Virginia
2024 Virginia Football Preview: A Make-or-Break Year for Tony Elliott
Simply put, winning hasn’t come easily in Scott Stadium as of late. The ‘Hoos showed flashes in the second year of Coach Tony Elliott’s tenure; however, late-game gaffes and several blowouts led to a 3-9 season and a 2-6 finish in the ACC. Nonetheless, one can dream of greener pastures in the upcoming campaign for the Cavaliers.
Let’s preview some of the personnel and make some predictions as to how the 2024 Virginia football season will shake out.
Notable Offensive Returners: Graduate Student C Brian Stevens, Junior OT McKale Boley, Junior OT Blake Steen, Senior OG Noah Josey, Senior OG Ty Furnish, Senior QB Tony Muskett, Sophomore QB Anthony Colandrea, Fifth-Year RB Kobe Pace, Senior WR Malachi Fields, Sophomore WR Suderian Harrison, Junior WR JR Wilson, Graduate Student TE Sackett Wood Jr.
Notable Defensive Returners: Graduate Student DE Chico Bennett Jr., Sixth-Year DE Kam Butler, Sixth-Year DE Ben Smiley III, Graduate Student DT Jahmeer Carter, Senior DT Michael Diatta, Sophomore DT Jason Hammond, Senior LB James Jackson, Sophomore LB Kam Robinson, Graduate Student DB Malcolm Greene, Sophomore CB Dre Walker, Senior S Jonas Sanker, Sixth-Year S Antonio Clary
Notable Offensive Transfers: Graduate Student OL Drake Metcalf (UCF), Graduate Student WR Chris Tyree (Notre Dame), Junior WR Andre Greene Jr. (North Carolina), Junior WR Trell Harris (Kent State), Graduate Student TE Tyler Neville (Harvard)
Notable Defensive Transfers: Fifth-Year LB Dorian Jones (Louisville), Graduate Student DB Kendren Smith (Penn), Graduate Student CB Kempton Shine (Eastern Michigan), Graduate Student S Corey Thomas Jr. (Akron), Junior CB Jam Jackson (Robert Morris)
Offensive MVP: Brian Stevens, Center
The anchor of the Virginia offensive line, graduate student Brian Stevens will hopefully shore up a unit that conceded 3.58 sacks per game in 2023 — good for 123rd out of 130 Division 1-FBS teams. Stevens, however, graded as the top ACC run-blocking center in 2023 and held the fourth-highest grade among all FBS centers (77.3) by Pro Football Focus. The former Dayton transfer spent most of the year recovering from a double-hip surgery last January, yet he should be ready to go for Week 1 against Richmond. A healthy Stevens — bolstered by a more experienced offensive line — will be vital for the success of both quarterbacks and expected bell cow Kobe Pace.
Defensive MVP: Jonas Sanker, Safety
Sanker, like Stevens, is the seasoned leader of his unit and a returning First-Team All-ACC selection, Virginia’s only defensive representative outside of defensive tackle Aaron Faumui (Honorable Mention). The Charlottesville native tallied a career-high 107 tackles, 3 forced fumbles, and 11 pass breakups in a season which witnessed few defensive bright spots outside of freshman linebacker Kam Robinson. While his numbers may dip with sixth-year safety Antonio Clary back in the fold, Sanker will provide a backbone to a defense sorely hoping for an improved year; after all, the Cavaliers finished 116th nationally in scoring defense last season with 33.75 points per game allowed.
Impact Transfer: Chris Tyree, Wide Receiver/Return Specialist
Landing Notre Dame’s Swiss Army Knife in the offseason was a massive get for the ‘Hoos. The Chester, Va. native appeared as a running back, wide receiver, kick returner and punt returner for the Irish in his four-year career in South Bend, totaling 3,284 all-purpose yards. While Tyree will immediately provide a spark for the special teams unit, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to expect him to fill a Malik Washington-esque slot receiver role in an offense that isn’t experiencing much turnover elsewhere. The 5’10’’ pass-catcher caught a career-high 26 balls in 2023 as a wide receiver and may be a safety valve for both quarterbacks in the Virginia offense. He may play some snaps in the backfield, as well.
Ceiling: 7-5
Call this a lofty ceiling after a 3-9 season, but it’s not far-fetched to foresee a major bounce-back from the Cavaliers with both quarterbacks intact, a defense returning several key starters, and a transfer class poised to contribute immediately. The schedule features several high-caliber road games against potential Top-25 teams — at Clemson, Notre Dame, and Virginia Tech — yet the home slate is manageable. Notable, moreover, is Virginia’s slim margin of defeat last season, as the Cavaliers were tied or leading in the fourth quarter against Boston College, NC State, Miami, and Louisville. The Cavaliers must avoid late-game lapses (a late 73-yard TD conceded against the Cardinals comes to mind) so as to flip the script this season. Stealing only two of those games away would have resulted in a 5-7 year for the ‘Hoos.
