UVa quarterback’s rise ‘almost surreal’

By Jeff White
Published: September 23, 2008

CHARLOTTESVILLE — He showed off his chops in the days leading up to the Gator Bowl, tinkling the piano keys in the lobby of the Omni in Jacksonville, Fla., sometimes with teammates singing along. Hotel guests might not have recognized the young man at the piano, but they appreciated his musical ability.

Ten months ago, Marc Verica’s profile on the University of Virginia football team — at least to those outside the program — could not have been much lower. He was the Cavaliers’ fourth-string quarterback. He didn’t play in the Gator Bowl, just as he hadn’t played during the regular season.

Today, Verica is Virginia’s starter.

“It’s almost surreal in a sense,” he said Tuesday at John Paul Jones Arena.

UVa’s depth chart at quarterback looked like this in 2007: Jameel Sewell was No. 1, Peter Lalich was No. 2, Scott Deke was No. 3, and Verica was No. 4. Moreover, each came out of the season with eligibility remaining.

In January, however, Sewell was placed on academic suspension for two semesters. Lalich started the Cavaliers’ first two games this season, but off-the-field problems caught up with him, and he was dismissed from the team last week.

That left Verica and Deke. Coach Al Groh chose Verica to start Sept. 13 against Connecticut, and the redshirt sophomore from near Philadelphia responded by completing 22 of 30 passes for 158 yards in a 45-10 loss. Verica will start again for Virginia Saturday at Duke.

“You never really want to wish any unfortunate things to happen to a person, and it’s unfortunate for Pete, with his situation,” Verica said. “But I was thrust into this role, and now it’s just my job to embrace it and lead this team to where it needs to go.”

That Verica would grow up to play football seems natural. His father, Mark, starred in that sport in high school in Philadelphia and then played at Kutztown State. But Verica’s mother, Christine, worried that her son would get hurt playing American football.

“My wife is from South America, so football to her is soccer,” Mark Verica recalled with a laugh Tuesday.

And soccer is what Marc played for years. “Finally, when he was in the seventh grade, I won out,” Mark Verica said.

His son’s position? That’s easy.

“I don’t know it was nature versus nurture, but my dad was a quarterback, and I guess it was inevitable for me to be the same,” Marc Verica said. “I always used to play catch with him in the driveway.”

In high school, Verica was thrust into a starting role on the eve of his junior season when the team’s returning quarterback suffered an injury. He never relinquished the job. Verica realizes that such twists are part of life, so he didn’t despair early in his college career when he found himself buried on the depth chart. Nor he did consider transferring.

When he assessed his place in the program, Verica recalled, “I just said to myself, ‘I’ve got to just keep getting better. I can’t get caught up in if I’m No. 2, No. 3, No. 4 or No. 1, I’ve just got to get better, and maybe those things will take care of themselves.’ And that’s what happened here.”

An economics major, Verica inherited more than athleticism from his father. Both are talented artists with a flair for drawing. These days, however, the younger Verica’s off-the-field passion is music. He taught himself to play guitar and piano, and it’s not uncommon to find him at an on-campus keyboard between classes at UVa. His tastes range from Pink Floyd to Marvin Gaye.

“It’s relaxing, it’s fun,” Verica said. “It’s definitely therapeutic in a sense.”