With the Virginia football season underway, new and old faces alike dotted the field at game time, the seats for team meetings and the weight room for lifts. Each of them are eager to prove themselves worthy of Saturday night snaps as the season continues on. In the wide receiver and tight end rooms, the roster is filled with plenty of new names, raising questions about how the Cavaliers’ air attack will piece together as the season continues.
Much of the passing production needs replacing. Losing top pass-catchers like Trell Harris, Cam Ross, Sage Ennis and Jahmal Edrine, Virginia returns just three of their top-10 receptions leaders from 2025. With this being the case, the Cavaliers will seek contribution from a host of transfer portal additions and a handful of returners. From proven power conference veterans to mid-major weapons making the leap and young guys coming into their own, there are many pieces to this year's offensive puzzle.
The Transfers
Jacquon Gibson (Graduate Receiver)
Gibson, arriving in Charlottesville after captaining the nation’s worst team last season in an 0-12 Massachusetts, brings immense experience with the football in his hands. Hauling in 63 receptions for the Minutemen in 2025, he was the main outlet for an otherwise hapless offense. Gibson failed to score a touchdown, but much of that could be chalked up to the fact that Massachusetts scored a national-low 11.1 PPG. In a more adept program, Gibson won’t have to shoulder as much of the pass-catching volume and can look for more scoring opportunities.
Rico Flores Jr. (Fourth-year Receiver)
Flores Jr. boasts the most power-conference experience of Virginia new receivers. Having played previously at Notre Dame and most recently UCLA, Flores Jr. looks to finally record his breakout season with the Cavaliers. Featuring a solid frame but a lack of high-end speed, most of his production comes over the middle and underneath the defense. The success of Flores Jr.’s season lies heavily in his ability to stay healthy. An ACL injury limited his playing time with the Bruins, though he started eight of the final nine games of the 2025 season.
Da’Shawn Martin (Third-year Receiver)
The final wide receiver addition with starting potential has a similar story to last year's team-leading wide out, Trell Harris. Like Harris, Martin transferred in from Kent State and boasts versatile skill sets. Martin can also emulate Harris’ explosiveness and ability to break a defense wide open, which made him a standout for Virginia. Set to share touches amongst a deep receiver corps, Martin’s 15.4 yards per reception in 2025 could make each of his opportunities that much more impactful for the Cavaliers as a deep threat.
Connor Cox (Fourth-year Tight End)
A great portal addition from conference rival North Carolina, Cox gives Virginia a jolt of energy at the tight end position. Boasting a complete frame at six feet and six inches tall, Cox is more than capable in the run blocking game. Additionally, he touts plenty of on-field experience in his first three seasons, having played in 19 games in his time with the Tar Heels and the South Carolina Gamecocks.
The Returning Pieces
Kameron Courtney (Third-year Receiver)
Virginia’s leader in returning receptions and yards is Courtney. Highly versatile and experienced under Offensive Coordinator Des Kitchings, Courtney is a go-to pick for this year’s breakout receiver at the slot position. Stand-out performances from last season include four receptions for 67 yards in the Cavaliers’ trouncing of William & Mary and six receptions for 50 yards in a Commonwealth Cup victory over Virginia Tech. While he is the returning statistical leader, Courtney has still never had to be a top pass-catcher in his collegiate career. It will be intriguing to see how he adjusts to his new role as a starter.
Dakota Twitty (Fifth-year Tight End)
The most senior returner, Twitty adds even more experience on the end of an offensive line full of veterans. An ankle injury during Virginia's road game with Louisville ended his season prematurely, but now Twitty hopes to put his skill set on display in his return. Twitty brings size and physicality to the blocking game as well as agile route running from his days as a wide receiver. Additionally, look for Twitty to also serve as a leader in the tight end room and the offense as a whole, bridging the gap between transfers and returnees.
John Rogers (Third-year Tight End)
With Twitty injured for the majority of the 2025 season, Rogers was thrust into the secondary tight end role behind Sage Ennis. When the ball did reach his hands, he made quite an impact, including 40 yards in the Louisville victory where Twitty got hurt. With some mentorship under Kitchings and tight ends of Virginia’s past, 2026 could be the year Rogers breaks out and becomes a mainstay in the Cavalier pass-catcher room.
The pass catchers on Virginia’s 2026 roster are a unique blend. They are a mix of returners with unseen ceilings of production and transfers playing at a power conference level for the first time. There is a lot of resemblance in some areas to the 2025 squad, but also a lot of new skill sets to integrate into Kitchings’ playbook. The success of this pass-catching unit will likely come down to how Kitchings, Coach Tony Elliott and quarterback Beau Pribula incorporate all of these talents into a coherent offensive scheme.
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