-A Bowl marks the program’s fourth time at the Atlanta bowl game (1984, 1995, 1998, 2011), which is now the most appearances by the Cavaliers at any bowl game. UVa has been to the current Champs Sports Bowl three times, twice when it was named the Carquest Bowl (1994 & 1996) and then most recently as the Micronpc.com Bowl in 1999. The Cavaliers have been to the Gator Bowl twice (1991 & 2007) and the Continental Tire Bowl twice (2002 & 2003), which is now the Belk Bowl.
• During Mike London’s stint as an assistant coach on Al Groh’s Virginia staff (2001-04, 06-07), the Cavaliers were 2-2 in bowl games, with wins in the 2002 & 2003 Continental Tire Bowl and setbacks in the 2004 MPC Computers Bowl and the 2008 Gator Bowl.

Virginia’s Connections to the Chick-fil-A Bowl; Atlanta
• Former UVa tailback Tiki Barber and head coach George Welsh are in the Chick-fil-A Bowl Hall of Fame. Barber was the 1995 game’s offensive MVP and Welsh lead UVa to wins in the 1984 and 1995 games, going 2-1 in his career at the Atlanta bowl.
• Current UVa safeties coach and special teams coordinator Anthony Poindexter played in the 1995 Peach Bowl, but an ACL tear against NC State in 1998 prevented him from playing in UVa’s last appearance in the Atlanta bowl game.
• Head coach Mike London’s younger brother, Paul London, played in the 1995 Peach Bowl as a defensive back. He had five tackles and one pass breakup in UVa’s 34-27 triumph over Georgia.
• Virginia offensive coordinator Bill Lazor knows the Georgia Dome well. He began his seven-year career in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons’ quality control coach for Dan Reeves in 2003. He stayed in Atlanta until taking a quarterbacks coach position with the Washington Redskins under legendary head coach Joe Gibbs in 2006.
• UVa linebackers coach Vincent Brown is a native of Atlanta, Ga. Brown spent eight years as a player in the NFL with the New England Patriots after an All-American career at Mississippi Valley State.
• Chris Slade, a former UVa All-American and New England Patriots veteran, has been the sideline reporter for the Virginia Sports Radio Network for the past three seasons. Slade is a resident of Atlanta.

Cavs Crack AP Rankings For First Time Since 2007
• With its No. 24 ranking in the Nov. 20 Associated Press top 25, Virginia made its first appearance in the poll since being ranked No. 21 on Dec. 2, 2007.
• It was the 29th AP poll conducted during London’s tenure. It was the quickest into any UVa coach’s time that the Cavs have cracked the rankings. UVa made it for the first time under Al Groh in the final survey of the 2002 season, the 35th of his administration. The first appearance by anybody in Virginia history came on Nov. 13, 1984, the 44th poll conducted in George Welsh’s tenure.

UVa Goes Bowling For First Time Since 2007
• With eight wins this season, Virginia is bowl eligible for the first time since 2007. UVa’s five ACC victories are its most since finishing 6-2 in league play in 2007.
• Virginia has won four road games in 2011, the most since winning four in 2007.

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