Instead of expecting one guy to do it, UVa is looking to replace Malik Washington’s production from last year by committee, @justin ferber writes. The Wahoos are counting on three highly-acclaimed transfers to help make it happen.

Coach Elliott addressed the state of the team in camp after today’s practice. Sounds like some positive news on the injury front.
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From articles on the web, sounds like his 1st choice is OSU but they probably don't have enough room for him at safety. So whoever is 2nd place. I'm hoping that's us and I think it is. If he commits today I like Uva but if it goes longer then notsomuch

Four-star WR Josiah Abdullah talked to @Dylan Callaghan-Croley about what led to his decision to commit to#UVa last week and why the Wahoos were such a compelling choice in his recruitment.

With UVa fully in fall camp mode, @justin ferber has a 3-2-1 on the defense and where things stand for the Hoos as they get closer and closer to the opener.

Hello everyone! I just got back from Scott Stadium, where we got to see a little bit of today's open practice, really amounting to just one true series of football after a few special teams period. Here's everything I saw today:


HEALTH UPDATE:

Players in yellow today (may have missed a couple but these were the highlights):
McKale Boley
Brian Stevens
Chris Tyree
Andre Greene
Elijah Gaines
Miles Greene
Donte Hawthorne
Bryce Carter
Josh McCarron
Xavier Brown
Tekai Kirby
Karson Gay
James Jackson
Dawson Alters
Terrell Jones
Tyler Simmons

(I'd say this is 6 or so guys that would be on the two-deep)

-There are different reasons a guy is in yellow, and varying levels of unavailable. Some guys stretched with the team or jogged around, and others were strictly on the side. Boley, for instance, was a total DNP as he's in a boot, but some guys, like Brian Stevens, stretched and then went to the side for the actual football portion.

-Chris Tyree looks pretty good, though he didn't participate. He was doing some high knees and movement on the side and looks fine. Andre Greene was out today too, but seemed relatively healthy to me. James Jackson stood in the first couple rows of the bleachers during the open part of scrimmage, and was actually doing some signaling to the starting defense. Xavier Brown was again not in pads or anything, though I didn't see a sling.

-Anthony Colandrea still had the brace on his leg that he had the other day, but seemed fine. He was going through drills and didn't seem to be having any issues.

-It's worth keeping these guys missing in mind when we go over the starters in the first series of the scrimmage. Particularly on the offensive line, which didn't seem like the starting group.

PRE-SCRIMMAGE PERIOD

-Before the team got into the scrimmage, there was a quick position group period, and then we got to see some special teams work.

-The field goal units came on and did some live kicking against the block units. Will Bettridge went 3/3 in kicks that I saw, going from a bit further back on each kick, each made with relative ease.

-Vadin Bruot also got a couple of reps at the kicker spot. Unfortunately they were derailed by two consecutive bad snaps, both of which went behind the holder, ending the play. I couldn't see who was doing the snapping as our view was blocked, but I don't believe it was the first-team field-goal unit. On their third try, Bruot made his kick.

-Keke Adams wasn't on the block unit on one kick when he was supposed to and Curome Cox got after him as he ran on late.

-As the scrimmage began, we got to see a couple of kickoffs. The first was handled by freshman Max Prozny and was a little low, and went out of bounds just before the pylon, resulting in a penalty. On the next attempt, Daniel Sparks took the kick, which was squibbed and also went out of bounds inside the 5 yard line, so another flag was thrown. I have no idea if they were trying to kick like this or if the kicks were just bad; Either way, they both resulted in penalties so I can't imagine that's something they wanted.

-The returners didn't appear to be the actual returners we'll see in the season, it seemed like they just had a few walk-ons back there for the purpose of the drill.

STARTERS IN SCRIMMAGE SERIES:

Offense: Tony Muskett, Kobe Pace, Suderian Harrison, Malachi Fields, Trell Harris, Jimmy Christ, Noah Josey, Ty Furnish, Ugonna Nnanna, Blake Steen
(Note: that OL is listed left to right; with Stevens out, Furnish moved from guard to center, Ugonna was in his place, and Jimmy Christ started in Boley's place).

