|
|
|
Aaron Taliaferro
|
Lazarus
|
"The biblical reference was given to Taliaferro by
first-year defensive coordinator Jim Reid, citing the rise
from the bottom of the program's depth chart."
|
Adrian Gamble
|
Block
|
|
Ahmad Hawkins
|
Hawk, Birdman
|
Hawkins seems to have picked up the nickname
"Birdman" in the Arena Football League.
|
Al Groh (Head Coach)
|
Mr. October, The
Chessmaster, The
Chairman, The Pilot,
Jeezy
|
"We call him 'Jeezy,'" linebacker Denzel Burrell said,
"after the rapper, 'Young Jeezy.'"
|
Almondo Curry
|
Muffin
|
"I've had (the nickname) ever since I was little. (My
friends and teammates) knew about my nickname
before I even started playing football. It just stuck with
me, I don't know why."
|
Alvin Pearman
|
Peaches, Sweet P
|
Neither of these is nearly cool enough for Pearman, but
Sweet P is at least tolerable. Peaches? Not so much.
|
Andrew Hoffman
|
Mongo, Paul Bunyon
|
Hoffman's high school teammates gave him the
nickname "Paul Bunyon."
|
Angelo Crowell
|
Maximus
|
Crowell earned the nickname "Maximus," Russell
Crowe's character in Gladiator, after repeatedly quoting
lines from the movie during two-a-day practices prior to
his senior season.
|
Anthony Martinez
|
A-Mart
|
A-Rod pretty much ruined the "first initial - hyphen -
shortened version of last name" nickname for me.
|
Anthony Poindexter
|
Dex, Sexy Dexy
|
Former Hoo Todd White claimed that Poindexter's
teammates sometimes referred to him as "Sexy Dexy."
|
Anthony Southern
|
Bus
|
"He's real big, he's real strong," said Virginia safety
Anthony Poindexter, who also is known for his hard hits.
"I don't like hitting him, to be honest with you. I hate it." If
Dex didn't like hitting you, you were pretty much a
certified badass.
|
Antwoine Womack
|
Wo
|
"Sophomore tailback Antwoine Womack is called 'Wo' by
his teammates. That's also what defenses frequently
feel when he's in the game."
|
Asbury Sallenger
|
Abby
|
|
Atiim Kiambu
Hakeem-Ah Barber
|
Tiki
|
|
Austin Pasztor
|
Big Canada
|
|
Barry Word
|
The Last Word
|
|
Bill Dudley
|
Bullet Bill
|
I read somewhere that "Bullet Bill" wasn't considered to
be all that fast. That's like...rain on your wedding day. Or
something.
|
Bob Buchanan
|
Buck
|
|
Bob Cascella
|
The Tree
|
|
Bob Kowalkowsi
|
Big Kowal
|
|
Bob Paczkowski
|
Patch
|
|
Bob Prusmack
|
The Neck
|
|
Bob Tata (Assistant
Coach)
|
Coach Po
|
|
Bob Weir
|
Rock
|
"He was a rock in everything he ever believed in, and you
just could not move him," said life-long friend Chuck
Noe. "He was a rock about values, about politics, and
about everything in life. You just could not move Bob
Weir."
|
Boyd Page
|
Possum
|
|
Branden Albert
|
Cheeseburger,
Burger, Boss Hog
|
When Albert was a teenager, a friend called him
"Cheeseburger" during a pick-up basketball game and
the name - which was later shortened to "Burger" - stuck.
Former Hoo Jameel Sewell gave Albert the nickname
"Boss Hog."
|
Brandon Isaiah
|
BI
|
|
Brian Bartholomes
|
Bart, Bartronix
|
|
Brennan Schmidt
|
Schmitty
|
|
Bronier Costas
|
Stormy
|
|
Cedric Peerman
|
The Running
Reverend, Rev Run
|
|
Charles Way
|
Teacher's Pet
|
"In college, we used to call him 'Teacher's Pet.' He
always did what he was supposed to do. Always on
time. Always a silent leader, led by example. He just
outworked whoever was in front of him." -- Percy
Ellsworth
|
Chase Minnifield
|
Chase Manhattan
|
|
Chester Moeller
|
Trey
|
|
Chris Canty
|
Razor
|
|
Chris Gould
|
Beep
|
Gould was given the nickname "Beep" by his grandfather.
