99 Virginia Football Thoughts Before Kickoff

By: Kris Wright |
Virginia kicks off this week!
De’Vante Cross is one of the receivers on the two deep for Virginia. ~ Kris Wright

When the “99 Virginia Football Thoughts Before Kickoff” series began back in May, kickoff still seemed light years away. Not now. The Cavaliers are within a week of the 2018 opener with Richmond, which is scheduled for Saturday at 6 p.m. in Charlottesville.

With game week finally here, that means the weekly press conferences with coach Bronco Mendenhall and players returned Monday mid-day. That’s also where the season’s first depth chart is delivered and that always creates conversation. The “99 Virginia Football Thoughts Before Kickoff” series takes a look at the season’s first depth chart.

No. 7 – Depth Chart Musings

There are some spots on the depth chart that had obvious answers. UVA named Bryce Perkins the starting quarterback after spring practice. We knew that Juan Thornhill would take over Quin Blanding’s safety spot. Evan Butts remains locked in as the starting tight end. And so on.

Other areas, however, provide some intrigue.

Back-up quarterback. The QB position always receives scrutiny and in Virginia’s case, the back-up spot is where the mystery remains unsolved. UVA listed sophomore Lindell Stone OR true freshman Brennan Armstrong in that slot. For now, if either of them play, the choice may be situational. Mendenhall said that Stone is more polished and more experienced thanks to a year in the program, but that Armstrong is more similar in style of play to Perkins. That could mean either of them enters the game second. Mendenhall said: “The context of the game and what’s required, if we’re playing from behind and possibly need to throw and catch at a higher level, then probably Lindell. If it’s more – it’s about even and we still want to play the same style, then it’s probably Brennan. It’s the simplest way to describe it right now.”

Of course, the back-up quarterback question is a little bit immaterial really. That’s because Mendenhall said Monday that he would still lean to giving Perkins as many snaps as possible, independent of the game’s score, simply because he needs as many reps as possible with the offense since he just came to the program in January. He acknowledged there’s a developmental tradeoff there for the back-ups and the always present risk of injury. Still, that’s the plan for now. “So I’m still erring on the side of Bryce’s development because it’s a new quarterback and it’s game one with a long season to go,” Mendenhall said. “In terms of backups, we’re going to be slower than quicker to insert at this point.”

The O-Line. This series and some offseason chatter has tried to pinpoint the potential starters up front during the offseason, but due to some preseason injuries and the shuffling that followed, the first five of the season came out a little differently than anticipated. Working left to right, redshirt freshman Ryan Nelson, sophomore Chris Glaser, sophomore Dillon Reinkensmeyer, senior Jake Fieler, and senior Marcus Applefield hold the spots on the top line.

Nelson emerged in that spot after Tyler Fannin, R.J. Proctor, and Fieler missed varying amounts of time in the preseason.Those injuries shifted Glaser and Reinkensmeyer to the interior (thought both can really play three spots) and opened the door for Nelson. He took full advantage of that. Fieler made it back in time to be in the starting lineup, while Applefield earned that right tackle spot quickly in camp. Any of the three interior players can snap at center so there’s flexibility there. Plus, Fannin appeared to be the likely starter at center back in the spring so if he gets healthy and back to form during the season, we could see a shuffle or a rotation at the guard and tackle spots to keep everyone fresh. Proctor, if healthy, could be an option eventually at guard too.

In the meantime, the second line unit is listed left to right as redshirt freshman Ryan Swoboda, sophomore Ben Knutson, redshirt freshman Gerrik Vollmer, true freshman Martin Weisz, and true freshman Bobby Haskins. Based on comments from the coaches, it’s far more likely that a shuffle as described above will occur rather than those freshmen getting heavy snaps. Knutson played last season and could be in the rotation, though.

Receivers. There were no real surprises at any of the receiver spots. The starters in a traditional three-wide set would be senior Olamide Zaccheaus and juniors Joe Reed and Hasise Dubois. Dubois is probably the biggest non-surprise surprise among that trio because he’s reportedly stepped up his game this offseason. The second group of listed receivers included sophomore De’Vante Cross, who Mendenhall praised during the preseason, sophomore Terrell Jana, true freshman Tavares Kelly, who has been talked about in virtually every corner of the UVA fan world, senior Ben Hogg, and junior Chuck Davis. Davis is the only name that made it there unexpectedly. Of Davis, Mendenhall said: “Steady and kind of a journeyman backup, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him on the field for us at some point in maybe a significant role if he keeps doing what he is doing.”

