Cavalier Corner is the publication just for UVa sports fans!
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20 CAVALIER CORNER was my last game," Alonso said. "Per- sonally, I couldn't do that to myself and I couldn't do that to Coach Mendenhall." With the opportunity to further his studies at UVA, Alonso also jumped at the chance to continue his journey with the Cavaliers. "Just the whole working hard aspect that Coach Mendenhall instills in us, I just love to have a program and be a part of this pro- gram where I can come in and just put in work and still be able to do my studies," Alonso said. "Just coming back for one more year, it'll be extremely special, because last year it was up in the air, whether or not I'm coming back to use the free season. "But now knowing that this is my final year, I can put it all into this last year and just see what comes from it." For someone like Glaser, who earned All- ACC honors in 2020, having the opportu- nity to return in 2021 is a special gift. He was originally slated to redshirt the 2017 season as a true freshman. Enough injuries on the offensive line forced a conversation between Mendenhall and the Glaser family about burning his redshirt with four regular- season games to go. This came one season before the NCAA instituted a new rule to allow a football student-athlete to appear in up to four games and still retain a redshirt. "I always felt very happy to give up my redshirt year to assist UVA getting to a bowl game for the first time in six years," Glaser said of 2017. "But I always felt like I didn't get a full four years at UVA because of that relinquishment of my redshirt year. "Definitely getting another year back, being granted one from NCAA and from Coach Mendenhall, especially, was a great opportunity that I am very thankful for." There is a collective excitement about a 2021 run that also played a part in Gla- ser's decision to return to UVA. He saw the pieces in place for what could make for a special season. "The direction that I see UVA football going in with [quarterback] Brennan [Arm- strong] coming back, whom I think had a good year this year and I think he's going to have a stellar year next year with growth, experience and maturity," Glaser reflected. "The O-line as a unit is strong. It has been the best O-line I've been a part of since I've been here with Olu [Oluwatimi], [Ryan] Swoboda, Bobby Haskins, [Ryan] Nelson and Joe Bissinger. "They are just a bunch of guys who are talented and I am excited to play side by side with them. A lot of the younger guys who are going to emerge, like Lavel [Davis Jr.], had a great year last year. Nick Jackson had a phenomenal season, returning players like my boys Mandy, Joey and Olu, all those guys. I am just excited to play with them again for another year and to beat Tech." Blount and Brown join Alonso and Glaser as Cavaliers that arrived in the same 2017 class. Blount, a semifinalist for the presti- gious Campbell Trophy — nicknamed the "Academic Heisman" — despite missing five games with injuries was excited for the opportunity to return. "I feel like I didn't give enough of myself this past season as I was dealing with leg injuries," Blount noted. "I really didn't get to show my teammates, my family, as well as football fans in general, the skill I have and how much I prepared for the season. "This COVID year that they're giving us is a great way for me to just show my talents and also give myself another shot to make it to the NFL." Blount, who graduated in just more than three years, is on track next summer to finish a master's degree in social foundations educa- tional psychology and when the 2021 season kicks off he will pursue a second master's in business with an eye on the commerce track. With the season-ending injury to linebacker Charles Snowden last November, Brown came on strong in a "next-man-up" state of mind for the Cavaliers. It was the culture Mendenhall has created for the program that convinced Brown to return for an extra year. "I like how this program developed a cul- ture of winning," Brown said. "We really talk about developing this culture on the field and off the field. The things we learn in posi- tion meetings and in team meetings further develop us far beyond what football could. "But this dialogue all takes place in a football atmosphere. That winning culture and just earning everything. I tell people who haven't experienced that type of cul- ture, you have to go get it." For Cross and Grant, who each started all 10 games last season at the two cornerback positions, the duo will hold the honor of being part of all six Mendenhall teams at UVA. Both redshirted the 2016 season and Cross even has the distinction of being the first UVA recruit Mendenhall signed after taking over the head whistle in Charlottes- ville in December 2015. Grant's decision was focused on leader- ship and the opportunity to play for Men- denhall one more time. "I wanted to come back more than any- thing because of our head coach, Bronco Mendenhall," Grant said. "He tells the truth and you want to be around people like that as long as you can and get everything you can from them. "I feel like there's always more you can gain from UVA, and that is what attracted me to come back for one more year." Safety Joey Blount has seen action in 43 games during his first four years on Grounds, compiling 219 tackles and six interceptions. PHOTO COURTESY UVA "I feel like there's always more you can gain from UVA, and that is what attracted me to come back for one more year." CORNERBACK NICK GRANT