Floor: 2-10
Assuming the same woes — a lackluster pass rush, costly turnovers, and late-game management — plague Virginia, we can expect another rough season in Charlottesville. Outside of the three uber-difficult road games, the Cavaliers will travel to Winston-Salem to take on Wake Forest, a team they haven’t beaten since 2007. Exercising demons may be a theme for this year’s team. Some under-the-radar games will come against the Sun Belt’s Coastal Carolina and the FCS’ Richmond, the latter of whom shocked Virginia in the ‘Hoos’ 2016 home opener, 37-20. I don’t believe that Coach Tony Elliott will go quietly in a make-or-break season, but he absolutely cannot afford a loss in either of these two contests.
Elliott’s Dilemma:
Coach Tony Elliott’s seat is scalding. So, what kind of a performance from his team will merit a longer leash, and which will result in an immediate firing? With only six total wins in his first two seasons, Virginia’s head coach must win at least five games this year to keep his job and reassure the fanbase, administrators, and boosters that this program can reach bowl eligibility status in the near future. Five is iffy, though, and true safety might mean six games won. Elliott‘s situation is unique — considering the tragedy which befell the program in 2022 — and it’s important to consider that he now has some help from the University in the form of a revamped, state-of-the-art facility. I do believe, however, that less than five wins should be reason for Athletic Director Carla Williams to move on from Elliott.
Richmond: Win
@ Wake Forest: Loss
Maryland: Loss
@ Coastal Carolina: Win
Boston College: Win
Louisville: Win
@ Clemson: Loss
North Carolina: Win
@ Pitt: Win
@ Notre Dame: Loss
SMU: Loss
@ Virginia Tech: Loss
The schedule gauntlet ramps up significantly after a home game against Louisville, so it’s imperative that Virginia takes care of business in the early stages (v. Richmond, @ Coastal, v. Boston College) and try to steal one against Louisville and/or North Carolina. While this program hasn’t since enjoyed a season remotely as successful as the 2019 campaign, the veteran leadership within this group may bring Virginia faithful a bowl appearance and a glimmer of hope. The stakes are higher than ever.
Oh, if the Adventures of CavMan makes a return (on the new JumboTron at Scott Stadium), this team might not lose a home game in 2024.
Virginia Football Projected Depth Chart 4.0: Final Projections Before Gameday
Anthony Colandrea Announced as UVA Football’s Starting Quarterback
Virginia Football: Ten Cavaliers Who Raised Their Stock in Fall Camp
Virginia CB Kempton Shine Impresses in First Fall Camp as a Cavalier
Virginia Football Position Overview: Analyzing UVA’s Defensive Line in 2024
(VIRGINIA MERCURY) – “We needed this rain,” farmer and entrepreneur Graham Redfern said from his front porch in Caroline County Wednesday as U.S. Rep. Eugene Vindman, who represents Virginia’s 7th District in Congress, approached.
The lawmaker was there to learn about the crops and products at Redfern Hemp Co., one of the state’s small businesses whose future hangs in the balance between soon-to-start federal restrictions on hemp THC products and Virginia’s not-yet-finalized retail cannabis market.
The rain was one certainty for Redfern, and a welcome one at the start of his planting season. But another, he said, is that most of his products will become illegal later this year, when the federal hemp crackdown kicks in.
“It’s scary,” Redfern said of thinking six months forward. He added that some of his staff members are thinking about looking for other jobs.
Redfern’s company, which employs 14 full-time staff and 5 part-time staff, makes body creams, dog treats, chocolates and gummies from hemp. His products offer calming and pain management effects for customers, while other parts of the hemp plant help create oils, birdseed and fibers.
Tamra Herndon, a longtime customer of Redfern, said the products have been helpful for her mental and physical health.
As an amputee, she experiences “phantom pain” where her left leg used to be, along with joint pain from walking on her prosthetic leg. The combination of THC and CBD in Redfern’s products helps both ease aches and calm anxiety.
Read more on virginiamercury.com
Copyright 2026 Virginia Mercury. All rights reserved.
Atlantic Avenue Association hopes to attract locals with “Own the Beach”
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — People living in or near cities like Washington D.C., Charlotte, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh could soon be seeing a fresh batch of advertisements promoting the Oceanfront resort.
Tuesday, City Council voted unanimously to spend $1 million to fund the SURGE campaign. It’s an immediate ad blitz designed to combat any negative sentiments potential visitors may have garnered by recent events, according to Deputy City Manager Amanda Jarratt.
