After spending his college career as a have-not, Virginia quarterback Matt Schaub is trying to adjust to being a have. For one thing, as of May 7, Schaub has an undergraduate degree in economics. For another, as the reigning ACC Player of the Year, having led the Cavaliers from an 0-2 start to a 9-5 finish, Schaub has a top-15 team in his locker room. Virginia can no longer hide in Florida State's shadow.

"We're aware of the expectations," the fifth-year senior said. "They're a source of motivation for us to get better and work that much harder. We want to taste that success again."

	Virginia QB Matt Schaub was the ACC's player of the year last season.

As a sophomore in a new system during coach Al Groh's first season in 2001, Schaub completed 58 percent of his passes but threw 10 touchdowns against eight interceptions. Last season, Schaub completed 69 percent of his passes and threw for 2,976 yards, 28 touchdowns and only seven interceptions. He began so slowly that Groh benched him and started freshman Marques Hagans in the second game of the season.

Message received. The following week, Schaub led Virginia to a 34-21 defeat of South Carolina that started a six-game winning streak. Schaub peaked in the final conference game of the season, completing 23-of-27 passes for 249 yards and three touchdowns in Virginia's stunning 48-13 upset of Maryland. "I've never had a day like that in college," Schaub said. "There was a snowball effect. They couldn't do a whole lot to stop us."

Virginia is expected to challenge for the ACC championship largely because of a freshmen class that matured so quickly. Tailback Wali Lundy, as the prime example, gained 239 all-purpose yards in the 48-22 rout of West Virginia in the Continental Tire Bowl. Four Cavaliers made freshman All-America teams.

Schaub, as one of only five fifth-year seniors on the 2003 team, has prepared himself for a season in the title role of Follow the Leader. That will begin with the summer passing drills that he will organize. He'll be taking attendance, too. The price of missing the work? "The mean stares from teammates," Schaub said. "You don't want to get on a bad page with the rest of your teammates. Even the linemen show up and do their thing."

Schaub's work will focus on getting down his timing with a young group of receivers -- his favorite target, Billy McMullen, was drafted in the third round by Philadelphia -- and on his footwork. At 6-foot-5, 240 pounds, Schaub needs every bit of quickness he can get. "I have to sharpen up my steps, get quicker in the pocket, get away from the center quicker to set up faster," Schaub said. "I need to get to the running back as deep as possible to open up angles for him and cut down on the 'cheat' steps (by defenders)."

None of Virginia's first six opponents on the schedule finished the 2002 regular season with a winning record. Come Oct. 18, when Florida State comes to Charlottesville, the Cavaliers will begin to learn whether they are a have or a have-not.

Ivan Maisel is a senior writer at ESPN.com. He can be reached at ivan.maisel@espn3.com.