Defense: Chico Bennett, Michael Diatta, Jahmeer Carter, Kam Butler, Kam Robinson, Trey McDonald, Jam Jackson, Corey Thomas, Kempton Shine, Jonas Sanker, Antonio Clary

-For offense, I wouldn't read too much into Muskett being the QB. I'm sure Colandrea and him will split reps evenly today and for the next bit of camp. But someone has to go first, and it was Tony today.

-The defense seems pretty much like the first group, with James Jackson the only notable guy (far as I know) that's a likely starter. I did think it was interesting that Jackson started at one of the cornerback spots, but he was eventually swapped for Dre Walker (more on that in a bit). Corey Thomas told us the other day he was working primarily in the nickel, and that's where he was lined up today.

THE DRIVE:

1st Play: Muskett overthrew Fields outside the tackle to the right. Good, single coverage, I believe from Jackson.

2nd Play: Muskett threw in-breaking route, deflected by Sanker who came down into the box post-snap.

3rd Play: Handoff to Pace inside the tackle right, swarmed up by the defense after 2 or 3 yards.

NOTE: There must have been a penalty somewhere in here because obviously this was a three and out, but the next play was 3rd and Long. Didn't see a call though so not sure why they had an extra down in there, but the refs were out there calling stuff like it was a game so I probably just missed a penalty on the defense or something..

4th play: On 3rd and long, Muskett was "sacked" by Kam Butler, and Chico Bennett also had good pressure off the other edge. But the play was wiped out by pass interference called on Jackson, covering Fields down the right sideline about 20 yards downfield. After the play, Jackson was replaced by Dre Walker.

5th play: Muskett hits a deep ball for about 40 yards to Trell Harris down the left sideline. Harris hit a double-move on Kempton Shine and Muskett delivered a nice ball, but Shine actually did a good job recovering and saving a potential touchdown. Nice haul in by Harris, too.

6th play: On first down at the 20, Muskett rolled left and threw incomplete out of bounds.

7th play: Muskett keeper on an RPO left, picked up 7 or 8 yards.

8th play: Stretch run to Kobe Pace was blown up just behind the line of scrimmage by Trey McDonald.

9th play: Will Bettridge 32-yard field goal good.


Other Notes:

-The Scoreboard and sound system look and sound great. Huge improvement. They're still doing work on the top of the hill ahead of the gates and fence they're installing, and I'm sure they can finish that up in the next 3 weeks.

-Lots of football alums at Scott today, which is typical of the open scrimmage. Former QB Shawn Moore was one of the former Hoos I saw on hand.

-Bettridge has a pretty good leg, or did today. He was hitting the ball well and his field goal were not only made, but looked good too.

-I watched the QBs and WRs warm up before the scrimmage started, and Muskett was really accurate. It's just a throw and catch, but still, his ball placement and zip really stood out when compared to some of the other QBs (not including Colandrea).

That's it for today. I wish we saw more but this is the closest we'll get to live football viewing before the season opener. Have a great weekend everyone!

And yes I am expecting crickets in response.

Greetings from a very rainy Charlottesville. In a bit, we’ll hear from DC John Rudzinski and a few players but here’s what I saw at open practice.

Today was about who wasn’t practicing. It was a big group of yellow jerseys today with many off on the side not practicing. Many of those guys were in pads though which usually indicates the injury isn’t terribly serious.

Chris Tyree was on the side, but was out of the boot that he was in on Monday, so that’s positive. McKale Boley was still not participating and still had his boot on.

One guy that wasn’t in pads was Xavier Brown and he was sporting a sling on one arm. That could be a negative development after he missed all of last year with an elbow injury but we’ll see.

Other players in yellow included: Brian Stevens, JR Wilson, Charlie Patterson, Jason Hammon (not in pads), Terrell Jones, Tyler Simmons, Karson Gay, Ben Smiley, Titus Ivy. There were a few more too.

As I said above, we’ll see what this means in the open practices to come. Some of these might be minor or precautionary, but it was probably the most yellow jerseys I’ve seen at a practice.

