33 yards. Three points. One heartbreaking loss.
Such was the story of Virginia’s 24-21 defeat at the hands of NC State two years ago. And as the Wolfpack’s game-winning field goal twirled, end-over end, through the Scott Stadium uprights, sounding the death knell on a once-impossible Cavalier comeback attempt, the loss fell not on any individual’s performance. Instead, it rested on the shoulders of poor discipline.
In the final 40 seconds of the matchup, Virginia suffered three 15-yard penalties. Particularly, back-to-back unsportsmanlike conduct calls against junior center Ty Furnish and freshman quarterback Anthony Colandrea turned an already uphill battle into a herculean task. Such penalties are so brutal for a team because they are not the result of poor technique but rather of poor self-control.
“In the final moments of the game, that’s when [we’ve] got to be at our sharpest,” Coach Tony Elliott said postgame. “And we just didn’t have the discipline down the stretch to win the football game.”
The Cavaliers take on NC State Saturday for the first time since that 2023 loss — though this time, the Wolfpack will host. Following the noon kickoff, Elliott has just a few hours to prove that this year’s team possesses the discipline that his team two years ago lacked.
Helping lead that effort will be graduate quarterback Chandler Morris. The signal-caller departed Virginia’s week one rout of Coastal Carolina after a third quarter shoulder injury, but according to Elliott, Morris was a “full go” for Monday’s practice.
A graduate student running the offense — instead of a true freshman — represents one step in combatting the unsportsmanlike conduct disease. Traits like discipline and maturity are often associated with upperclassmen, as veterans have generally played more downs and dealt with more adversity. Luckily, the 2025 Cavaliers are a significantly more experienced bunch than their 2023 predecessors.
Much of that experience came through the transfer portal, and it spans well beyond just the quarterback position. The Cavaliers added the second-most college football snaps — over 30,000 — of any Power Four team in the portal. Even more, those added downs come from just 31 players, almost 20 fewer than the teams at first and third in the same ranking.
Such tremendous effort in recruiting transfers has gained recognition well beyond Charlottesville. In particular, NC State Coach Dave Doeren sees that Elliott’s program has evolved.
“Defensively, you can tell they’ve put a lot of time into the portal,” Doeren said Monday at media availability. “They’ve got a lot of experienced players, some returners and some new.”
Unsurprisingly, the depth chart for Saturday’s upcoming contest reflects such experience. On the offensive side of the ball, every single Cavalier starter is a senior or graduate student. Ten of 17 defenders listed as potential starters fit the same criteria. Just two of Virginia’s 36 starters are underclassmen — sophomore safety Ethan Minter and freshman SPUR Cory Costner. Neither will be out to sea, either, as Minter played in all 12 games as a freshman and Costner will share the SPUR role with junior Ja’Son Prevard.
With a wealth of experience, the penalty problem is hardly a concern for graduate transfer defensive lineman Daniel Rickert.
“We’re a pretty disciplined team,” Rickert said. “We played pretty clean this past week, so I don’t think [unsportsmanlike conduct penalties] should be an issue at all this year.”
Doeren further emphasized a point likely to define much of Virginia’s early-season storyline — the roster has changed so dramatically from just a year ago that few conclusions can be drawn from past performance.
“You’re really getting to know your opponent in the year you’re in more than playing them year after year because the roster changes so much,” Doeren said. “And in their case, there’s a lot of new players.”
Were there any preseason doubt surrounding those new players, the Cavaliers put it to rest against Coastal Carolina, as the many unfamiliar faces made their collective presence known.
Graduate transfer receiver Cam Ross lit up the box score, recording a whopping 124 receiving yards on seven catches in addition to a field-length kick return touchdown. Ross’s performance earned him ACC Player of the Week Honors as both a receiver and a specialist.
Saturday could be another big day for the receiving corps, as well. Virginia will likely remain aggressive through the air, given the NC State secondary’s less-than-stellar week one performance against East Carolina. The Wolfpack surrendered 383 passing yards to its Group of Five opponent, en route to a tightly contested 24-17 victory — quite the contrast from Ross and company’s 41-point margin.
Should the Cavaliers capitalize against a Wolfpack team that underwhelmed in week one, Elliott will demonstrate growth as a program while setting his team up for a fast start. With FCS William & Mary traveling to Charlottesville next weekend, a win in Raleigh would prime Virginia for its first 3-0 start since 2019, when the Cavaliers advanced to the ACC Championship.
Elliott’s veterans who were on the 2023 team are looking for payback — and more importantly, a 2-0 start with a shiny road win. With so much at stake, NC State’s players have their work cut out for them, and they know it.
“[The Cavaliers] are a much better team than we played a couple years ago,” Doeren said.
Xander Tilock contributed reporting.
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