This Year’s Team Doesn’t Get Down After A Loss; They Get Angry

Changing the culture of Virginia football took some time, but there’s a sure sign of how things have transformed in Year 3 of the Bronco Mendenhall regime. When the former BYU coach took over the Cavaliers’ program for the 2016 season, one of the first things he noticed was how beaten down mentally and emotionally his team was. If anything went wrong, the team was automatically dejected. Kind of a “here we go again” attitude. No longer.

Coming To Scott Stadium Saturday: The Legendary Turnover Chain

It’s made of 10-Karat gold. It’s a 36-inch Cuban-link necklace that weighs almost seven pounds. Miami’s newest version of its “turnover chain” It’s got over 4,000 orange, green and silver stones that make up the centerpiece — a replica of University of Miami mascot “Sebastian the Ibis” strutting his feathers.

Meeting Next Week Could Be Pivotal To Future Of Virginia Football

One of the most important gatherings in Virginia football history will take place a week from tonight at Farmington Country Club in Charlottesville. Charles McDaniel, one of the greatest linebackers in Cavalier history, is sponsoring a very exclusive event of heavy hitters, the types of UVa boosters that can help change the course of Wahoo football. The event’s focus is to start the financial support for Virginia’s new football support building and an overall athletic complex that will shape the future.

Nelson: From Walk-on To Starter To ACC Defensive Rookie Of The Year

Brenton Nelson’s journey to his Virginia football home reads like a Hollywood script. The story is something one might expect coming out of the 1960s, the kind of tale that just doesn’t occur these days. Walk-on shows up, earns a scholarship, becomes a starter and is awarded ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Bronco Knows Exactly How He Will Use Bye Week To Improve Team

(Photo Courtesy Matt Riley/UVa Media Relations) Bronco Mendenhall said during bye week, staff will analyze and try to get rid of dead plays and dead calls No sooner had Virginia dropped a 35-21 decision at N.C. State last Saturday than Bronco Mendenhall was already looking ahead. The Cavaliers enter their bye week with a 3-2 overall record, 1-1 in the ACC, just about where I thought they would be after five games. They have two weeks to prepare for Miami coming to Scott Stadium in a game where UVa will definitely be an underdog. As organized as Mendenhall is, he […]

5 Things Learned From Saturday’s Game: OL Not Ready For Primetime

Five things learned from Saturday’s 35-21 loss by Virginia to N.C. State: 1. Virginia’s Offensive Line is Not Ready for Primetime. The sore point for the entire two and a half seasons of Bronco Mendenhall’s time at UVa has been an offensive line that falls short of expectations. This year’s edition seems to have made strides, and has performed admirably against the Richmond’s, Ohio’s, and Louisville’s of the college football world. However, they’re not ready for Primetime. When Virginia stepped up a level in competition on Saturday in Raleigh, the Cavaliers’ Big Uglies struggled against an N.C. State defense that […]

Hootie: No Mystique About How Cavaliers Lost Game And Fell To 3-2

(Photo Courtesy Matt Riley/UVa Media Relations) Bryce Perkins threw for 258 yards, but inability to mount much of a running game was a problem for UVa Saturday RALEIGH, NC – After Virginia couldn’t stop Indiana’s ground game in the second week of the season, Bronco Mendenhall went back to the drawing board. He thought he had the problem fixed. Turns out, that was only a band-aid. The Cavaliers, minus several starters missing on defense, had no answer for N.C. State’s running game at sold out Carter-Finley Stadium on Saturday, and paid the price, dropping a 35-21 decision to the Wolfpack. […]

N.C. State Overpowers Virginia 35-21 In First True Road Test

(Photo Courtesy Matt Riley/UVa Media Relations) Olamide Zaccheaus catches a 35-yard touchdown pass from Bryce Perkins to give UVa an early lead Virginia came up short in its first true test on the road, falling 35-21 at N.C. State Saturday. The Wolfpack scored 24 unanswered points and set a season high in the rushing category, all while getting another stellar performance from star quarterback Ryan Finley. The Cavaliers (3-2, 1-1 ACC) surrendered 10 points in the final two minutes of the first half and never could get back within striking distance the rest of the afternoon. Finley was 22 for […]

Tale Of The Tape: Virginia Will Be Facing ACC’s No. 1 Passing Offense

Well, it’s another Friday, game day is tomorrow, so it’s time to look at the tale of the tape between Virginia and N.C. State. Weather should be close to perfect again (partly cloudy and 79 degrees at game time) and the key stat seems to be the Wolfpack’s explosive passing attack. Defensively, Virginia has better team statistics, but the Wahoos have not faced a quarterback like Ryan Finley, as the Wollfpack passing game is ranked No. 1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. To see the complete chart of “Tale Of The Tape” click on “Continue Reading” below: Saturday, September 29, […]

