Three-List Game Preview 2019: ODU’s First Meeting With Virginia

Virginia is 3-0 this season.
Can Jordan Mack and Virginia overpower Old Dominion? ~ Kris Wright

The Virginia football team is 3-0 for the first time since the 2005 season. Following that 3-0 start in 2005, the Cavaliers dropped their next two games. The Hoos look to avoid the same path in 2019 as they play host to Old Dominion on Saturday night at Scott Stadium.

The Cavaliers are ranked 21st in The Associated Press Top 25 Poll, their highest ranking since the 2007 season. ODU is 1-1 on the season, narrowly beating Norfolk State 24-21 in week one and falling to Virginia Tech the following week 31-17. The Monarchs come into Saturday night’s matchup well-rested, though, as they had a bye week last week.

While the Monarchs were resting on their bye week, the Cavaliers were in a battle with Florida State. Virginia pulled out a tough 31-24 victory last Saturday night at Scott Stadium. The Cavaliers scored three touchdowns in the fourth quarter to reclaim the lead from the Seminoles and take a seven-point lead with 2:34 to play in the game. In shades of Virginia’s win over the Seminoles in 1995, Florida State’s final drive ended at the Cavalier goal line with a direct snap to the running back as the clock expired. This was Virginia’s first win over FSU since 2011 and first win over the Seminoles at home since 2005.

With the best start in more than a decade in hand, Virginia comes in with all of the momentum. This matchup with Old Dominion has the potential to be a trap game for the Cavaliers as not only does it follow a big win, but it also stands between arguably one of Virginia’s biggest games of the season. Next week, the Cavaliers travel to South Bend to take on seventh ranked Notre Dame. In a season filled with more hype than Wahoo fans can remember in years, a slip-up at home against Old Dominion would be disastrous.

Let’s get to the preview!

Essentials

Three Questions

1. Who will win the turnover battle?

While the Cavaliers have been winning football games, they have not been winning the turnover battle. That could eventually spell trouble. Through three games, Virginia is -3 in terms of turnover margin. The defense has three interceptions and zero fumble recoveries, while the offense has turned the ball over six times with five interceptions and a fumble. Bryce Perkins has thrown 4 interceptions the past two games. He had just 2 picks in the final seven games of 2018.

Old Dominion, on the other hand, ranks 13th in the nation with a turnover margin of +3. That included a +2 edge in the game at Virginia Tech, a game where ODU was within a touchdown in the fourth quarter. The Hoos are heavily favored in this matchup so continuing the turnover trend might be the Monarchs’ best bet as they try to pull off this upset.

2. Can the Cavaliers keep getting to the quarterback?

The Virginia defense has been stout this season, allowing only 261.7 yards per game. This ranks 16th in the nation. Part of the reason for this success? The Cavaliers’ ability to get to the opposing quarterback at will.

UVA has 14 sacks on the year, which is tied for second in the entire FBS. Only Florida has more sacks on the season with 16. The Cavaliers will look to continue this trend of having a party in the backfield against the Monarchs, a team that has not beaten teams through the air this season and has allowed six sacks in just two games.

3. Can Old Dominion play spoiler again?

The Monarchs had one of the biggest upsets of the 2018 season when they defeated Virginia Tech, 49-35. The Hokies were ranked No. 13 in the nation at the time with wins against Florida State and William & Mary.

The task will be tougher for Old Dominion against the Cavaliers as this game will not be played in Norfolk, unlike the 2018 upset over Virginia Tech. Look for these Monarchs to play inspired football as a lot of them hail from the state of Virginia and may feel overlooked by the bigger school. These are the emotions that Old Dominion utilized and drew from to inspire an upset against another big-name school from the same state a year ago.

Three Opponents to Watch

1. Stone Smartt, Quarterback, #4

The 6’4”, 220-pound junior comes to Old Dominion from Riverside City College (JUCO). At Riverside, Smartt shattered school records for most completions in a season, highest completion percentage, and most passing yards in a season and career. In his final season, he threw for 31 touchdowns and rushed for nine more, earning him the honor of being named as a first-team JUCO All-American. For the Monarchs, Smartt has been a threat in air and on the ground too. This season, he has thrown for 280 yards without a touchdown and has an interception, while rushing for 98 yards and three touchdowns.

2. Lala Davis, Running Back, #12

The 5’10”, 205-pound redshirt freshman saw action last year in four games before being redshirted. Prior to being redshirted, Davis rushed for 131 yards on 35 carries and scored four touchdowns. This season, he has rushed for 143 yards on 27 carries and scored one touchdown. Davis’ 5.3 yards per carry average on the season may entice the Cavaliers to stack the box and dare Smartt to try to beat them through the air, trusting their talented secondary. The Hoos have allowed just 2.51 yards per carry through three games.

3. Lawrence Garner, Linebacker, #34

The 6’3”, 230-pound junior serves as the leader of this Old Dominion defense. Last season, Garner led Conference USA with 11.1 tackles per game. He had 100 tackles on the year, which was only the fourth 100-tackle season in school history. This season, Garner’s 16 tackles place him in a first-place tie for the team. While he does not have any sacks this season, look to see if Garner can put some pressure on Perkins and the Cavalier offense. If not, look for Perkins to sit back and decide whether to beat the Monarchs with his arm or his legs.

Three Hoos to Watch

1. Bryce Perkins, Quarterback

This should come as no shock as it is pretty evident that the Cavaliers go as Perkins does. While he has shown his typical flashes of brilliance (the two-point conversion against FSU to take a 31-24 lead), Perkins has been more prone to forcing or missing throws this season than last year. Through three games, he has thrown four interceptions, which is almost half of his nine he threw all of last season. At the same time, though, Perkins has been electric when the ball is in his hands. On the season, he has completed 66 percent of his passes, throwing for 668 yards and 5 touchdowns, while also rushing for 158 yards and a touchdown. Against a less talented team on paper like Old Dominion, the Cavaliers just need Perkins to be solid and not try to do too much.

2. Jordan Mack, