Virginia coach Al Groh said Monday night that leading rusher Cedric Peerman will miss the rest of the season and will probably undergo surgery to repair his injured right foot.

Peerman, who was the ACC's leading rusher with 585 yards and five touchdowns when he was hurt in a 23-21 win over Middle Tennessee State on Oct. 6, has missed the No. 19 Cavaliers' (No. 23 AP) last four games.

"He was leading the conference in rushing when he got hurt, but he was more than that," Groh said. "Lots of guys can carry the ball and do it effectively, but there are a few backs that kind of carry the flag for the team. ... They energize and excite everyone around them with their energy and their toughness. Cedric was the right back for this team. He wasn't going to be a Heisman Trophy winner and there are more spectacular backs, but he was the perfect back for this team."

Without Peerman, Virginia has relied heavily on quarterback Jameel Sewell and former tight end Mikell Simpson in the running game. They combined to carry the football 25 times in Saturday's 17-16 win over Wake Forest; no other Cavailers player ran the football in the game.

Virginia (8-2) has won eight of its last nine games and is in first place in the ACC's Coastal Division standings with a 5-1 record in conference play. The Cavailers play at Miami on Saturday, the Hurricanes' last game in the Orange Bowl.

Virginia closes the regular season Nov. 24 against No. 11 Virginia Tech at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Va.

"We all feel bad for Cedric, but we're moving on," Groh said. "We don't talk about it and we don't whine about it. Every team has guys that get hurt. Why talk about it all the time?"

Mark Schlabach covers college football and men's college basketball for ESPN.com. You can contact him at schlabachma@yahoo.com.