Last week was a monumental win for the Virginia Cavaliers program and its direction. What is one thing you are particularly optimistic about? Also, what is one concern you have?

Zach

What I’m optimistic about is how Virginia was able to generate pressure against Wake Forest on Saturday. The Cavaliers’ six sacks were more than half their total in 2023. They came via a clear effort from defensive coordinator John Rudzinski to send safeties and linebackers on blitzes in order to help the defensive line get home to Hank Bachmeier.

Five of those sacks came from non-defensive lineman. Yes, the staff will expect more from the guys up front, particularly the edges. But it was encouraging to see UVA impact the quarterback in the pocket, something we haven’t seen to that degree in a while.

My concern lies in the running game. Xavier Brown was a really nice spark against Wake … but that was about it. Anthony Colandrea had a few nice runs here and there. But Virginia’s option game struggled against the Demon Deacons, and so did Kobe Pace in general.

I think the ‘Hoos need to remain vertical in their rushing attack, yet I fear that the offensive line won’t be able to generate enough push to allow a stockier runner like Pace to hit gaps. And, with the emphasis UVA wants to put on running the ball, I worry that this could doom their offense for stretches this season. The talent at quarterback and among the pass catchers is there. But can the ‘Hoos be a dual threat offense?

Pierce

I’m going to pivot some from Zach because my concern is the defensive line – though I agree Coach Rud has a good scheme in place to generate some pressure (I’m wondering if this is because he knows we’ll need some blitzes to really succeed there … but that’s totally fair).

Michael Diatta had a productive games – and while the defensive line only accounted for one of UVA’s six sacks, it’s still a supportive stat to show a supportive team effort from the defense … but I’m more coming from an eye-test standpoint. It didn’t seem to me that UVA’s DLine was getting off blocks or troubling Bachmeier very much…especially on those slow mesh run/pass options.

I know that’s a tricky offensive scheme to encounter – but because “the defensive line hasn’t hassled opposing quarterbacks” is such a familiar refrain about this team, I can’t say I saw anything in this game to suggest this is anything but a big issue going forward still.

I was so thrilled with Antonio Clary and Jonas Sanker’s performances that I’m going to give my optimism this week to the defensive backs! Clary being healthy is clearly so important for this teams performance and confidence – not to mention his game-making fumbling recovery (basically a strip of the ball in its own right after Malcolm Greene’s initial play).

Sanker continues to build off his exceptional junior season – and is living up to his All-ACC All-American preseason chatter. While UVA gave up 403 passing yards to Bachmeier, the defensive stops in the fourth quarter make me optimistic for stronger performances to come- and I think this safety duo has taken on a lot of the leadership towards this.

Trey

I love this one. Optimism is my middle name. If I had to pick just one aspect of this team to be optimistic about, it would be the team’s confidence level. I genuinely believe that confidence, momentum, and experience are three critical pillars of winning in college sports (obviously, skill plays a huge factor in winning), and last week’s comeback win against Wake Forest skyrocketed the first two pillars for this squad.

Unfortunately, this Virginia roster and coaching staff has plenty of experience in losing close games, but last week may be the catalyst to success for them in more ways than one. Only time will tell, but to have the result of last week’s game and to have it happen in the fashion that it did could be the game we point back to and say, “That Wake game is the reason we are where we are right now … the Wasabi Fenway Bowl (LOL).”

All that said, I am still concerned by some of the decision making from Tony Elliott. Now, I want to be clear here, I think he coached a good game and has made more great decisions in the offseason and the first two weeks of this season than bad decisions. However, a couple head-scratchers could have had a serious impact on the game last week.

Kicking a field goal on the one-yard line down seven in the first half, not calling a timeout during a running clock before halftime to allow for more chances to get into field goal range and tie the game at halftime, etc. Sometimes it just feels like our leader coaches to not make the enormous mistake instead of coaching to win the game.

Even so, I’m calling for UVA fans to sell out Scott Stadium and make the Terps remember the night they played the Cavaliers. (bonus points if you can name that movie)

Garrett

It was awesome to see Anthony Colandrea bounce back after throwing multiple interceptions. His first one came on an unlucky deflection at the line while the other was a bit of a force early in the second half. He didn’t flinch and played the rest of the game with the gunslinger mentality that makes him such a high-ceiling quarterback. Colandrea finished the game 33-for-43 passing with three touchdowns when it could have been easy for the game to slip away.

To me, it was a prime example of his maturity as a player in his second year for the ‘Hoos as he gets another crack at the Terps this weekend after throwing three straight interceptions on three pass attempts in last year’s match-up. I strongly believe his decision-making only improves as the season progresses and I’m looking forward to watching AC and the offense put on a show under the lights Saturday night.

Like Zach, my biggest concern coming out of game two is the run game. The ‘Hoos have plenty of teams left on the schedule with bigger, more physical fronts than Wake Forest as well as better defensive backs to cover the passing game. At the same time, I’m not ready to say this team can’t possibly find a way to run the ball effectively, Kobe Pace and Xavier Brown are both capable of making plays if the offensive line can improve throughout these upcoming weeks.