By Scott Ratcliffe

UVA head coach Tony Elliott wanted nothing more than to flip the script on the lopsided Virginia-Virginia Tech Commonwealth Clash rivalry, and his Cavaliers did just that on Saturday at Scott Stadium, dominating the visiting Hokies, 27-7.

In the process, the No. 18 Cavaliers (10-2, 7-1 ACC) officially punched their ticket to the ACC Championship Game for only the second time next weekend against Duke, with a chance for even more — a possible spot in the College Football Playoff — lurking on the horizon. The nation’s top-five conference champions in the final CFP rankings will get automatic berths into the 12-team field next month.

The big UVA victory not only snaps Tech’s stranglehold on the all-time series, but it also marks just the second 10-win season in school history (1989). It was Virginia’s first win against Tech since 2019, when Bryce Perkins led the way to the upset and the first-ever trip to Charlotte for the program.

On Saturday, Chandler Morris and J’Mari Taylor led the charge offensively, while Maddox Marcellus, Antonio Clary and the rest of the Cavalier defense, even without the services of injured star linebacker Kam Robinson, made big play after big play, limiting Tech to just 197 total yards on the night (119 rushing, 78 on the ground).

The Wahoos nearly also posted their first shutout of their in-state rival for the first time since 1991, but the Hokies scored a touchdown late in the fourth quarter for the final result.

Prior to that, things didn’t go so well for the visitors. The Hokies (3-9, 2-6) turned it over to start the contest, then missed a scoring opportunity on their next drive before recording seven consecutive punts without a single first down.

The Cavaliers struck first, as Marcellus intercepted a Kyron Drones pass — that was tipped by Fisher Camac — on the game’s opening drive.

Taking over from the Tech 46, it didn’t take long for Taylor to find pay dirt for his 14th rushing touchdown of the season on a 1-yard direct snap, and the Hoos took a 7-0 lead midway through the first quarter.

The Hokies’ only first-half trip into UVA territory came on the ensuing drive, but John Love missed a 45-yard field goal attempt, and the Hoos took over late in the opening quarter.

Neither side could get much going offensively across the following four possessions, that is until Morris led an 80-yard scoring drive that took five-plus minutes off the clock. It ended with a Taylor direct snap and jump-pass to Sage Ennis, and Will Bettridge’s point after doubled the lead to 14-zip with 4:33 until halftime.

From there, the Hokies went three-and-out on their next seven possessions, stretching from the start of the second quarter all the way into the fourth.

Virginia expanded its lead to 24-0 heading into the final 15 minutes after a Bettridge field goal and an 8-yard touchdown trot for Morris in the third period.

After a Clary interception, Bettridge added another 3 points from 32 yards out with 6:24 remaining to make it 27-0, but the Hokies were able to avoid the shutout on a 57-yard pass from Drones to freshman receiver Shamarius “Snook” Peterkin.

By that point, it was way too little, way too late for the Hokies, who suffered their worst season in a long time.

Morris completed 21 of his 35 passes for 182 yards on the chilly November night with no touchdowns or interceptions. He ran the ball four times for 25 yards and the score, while Taylor rushed 20 times for a game-high 80 yards, coming up just three yards shy of 1,000 on the season.

Kameron Courtney led the Hoos with 50 yards receiving on six grabs, with Trell Harris adding 43 on five catches, as the team played the majority of the game with a banged-up Cam Ross (1 yard on one catch in the first quarter).

UVA racked up 25 first downs, compared to just six for the Hokies, and controlled the pigskin for 36 minutes, 56 seconds (out of 60). Tech had the ball for a total of 13:03 across the final three quarters.

Marcellus posted a game-high 9 tackles (3 solo, one for a loss and half a sack), along with the early momentum from his interception, to charge up arguably one of the team’s best defensive performances in a big game in quite some time.

UP NEXT

The Cavaliers will face Duke in the ACC Championship Game in Charlotte next Saturday (8 p.m., ABC). Virginia defeated the Blue Devils in Durham, 34-17, on Nov. 15.

Scoring Summary

Virginia Tech 0-0-0-7 — 7
Virginia 7-7-10-3 — 27

First Quarter
UVA (7:26) — Taylor 1-yard run (Bettridge kick). UVA 7, VT 0.

Second Quarter
UVA (4:33) — Ennis 1-yard pass from Taylor (Bettridge kick). UVA 14, VT 0.

Third Quarter
UVA (7:28) — Bettridge 27-yard field goal. UVA 17, VT 0.
UVA (0:46) — Morris 8-yard run (Bettridge kick). UVA 24, VT 0.

Fourth Quarter
UVA (6:24) — Bettridge 32-yard field goal. UVA 27, VT 0.
VT (4:21) — Peterkin 57-yard pass from Drones (Love kick). UVA 27, VT 7.

Player Stats

Rushing

VT — Jeffrey Overton 11-53; Kyron Drones 11-35; Terion Stewart 8-22; Cameron Seldon 1-9. TOTAL — 31-119. UVA — J’Mari Taylor 20-80; Harrison Waylee 15-46; Chandler Morris 4-25; Xay Davis 4-20; Daniel Kaelin 2-19; Kameron Courtney 1-9; TEAM 1-(minus-2). TOTAL — 47-197.

Receiving

VT — Shamarius Peterkin 1-57; Isaiah Spencer 1-13; Harrison Saint Germain 1-5; Takye Heath 1-3. TOTAL — 4-78. UVA — Kameron Courtney 6-50; Trell Harris 5-43; J’Mari Taylor 4-34; Jahmal Edrine 2-19; Sage Ennis 2-12; John Rogers 1-17; Eli Wood 1-7; Cam Ross 1-1. TOTAL — 22-183.

