By Blair Capps
Virginia's Campus Correspondent
RepresentACC.com

Improvement is the name of the game for the Virginia Cavaliers in 2010. After a 2009 season in which the team only won three games, head coach Mike London took the helm and has been busy implementing his new regime. He hired a whole staff of new coaches, and spent the summer blazing new recruiting trails all over the state of Virginia and making numerous publicity stops. London is doing his part to make sure Cavalier fans know that this is a new era of Virginia football, but the best way to get fan support and usher in that new era is by winning games.

Offense

Coach London has brought in former NFL coach Bill Lazor as the new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach to rework the pieces left from last year's spread offense experiment. Virginia's quarterbacks are in excellent hands, as Lazor has an excellent track record and has worked with the likes of Matt Hasselbeck and Mark Brunell.

Quarterback Marc Verica

Behind him on the depth chart sit several promising freshmen. True freshman Michael Strauss enrolled early last January to get a jump-start on his football education. However Strauss is still inexperienced, and many of his mistakes are due to happy feet and poor command of the offense. Both of those issues can be resolved with time, so look for Strauss to compete with redshirt freshman Ross Metheny for the backup job. Metheny has an edge on Strauss, as he served as the scout team's quarterback last season. It remains to be seen how many snaps he will take in a game, but Coach Lazor has to be preparing an heir to his offense, as well as a capable backup who can step in at a moments notice. Metheny and Strauss have been joined by a trio of true freshmen in Jake McGee, Mike Rocco, and Miles Gooch who are likely to be redshirted.

Verica has an accurate arm and an aptitude for the game. However, during the 2008 season, he finished with 8 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. Many of his mistakes came from hurried decisions rather than bad reads or poor throws. It will be up to the offensive line to make sure he has adequate time and protection.

UVa's offensive front, which will be looking to show marked improvement, will be led by veteran guards Austin Paztor and B.J. Cabbell. The Cavaliers also return starting left tackle Landon Bradley, but will have a new center this season in junior Anthony Mihota and a new right tackle in sophomore Oday Boushi. With a few poor snaps early in fall camp, the quarterbacks and Mihota still have some communication issues to resolve. Fans are excited about incoming freshman Morgan Moses, a 6'6", 350lb behemoth who spent last year at Fork Union Military Academy improving his grades. Although Moses may not see much time this season, his presence on the team gives the offensive line hope for the future.

One of the issues Virginia had last year was the under utilization of Virginia's traditionally stellar tight end corps. UVa has been a breeding ground for NFL-caliber tight ends, so it was probably a mistake to leave them out of the equation last year. In 2010, the Cavaliers are all about getting back to doing what they do best, and that includes having a couple of go-to tight ends. Senior Joe Torchia is returning after a shoulder injury and looks healthy this fall. Sophomore Colter Phillips has good size and good hands; he should be a welcome target in short yardage situations.

The biggest question mark on offense this season is in the backfield. It isn't that Virginia doesn't have any running backs; it is that the team has so many different guys, each with a different set of skills. Torrey Mack, Dominique Wallace, and Keith Payne have all had their own separate issues preventing their full participation this offseason. Wallace has been rehabbing an injury, Payne has been struggling with grades, and Mack has had, as Coach London put it, "an issue with personal decisions." Payne is a big, bruiser of a back; something Virginia has been missing the past few seasons. Watch out for sophomore Perry Jones, who has great speed and agility. The Cavaliers will be fine at running back once they settle on a go-to guy. For now, the team has a "running back by committee" situation.

Defense

Along with a new pro-style offense, Coach London has brought in a new defense. Virginia will move from the 3-4 defense to the 4-3 defense which is better suited for its personnel. The defense isn't particularly large, but both the line and the linebackers have a respectable amount of speed. Junior defensive end Matt Conrath has moved inside to defensive tackle, and linebacker Cam Johnson has moved up front to defensive end. His speed and athleticism should bring a real boost to the pass rush from up front. Junior defensive tackle Nick Jenkins, has emerged as a vocal leader who also sets a great example for his teammates.

Sophomore Steve Greer, who led the team with 92 tackles last season en route to Freshman All-America honors, leads Virginia's linebackers. Greer missed all of spring practice and is just returning from injury. In his absence, junior Aaron Taliaferro has been playing well enough to challenge for playing time at the middle linebacker position. Taliaferro has impressed his teammates and coaches alike this off-season, and should continue to push Greer into the season. It's a shame that two motivated guys have to play the same position!

Cornerback Ras-I Dowling

Special Teams

"We're going to kick the ball down the field, then tackle the guy," Virginia's special team's coordinator Anthony Poindexter said. It sounds like a solid plan. Coach 'Dex has a whole host of placekickers at his disposal, and all signs point to Coach London possibly giving sophomore Drew Jarrett, who handled extra-point conversions last season, a redshirt. Juniors Chris Hinkebein and Robert Randolph each have different skill sets and are capable of handling any placekicking situation. Hinkebein has a lot of power, and has mostly been handling kickoff duties. Coach London has said that he might try Hinkebein in some long field goal situations. Randolph doesn't have the sheer power of Hinkebein, but what he lacks in distance he makes up for in finesse. Randolph is accurate and his kicks have a lot of height. Punter Jimmy Howell was the most consistent player on the entire team last season. He averaged 40 yards per punt in 2009 and looks to be in great shape to continue his currently level of production.

On the other side of things, it's not entirely clear who will be the designated kick returner. Chase Minnifield handled the majority of kicks last season, and, while he was definitely fearless, he sometimes showed a lack of good judgment. During the early part of fall camp, there were a ton of guys taking practice returns, so fans will have to wait and see who lines up to return on September, 4th .

New coach, new offense, new defense, new team. Mike London has brought an air of excitement back to Charlottesville. No player on the current roster has ever won a home opener, so the game against Richmond (Coach London's alma mater and former team) will be an important matchup. It will be first game of the new era of Virginia Football and one, which could set the tone for the rest of the season.