Wahoo Preview: Virginia hopes to get off to good start against Richmond

By Jerry Ratcliffe

Virginia is a three-touchdown favorite in its season opener tonight against Richmond (6 p.m., Scott Stadium, ACCNX/ESPN+), but don’t expect the Cavaliers to be overconfident.

Tony Elliott has talked to his team about how well-coached the visiting Spiders are, coming off a 9-4 season that included the FCS playoffs, plus are predicted to finish second in the challenging CAA this season.

Richmond returns two quarterbacks who played significant roles on last year’s team, redshirt junior Kyle Wickersham (1,405 yards, 72.6 percent completion rate, 10 TDs/4 INTs) and sophomore Camden Coleman (1,161 yards, 66.7 percent, 12 TDs/6 INTs).

Spiders coach Russ Huesman hasn’t divulged who his starter will be, although all the insiders to the UR program already know. The rest of us will find out sometime today.

An educated guess would be Wickersham, who can also run with the ball (402 yards last season). Wickersham is a QB that Huesman can use for designated runs, whereas Coleman mostly runs when he has to on scrambles.

Because the Spiders lost their top running back, Savon Smith (708 yards, 4 TDs) from a year ago, Wickersham might be a smart choice to help out the UR rushing attack. Meanwhile, Huesman will rely on Zach Palmer-Smith, a transfer from Wagner, who rushed for 699 yards last season.

Nick DeGennaro is back as Richmond’s leading receiver (71 catches, 904 yards, 11 TDs).

Virginia’s defense, which returns a ton of personnel with years of experience (listen to our podcast that breaks down the Cavaliers’ D position-by-position here), hopes to establish a dominance on the line of scrimmage right out of the blocks, something it didn’t do in 2023 when UVA ranked No. 114 out of 130 FBS teams in rush defense (184.5 per game).

The Cavaliers failed to put much pressure on opposing QBs last season and didn’t force many interceptions, so if they can shut down UR’s running game, look for defensive coordinator John Rudzinski to become more aggressive.

Richmond returns a lot of experience on the defensive side of the ball as well, a defense that ranked No. 19 in the FCS (out of 122 teams) in rushing defense (112.7 yards per game). The Spiders also excelled in sacking the quarterback last season (39 sacks) and picking off passes (16 interceptions).

Virginia offensive coordinator Des Kitchings is hoping to come out with a running game it can count on after finishing No. 105 in the country in running the football (only 117.9 yards per game).

Look for graduate student Kobe Pace (a former Clemson starter) to be the bell cow, backed up by former walk-on Jack Griese (grandson of Hall of Famer Bob Griese) and Xavier Brown (see related story on Griese and related podcast on the UVA offense on this site).

Perhaps the key to the entire offensive efficiency will center around the offensive line, which returns intact, but didn’t do a good job of protecting the quarterbacks or opening holes for the running backs on a consistent basis is 2023.

UVA’s O-Line, led by NFL prospect Brian Stevens at center (23-game starting streak, 31 starts overall), should be improved after a season of playing together. It is bigger, faster, stronger and determined to make a difference this season.

Huesman, in his eighth season at the helm of the Spiders, has built a winning tradition, but realizes the challenges of stepping outside of the FCS. Richmond lost to Michigan State last season and UVA the year before when the Spiders stepped up a level. Huesman noted that in those contests, the FBS opponents started faster, gained an upper hand and never let up.

The Richmond coach realizes that Virginia has a lot more weapons than it did a year ago when the Cavaliers went 3-9.

Huesman said that Virginia starting quarterback Anthony Colandrea “is kind of scary,” noting that not only can Colandrea sling the ball, but is dangerous as a runner. Huesman remembered the meeting two years ago when former UVA QB Brennan Armstrong had great success at running the ball.

Don’t look for Colandrea to run the ball nearly as much as Armstrong. He’d rather throw it, but he’s not afraid of designed running plays, particularly quarterback draws, or scrambling if his protection fails.

Huesman also pointed out concern about the plethora of UVA receivers, led by Notre Dame transfer Chris Tyree, returning Wahoo Malachi Fields and others. Virginia has as many as eight wide receivers it trusts along with three tight ends capable of making plays.

“They should feel really good about their receiving corps,” Huesman said. “I hope they don’t get behind us. They’re going to take their shots.”

The UR coach remembered what a threat Tyree was at Thomas Dale High School in Richmond before going to Notre Dame. Tyree has elite speed and is a threat to “take it to the house” any time the ball is in his hands, which also goes for returning kickoffs and punts, although the Spiders feature an “Aussie-style” punter who makes it very difficult to return his kicks.

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