99 Virginia Football Thoughts Before Kickoff

Late last season, the Virginia football team was staring at a two-game losing streak and a daunting schedule ahead when Georgia Tech drove 90 yards in nine plays to take the lead at Scott Stadium. The Hoos trailed 36-33 and still needed one more win for bowl eligibility.

With the weekly pressure mounting to get that elusive sixth win, UVA put together a response. Five plays, 64 yards, and a touchdown to take the lead back with 1:22 to go in the game. Here’s the play that capped off a win that ended a six-year bowl-less streak.

Kurt Benkert to Andre Levrone on the left side. High jump ball to the outside shoulder. Touchdown!

And, importantly, no penalties.

The “99 Virginia Football Thoughts Before Kickoff” series marches on.

No. 43 – Progress With Penalties

That critical, season-defining drive doesn’t end on a celebratory note if the Hoos don’t execute without getting penalized. Five plays, no flags. All positive yards. From the play by play:

• Benkert to Olamide Zaccheaus for 19 yards.
• Benkert keeper for five yards.
• Benkert to Jordan Ellis for five yards.
• Benkert to Doni Dowling for eight yards.
• Benkert to Levrone for 27 yards and a touchdown.

That’s a clean drive in a pressure-packed moment. How many times in the lost decade did UVA fans see a similar situation unfold only to be thwarted by a penalty flag?

In one of the most glaring examples, the Virginia Tech game in 2014 may have ended the streak if not for penalty flags late against the Hoos. The Hokies took over with 2:55 to go and trailed 20-17 when Mike Moore got flagged for an unnecessary roughing the passer penalty with VT QB Michael Brewer scrambling out of reach. That moved the ball to midfield and one deep pass later, Tech set up the game-winning score. A false start penalty on Michael Mooney after the Hoos’ last-gasp drive reached VT’s 41-yard line helped short-circuit an attempted response.

In other words, last season’s progress with penalties is a small, but potentially a big step in the Bronco Mendenhall rebuilding effort. After all, one of the program’s main weaknesses on game day under Mike London was the propensity to commit too many penalties. In fact, last season’s total of 63 penalties represented an improvement of 28 from 91 in London’s final season of 2015 and 13 from 76 in Mendenhall’s first season in 2016 despite playing in one more game.

Here is a look at the penalty trend since 2008 courtesy of cfbstats.com:

• 2008 – 59 total penalties (16th nationally – tie), 4.9/game (28th nationally – tie)
• 2009 – 68 (31st-tie), 5.7/game (47th-tie)
• 2010 – 98 (107th), 8.2/game (116th-tie)
• 2011 – 69 (43rd-tie), 5.3/game (37th-tie)
• 2012 – 82 (82nd-tie), 6.8/game (91st-tie)
• 2013 – 81 (90th-tie), 6.8/game (100th-tie)
• 2014 – 78 (77th-tie), 6.5/game (89th-tie)
• 2015 – 91 (101st-tie), 7.6/game (116th-tie)
• 2016 – 76 (57th-tie), 6.3/game (69th-tie)
• 2017 – 63 (27th-tie), 4.8/game (22nd-time)

As you can see, last season’s total penalties represented the fewest by Virginia since Al Groh led the program in 2008. Again, for all but the 2011 season, that’s a lower total despite playing in a 13th game on the season. When you factor in that extra game, last season ranked as the best performance in the last decade.

The question, of course, is whether this is a trend that the Hoos can sustain moving forward. The 2011 London-led team showed a significant improvement year to year as well, but then quickly spiraled over the final four years of his tenure. Mendenhall’s final years at BYU are not encouraging in that sense because the Cougars were among the most penalized teams in the country in many of those years from 2008 to 2015. The best season in that span, 2010, did not match last year’s showing by Virginia.

• 2008 – 101 (111th), 7.8/game (112th-tie)
• 2009 – 93 (96th-tie), 7.2/game (94th-tie)
• 2010 – 70 (42nd), 5.4/game (36th-tie)
• 2011 – 75 (60th), 5.8/game (56th-tie)
• 2012 – 80 (77th), 6.2/game (70th-tie)
• 2013 – 102 (119th), 7.8/game (119th)
• 2014 – 110 (122nd-tie), 8.5/game (122nd-tie)
• 2015 – 85 (87th-tie), 6.5/game (81st-tie)

Of course, Mendenhall’s teams at BYU overcame those issues to continue to win games. He won 99 times there during his tenure. Virginia currently does not have the ongoing foundation or maturity of Mendenhall’s teams at BYU, however, so playing games with fewer flags can contribute to a better chance to win. That, of course, is just one piece of a very complex puzzle when it comes to football so other things need to go well too. Still, for a program trying to get on consistent footing, this is one area that can help lead to consistency.

The “99 Virginia Football Thoughts Before Kickoff” series has discussed much more. The previous articles are below. Click away.

• No. 99 – The Importance Of A Fast Start
• No. 98 – The Impact Of Early-Ending Careers
• No. 97 – Jordan Mack’s Role
• No. 96 – Welcome Back
• No. 95 – Han Solo Says
• No. 94 -Smart Addition
• No. 93 – The Center Spot
• No. 92 – Finding A Punt Returner
• No. 91 – Facing Running Quarterbacks
• No. 90 – Interceptions
• No. 89 – Kickoff Times
• No. 88 – QB Optimism Not Enough To Tilt Early Predictions Too Far
• No. 87 – It Starts With Jordan Ellis
• No. 86 – Virginia’s Most Dangerous Game
• No. 85 – The Tight End Swan Song?
• No. 84 – Teach A Man To Fish
• No. 83 – No Ordinary Joe
• No. 82 – Now Or Then
• No. 81 – How To Treat The Kickoff Rule Change
• No. 80 – Play, But Still Redshirt
• No. 79 – Which Red Zone Offense Is The Real One?
• No. 78 – Schedule For Success
• No. 77 – Who’s The Worst?
• No. 76 – ACC Coach Rankings
• No. 75 – Keep That Cold Weather Gear
• No. 74 – 1,000 Target For OZ
• No. 73 – Cross Out Cross-Training For Cross
• No. 72 – Punting Plans
• No. 71 – Redshirted … Ready?
• No. 70 – A June Jolt
• No. 69 – Who?
• No. 68 – Stops To Start Second Half
• No. 67 – Root, Root, Root For …
• No. 66 – Wildcard Extras
• No. 65 – Defense Showed Red Zone Improvement
• No. 64 – Welcome Back, Mr. Robinson
• No. 63 – The Florida Footprint
• No. 62 – True Freshmen Will Play, But Who Will Make The Most Impact?
• No. 61 – Four Fireworks-Worthy Moments In The Bronco Mendenhall Era
• No. 60 – Juan Thornhill Primed For An All-ACC Caliber Season
• No. 59 – Rebuilding The Offensive Line Is On Schedule
• No. 58 – Bouncing Back On The Defensive Line
• No. 57 – Underrated Hoos
• No. 56 – Lordy, Lordy, How ‘Bout 40?
• No. 55 – Peace Talk
• No. 54 – Hoos’ Handle On Social Media Bodes Well For Future Recruiting
• No. 53 – Filling The Void At Wide Receiver
• No. 52 – The Sixth-Year Seniors
• No. 51 – Borrowing A Burning Question
• No. 50 – Beat Tech!
• No. 49 – A Resolute Leader
• No. 48 – The Perkins Theorem
• No. 47 – Beat Pitt!
• No. 46 – A Look At Virginia Football’s 2018 Walk-On Class
• No. 45 – I Sense A Trend.
• No. 44 – The Need For (More) Speed