Earlier this week, junior defensive end Eli Harold dreamt he would score the first touchdown of his collegiate career in Saturday’s home game against Richmond.
Harold later told sophomore free safety Wilfred Wahee, his roommate, about his dream. Come Saturday, there he was, kneeling in an end zone at Scott Stadium after recovering a fumble and traversing the 20 yards to the goal line.
After the play, Wahee came up to Harold on the Virginia sideline and told him, “You’ve never lied to me.”
Harold’s dream come true was one gratifying moment among many for the Cavalier players and fans in the 32nd all-time matchup between Virginia and Richmond, the program coach Mike London departed from to come to the University.
With their 45-13 win, the Cavaliers snapped a 10-game losing streak dating to last Sept. 21, when they pasted Virginia Military Institute behind a pair of 100-yard rushing performances from running backs Kevin Parks and Daniel Hamm. Junior quarterback David Watford, now Virginia’s third-string signal-caller, directed offense that day.
In Saturday’s breakthrough win, Virginia dueled Richmond in a tight first half before pulling away by scoring 31 points after the break.
The Cavaliers received standout offensive and defensive performances from across the roster in their 10th consecutive win against the Spiders.
The offensive line, a subject of much scrutiny this offseason due to collective inexperience, yielded just one sack while facilitating a rushing attack that picked up 157 yards on 40 carries.
Senior receiver Darius Jennings hauled in four catches for 79 yards and returned a kickoff 86 yards to the Richmond 13 midway through the third quarter, blazing past Spider tacklers. Junior receiver Canaan Severin caught the first two touchdown receptions of his collegiate career, the first when sophomore backup quarterback Matt Johns connected with him on third and goal for a 14-3 Virginia lead.
Severin said he and Johns have developed a special connection through dedication to their craft.
“We’ve been doing extra on the weekends for the past two summers now, and I’m proud of him [and] happy for him,” Severin said. “It’s paying off for him, and now I’m seeing it pay off for me as well.”
The Cavaliers clamped down on defense for the second week in a row, causing seven turnovers off three interceptions and four recovered fumbles. The takeaways defined the game, as Richmond’s promising drives repeatedly stalled in flameout fashion.
Senior outside linebacker Daquan Romero was all over the field for Virginia, pacing the team with 12 tackles and picking off Spiders redshirt senior quarterback Michael Strauss, a former London protégé, late in the third quarter. London said Romero has much to play for in his last season in Charlottesville.
“He’s one of those seniors that are looking to go out strong,” London said. “He’s looking to set a legacy [as] far as his Virginia football experience.”
Quin Blanding made a considerable contribution to the victory one week after becoming the first Virginia freshman since 1976 to start a season opener at safety, recording seven tackles, breaking up two passes and snagging the first interception of his collegiate career on a jump ball early in the second quarter with Richmond driving and the Cavaliers leading by four.
Sophomore cornerback Tim Harris picked off Michael Rocco, another redshirt senior who began his collegiate career in Charlottesville. Harold and sophomore outside linebacker Max Valles each picked up a forced fumble and a fumble recovery, and junior defensive end Trent Corney added a fumble recovery of his own.
Blanding exuded enthusiasm after the game as he discussed the team’s defense.
“[Defensive coordinator Jon] Tenuta always told us, ‘Turnovers [are] the key to our success,’ so it just feels good to go out there and work [on] what we practice and just go hard on the field and go hard on Saturdays,” Blanding said.
Late in the first half, as Richmond attempted to punch home its first touchdown of the day, senior middle linebacker Henry Coley and senior cornerback Brandon Phelps combined for what might have been the game’s pivotal defensive play. Coley stripped Spiders redshirt sophomore running back T.J. Moon at Virginia’s five-yard line and Phelps dove on the ball. Virginia ran out the final 22 seconds of the half to preserve its 14-3 lead.
After the game, London said his players were happy, but also knew they could not afford to get caught up in one moment of joy for long.
“You want to get used to this feeling,” London said. “You want to have this feeling a lot. You know, winning is contagious, and we just need to keep doing it. And that’s a happy locker room in there, but we know that there’s a challenge that’s on the horizon for us and we got to play better and do better coming up this week.”
Severin succinctly echoed London’s words.
“Great football teams get better every week,” he said. “That’s what we got to do.”
The Cavaliers play next this Saturday against ACC-newcomer Louisville at Scott Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:30 p.m.
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