When then-junior Virginia quarterback Matt Johns threw for six touchdowns in the first three games of last season, I became convinced he would be the person to finally lead Virginia back to a winning season. In fact, I was so confident in his ability that when Virginia played Boise State in week four, I bet my skeptical friend three dollars that Johns would lead the team down the field for a touchdown on the first drive.
Long story short: Johns threw a pick-six on the offense’s first play, shattering my faith in him and losing me three dollars in a matter of seconds. Unfortunately, that opening play served as an omen for Johns’s play for the rest of the year.
Johns ended up throwing at least one interception in seven of the last eight games of the season. His performance against North Carolina highlighted the egregious stretch of play, as he committed five turnovers, four interceptions and one fumble, all in the second half. In three of those eight games, he threw for under 200 yards, and only once did he throw for over 300. Johns ended the season with just three fewer interceptions than touchdowns — 17 and 20, respectively.
To say the least, by season’s end I was not the biggest Matt Johns fan. However, Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall gave Virginia fans hope this week by announcing a new signal-caller for the 2016 season: junior Kurt Benkert. Benkert, a transfer from East Carolina University, joined a crowded quarterback competition in May, with senior Connor Brewer already challenging Johns for the starting spot.
Mendenhall has articulated a desire to change the football culture at Virginia, emphasizing to his players that everything must be earned, thus making it abundantly clear that the victor of the competition would be the person who put in the most effort.
Here is where Benkert excelled. Coming in as a relative unknown who only played three games in 2014 and missed the 2015 season due to a torn ACL in the preseason, Benkert put in the effort and time to improve and gain the starting spot.
“He is a student of the game,” Mendenhall said. “From the minute he arrived on campus, [he arrived at the office] 7 a.m. each and every day much like a professional.”
Along with his work ethic, something that caught the coaches’ attention was Benkert’s ability to move around in the pocket and scramble. In part due to his immobility, Johns was sacked 21 times last season — the fifth highest mark in the ACC. In contrast, Benkert will be able to use his agility to extend plays. This dynamic threat has the potential to lead to more explosive plays as well as longer drives that can give the defense a needed rest — something that eluded them last season.
“[Benkert] has been the one that I think … [can] be consistent in terms of moving our team forward,” Mendenhall said. “When I look at a quarterback, I look first and foremost at them [moving the team down the field] because points determine outcome.”
In addition to his running prowess, the ECU transfer also has impressive arm strength. As a dual threat, Benkert will keep opposing defenses on their toes, giving the Virginia offense a dimension of unpredictability that is has lacked in years past.
Also, by bolstering the team’s aerial attack, Benkert will help Virginia regain something it desperately needed last season: a ground game. In 2015, then-junior running back Taquan Mizzell ran for only 671 yards and four touchdowns. Considering Mizzell’s athleticism, these numbers had the potential to be much higher. This year, with Benkert moving the ball through the air, the explosive running back is primed for the best season of his college career, and has already been placed on the Maxwell Award Watch List.
Most importantly, Benkert possesses the mental toughness that Johns lacked. On too many occasions last season, Virginia fans became excited about a potential comeback only to have Johns throw away the game with a careless error. With his proven dedication and work ethic, Benkert has the necessary traits to stay focused, internalize the pressure and come through in the clutch in tight late-game situations.
For the past four seasons, Virginia has been unable to crack the national Top 80 in offensive efficiency. The Cavaliers were under .500 in all of those seasons and had a different quarterback at the helm each year.
In Benkert, Virginia has the potential for a viable quarterback to stabilize the position for two seasons and act as a model for Mendenhall’s message of working hard to earn success. Just as the arrival of Mendenhall added a great deal of excitement to the 2016 Virginia football season, so too does the naming of Benkert as a starter. Bank on him to lead Virginia back to a winning season.
Ben Tobin is a weekly sports columnist for The Cavalier Daily. He can be reached at bjt5ed@virginia.edu or followed on Twitter @TobinBen.
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