Anthony Colandrea was sporting a brace on one leg but was moving around fine and broke the team down. It might be nothing, but I noticed he took the first reps in drills featuring the QBs, with Muskett going second.

I watched some QB/RB ball security drills, saw Jared Rayman putting receivers through some passing drills and watched the DBs for a time. Transfer corner Kendren Smith caught my eye in one drill, and he seems a little more physical than I anticipated.

I also wonder if Dak Twitty can become a contributor at tight end. He certainly stood out in one drill that I saw and he has the frame to be an intriguing option, maybe down the road.


That’s all for now, will update if I get any info on guys that were out today or otherwise.

by past, present, or committed UVA students? I believe that if Virginia was a country, the school would be in the top twenty nations. I have been disappointed in many of the aspects of the 2024 Olympics, but I have been impressed by the performance and demeanor of all Virginia representatives.
I found the answer. Virginia participants received 13 medals (6 gold, 5 silver, and 2 bronze). UVA finished behind United States, China, Australia, Japan, Great Britain, France, South Korea, Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Canada, New Zealand, Hungary, and Spain. I believe I hear a WaHooWa.
Only the first eleven countries on this list received more than 6 gold medals.

Virginia makes it official that Kyle Guy is joining the coaching staff as an assistant

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If you're interested in watching several UVA and future Hoo swimmers, here's the daily schedule of events and access to other info.

https://swimswam.com/how-to-watch-the-2024-olympic-games-in-the-united-states/
(and another great article on Kate Douglass here)

NBC will do a nice job broadcasting Olympic Swimming.
But with its usual strategy of showing a jumble of events and stories, it's a guess when each event will actually air each afternoon.

If you really want to dial it in, here are the Finals sessions for which UVA swimmers have a high probability of reaching or are in serious medal contention.

Remember, semifinals occur on NBC the day BEFORE each of these finals sessions (with a few exceptions like 400 Free and IM).

Finals sessions
1) Saturday, July 27th - Women's 4x100 Free Relay and Women's 400 Free

• Kate Douglass and Gretchen Walsh Free relay
• Australians favored to win, but will hopefully be a very close one...
• Paige Madden 400 Free

2) Sunday, July 28th - Women's 100 Butterfly

• Gretchen Walsh, who broke the World Record at Trials

3) Monday, July 29th - Women's 100 Breaststroke

• Emma Weber - surprise 2nd at Trials, but has been swimming great with a good chance to Final

4) Wednesday, July 31 - Women's 100 Free and Men's 200 Butterfly

• Gretchen Walsh in Freestyle (Kate Douglass won Trials, but decided not to swim to focus on other events and relays)
• Australians favored again - Gretchen will have an opportunity to medal, but needs to take a big step
• Thomas Heilman in Butterfly (future Hoo)

5) Thursday, Aug 1 - Women's 200 Breaststroke

• Kate Douglass with excellent chance to win Gold, but tough race among top 3

6) Saturday, Aug 3 - Women's 200 IM, Women's 800 Free, and Men's 100 Butterfly

• 200 IM one of the barnburner events of the Olympics - total tossup down to the touch
• Kate Douglass and Alex Walsh among 4 best swimmers in the world, racing Kaylee McKeown and Summer McIntosh
• Alex defending Olympic silver medalist; Kate defending bronze medalist
• But top times are almost 2 seconds faster now than gold medal time from Tokyo
• Paige Madden in 800 Free
• Thomas Heilman a stretch to make 100 Butterfly final, but keep an eye on it

7) Sunday, Aug 4 - Women's 50 Free and Women's 4x100 Medley relay

• Gretchen Walsh in Free with good medal chance
• Kate Douglass and Gretchen in Medley relay, perhaps chasing World Record (most likely Gretchen on Fly and Kate on Free)

Final shoutout to Claire Curzan and Jack Aikins, who heartbreakingly missed the Olympics by a total of 0.26 seconds in 3 events between them.

Four-star SF London Jemison talked to @HoustonWilson about each of his final six schools, including UVa, and about the visits he’s lined up so he can see each of his finalists.