Saturday night shootings in March and April left total of 14 people injured at the resort. As a result, City Council instituted an all-ages curfew at 9:30 p.m. for weekends — later overturned — that business owners said effectively turned off the city’s economic engine and communicated an unwelcoming message.
Jarratt said the campaign looks to leave all that in the past.
“Over the last few weeks, unfortunately, we’ve experienced several issues that have potentially have negative impact on our perception and reputation,” Jarratt said. “And so this is a concerted effort to actively reinforce our family-friendly brand and maintain focus on increased visitor tourism for this 2026 resort season.”
The city’s Convention and Visitors Bureau will focus on “the drive and fly markets” in proximity to Virginia Beach, with digital media placements with streaming services and online travel platforms.
The city hasn’t tracked an overwhelming negative reaction to events this spring, Jarratt said, but “felt it best to be proactive.”
“While there may be some concern over gas prices, certainly airline prices have increased as well, … we feel like more individuals are going to be traveling domestically, and we want to ensure that they are visiting the city of Virginia Beach,” Jarratt said.
The money for the ads comes from the Tourism Advertising Program Special Revenue Fund. Traditionally $11.4 million each year is spent on marketing, according to Jarratt. She points to the $2.6 billion in 2024 visitor spending as return on investment.
“I think it’s terrific,” said George Kotarides, owner of Dough Boy’s Pizza. “I applaud them for doing that. But we’re hoping that we can move into a more localized campaign in conjunction.”
Saturday, the Atlantic Avenue Association has organized “Own the Beach.” Kotarides, who founded the association, helped to organize the effort out of concern for the resort’s reputation in the region following the last two months.
“It’s quiet, you know? It’s not as active as it normally is,” Kotarides said. “So we’re hoping that this creates a little bit of energy.”
Own The Beach is a campaign where, so far, nearly 60 businesses have agreed to offer $10 deals on Saturday.
“We got amusements, attractions, dessert and sweets, restaurants, bars, parking, there’s a couple parking lots offering $10 all day parking, so there’s a lot of different businesses that are participating,” Kotarides said.
He called it a pilot program, of sorts, to see if it attracts locals for a day.
“We just need to take this as an opportunity, really, to start fresh and do something new and different and try to make a little lemonade out of lemons, if you will, and get people together, get the community together,” Kotarides said.
To read a complete list of deals from participating businesses click here.
PORTSMOUTH, Va. (AP) — Virginia Sen. L. Louise Lucas has carved out a reputation as a fierce and outspoken advocate during her political career. One issue, in particular, has been at the forefront of her agenda: legalization of marijuana, which she says disproportionately affects members of the African American community.
She felt so strongly about the issue, she sponsored a legalization bill and opened her own cannabis shop. Now, she’s under the microscope as federal law enforcement appears to have raided that business. It wasn’t immediately clear what they were looking for but it’s drawn attention to Lucas and her 34-year career in politics.
In 2019, she became the state’s first Black woman to hold the leadership post of Senate president pro tempore after Democrats seized the majority.
The next year, she appeared at a protest of a Confederate monument that led to felony charges against her. A judge later dismissed the charges.
Lucas was born in Portsmouth and worked at the Norfolk Naval Shipyard earlier in her life, where she was the first female ship fitter, according to a biography in the state library.
She has been the CEO of a Portsmouth business that runs residences, day programs and transportation for intellectually disabled adults. And in 2021, Lucas opened a store in her hometown of Portsmouth, The Cannabis Outlet, that sells legal hemp and CBD products.
“Let’s talk about pot,” Lucas said in a social media post on X in 2022. “Yes, we legalized it and I even opened the Cannabis Outlet after we did! But the job isn’t done. People are still in jail for something that is legal today.”
An armored FBI vehicle and several agents were seen outside Lucas’ cannabis store on Wednesday. The FBI would say only that it was conducting a court-authorized search warrant in Portsmouth.
-
Atlanta, GA2 minutes agoAtlanta Falcons Set to Reunite With Another Former Player
-
Minneapolis, MN8 minutes agoBreak out the rhinestones for this book bedazzling event
-
Indianapolis, IN14 minutes agoUniversity of Indianapolis launches UIndy Online
-
Pittsburg, PA20 minutes agoAfter Pittsburgh-area girl lured from home, expert shares tips for monitoring kids’ online activity
-
Augusta, GA26 minutes agoAugusta mayor candidate: Lori Myles
-
Washington, D.C32 minutes agoHonor Flight seeks alternate plan to fly veterans to Washington, D.C. after Spirit Airlines shuts down – WSVN 7News | Miami News, Weather, Sports | Fort Lauderdale
-
Cleveland, OH38 minutes agoOhio agents confiscate firearm from 13-year-old in Cleveland
-
Austin, TX44 minutes agoTexas State announces recipient of 4th annual Austin M. Salyer Community Service Award