|
Chris Slade
|
The Blade
|
Per the 1991 Football Media Guide.
|
Chris Warren
|
Smooth
|
According to a guy on this site, this was Warren’s
nickname in high school.
|
Clifton Richardson
|
Doodie
|
|
Connor Hughes
|
Huge
|
Bonus points if Hughes was given this nickname when
someone saw him walking out of the shower.
|
Dan Ryczek
|
Tif
|
|
Daquan Romero
|
Da-Da
|
Pronounced "Day-Day"
|
Darren Childs
|
Cali
|
|
Darryl Blackstock
|
Black, dA pRinCe oF
bAd nEWz
|
Pro: "Black" is a pretty great nickname.
Con: I don't see myself greeting Blackstock with "What
up, Black?"
|
David Sullivan
|
Silky
|
|
Dassie Jones
|
Skeet
|
|
D'Brickashaw Ferguson
|
Brick
|
One of the best nicknames ever for an o-lineman, in my
opinion.
|
Demetrious Nicholson
|
Tre
|
Pronounced "Trey."
|
Demetrius Allen
|
Pete
|
Seriously, is "Pete" a commonly used shortened version
of "Demetrius," or is that just a Wahoo thing?
|
Denzel Burrell
|
Zel
|
|
Derek Dooley
|
Precious
|
"Back in Derek's college days at Virginia, [Derek's
mother] had bumper stickers printed up that she mailed
to Dooley's roommate, the starting quarterback. Barbara
believed her son, who played sparingly, deserved more
minutes and attention. What did the bumper stickers
say? 'Throw the ball to Precious.'"
|
Devon Battle
|
Boo
|
According to a buddy of mine who played Division 1
basketball, every team he played on growing up "had a
brother named Boo." He also said most of them had a
guy named "Pookie." (He's African American, so I
assume I can quote him using the word "brother," but I'm
not 100% certain. Can I get a ruling on that?)
|
Deyon Williams
|
Da-Da
|
|
Diamonte Bailey
|
Diamond
|
|
Dick Ambrose
|
Bam Bam
|
Ambrose was given the nickname "Bam Bam" due to his
"hard-hitting style of play."
|
Dick Bestwick (Head
Coach)
|
Daddy Dick
|
|
Don Majkowski
|
Majik, Majik Man
|
"[Magic Man"] was a neat nickname. I think that the name
has a little bit to do with some last-minute plays but has
more to do with people mispronouncing my name."
|
Donald Parker
|
Hula, Pineapple, Tiny
|
|
DreQuan Hoskey
|
Dre
|
|
Earle Neale
|
Greasy
|
Neale got his nickname due to "his elusiveness on the
football field."
|
Eddie Robertson
|
Peaches
|
|
Edward Carrington VIII
|
Willie
|
|
Elton Brown
|
Big E
|
|
Emmanuel Byers
|
Big Play
|
Byers was given the nickname by Anthony Poindexter.
|
Ernie Rogers
|
Gabby
|
|
Eugene Mayer
|
Buck
|
|
Eugene Monroe
|
Best Buy, Moose, the
Godfather, Big Gene
the Blocking Machine
|
Monroe earned the nickname after camping out
overnight outside a local electronics store to purchase
an Xbox 360.
|
Fontel Mines
|
Fonzie
|
|
Frank C. McCue III (Team
Physician / Surgeon)
|
Doc
|
|
Frank Spaziani (Assistant
Coach)
|
Spaz
|
You know a nickname is the real deal when it's used to
make a fake Twitter account.
|
Gary Helman
|
Gabby
|
|
George Blackburn (Head
Coach)
|
Blackie
|
|
George Stetter
|
The Jet
|
|
George Welsh (Head
Coach)
|
The Old Salt, Elvis
|
According to Herman Moore, Shawn Moore was
responsible for giving Welsh the nickname "Elvis."
