Virginia is going to need all the help it can get in its opener against Southern California.
OK, there’s no shock value in that assertion. Certainly, the Cavaliers’ experience deficit at quarterback vis-a-vis the Trojans can be accepted much easier in Charlottesville than the loss of dismissed basketball fan favorite Lars Mikalauskas.
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But I got to thinking yesterday just how much Pete Carroll loves to make a statement in intersectional games. I mean, just loves to. And because I’m chart-crazy, I came up with this little gem on the Trojans’ trips over either the Rockies or a significant portion of an ocean in Carroll’s seven seasons.
Season
| Opponent | Score | Opp. final record |
| 2001 | at Notre Dame | L, 27-16 | 5-6 |
| 2002 | at Kansas State | L, 27-20 | 11-2 |
| 2002 | vs. Iowa (Orange Bowl) | W, 38-17
| 11-2 |
| 2003 | at Auburn | W, 23-0 | 8-5 |
| 2003 | at Notre Dame | W, 45-14 | 5-7 |
| 2004 | vs. Virginia Tech (Landover, Md.)
| W, 24-13 | 10-3 |
| 2004 | vs. Oklahoma (Orange Bowl) | W, 55-19 | 12-1 |
| 2005 | at Hawaii | W, 63-17 | 5-7 |
| 2005 | at Notre Dame | W, 34-31 | 9-3 |
| 2006 | at Arkansas | W, 50-14 | 10-4 |
| 2007 | at Nebraska | W, 49-31 | 5-7 |
| 2007 | at Notre Dame | W, 38-0 | 3-9 |
Well, that’s 10 straight wins and three half-a-hundreds hung on the long road trips since Carroll got things going. And only one of those victories was all that close (the 2005 classic in South Bend).
All of this is an extended way of saying the obvious: Lord Groh of Hooville might be in for a long afternoon when the Men of Troy visit Thomas Jefferson’s university.
– Patrick Stevens
