University of Virginia football released its finalized 2020 season schedule. The opening month will be a challenging one for the Hoos, who are looking to build on a 9-5 campaign in 2019.
Virginia opens the 2020 season on Monday, September 7, in the Chick-Fil-A Kickoff Classic against the University of Georgia. The site is Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia. The Hoos face a quick turnaround, hosting VMI on Saturday, September 12. Virginia stays home for a September 19 date with Connecticut before traveling to 2019 College Football Playoff runner-up Clemson for its first true road game on September 26.
VMI represents the first of six home games on the 2020 schedule. Three of UVA’s first five games take place in Scott Stadium. Following a bye week on October 10 (UVA’s only bye this season), the Cavaliers play seven consecutive weeks with four of those matchups on the road, including the November 28 season finale at Virginia Tech.
Out-of-conference matchups include the “neutral site” contest with Georgia, home games against VMI and Connecticut, and Old Dominion on the road. Virginia’s ACC slate includes road contests versus Clemson, Georgia Tech, Duke, and Virginia Tech. The home ACC schedule begins with North Carolina on October 3 and also features Miami, Louisville, and Pitt.
Except for Georgia and Duke (Friday, November 13), all of Virginia’s games will take place on Saturdays.
2020 VIRGINIA FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
Sept. 7 – vs. Georgia (Monday in Atlanta)
Sept. 12 – VMI
Sept. 19 – UCONN
Sept. 26 – at Clemson
Oct. 3 – NORTH CAROLINA
Oct. 17 – at Georgia Tech
Oct. 24 – at Old Dominion
Oct. 31 – MIAMI
Nov. 7 – LOUISVILLE
Nov. 13 – at Duke (Friday)
Nov. 21 – PITT
Nov. 28 – at Virginia Tech
Anae Staying At Virginia
Amid reports indicating he was strongly in the running for the head coaching position at the University of Hawaii, Virginia Offensive Coordinator/Inside Receivers Coach Robert Anae released a statement on Tuesday (January 21) stating that he will remain in Charlottesville.
“After careful consideration I am withdrawing my application for the University of Hawaii head football coach position,” Anae said. “I have been overwhelmed with the commitment by Coach Mendenhall and the leadership of (athletics director) Carla Williams. I am excited and energized to close out our recruiting class as we continue our quest for the conference championship.”
Anae, a Hawaii native, orchestrated a Virginia offense that finished no. 40 in the nation in points per game (32.1) in 2019. The Cavalier offense thrived last November, averaging 39.8 points per game in wins over UNC, Georgia Tech, Liberty, and Virginia Tech in November. The perfect November resulted in Virginia capturing the ACC Coastal Division title for the first time in school history.
Virginia’s offense turned in respectable performances in the ACC Championship against Clemson and the Capital One Orange Bowl against Florida. UVA’s 28 points in a 36-28 Orange Bowl loss was the second-most points a stingy Florida defense had allowed all season, behind only national championship LSU, which posted 42.
Safety Moore Leaving Virginia
While Robert Anae has decided to stay in Charlottesville, redshirt junior safety Chris Moore has decided to spend his final year of eligibility elsewhere as a graduate transfer.
Wahoowa 🔶⚔️🔷 pic.twitter.com/hLgoWUyy21
— Chris 〽oore (@1moorechris) January 21, 2020
Moore, who redshirted in 2018 because of injury, played in 32 games and earned 11 starts in his Cavalier career. The Broad Run (Ashburn, VA) product played in 11 games as a true freshman in 2016, totaling 14 tackles including a tackle-for-loss. He amassed 97 tackles (44 solo), four tackles for loss, and an interception in his time in Charlottesville.
While Moore will cost Virginia experienced depth at safety, the Hoos still expect to return three primary contributors at safety in 2020 – Joey Blount, De’Vante Cross, and Brenton Nelson. All three will be seniors. Cross emerged this past season to play a major role in the secondary, while Blount and Nelson have played significant roles the past several seasons. Antonio Clary, who showed promise as a true freshman in 2019 before suffering a season ending injury in October, headlines the other safeties to keep an eye on in 2020.
Noticed Buell is no longer on the roster. Any info on that? Was he injured? It was odd to me that after playing some in 2018 and reportedly having a decent spring, he never earned a number this past season. While maybe not a 2 deep guy, I expected he could have provided quality depth.