Junior linebacker Ausar Walcott sat through a team suspension for approximately two months in the spring after facing felony and misdemeanor charges related to an incident in Harrisonburg. The charges against Walcott eventually were dropped and he was reinstated to the team in April. Walcott told The Washington Post in a recent article that he spent his suspension time “getting help on things that I can do to improve on myself and make myself a better person, as well as a better player.”

Walcott’s return included a move to defensive end and he worked at that position through the early portion of fall training camp in August. Recently, however, Walcott moved back to linebacker where he started 11 games last season. Walcott opens the season as the No. 2 strong side (SAM) linebacker on the depth chart; he played weak side (WILL) linebacker in 2010 and posted 56 tackles, good enough for third on the team. His time at D-End also has given him a chance to become an option as a pass rusher in the substitution defensive packages.

UVa coach Mike London said he has been pleased with Walcott’s attitude and work since his return and he expects the junior to make an impact this fall.

“The other thing is that Ausar [Walcott] has done a nice job. We’ve all talked about him before in telephone conference calls of getting himself back in position to be a relevant player. I think he’s now doing that. He was over there watching film. He’ll be in third-down packages coming off with his hand in the ground. He can play both linebacker positions because of his knowledge playing that position last year,” London said. “I’m pleased where Ausar is right now. At first I wasn’t talking about him much. But I think that he’s come a long way. Now it’s an opportunity for him to shine both on the field and in the classroom and in the community.”

The Charlotte Observer reports that the University of Virginia is a finalist for Upper Room Christian Academy (Raleigh, N.C.) combo guard Rodney Purvis.  The 6’4″, 185-pound senior, once a pledge to Louisville, is now considering offers from Connecticut, Memphis, Missouri, North Carolina Central, N.C. State, Ohio State, UVa and VCU.

ESPN.com, Rivals.com and Scout.com all rank Purvis as a 5-star prospect.  He is rated the no. 6 overall prospect in the country by Rivals.com, no. 15 by Scout.com and no. 16 by ESPN.com.  Purvis played combo guard – seeing action at the point and the 2-guard spot - for CP3 All-Stars this summer.  He played the AAU season alongside Ravenscroft (Raleigh, N.C.) point guard Madison Jones, who has not been offered but is being evaluated by the Virginia staff.  The 6’1″, 160-pound Jones, the subject of an EDGE article last Friday, has offers from Charlotte, Drake, Richmond, Seton Hall and Tulsa.

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In other basketball news, Boys’ Latin Charter (Philadelphia, PA) senior point guard Maurice Watson Jr. announced this morning that he has verbally committed to Boston University.  Virginia was a finalist for Watson Jr. but had not offered according to our sources.

When Mike London assembled the 2011 recruiting class, many expected the commitments to make an impact at Virginia. After all, the ESPN ranked the class No. 20 nationally with six 4-star recruits and five players among the ESPNU Top 150. The only question became how soon that impact could occur.

The season-opening depth chart suggests the answer is really soon. Eight true freshmen – Dominique Terrell (WR/PR), Darius Jennings (WR/PR/KR), Kelby Johnson (LT), David Watford (QB), Clifton Richardson (RB), Daquan Romero (LB), Demetrious Nicholson (DB), and Anthony Harris (S) – made the list for the Cavaliers’ contest with William & Mary, which kicks off Saturday at 6 p.m. London said as many as 10 to 12 true freshmen could play this season.

UVa senior captain Rodney McLeod played as a true freshman himself back in 2008 when he often appeared as a substitute for the Hoos’ nickel defense. His advice to this year Cavalier freshmen is simple: be ready to play fast.

“Well we tell them every time, ‘Man it’s fast. It’s fast out there.’ Compared to practices, the game moves very fast,” McLeod said. “I think they’ve been doing a very good job coming in, getting the game plan and taking it on. We’ve been doing a great job as leaders taking them underneath our wings since the summer when they first came in and I feel like that’s definitely going to help them this year.”

- QB Greyson Lambert and Wayne County (Jesup, GA) enjoyed a comfortable 28-6 advantage heading into the 4th quarter of last Thursday’s season opener against Windsor Forest.  It wasn’t enough, though, as Windsor scored 22 unanswered to tie.  Per Georgia high school football rules, a non-region game cannot go to overtime, so the 28-28 score was the final.

Lambert finished the evening with two touchdown passes.

- Buford (GA), which features UVa-bound cornerback C.J. Moore, defeated Gainesville (GA) 49-0 to move to 2-0 on the season.  Fans can watch a replay of the game on ESPN3.

- Norfolk Christian (Norfolk, VA) opens up its season Monday night (8/29) against Liberty Christian Academy.  NCHS features four UVa 2012 recruits, including middle linebacker Kwontie Moore, wide receiver/safety Mario Nixon, defensive back Wil Wahee and defensive end Courtnye Wynn.

Boys’ Latin (Philadelphia, PA) senior point guard Maurice Watson Jr. tweeted yesterday that he will announce his college choice this Saturday, August 27, at an afternoon press conference at his high school.

Watson averaged 21.9 points per game in league play last season as a junior.  This summer, he played for Team Philly on the AAU circuit and saw his college stock rise dramatically, scoring double-digit offers.  UVa reportedly offered on August 2; however, trusted TheSabre.com sources indicated the Hoos have not offered the 5’10″, 160-pound standout.

*August 27 update* - Philly.com reports that Watson Jr. will announce his college choice on Wednesday, August 31, and the five finalists are Boston University, Hofstra, La Salle, Niagara and Virginia (no offer).  The announcement will take place at 10 am.

