NO SALESMAN
Last night's visit to
And that doesn't count the spring scrimmage the Cavaliers held in Norfolk, the heart of the talent-rich "757" area code that has been unkind to Virginia recruiters recently.
Toss in yesterday's debut of "Virginia Football: The Building of a Program" on Comcast SportsNet, and it's clear that before he tries to win a football game, London has to win over a fan base.
"When I first took the job, I said, 'I need everybody's help--players, fans, coaches,'" London said. "It's easier to go into their backyards and ask for support than to just sit back and expect them to spend Saturdays in your hometown."
And it's quite a selling job London has in front of him.
The recent lacrosse tragedy aside, Virginia's athletic program is robust--four spring teams have been ranked No. 1 in the country, and men's soccer won the national title last fall. But the school's two most-lucrative sports, football and men's basketball, are in major rebuilding mode.
London inherited a 3-9 team that lost its final six games under fired coach Al Groh. He told the alumni and guests at former Virginia linebacker Charles McDaniel's home that the Cavalier program had "a dark cloud" hanging over it.
And when he attended the recent Atlantic Coast Conference coaches' meeting, London said he felt like a child at Thanksgiving who has his meal at a card table while the adults dine in style.
"I knew we had to change what people thought about the program," said London, a former Virginia assistant who spent the past two seasons as Richmond's head coach. "We had to reinvest, re-energize and reinvigorate the fan base by reaching out to them and letting them know that things are going to be different."
Some of the changes are aesthetic, like new uniforms. Others are calculated, like the scrimmage at ODU, which exposed the Cavaliers--warts and all--to a talent pool that has been far more pro-Hokie. (It's no coincidence that Virginia is 1-10 against Virginia Tech since 1999.) London called the scrimmage "huge" in terms of restoring recruiting contacts.
But the biggest metamorphosis came in image. Groh developed a reputation for arrogance among state high school coaches, who believed he and his staff ignored them unless they had a player he really wanted. Many of Virginia's best players from the past decade came from out of state, and that pipeline dried up in recent years.
London is trying to walk a fine line here. Groh hired him (twice) and put him in charge of his defense and recruiting at different times, giving him the experience that helped London with a Division I-AA national championship with the Spiders in 2008.
"I have a lot of respect for [Groh]," London said. " He's responsible for the opportunities I've had. It's bittersweet, but here I am now."
Local fans got to see him last night. And they'll have 17 more chances to watch the Cavaliers' new weekly program, which is based on HBO's annual "Hard Knocks" series, which follows an NFL team through training camp.
Narrated by Hall of Famer Howie Long (whose son, Chris, starred for London at U.Va.), the program takes an inside look at practice, meetings, conditioning drills and even downtime.
Yesterday's first installment didn't sugarcoat the Cavaliers' dilemma--or the work it'll take to catch up.
The brainchild of associate athletic director Jon Oliver, the show is just another sales pitch for a program that is trying to emerge from its own recession.
"It gives recruits a better idea of who we are," London said. "It's a way to think outside the box. I know it doesn't equate to blocking and tackling. But we hope it's a start."
Steve DeShazo: 540/374-5443
Email: sdeshazo@freelancestar.com