On Episode 573 of the CavsCorner Podcast (“It’s So Crazy”), we talk UVa preseason football, QB competitions, vibes, position battles, and much more.

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Has anyone heard how they have been doing in practice? Any surprises?

Quarterback competitions are not unusual for UVa but this year’s version might very well be. @justin ferber breaks down why this one is different and how the Hoos are handling it.

Currently No. 64 overall in the Rivals150 for 2025, four-star guard Derek Dixon talked to @HoustonWilson to recap his official visit to UVa and discuss what stood out to him about his time on Grounds.

Quick update: Chris Tyree, McKale Boley and JR Wilson were all out at practice today and Tyree and Boley were in walking boots. Tony Elliott updated us, saying the hope was that none of the injuries are likely to be serious, but they have to wait for official word from the imaging results. Boley should be back within a week or so.

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CavsCorner Video: With fall camp now officially underway and the run up to the season opener fully in motion, All-ACC safety Jonas Sanker says he is excited about the potential of UVa’s secondary.

I feel sorry for the fans who only care about football. Y’all are missing a lot of fun!

After decommitting from Florida recently, Georgia native Josiah Abdullah picks the Hoos. Abdullah had a ton of offers and is a big time get for Adam Mims and the staff.

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Hi all-about to head back over to the Hardee Center for some time with Des Kitchings and a few players, but before I do, just a couple quick updates:


-First, on injuries, the good news is that the team seemed relatively healthy. It's way too early in camp to get excited about that, and the team hasn't even gotten into much contact practice yet, but there's probably fewer guys on the side or in yellow pennies than I typically see. Most of the guys in yellow today were the same ones in yellow on Wednesday, with a few guys like Miles Greene and Drake Metcalf working on the side. James Jackson was in yellow, but was going through stretching and so on. He seems to be okay. Sage Ennis had a yellow penny when he was stretching, but it wasn't clear if he was going to wear it for practice or not.

-Jonas Sanker broke the team down to begin practice.

-Practice was relatively condensed again, first because of the heat and then the rain that just rolled through, so practice was inside, and we only got to see a couple periods of individual position work.

-I watched the QBs go through ball security drills for a bit. When I was coming up we called that drill monkey rolls, not sure if that's what its called now; Then, the group went through some read option handoff drills, and those went according to plan. Both Muskett and Colandrea have probably done this drill so many times by now, they could do it in their sleep.

-The rest of my time was spent watching the receivers. This group seems physically in a different place than they were a year ago. Both Jaden Gibson and Suderian Harrison have put on weight and no longer look like new arrivals. Dre Greene is a physical specimen, and though he's not as big as Malachi Fields, he's not that far behind. The receiver drills were fun to watch, Adam Mims had a lot of energy and Tony Elliott came over for a bit, too. Chris Tyree looked really fluid going through some agility drills, and you can see that quick-twitch running back trait in him still.

After that, the open practice was done. Will have more content from our post-practice interviews early next week, along with a few features on the quarterback battle and other camp storylines. Have a great weekend!

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CavsCorner Video: Transfer tight end Tyler Neville talked about the start of fall camp at UVa, the differences he’s picking up on, how he’s settling in, and much more.

The theme today was rain, and because of it, we didn’t see much.

Injury Notes;
-Meiki Buchanan and Stevie Bracey were not dressed and on crutches.
-Drake Metcalf was working on the side in a yellow (caution) jersey. Others in yellow with varying levels of participation included James Jackson, Trent Baker-Booker, Miles Greene, Micah Gaffney, Josh McCarron.

Kam Butler broke the team down to start practice.

We saw mostly special teams work. I saw Ethan Davies, Suderian Harrison, Kam Courtney working at punt return. The punts were a mixed bag, from bombs hittiht the ceiling to shank dogs.

Tony Elliott was doing a lot of hands on coaching in the special teams drills. He was working with Xavier Brown on gunner technique at one point.

I watched the QBs throw a little bit. Both Colandrea and Muskett look to be in great shape, as Taylor Lamb indicated to me on Friday. Muskett also switched to #7, with Trell Harris taking his vacated #11.

We’ll have more later, when we get to talk to the players and Tony Elliott.