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UVA Football: Five Keys to a Virginia Victory over Pittsburgh

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UVA Football: Five Keys to a Virginia Victory over Pittsburgh


Virginia football is set to travel to Pittsburgh to face the Pittsburgh Panthers this Saturday at 8pm at Acrisure Stadium. Last time out against the Panthers, the Cavaliers were crushed 37-7 by Pittsburgh on their home turf in Charlottesville. UVA will look to get some redemption on Saturday in addition to snapping a three-game losing streak. Virginia has not won a football game since October 5th.

The Panthers face Virginia with a new quarterback, Eli Holstein, who has proved to be one of the best transfers in college football this season. Under head coach Pat Narduzzi, Holstein has revitalized the Pittsburgh offense, a key reason for the Panther’s strong 7-0 start before falling to SMU last week. With that said, here are five keys to a Virginia victory on Saturday at Pittsburgh.

The Virginia offensive line allowed a season-high ten sacks against North Carolina as Anthony Colandrea spent the entire afternoon running for his life. Despite the abominable performance, Virginia was without center Brian Stevens and guard Ty Furnish. With the two set to return, in addition to McKale Boley, who has been dealing with a knee injury, set to play closer to 100%, the Virginia offensive line can protect Colandrea and allow the sophomore quarterback to operate the Cavalier offense effectively. 

There are many reasons why the Virginia offense has struggled these past few games, such as poor protection, lack of separation by wide receivers, and failure to establish a rushing attack. Despite these things, Colandrea has not played his best football either, as the sophomore has failed to throw for over 160 yards in either of his last two games and threw two interceptions last week against the Tar Heels. If Virginia wants to win on Saturday, Colandrea must emulate past performances, such as last season against Duke and Wake Forest this season, where the Florida native lit up the opposing defense with poise and unwavering confidence. 

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Eli Holstein has dominated opposing defenses this season but, when in trouble, has often relied on Desmond Reid to pick up the slack. Reid is a dynamic threat, a powerful runner, and an excellent pass-catching back. The junior has 975 all-purpose yards and six total touchdowns this season, the highest among any playmaker on the Pitt offense. With that, it will be critical that the Cavaliers contain Reid with first-time tackling, preventing any big play from sparking the Pittsburgh home crowd. 

Shutting down Reid will make Holstein uneasy, but the other key to taking the redshirt freshman quarterback out of rhythm will be getting pressure early and often. Last week against SMU, Holstein was sacked three times and threw one interception. Against Cal, Holstein was sacked twice and threw two interceptions. Finding ways to get pressure on Holstein will be vital to testing the composure and poise of the young quarterback. 

Elliott took full blame after the blowout loss to North Carolina, apologizing for not having his team prepared to face the Tar Heels with a poor game plan while vowing to improve upon this for future weeks. Doing this showed Elliott taking accountability and ownership of the team as a whole, but with two weeks to prepare for Pittsburgh, the question now is, can Elliott and staff prepare the team with an effective game plan or are the Cavaliers headed towards their fourth-consecutive loss?

Virginia Football vs. Pittsburgh Game Preview, Score Prediction

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Pittsburg, PA

Allegheny Co. Executive Innamorato continues push for council to pass proposed budget

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Allegheny Co. Executive Innamorato continues push for council to pass proposed budget


Allegheny Co. Executive Innamorato continues push for council to pass proposed budget – CBS Pittsburgh

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Innamorato spoke Wednesday, saying that her plan would put desperately needed money in the hands of first responders.

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Paul Skenes finishes third in NL Cy Young Award voting

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Paul Skenes finishes third in NL Cy Young Award voting


Ireland Contracting Nightly Sports Call: Nov. 19, 2024

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Ireland Contracting Nightly Sports Call: Nov. 19, 2024

15:13

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PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes finished third in the National League Cy Young Award voting on Wednesday.

Atlanta Braves pitcher Chris Sale won the award, while Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler finished second. 

The Pirates’ pitcher is the fifth rookie to finish in the top 3 in Cy Young voting, and his third-place finish is the highest by a rookie since Jose Fernandez’s third-place mark in 2013. Skenes received one second-place vote and 13 third-place votes. The award was voted on by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America.  

For Skenes, Wednesday’s Cy Young third-place finish was the cap on a phenomenal rookie season. From May 11, when he made his Major League Baseball Debut, Skenes was a sensation on the mound. He finished the season with an 11-3 record and a 1.96 ERA in 133 innings over 23 starts. He added 170 strikeouts and only walked 32 batters. 

The 22-year-old pitcher, the No. 1 pick in the 2023 draft out of LSU, had such a strong season that he was named the starting pitcher for the National League in the 2024 All-Star Game

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Though Skenes came up short in the NL Cy Young voting, the pitcher was named the 2024 NL Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year winner on Monday.

The pitcher also was named Baseball Digest’s National League Rookie of the Year earlier this month and Baseball America’s 2024 Rookie of the Year in October.



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Steelers Reacts Survey: Will Pittsburgh have a winning record in the AFC North?

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Steelers Reacts Survey: Will Pittsburgh have a winning record in the AFC North?


Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NFL. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Pittsburgh Steelers fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

Welcome to Week 12 of Steelers Reacts. The Steelers finally played their first AFC North game of the season on Sunday, an 18-16 win over the Baltimore Ravens. They have less than a week to prepare for their second, a Thursday Night Football matchup against the Cleveland Browns.

Pittsburgh is off to a good start, but with so many rivalry games crammed into a small window, the second half of the season won’t be easy. Just how well will Pittsburgh perform in the AFC North in 2024?

Beyond that, the Steelers have a number of tough teams remaining on their schedule. Even the struggling Bengals and Browns are far from sure victories. There are some very good teams with winning records as well. Which one presents the toughest matchup for the Steelers?

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Vote now & check back later in the week as we break down the thoughts of your fellow Steelers fans!



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