You Ask, He Answers In Another Edition Of “Hootie’s Mailbag”

The popular Mailbag is back with some of our readers’ questions, answered by yours truly. If you have a question, send it to the following email address: In honor of how my old friend Bill Millsaps used to answer his readers’ when he was sports editor in Richmond, we always start ours off just like he did: The reader writes … Question from Anthony E in Las Vegas: Hey Jerry, when do you think the rest of the country will begin to notice Bryce Perkins? Hootie: Tony, I think that’s starting to pick up. I was listening to Rick Neuheisel […]

Hootie’s Power Poll Has Virginia Ranked Higher Than Virginia Tech

We’re into Week Five of Hootie’s ACC Power Poll, ranking the 14 league teams in order of performance in our humble opinion. If you want a lowdown on all the ACC action, reviewing last week, previewing this weekend, and the scoop on Clemson’s quarterback change, and UVa’s and Tech’s journeys to Tobacco Road, check out our audio section and look for the Ourlads ACC show with yours truly and host Greg DePalma, and some special guests who breakdown all the ACC. Now, for this week’s Power Poll. Some of the mighty have fallen: Rank, School, Overall record/ACC, Previous rank, Comment […]

Poppinga’s Secondary Will Be Facing Its Toughest Test Of The Season

Virginia’s secondary’s toughest test of the season will come Saturday in Raleigh when the Cavaliers face N.C. State quarterback Ryan Finley. Finley ranks 20th in NCAA statistics in yards passing with 1,056 in but three games, but those numbers don’t address the quality of this strong-armed, experienced quarterback who will be playing on Sunday’s. “I think he’s the best quarterback we’ve seen since we’ve been here as far as just a passer,” said UVa co-defensive coordinator Kelly Poppinga of the staff’s three years in Charlottesville. “[Finley] has seen it all. He knows how to diagnose coverages, knows how to throw […]

Coaches Unfamiliar With Each Other Going Into Saturday’s Game

When longtime ACC rivals Virginia and N.C. State face off for the 58th time Saturday, there will be a greater sense of unfamiliarity than in previous matchups in the series, which dates back to 1904. Ever since the league has been split into two divisions, schools can go several seasons — six in this case — between meetings. Each side admits that there may be a small amount of knowledge when you factor in scouting other like opponents on film, but more attention is being paid to the team you’re preparing for. In his 14 years as a head coach, […]

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Cavs Have Chance To Reverse Road Trend With A Win In Raleigh

Life on the road in the Atlantic Coast Conference has not been particularly kind to the Virginia football program in recent memory, but the Cavaliers have a chance to reverse the trend and make a statement, beginning this weekend in Raleigh. Wins have been few and far between away from Scott Stadium in conference play for the Wahoos over the past decade. Since the start of the 2008 season, Virginia has a record of 9-31 (0.225) in ACC road games.

Virginia Offense Will Face Its Toughest Challenge Of The Season Yet

Robert Anae’s offense will face its toughest challenge so far this season on Saturday when they take on N.C. State in Raleigh. Anae, whose offense has been impressive the past two games, realizes touchdowns won’t come as easy against the Wolfpack, ranked ninth in the nation in scoring defense. State has allowed only four touchdowns in three games this season, and is giving up only 13.3 points per game.

No Surprise: Charles Snowden Named ACC Linebacker Of The Week

When the ACC announced its Players of the Week Monday, anyone who saw what Charles Snowden did against Louisville knew his name would be on the list. The 6-foot-7, 225-pound sophomore was named the conference’s Linebacker of the Week after an eye-popping, breakout performance against the Cardinals that helped propel Virginia to a 3-1 record with a dominating afternoon.

UVA Defense Gets Bad News As Two Key Starters Sidelined by Injury

Virginia has lost two defensive starters, one for the rest of the season due to a medical issue, and the other for at least six weeks. The news came from Bronco Mendenhall’s weekly press conference Monday, news that will have a major impact on a Cavaliers’ defense that hit its stride last weekend with a dominating performance against Louisville.

Five Things We Learned After Virginia’s 27-3 Win Over Louisville

Five Things We Learned from Virginia’s dominating, 27-3 win over Louisville: 1. The Cavaliers’ defense is improving. Both Micah Kiser and Quin Blanding said they believed this season’s defense would be even better than last season’s defense when they were the stalwarts. Why? They agreed that this year’s defense would be better because there would be more experienced players, and because there would be more players that could spread out the tackling rather than depending so heavily on two guys. Kiser and Blanding led the ACC in tackling for three consecutive years.