Punt returner/special teams. Speaking of Davis, he’s also listed as the starting option alongside Thornhill at punt returner. One of the early questions in this series focused on replacing Daniel Hamm after his two-year run in that spot and Davis has emerged as the first option there at this point. “There is no one that we trust to catch a punt more than Chuck Davis,” Mendenhall said.

There were no other surprises on special teams other than perhaps sophomore A.J. Mejia holding on to the starting placekicker role. That battle is ongoing and he could split some duties with true freshman Hunter Pearson, who is almost fully healthy after opening preseason camp injured. Pearson has more range for longer kicks, but Mejia has been more consistent on shorter kicks per Mendenhall.

Free safety. While Thornhill had one safety spot secured, the other spot sounded like a toss-up through camp … and it remains that way per Mendenhall even though the depth chart listed a pecking order. Sophomore Joey Blount took the top line with junior Chris Moore behind him, while reigning Defensive Rookie of the Year Brenton Nelson is listed behind Thornhill.

“That’s going to go back and forth daily, as well as within a game, as well as game by game,” Mendenhall said. “It’s the reflection of what I would love to have at every position on our team. I think it makes them both better. And also, you’ll see certain situations where they’re used in a little bit more relation to their skillset. So I view that position as my ideal for our team.”

Regardless, all four of those safeties will play and play a lot. At times, they’re going to play together even. While the traditional 3-4 depth chart is what gets released, it’s just as likely that the Hoos will line up in a 3-3-5 or 4-2-5, which brings another safety on the field with this year’s personnel makeup.

Nose tackle. True freshman Jordan Redmond, who the coaches have been high on throughout the preseason, is listed as the starter. That evolved out of necessity with some injuries during camp and the desire to get the best combination of linemen up front together. Redmond can plug the middle at 320 pounds, while last year’s starter Eli Hanback slides back to his freshman defensive end spot at 300 pounds.

That leaves Richard Burney, who is back from concussion protocol, as the other D-End starter with Mandy Alonso, also working back from injury, and true freshman Aaron Faumui listed as the other possibilities in the rotation. You’ll see Hanback at nose tackle too when Redmond shifts out of the lineup, which will bring one of the two other listed back-ups on the field.

Neither transfer made the list for now. Cassius Peat missed some camp time with an injury, while Dylan Thompson just arrived this past weekend after graduating from Ohio State. Mendenhall confirmed that Thompson has practiced twice but is still going through the acclimation phase and then he must work through the schemes while earning some sort of playing time if possible. “It will be really unique to follow how fast that matriculation happens,” Mendenhall said.

As the season unfolds, it’s likely that any and all of those names will get some sort of playing time along with others possibly. The wear and tear of a three-man front over 13 weeks usually dictates that need.

Cornerback. Darius Bratton received a lot of mentions from Mendenhall during preseason practices as someone playing well and working with the starters ahead of returning sixth year senior Tim Harris. On the season’s first depth chart, however, Harris is listed first in an OR situation with Bratton. That’s a good indicator that Harris must have responded to the challenge and that gives the Hoos some comforting depth at corner. Remember, last season Thornhill had to flip back to the corner spot from safety when Harris was injured in the opener. That doesn’t seem like it would be needed this time around.

Linebackers. The starters at linebacker stayed true to expectations with senior Chris Peace, junior Jordan Mack, senior Malcolm Cook, and sophomore Charles Snowden on the top line. Cook figured to be the most vulnerable to losing a starting job since he just moved to the interior in the spring, but he’s ahead of sophomore Zane Zandier on the first depth chart. Other back-ups include sophomore Robert Snyder behind Mack, sophomore Matt Gahm behind Peace, and either sophomore Elliott Brown or true freshman Noah Taylor behind Snowden. Snyder is the only real surprise in that group because he missed a lot of time with an injury this month. Brown and Taylor fit the pass-rushing threat mold so their names make sense. It’s interesting that junior Dominic Sheppard is not on the list. He earned the right to pick a jersey among the first 10 players and took No. 9.

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