|
Germane Crowell
|
Crow
|
|
Gilbert Sullivan
|
Gilly
|
|
Greg Dickerhoof
|
Dicker
|
|
Harold Hunt
|
Doonie
|
|
Harrison Nesbit
|
Chief
|
|
Heath Miller
|
Big Money, Baby
Shockey
|
Elton "Big-E" Brown was "the originator of the 'Baby
Shockey' tag."
|
Howard Petty
|
Beaver
|
|
Hunter Richards
|
Hunter the Punter
|
|
Jacob Hodges
|
Rudy 2
|
|
Jake McGee
|
The Kid
|
|
Jamael Oronde Barber
|
Ronde, The GOAT
|
Raheem Morris, former coach of the Tampa Bay
Buccaneers, nicknamed Barber "The GOAT," which
stands for "Greatest Of All Time."
|
Jamaine Winborne
|
Bam Bam
|
Winborne earned the nickname "Bam Bam" while
attending Fork Union Military Academy due to "his
strength in the weight room despite his small frame."
|
James Farrior
|
Potsie, The Ultimate
Farrior
|
Farrior's parents called him Potsie because they liked
"Happy Days" and he had a pot belly.
|
James Lacey
|
Monk
|
|
James Pearson
|
Goofy
|
|
Jason Snelling
|
Snell, The Big Bruiser
|
Virginia's defensive backs gave Snelling the nickname
"The Big Bruiser."
|
Jason Wallace
|
The Fly
|
"Wallace is awesome. He's like a little gnat. That's why
we call him 'The Fly.'" -- Tony Covington
|
Javier Montanez
|
El Toro
|
|
Jeff Calamous
|
Spade
|
|
Jerrod Washington
|
J-Rod
|
|
Jim Bakhtiar
|
The Persian Prince,
The Iranian Prince,
The Iron Iranian
|
I'm guessing that this picture would cause a bit of a stir
these days.
|
Jim Gillette
|
The Courtland Courier
|
|
Jimmy Muscaro
|
Muskie
|
|
Joe Crocker
|
Crock
|
|
John Naponick
|
Big John
|
Naponick was 6 feet, 9 inches tall and weighed 290
pounds. So, yeah.
|
John Phillips
|
Big Country, Baby Wit
|
|
John Rainey
|
Raindrop
|
Quite possibly the least intimidating nickname in the
history of ever.
|
John St. Clair
|
The Beast
|
St. Clair was given this nickname "because he was
notorious for manhandling opponents by their throats."
|
Johnny Papit
|
Rapid Papit, The
Philadelphia Express
|
|
John Thomas Womack III
|
Trey
|
|
Kameron Mack
|
Tweet
|
|
Kayode Parham
|
Kai, Hammer
|
Hammer is a friggin' awesome nickname for a
linebacker.
|
Keith Payne
|
The Payne Train
|
|
Ken Shelton
|
Wizard
|
There seems to be a bit of a disagreement as to the
derivation of this nickname.
|
Kevin Bradley
|
Commando
|
|
Kevin Brooks
|
Beanie
|
|
Kevin Ogletree
|
Tree, KO
|
Remember when Tree Rollins bit Danny Ainge, leading
to the brilliant "Tree Bites Man" headline? That was pretty
great.
|
Kevin Parks
|
Donkey
|
|
Kwakou Robinson
|
Earthquake, Quake
|
|
LaChaston Smith
|
Ray Ray
|
Per the 2013 Spring Prospectus.
|
Lawrence Croft
|
The General
|
|
Ljubomir Stamenich
|
Lube
|
The Hoos paid tribute to Lube with a sticker on their
helmets after he passed away in 2005.
|
Malcolm Macgregor
|
Maggot
|
|
Marques Hagans
|
Biscuit
|
Hagans was given the nickname "Biscuit" in 10th grade
by Muffin Curry. However, he has refused to reveal the
story behind the nickname. Also, this picture rules.
|
Matt Blundin
|
Hoops, Werewolves of
Blundin
|
"My friends on the football team called me 'Hoops.' Chris
Berman on ESPN called me 'Werewolves of Blundin.'
