Can Virginia Finally Break Through In The Coastal?
Posted on Sunday, Jul. 21, 2019, 5:35 pm
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By Jerry Ratcliffe
Bryce Perkins, Bronco Mendenhall and Bryce Hall having a little fun down at ACC Kickoff in Charlotte Thursday (Photo: ACC).
Is 2019 the year when Virginia football will make its breakthrough in the ACC Coastal Division?
I’m intrigued to learn where the Cavaliers are predicted to finish in the media’s preseason voting at last week’s ACC Football Kickoff in Charlotte. UVA certainly left a strong impression after dominating SEC opponent South Carolina in last December’s Belk Bowl, but how will that carry over to preseason voting?
We will find out Monday when the results are released out of the Greensboro headquarters.
A couple of preseason football magazines, Athlon and Street & Smith, selected Virginia to win the Coastal Division. Others picked the Cavaliers lower, some much lower.
The Wahoos are the only member of the Coastal Division that hasn’t captured at least one division title since the ACC went to two divisions in 2005. Could this be the year of the Cavalier?
In fact, one has to trace back to 2013 to find the last time Virginia wasn’t picked last in the Coastal. In 2014, ‘15, ‘16, ‘17, and ‘18, the Cavaliers were predicted to finish last in the seven-team division. In 2013, UVA was predicted to finish sixth, just ahead of Duke. The last time media figured the Cavaliers would be contenders came in 2005 and 2006 when Al Groh’s teams were selected third and fourth, respectively.
Since the divisions were formed, UVA is the only Coastal member that hasn’t appeared in an ACC Championship game, an event primarily dominated by three schools. Clemson (5), Florida State (4) and Virginia Tech (3) have won 12 of the 14 ACC Championship games. Wake Forest and Georgia Tech are the only other schools that have managed to break that grip during that span.
During ACC Kickoff, UVA coach Bronco Mendenhall was asked about expectations, and if the Cavaliers were ready to take that step to finally win the division.
“Certainly it’s the goal,” Mendenhall said. “Any time you’re part of a conference, the goal is to win the conference championship. That’s some of the value added of being in a conference, is to win the conference championship.
“Yes, it would be nice for us to clean up this nice little package of now us being the seventh team, the seventh different team to win the Coastal. It doesn’t always work like that. That will happen when we earn it, when we play well enough for that to happen.”
Mendenhall remembered the string from last year’s regular-season finish when the Cavaliers faltered in consecutive road overtime losses to Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech during an 8-5 campaign.
“Those overtime losses weren’t accidental,” Mendenhall said. “We were outplayed and we didn’t execute in the critical moments. But we did apply those learnings, we worked relentlessly and shut out an SEC opponent that was another indication of our capability.”
Mendenhall believes Virginia has as good a chance as anyone in the Coastal to take the division. There’s lots of logic to his thinking, in that UVA returns eight starters and several other experienced players from last year’s nasty defense. Then, there’s Bryce Perkins, who if not for Clemson phenom Trevor Lawrence, would likely be the leading candidate for ACC Player of the Year.
“Doing that is the next part,” Mendenhall said. “We’re optimistic, we’re excited, but also acknowledge the challenge.”
Perkins, who along with defensive mate Bryce Hall were UVA’s two player representatives at the Kickoff event, also feels good about the Wahoos’ chances in the Coastal.
“We definitely have the talent and we definitely have the mindset, too,” Perkins said. “It’s going to be a factor of how hard in late season, late games in the season, how competitive and ferocious we take the field in those games. That’s going to determine the outcome. We have to become a team of great finishing ability.”
The ACC will release both the preseason predicted finish for each team in both the Atlantic and Coastal Divisions, but the championship game prediction and the All-ACC preseason teams, in addition to offensive and defensive players of the year.
