Cavalier Corner

CAVALIER CORNER: Virginia must replace all three starters at linebacker this year. You, Mark Hall and Zach Bradshaw are primed to lead a talented but inexperienced linebacker corps. How has the new unit jelled so far? KISER: "We've been jelling really well. We're trying to get the young guys acclimated, because we know that we're going to need as many people to play as possible this year. "Me, Mark and Zach kind of came up to- gether, so we feel like it's our time to be able to contribute, and we're really going to try to do our best this year." CAVALIER CORNER: What are your strengths as a middle linebacker? KISER: "My biggest strengths are mentally, I know what the play is going to be, and I know where to position myself to make the best play with the least amount of steps. "I'm clearly not the biggest dude, or the fast- est, or the strongest, but I would say that my mind sets me apart." CAVALIER CORNER: What are some of your favorite things about attending the University of Virginia and being a member of this football program? KISER: "I really enjoy my teammates. The one thing that I really love about football is how diverse the team is. You have guys from all different backgrounds, different colors, it does not matter. "We all get along great and my teammates have really made this a good college experience. I am all about the team; I just want to get to a bowl this year." — Drew Goodman Perhaps there are better ways to spend a Sunday in November. But as far as Marta Keane ('76) is concerned, her favorite way involves the Virginia women's rowing team. "The boathouse is across the Rivanna River from me in Earlysville," said Keane, who graduated with a double major in psychology and sociology and earned a master's in speech pathology in 1978. "In November, they have the Rivanna Romp. I sit on my dock and wave at them. I see them practice every morning. "I think of them as my team. They've won na- tional championships, so I'm very proud of that." Keane's interest in Virginia athletics extends past women's rowing, though. In addition to being a VAF donor for nine con- secutive years, she's been a men's basketball sea- son ticket holder for the same span of time, and is an avid fan of the Cavaliers' football and women's basketball teams. "Through my time at UVa as a student, I at- tended athletic events consistently," said Keane, who's the CEO of the Jefferson Area Board for the Aging (JABA) in Charlottesville. "In 1974, '75 and '76, I sat out overnight to get tickets to the ACC Tournament. I was at the 1976 ACC Tournament, which was the first one UVa won. "I was a fourth-year and [tournament MVP] Wally Walker was a fellow psychology major, and we were in some classes together. We weren't expected to win the tournament so that definitely was my favorite moment." Perfect timing enabled her to become a men's basketball season ticket holder. "I moved back to Charlottesville," Keane said. "I've had them for nine years because that's when John Paul Jones Arena opened up [Aug. 1, 2006]. I purchased them as soon as I could because that's when additional season tickets first became available." WAHOO NATION MARTA KEANE

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