It has already been a long road towards revitalizing the Virginia football program for Coach Bronco Mendenhall — struggles last year were plenty and wins were few. This year, however, Mendenhall seems to have his team on the right track. The Cavaliers have had their best start since the 2014 season at 2-1, and have already matched their win total from last season. Virginia travels west this week for its toughest test thus far in 2017 — a Friday night road showdown against Boise State (2-1, 1-0 MWC).
This season has already been somewhat of a rollercoaster for the Cavaliers. The team came out strong in all phases with a win over William & Mary in the opener, but failed to get a statement win against Indiana the following week as its offense went dormant. Virginia responded loudly last week against Connecticut in a 38-18 matchup.
Mendenhall saw the results of the team’s hard work starting to take shape against Connecticut.
“Our team is gaining momentum and confidence. It was a good win, another mark of just another small step in building our program. Again, I still see us at the very beginning stages of what we're setting out to do,” Mendenhall said.
Virginia’s success thus far derives from the play of senior quarterback Kurt Benkert. Despite struggling with the deep ball against Indiana, the senior has impressed this season, throwing for 976 yards and seven touchdowns to one interception. His completion percentage of 66.2 is up 10 points from last year. Confident and accurate play against Connecticut helped invigorate his offense as he threw for a single-game Virginia record of 455 yards and added three touchdowns.
“I think that Kurt [Benkert] played with a chip on his shoulder [after playing against Indiana] ... He owned the performance. He knew he could do better. We knew our offense could do better. So I think he was the catalyst in the mindset going into [Connecticut],” Mendenhall said.
With an equally impressive performance against Connecticut, the Virginia defense established itself as Mendenhall’s most consistent unit. The defense continually proves it can stifle offenses in multiple ways, improving its ability to get third down stops and create turnovers since last season. Through inconsistencies in offense and special teams this year, the defense has kept Virginia in games by preventing big shifts in momentum.
“Coming out strong, fast and physical and knowing our opponents to the best of our ability is allowing us to fly around, play fast. Basically just knowing [our opponent] to a T where we can dissect them and see a play and go make it,” sophomore linebacker Jordan Mack said.
Arguably no Cavalier is off to a better start this year than senior linebacker Micah Kiser. The captain has amassed 36 tackles, five tackles-for-loss, five sacks and a fumble recovery as the leader of Virginia’s front seven. His two-sack, two-tackle-for-loss performance against Connecticut earned him the honor of Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week.
Kiser and his team will have to prepare for a tough opponent in Boise State on a short week. The Cavaliers took on the Broncos under the lights in 2015 and lost a lopsided 56-14 affair. Mendenhall himself presents Virginia with an advantage this time around — while at Brigham Young, Mendenhall played Boise State four times and won on two occasions. His experiences made him aware of the Broncos’ penchant for explosive starts.
“Boise is always really aggressive at the beginning of the game. They prefer to get out in front in kind of shock and awe and gadget or trick or momentum or tempo or something unique and different. They really play hard and play fast at the beginning of the games there,” Mendenhall said.
Boise State lost starting senior quarterback Brett Rypien two weeks ago to injury, though he may return against the Cavaliers Friday. Since his injury, the Bronco offense has run through senior quarterback Montell Cozart, a dual threat transfer from Kansas. Cozart has slid into his role well — he completed 15-19 passes for two touchdowns and ran for 72 yards and another score in the Broncos’ win against New Mexico last week. Boise State’s rushing attack produced an average of 146 yards in the first three games, relying on balance for a strong offense.
Boise State’s only Achilles’ heel this season has been pass defense, as the secondary allows 217 yards per game while its offense averages less than 200. Then-No. 20 Washington State’s air raid offense exposed this weakness in week two, throwing for 433 yards in the Broncos’ only loss of the season.
Virginia built important momentum with the win against Connecticut, but must play its best game of the season in order to take down the more-formidable Boise State on their signature blue turf. Kickoff between the Cavaliers and Broncos is scheduled for 8 p.m. Friday at Albertson’s Stadium in Boise, ID.
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