What happened to our summer? College football kicks off early this year in the D.C. metropolitan area with Georgetown facing Lafayette on Thursday night and other FCS schools beginning their season over the weekend.
Virginia starts its season Saturday in a game originally intended to be held in Rio de Janeiro, with head coach Tony Elliott coming off his best year since taking over the program in December 2021. And the school’s first-ever 11-win season gives him additional credibility on the recruiting trail and in the transfer portal.
“Now we’ve got proof of concept, so you’re not selling a dream as much,” Elliott told WTOP. “You’ve got tangible results.”
The proof of concept helped Elliott land a quality quarterback in the portal. Beau Pribula previously played for Penn State and Missouri before landing in Charlottesville to take over for Chandler Morris.
“He’s led two programs at the highest level, and so you knew he had the experience and the ability to lead,” Elliott said. “He has a quiet confidence about himself off the field, but on the field, he’s a competitor. He loves to compete and understands the game at the highest level.”
Pribula threw for 1,941 yards last season in the SEC and he’s not the only new arrival on offense: Wide receivers Da’Shawn Martin and Rico Flores plus running backs Peyton Lewis and Jekail Middlebrook expect to contribute. But there are returnees, such as Xavier Brown (241 yards rushing in 2025) and Kameron Courtney (25 catches last year), who will compete for snaps.
Regardless of who’s getting carries or catching passes, the Cavaliers benefit by boasting one of the stronger offensive lines in the conference, led by preseason All-ACC selections Noah Josey and McKale Boley.
“You feel like you know what you can lean on, both in the game and in the locker room from a leadership standpoint,” Elliott said. “Josey was here before this staff got here, so he’s a guy that has really helped us transition the program to where we are from a leadership standpoint. Boley was part of our first signing class.”
Last year the Cavaliers allowed the second fewest points per game in the ACC while leading the conference in stopping foes on third down. The keystone of that defense returns in senior linebacker Kam Robinson, who made 64 tackles with 2.5 sacks and two interceptions last fall.
“He makes plays, and then that makes everyone around him better,” Elliott said. “They have a confidence level in him when he’s out there and then it also breeds confidence in themselves because they want to go make plays like Kam does.”
Fisher Camac (4.5 sacks in 2025) provides experience on the line while Corey Costner (two interceptions in his freshman year) patrols the secondary.
You could call senior punter Daniel Sparks the Cavaliers’ first line of defense, because the veteran was a huge part in the field position game, ranking second in the ACC averaging 47.2 yards per kick.
“When you look at the trends in college football over the years with the new clock rules and going for it on fourth down, the number of possessions per game is decreasing,” Elliott said.
“You got to make sure that you maximize every possession, but you also have to be able to flip the field and put the opposing offense in a disadvantageous position … so having Sparky back is big.”
The schedule begins with a bang: NC State comes to Scott Stadium on Saturday. The Wolfpack outscored the Cavaliers last year 35-31 in a game that didn’t count toward the conference standings (blame the accounting department) that saw a defeat-sealing interception in the end zone with just over a minute left in regulation.
The Wolfpack’s 10 returning starters include quarterback CJ Bailey (3,105 yards and 25 touchdowns passing in 2025), who ran for two touchdowns while throwing for a score in last year’s game. The September showdown with West Virginia at the neutral site of Charlotte, North Carolina, stands out before the bulk of the ACC season begins.
But less than a year removed from a dream season, there’s a road map back to conference contention.
“Big picture: procedures, let’s be clean, take care of the line of scrimmage, take care of the ball,” Elliot said. “And have the mindset to win a one-score game in the fourth quarter.”
Dave Preston is an AP Top 25 voter.
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