UVA injury report: Big Three, Jones close; WR Fields cleared to play; Hollins is now featured back

By Jerry Ratcliffe

Virginia’s “Big Three” wide receivers could be back for this week’s home game against Pitt (noon, ACC Network) after sitting out last Saturday’s 31-28 loss to North Carolina.

“They’ll be day-to-day,” Tony Elliott said at his weekly press conference Tuesday, referring to Lavel Davis Jr., Dontayvion Wicks and Keytaon Thompson. All three were declared out last Thursday.

Thompson is probably the closest to returning, Elliott said. Davis is apparently close after going through concussion protocol last week, and Wicks, who is suffering from a bone bruise, could take the longest.

“I just saw [Davis] coming across the street, got a big smile on his face,” Elliott said. “You want to make sure you do what’s best for them, make sure they’re fully healthy.”

Running back Perris Jones, who is UVA’s second-leading rusher on the season behind quarterback Brennan Armstrong, missed last week’s game and is also listed as day-to-day.

“He’s getting close,” Elliott said. “Missing a week and missing practice, I don’t know from a load-management standpoint how much we can expect.

“I’d say if he’s cleared, which we’re anticipating he’ll be cleared to do some things, probably focus more on special teams and let Mike (Hollins) carry the load along with Ronnie Walker and X (Xavier Brown) at the running back position.”

Hollins started against UNC and had 16 rushes for 75 yards, while Walker added six carries for 30 yards and a touchdown. Brown, a true freshman, had five carries for 17 yards and a score.

All four of UVA’s touchdowns against Carolina came from the ground game, with Armstrong adding two.

Hollins played well against Miami’s strong defensive front and Carolina’s weaker defense, perhaps signaling that he has upped his performances in practice. Elliott admitted he has been hard on Hollins because he’s trying to push the junior into another gear.

“To be honest, there’s probably nobody that’s been challenged more than Mike,” Elliott said. “Might not be fair, but you’ve got myself, you’ve got Des (Kitchings) and you’ve got Keith (Gaither), so you have a running backs coach and a coordinator and a head coach that have coached running backs throughout the course of the years.

“[Hollins] is very talented. I think you’re starting to see that, but it’s not just talent at that position to be consistent. You’ve got bring everything together. I’m really proud of him, the way he’s practiced, the way he’s responded and the way he’s persevered. I’m excited to see him down the stretch. Hopefully he can step into that role that we all anticipated as being the feature guy.”

Meanwhile, defensive tackle Ben Smiley missed last week while in concussion protocol and is day-to-day.

“We hope we will have him available on Saturday,” Ellliott said. “When it comes to [concussions], I don’t play any games. I fully support whatever the decision is from the medical staff and err on the side of being cautious. I don’t want to put any guys at risk.”

Virginia got some good news about Charlottesville-grown wide receiver Malachi Fields, who warmed up prior to the UNC game but did not play. Fields suffered an ACL injury in the spring.

“He’s been turned loose to go, and trying to do what’s best for him and then also what’s best for the team,” Elliott said. “We wanted him to go through the process of warming up this week, knowing that he wouldn’t be cleared until this week, so it wouldn’t be his first time this season going through getting ready to play.

“I anticipate, load-management wise, he’ll be a 15- to 20-play guy. You still worry about, just me being a former skill guy, dealing with a lot of skill guys, the game. You can’t replicate the intensity of the game. You can’t replicate the physicality of the game.”

Elliott said he expects a lot of press coverage and bump-and-run defense from Pitt, so he doesn’t want to overwork Fields, who has been running and preparing on the side in terms of conditioning for his return to action.

“We’re excited to have him back … I think he brings another element to the group that we’ve been missing,” Elliott said.