Last year, one of my students found it and got a few
others to help put together a video called Werewolves of
Blundin."
|
Matt Mihalik
|
Hoss
|
"My first year at Gilmour [Academy] this one senior saw
me. In that show Bonanza, there is a cowboy named
Hoss and I kind of reminded him of that. He called me
that and it's kind of stuck."
|
Maurice Covington
|
Mo
|
|
Mikell Simpson
|
Juice
|
|
Morgan Moses
|
Shrek
|
|
Patrick Slebonick
|
Slebo
|
Slebonick was given the nickname "Slebo" by then
offensive coordinator Mike Groh.
|
Paul Klingensmith
|
Klinger
|
|
Paul Lockwood
|
Lumpy
|
|
Paul Reid
|
Deacon
|
|
Paul Schrecker
|
Schreck
|
|
Paul Yewisiak
|
Weezie
|
|
Perry Jones
|
Superman
|
"Sometimes Virginia running back Perry Jones shows
up at practice, or even on game day, wearing a t-shirt
under his pads with a familiar red 'S' on the front."
|
Pete Gray
|
Clucker
|
|
Peter Lalich
|
The Pistol
|
More like "The Bong Hit," amirite?
|
Phil Rogers
|
Killer
|
|
Phillip Brown
|
Peanut Butter
|
|
Ralph Shoaf
|
Buddy, The Sandman
|
In addition to playing football, Shoaf was a heavyweight
boxer at UVa. He earned the nickname "The Sandman"
because he "put opponents to sleep."
|
Rashawn Jackson
|
RaRa, RaRa Bus
|
|
Ras-I Dowling
|
Foots
|
Coach Mike London dubbed Dowling "Foots" after he
injured his foot his senior year.
|
Ray Roberts
|
Puddin'
|
Roberts was given the nickname by fellow lineman
Chris Borsari.
|
Raymond Mann
|
Killer Ray
|
|
Robert Kasonick
|
Koos
|
|
Ronald Similo
|
Sim
|
|
Ross Burbank
|
Jebediah
|
Burbank's beard earned him the nickname from strength
and conditioning coach Evan Marcus.
|
Sam Painter
|
Sploosh
|
|
Shawn Moore
|
Denti
|
"They got it from the dumb commercial for Dinty Moore
Beef Stew, and they spelled it wrong. They still call me
that today. Marcus Wilson gave it to me and it just stuck
with me."
|
Steve Greer
|
Cop Junior, Little Cop
|
Early in his career, Greer patterned much of what he did
after former Hoo and fellow linebacker Jon Copper.
|
Terry Kirby
|
TK, Midget
|
Per the 1991 Football Media Guide.
|
Theirrien Davis
|
Bud
|
"When I was younger I was at a birthday party. This girl
said I looked like Rudy's friend Bud from the Cosby
Show. [Rudy gave her friend the name Bud because
she didn't like his real name, Kenny.] The name has
stuck ever since."
|
Thomas Jones
|
TJ
|
Definitely the second most popular "TJ" in Virginia
history.
|
Tim Spruill
|
Instant Offense
|
Spruill was given the nickname "Instant Offense" in high
school, where he played quarterback and defensive
back.
|
Tom Hagan
|
Hago
|
|
Tom Locklin
|
Goob
|
Locklin was given the nickname "Goob" by fellow
offensive lineman Bryan Heath.
|
Tony Covington
|
The Cov
|
|
Tyrone Davis
|
Sivad
|
|
Vicquale Hall
|
Vic, Kale, X, Do-It-All
Hall
|
Former Hoo Clint Sintim gave Hall the moniker "Do-It-All
Hall."
|
Vincent Brown (Assistant
Coach)
|
The Undertaker
|
Picked up the nickname during his time with the Patriots.
|
William Clark
|
Scooter
|
Clark's grandfather gave him the nickname "Scooter"
when he was six weeks old.
|
Willie Davis
|
WD40
|
|
Zac Yarborough
|
Bird
|
|
Zak Stair
|
One-a-Day
|
Al Groh derisively referred to Stair as "One-a-Day"
because Stair "committed at least one false start penalty
per practice." Cause that's how Al Groh rolls.
|
Zane Parr
|
Big CC, Clark Kent
|
Parr was given the nickname "Big CC" in high school as
an homage to CC Sabbathia, "because like the Yankees
star he was a big lefthander with a dominating fastball."
|