- University of Virginia 2012-class football recruit C.J. Moore and the Buford Wolves (Buford, GA) kicked off the 2011 season in style, defeating Blessed Trinity 42-0.  The win was fueled by a 28-point second quarter in which Moore, who is being recruited by Virginia to play cornerback but plays corner, running back and receiver in high school, hauled in a 33-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Sam Clay.

Virginia fans will be able to get a glimpse of Moore (as well as 2012 fullback target Nathan Staub) this Friday, when Buford takes on Gainesville.  The game will be shown on ESPN 3.

- Fellow Peach state standout Greyson Lambert will be in action as well this Friday, when Wayne County (Jesup, GA) takes on Windsor Forest of Savannah, Georgia.  The 6’5″, 210-pound rising senior signal caller looks to be ready, shining during Wayne County’s scrimmage last Wednesday.

Lambert verbally committed to the Hoos over Alabama and others just over two weeks ago.

- David Teel of the Daily Press has more on Norfolk Christian (Norfolk, VA) WR Mario Nixon’s commitment to Virginia.

- ESPN.com Recruiting Analyst Dave Hooker talks social media and recruiting, and also provides an update on North Hall (Gainesville, GA) 2012 class RB Imani Cross.  Cross is committed to Tennessee but is still considering UVa and perhaps others.

- UVa is out of the running for top defensive tackle target Eddie Goldman.  The Friendship Collegiate (Washington, D.C.) rising senior has narrowed his list to seven schools – Alabama, Auburn, California, Clemson, Florida State, Maryland and Miami.

- Buford High School (Buford, GA), which features UVa 2012 class cornerback commitment CJ Moore and 2012 class fullback target Nathan Staub, faces off against Blessed Trinity in its regular season opener this evening.  Buford is seeking its fifth straight state championship.

- On the basketball recruiting front, DeMatha Catholic (Hyattsville, MD) point guard James Robinson will take an unofficial visit to Pitt tomorrow.  The 6’3″, 200-pound rising senior is considering the Panthers along with Virginia, Miami and Notre Dame.  A decision could come soon.

- Not truly recruiting related, but 6’9″, 210-pound forward Isaiah Armwood is transferring from Villanova.  According to the Baltimore Sun, UVa is one of the five schools the former Montrose Christian (Rockville, MD) standout is considering.  It appears the Cavaliers are interested.

Armwood has played two seasons with the Wildcats.  If he transfers to a Division 1 program, he would have to sit out one year and then would have two years of eligibility remaining.

I didn’t have a spot for a couple of quotes in Friday’s story on defensive tackles Chris Brathwaite and Justin Renfrow so I figured I’d share them here on the blog. Here you go:

Brathwaite on D-Line coach Jeff Hanson: “He’s a real intense guy. He coaches real hard because he wants everybody to get better. He tells you your mistakes; he doesn’t call you out – he understands everybody makes mistakes, but he tries to help everybody get better. He’s real intense. He’s real tedious on alignments, hand placement, all the little stuff that can change the play around.”

Renfrow on the 4-3 defense: “Everybody loves the 4-3 and getting to get off the line. I think we have a lot of the guys who are in the 4-3 right now are 4-3 style players. We get off the ball well. A lot of us are athletic so I think we’re perfect fits for it.”

Make sure to join the EDGE subscription service for all of the preseason coverage found in TheSabre.com’s Hoo Preview! Click here for more information.

The UVa club of Washington D.C. has put together a fun deal for Virginia and soccer fans. Join UVa alumni for D.C. United’s Alumni Night (along with alumni from other schools from the Big Ten, ACC, SEC, Pac 10). This year’s Alumni Night includes a special Chalk Talk with Virginia alum Ben Olsen, the head coach of D.C. United and the youngest coach in Major League Soccer!

Set for Saturday, Aug. 27 and D.C. United’s game against the Portland Timbers, you can attend the UVa Club of Washington D.C.’s event that includes a pregame tailgate (begins at 3 p.m.), the 6 p.m. Chalk Talk with Ben Olsen, and the 7:30 p.m. United vs. Timbers game at RFK Stadium. Game tickets are $24 and tickets to the UVa Club tailgate are $5 for UVa Club of Washington D.C. members and $10 for non-members. Tailgate tickets include food, beer, and water.

If you want to attend this event, you must register (deadline Friday, Aug. 26) as tickets are purchased in advance. Payments are non-refundable. For more information or to register, click here.

6’2″, 200-pound rising senior Trey Edmunds will play football and attend college in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The only question remaining is where. He’ll answer that question tomorrow at a 1 p.m. press conference at his high school. The finalists are Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia and Virginia Tech.

Edmunds, no. 13 in the current TheSabre.com In-State Top 40, is a 2-way standout at running back and linebacker for Dan River High School (Ringgold, VA). He rushed for 1,324 yards (averaging 7.8 ypc) and scored 13 touchdowns last season as a junior. Defensively, Edmunds finished the 2010 season with 124 tackles and 8.5 sacks.

“Trey can take it all the way any time he touches the ball. He has speed and power, so there is a lot of upside on either side of the ball,” Trey’s father, Ferrell, said in an interview in April of 2011. Ferrell, Dan River’s head coach, starred at the University of Maryland before moving on to an NFL career.

Trey is a multi-sport athlete at Dan River, playing varsity basketball and running indoor and outdoor track in addition to football. He gets the job done in the classroom as well, carrying a 3.5 GPA.

Virginia has 20 commitments in its 2012 class, including two — Ocean Lakes (Virginia Beach, VA) DE Eli Harold and Franklin (Somerset, N.J.) RB Kye Morgan — this week.

TheSabre.com will be on hand for tomorrow’s press conference.