In overtime Saturday at Louisville, Virginia forced a field goal and just needed to score to win the game. In key moments throughout the season, they have seen success like against Florida State but also failure like against NC State. Fortunately for the Cavaliers (5-1, 3-0 ACC), in this game against Louisville, they saw the former.
The Cardinals (4-1, 1-1 ACC) went on a remarkable game-tying drive, leading to overtime. But once there, graduate quarterback Chandler Morris led Virginia down the field before graduate running back J’Mari Taylor punched in a touchdown to seal the victory.
Virginia dealt with adversity through injuries all game long. Senior tight end Dakota Twitty had to be carted off on just the second play of the game after his knee buckled on a block. This forced sophomore tight end John Rogers to step up alongside graduate tight end Sage Ennis in two tight-end sets.
Then, in addition to the preexisting offensive line injuries, senior McKale Boley went down with an injury in the first half and did not return, which led to more inconsistency on the line.
Injuries to key blockers were especially detrimental given that the Louisville defense was as staunch as advertised. However, it was the Cardinal offense that shocked the Cavaliers. Sophomore running back Isaac Brown routinely picked up chunks of yardage on the ground through early-down plays, which set up senior quarterback Miller Moss and the passing game.
All afternoon, Moss found senior wide receiver Chris Bell Jr. consistently open against the Virginia secondary, as the pair connected for 170 yards and two touchdowns. Against Bell and Louisville’s offense, the Cavaliers’ secondary simply looked lost. Even when Moss was not connecting with Bell, he had little trouble finding someone else in the passing game. The tight end duo of junior Jaleel Skinner and junior Nate Kurisky combined for 66 yards and eight catches.
It also did not help that, on both sides of the ball, Virginia started the game off undisciplined. A holding penalty on the first drive by graduate wide receiver Jahmal Edrine took back a 36-yard run by Taylor. On the ensuing Louisville drive, a pass interference on third down extended the drive. On their first drive of the second quarter, another holding on Edrine nearly took the Cavaliers out of field goal range. All in all, Virginia had seven penalties that cost 68 yards.
But while the flags were not on the Cavaliers’ side, luck was. After the Cardinals had a great first drive, an inexplicable fumble by Brown led to a 61-yard scoop-and-score touchdown by senior cornerback Donovan Platt. Additionally, right before halftime, a botched snap led to Louisville missing a very makeable field goal, costing them three points they would have loved to get back.
Virginia only got one offensive drive in the first quarter but made up for it with a spectacular offensive drive in the second. Morris led the offense on a 16-play, 75-yard drive down the field that culminated in a lofted touchdown pass to graduate receiver Cam Ross. Morris did this facing incredible pressure, another testament to his composure in the pocket.
Reinforcing the offense, Virginia’s front seven was locked and loaded entering the second half. Graduate defensive end Mitchell Melton had a sack on Louisville’s opening third down to kill the drive. Melton finished Saturday’s contest with two sacks and was a key part of a great pass-rush effort that totaled seven tackles for loss.
On the next Cardinals possession, pressure forced an interception from Moss that was run back by junior linebacker Kam Robinson for a touchdown. The Cavaliers had just two defensive touchdowns in their previous 53 games, but they found a way to get two in just one game Saturday.
This game proved Virginia’s toughness. The Cardinals are known for late-game comebacks and had just come back from being down 17 against Pittsburgh. However, the Cavaliers hung on and utilized their strength to seal a big road win.
“What we showed today is for one, we’re tough, for two, that we play fast and physically and for three, it’s all about the little details,” Taylor said.
With the win at Louisville, the Cavaliers will now head into the bye week with their momentum even stronger after a string of great wins. Next, a home duel with Washington State awaits Oct. 18 at 6:30 p.m.
It will be imperative that Virginia refocuses so that they can take on the back half of the season and finish as good as they started. A bowl game and the ACC Championship are still within reach, but this game exposed many flaws that will have to be fixed to get there.
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