Cavs try to take ‘next step’ against Gators

MIAMI — University of Virginia junior Charles Snowden recalls that when he first arrived on campus, new acquaintances were disappointed to learn he was a linebacker rather than a power forward.

“I was 67 and 190 pounds, real skinny,” Snowden said. “And people would say, ‘Are you on the basketball team?’”

“‘No, I’m on the football team.’”

“‘Oh.’”

As in, “Oh, that’s too bad.”

But now that the Cavaliers (94, No. 24 CFP) are about to play No. 6ranked Florida in the Orange Bowl, strangers are excited to meet a football player, Snowden said.

“That’s a twist, and it’s pretty cool,” he said. “I love it.”

Virginia’s trip to the Orange Bowl shows how far the program has come, and Monday night’s game will offer a gauge of where it might be headed.

“We understand the history Virginia has had,” Snowden said. “We were not a big name in college sports, so we hear a lot of what people say. A lot of us just kind of laughed it off. If I had heard the name Virginia a couple years ago, I’d have probably had the same reaction. So we’re going to go out there and prove it’s a new team and a new era.”

The Gators (102, No. 9 CFP) are on the rise, too. A victory would clinch Florida’s first 11win season since 2012.

“We don’t get to play again until September,” coach Dan Mullen said. “That’s a long time to sit around. So if you have the opportunity to finish the season with a win, I think it really kind of bolts you into the next season.”

PROGRESSING PROGRAMS

The Cavaliers are making their Orange Bowl debut, and a win would be the biggest bowl victory in school history. They would crack the AP Top 25 and finish the season ranked for the first time since 2004.

“This is the next step for our program, and we can’t wait to capitalize,” coach Bronco Mendenhall said. “We are a program that is developing, rising, growing and becoming.”

Football still doesn’t match the popularity of a basketball team that won the national championship in April, but Mendenhall has revived a program that went 210 in his first season in 2016. This year the Cavaliers ended a streak of 15 consecutive losses to rival Virginia Tech and earned their third consecutive bowl berth.

The Gators, however, are 141⁄2point favorites. A win would give them a second consecutive Top 10 finish under secondyear coach Mullen, who has quickly returned Florida to supremacy in the footballcrazed Sunshine State.

“That’s really huge for us,” quarterback Kyle Trask said. “Coach Mullen’s thing is that’s how it should be. That’s the Gators standard. We need to be the best team in the state every single year. This past couple of years is letting everybody know Florida is back on the map like it should be.”