Virginia head coach Brent Pry spoke to the media following the 24-14 loss to No. 19 Clemson on Saturday.

“Obviously, disappointed,” Pry said. “Ton of credit to Clemson. Good football team, thought they rebounded well. We unfortunately didn’t. There’s some good things out there that we did, but too many mistakes, untimely penalties, dropped balls, busted calls defensively, turnovers. You just can’t be at a good team making the mistakes that we made this evening. Unbelievable environment, great fans, sellout, ton of recruits here. The blocked field goal returned for a touchdown, gave us the lead, and there’s some good things we did. There certainly is, but we’ve got to clean some things up. We have to get healthy. We’ve got to be at our best. We’ve got two games in the season left. We’ve got an open week to get some guys back, get them feeling good, give us the best chance.”

   

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In need of a win, Virginia football (5-4, 3-3 ACC) responded off the bye with a massive 24-19 upset over the No. 18 Pittsburgh Panthers (7-2, 3-2 ACC) to propel the Cavaliers back into bowl contention as the Hoos now need only one more victory to reach the illustrious six-win mark for bowl eligibility.

For a recap of the game: Virginia Football Claws Back to Upset Pittsburgh on the Road 24-19

With that said, here’s five takeaways from Virginia’s thrilling upset over the Pittsburgh:

Jonas Sanker is an NFL Caliber Safety 

The Cavaliers leading tackler and leader of the defense put the football world on watch on Saturday night. Sanker single-handedly was the spark that allowed the Cavaliers to come back and defeat Pittsburgh on the road. His block on the field goal was magnificent before the interception on the ensuing Pittsburgh drive injected life into the Cavaliers. Sanker stepped up when his team needed him most and will be a future role player in an NFL franchise. Sanker also added five total tackles on the night, four solo. 

Virginia Has a Shot to Become Bowl Eligible 

An unlikely and unpredictable path to five wins for the Cavaliers puts them one game away from bowl eligibility. After the demoralizing loss to North Carolina, many thought the season was over for the Hoos; Saturday night’s win demonstrated this team’s resilience and fortitude even during tough times. Further, this win shows why Tony Elliott should and will be the future of this football program. The Hoos must find one more win between Notre Dame, SMU, or Virginia Tech. Although this will be difficult, this win inspires confidence that one more regular season win is possible. 

The Virginia Rushing Attack was Stellar

The source of the Virginia offense on Saturday night started on the ground. Xavier Brown led the Hoos with 68 yards rushing and one touchdown, while Kobe Pace rattled off 52 yards and a touchdown. The duo was used in rotation, creating a two-headed monster that dominated the Pittsburgh defense all night long. Colandrea also utilized his legs, which was, for the majority of the night, more effective than throwing the ball. The sophomore quarterback scrambled for 40 yards on the ground as the Cavaliers had 170 yards rushing, an impressive performance. 

Cavaliers Beat Themselves in the First Half 

Virginia could’ve and should have won this game by more than five points, but mistakes, primarily in the first half, allowed this contest to be much closer than it should have been. The Malachi Fields bobbled ball that resulted in an interception robbed Virginia of a touchdown before Colandrea threw an interception right at a Pittsburgh linebacker, giving the Panthers excellent field position. Daniel Sparks, although he had a 66-yard bomb in the second half, had a 16-yard punt earlier in the game. Corey Thomas Jr., who had the game-sealing interception, also had a pass interference that continued a Pittsburgh drive on the verge of collapse on third and long. Virginia was fortunate to have left Pittsburgh with a victory, as mistakes like these are usually on the stat sheet of the losing team. 

Colandrea Shows Poise in the Clutch 

Colandrea did not play his best football game on Saturday night, but despite this, at the end of the game, the sophomore delivered a masterful drive that lasted eight minutes and 26 seconds and ended in a Will Bettridge field goal. Colandrea showed incredible poise, slowly leading the team down the field, being mindful of the clock, and reading what the defense gave him. The drive included a 16-yard rush from Colandrea, a 25-yard pass to Tyree, and a 12-yard pass to Pace as Colandrea played smart and conservative football, allowing Virginia to seal the victory over Pitt.

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1. Slow Start For Offense

In the first quarter, the Hokies offense failed to get much going as the team only gained 35 total yards and were 0-2 on third down. The Hokie offense was held to just 96 first-half yards and zero touchdowns with Kyron Drones only throwing for 76 yards in the first half. In the first half, the offense completed only 28% of their third down attempts which is below the average they have on the season for third down of 39%.

2. The Defense Came Out On Fire

The Hokies defense held the Tigers to zero first-quarter points and Clemson under 100 yards gained in the first quarter. To start the second quarter, the Hokies defense blocked a field goal kick from Clemson and got a big-time third and one-stop, which led to the blocked field goal on fourth down. This was the first blocked field goal kick since 2016 vs Duke today by Quentin Reddish on the Hokie defense.

3. The Run Game

The Hokies run game wasn’t able to get it going, and it’s honestly been that way for the last few games after the Boston College game where Tuten got hurt. Today, the Hokies rushed for a total of 40 yards, which is the lowest total rushing yards for the team this season.

4. Kyron Drones

Kyron Drones struggled bad today, he only threw for 115 yards, 0 touchdowns, 1 interception, and fumbled the football for a loss. Drones completed 45% of his passes today and this type of play led to him being benched for back up quarterback Collin Schlee in the second half.

5. Bhayshul Tuten

Bhayshul Tuten has not looked like himself since the Boston College game, and part of that is because of his injuries. Tuten has been dealing with a banged-up knee and an ankle injury this season where he was seen in a walking boot after the Georgia Tech game. In today’s game, Tuten rushed for zero yards on four rushing attempts after getting injured and did not return to action.

Additional Links:

Virginia Tech Basketball: 5 Takeaways From The Hokies Win vs USC Upstate