Passing

VT — Kyron Drones 4-16-78-1-2. TOTAL — 4-16-78-1-2. UVA — Chandler Morris 21-35-182-0-0; J’Mari Taylor 1-1-1-1-0. TOTAL — 22-36-183-1-0.

Team Notes

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

• Virginia clinched its second-ever berth in the ACC Championship game (est. 2005) and will play Duke on Dec. 6 in Charlotte. The only other time UVA played in the conference title game was in 2019.  
• UVA matched the program’s single season record of 10 wins. The 1989 team is the only other team in program history to achieve a 10-win season. 
• For the first time in program history, UVA (7-1) finished the regular season in sole possession of first place in the ACC standings. 
• Tony Elliott, who’s in his fourth season at UVA, became the fastest UVA head football coach to clinch at least a share of first place in the final ACC standings. 
• The Cavaliers we co-ACC champions in 1989 and 1995. 
• UVA’s 7-1 record in ACC play also tied with the 1995 Cavaliers’ best record in ACC play in school history.  
• Virginia’s six home victories this season mark just the third time in the past 34 years that UVA has recorded at least six wins at Scott Stadium. Entering Saturday’s game, UVA has achieved six or more home wins in a season 13 times: 2025, 2019, 2002, 1991, 1989, 1951, 1925, 1914, 1913, 1912, 1911, 1910, and 1902. 
• Elliott is now 6-0 as UVA head coach in games following a bye week. 
• Virginia forced two turnovers and improved to 9-0 this season when forcing a turnover. 
• Saturday marked the first time UVA has held Virginia Tech to single-digit points since the 1991 meeting, a 38-0 victory in Charlottesville.  
• Virginia has held its last five opponents, all ACC contests, to an average of 15.4 points per game. 
• UVA achieved its largest overall win improvement from year to year since 1986 (3-8) to 1987 (8-4). The only other time in program history that UVA improved by five games from one season to the next was in 1892 (3-2-1) to 1893 (8-3). The Cavaliers finished 5-7 overall in 2024. 
• Virginia recorded the program’s 698th all-time win. UVA’s first season of football was 1888. 
• The Cavaliers earned their second victory of the series with Virginia Tech for only the second time in the last 21 meetings, dating back to 2004. 
• The Cavaliers held the Hokies scoreless in the first half. It marked the third team they held scoreless in a half this season. 
• Prior to Virginia Tech’s fourth-quarter touchdown, UVA’s defense had allowed only one offensive touchdown in the previous 11 quarters (4th quarter at Duke). 
• UVA now has 12 interceptions on the season, its most in a season since 2019. With Maddox Marcellus’ first quarter interception, eight different Cavaliers have picked off a pass this season. 
• The Cavaliers held the Hokies to four completed passes. The last time they held a team with five or less was in 2018 against Georgia Tech, when the Yellow Jackets had only one completion. 
• Virginia held the Hokies to six first downs, the fewest by a UVA opponent since Akron’s six on Sept. 18, 2004. 
• Virginia Tech was 2-for-14 (14.3%) on third-down conversions, the lowest by a UVA opponent since Notre Dame was 1-for-12 on Nov. 16, 2024. The Cavaliers came into the contest ranked third in the country in third down defense. 
• Virginia secured its sixth victory of the season while ranked in the AP poll. It marked the first time since 2004 that UVA recorded six or more wins in a year in which it appeared in every AP Top 25. 
• UVA earned its second straight victory over the Hokies on Nov. 29. The previous time the Cavaliers defeated Virginia Tech on that date was Nov. 29, 2019, at Scott Stadium. 

Player Notes

• Making his first start of the season and first since playing for Eastern Kentucky last season, linebacker Maddox Marcellus led the Cavaliers with nine tackles (3 solo) and recorded his first interception as a Cavalier and third of his career. He was also credited with a half sack and one tackle for loss. 
• Tailback J’Mari Taylor played in his 50th college game and finished with 80 yards on 20 carries and scored his 14th touchdown of the season. He is three yards shy of 1,000 for the season and leads the ACC with 997. 
• Taylor is the seventh UVA player to rush for 14 touchdowns in season and the first since Keith Payne in 2010. The UVA single-season record is 17 posted by Wali Lundy (2004) and Bill Dudley (1941). 
• Taylor also was credited with his first career touchdown pass with a 1-yard pass to Sage Ennis in the second quarter. He is the first non-QB to throw a TD pass for UVA since Olamide Zaccheaus vs. Duke in 2015. 
• Taylor is the first ACC running back with a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown in the same game since Clemson’s Will Shipley against Wake Forest in 2021. Tony Elliott was Clemson’s offensive coordinator. He’s only the second UVA running back since 1995 to accomplish the feat, joining Wali Lundy against Western Michigan 2003. 
• Quarterback Chandler Morris rushed for his career-best, fifth touchdown of the season. He now has 15 in his collegiate career. 
• Wide receiver Kam Courtney established a career high with six receptions and had 50 yards receiving.  
• Kicker Will Bettridge took over sole possession of third place on UVA’s all-time scoring list with nine points (2-2 FG / 3-3 XP). He now has 302 career points and is 10 points behind Wali Lundy (312).

This Weekend’s Results

Friday
Georgia 16, Georgia Tech 9

Saturday
Miami 38, Pitt 7
Louisville 41, Kentucky 0
Clemson 28, South Carolina 14
Boston College 34, Syracuse 12
Duke 49, Wake Forest 32
Virginia 27, Virginia Tech 7
California 38, SMU 35
Florida 40, Florida State 21
NC State 42, North Carolina 19
Notre Dame 49, Stanford 20