{mosimage} If you're a Virginia fan, you had to have seen this coming. In my 17 years of following Virginia football, I've come to learn that no lead is ever safe. Once Texas Tech's Alex Trlica nailed a 41 yard field goal through the uprights with two seconds left in the 2008 Gator Bowl, he dealt the Cavaliers a feeling they have come accustomed to over the years: a devastating dose of heartbreak. My beloved Virginia Cavaliers had somehow managed to blow a 14 point lead with 3:39 left in the contest. When the Cavaliers were up 28-14 with 5 minutes to left and Virginia had possession of the ball, I started to think of buying 2008 Gator Bowl Champs shirts. What unfolded in those final five minutes of the 2008 Gator Bowl was the second most devastating loss I've ever experienced in the 24 years that I've been privileged enough to live. When that ball sailed through the swirling Jacksonville air and through the uprights, a little piece of my heart went with it.

I just kept referring to the line that Steve Spurrier quipped in his post-game press conference after his South Carolina squad dropped a heartbreaker to Florida in 2006. South Carolina was trying to tie the game in the final seconds but had the kick blocked. Spurrier stepped up to the podium in the post-game press conference and he was clearly upset but he said a quote that will stick with me for the rest of my life. "I wanted this game for the fans of South Carolina more than anything else because they had never beaten Florida before, but, it's a ballgame, not gonna cry about it." The quote in writing doesn't have quite the same effect as the sound byte because of Spurrier's southern twang, but it will have to do.

Blown leads are nothing new to Virginia Cavalier football fans. The Texas Tech collapse was certainly one of the Cavaliers' all-time worst, but it's tough to compete with the 28-0 second quarter lead the Cavaliers blew against Clemson in 1992, losing 29-28.

I don't think I'll ever forget how I felt the sickening feeling in the bottom of my stomach after that football sailed through the uprights. I also know that I will never forget the look on my Uncle Jim's face as he said, "I think I'm gonna throw up." It was a disheartening loss to say the least, I don't know if I will ever feel worse after watching a football game than that Clemson loss. After that game I will always have a bad place in my heart reserved for the Clemson Tigers. At the time, the Clemson comeback was only 3 points away from tying the national record for the greatest comeback in college football history.

The Cavaliers blew another 17-point fourth quarter lead in 1995 to the Michigan Wolverines. The game was labeled the Pigskin Classic and it was a classic case of classic UVA football as the Cavaliers somehow squandered a 17 point lead in the fourth quarter. I remember watching that game at my grandmother's house in Tazewell, Virginia and I also remember how vividly furious I was after Scott Dreisbach connected with Mercury Hayes on a beautifully lofted 26 yard touchdown pass in the side of the end zone. There was no time left on the clock and Hayes dragged his left foot in bounds to ensure the greatest comeback in Michigan football history. I'll never forget that image and I think I'll always have a bad place in my heart reserved for both Dreisbach and Hayes simply because of that play. Virginia's best cover corner, Ronde Barber, was beat by a few steps on the play. Go figure, one of the best cover corners in football history gets beat at the most inopportune of times. It is just another inexplicable event in the Virginia Cavalier football DNA of blowing big leads in games.

Many outside observers may have been surprised at the outcome of the 2008 Gator Bowl, but not for long time Virginia fans like myself. There was a Virginia fan my dad was talking to in the elevator and he said, "I've been going to games for over 30 years and they still do the same damn thing." Whatever is in the water in Charlottesville, it needs to be changed.

That's not to say the Cavaliers didn't have their fair share of lucky bounces in the 2007-2008 season. It was a magical season for the 'Hoos and while the last game will leave a sting for quite some time, but fans, players, and coaches still need to keep things in perspective. After all, it was the first nine win season since 2002 for the Cavaliers, which was yet another magical year in Virginia football history. The Cavaliers set an NCAA record by winning five games by two points or less, a testament to exactly how lucky the Cavaliers got in 2007. It was a special year for the 'Hoos, no matter which way you slice it.

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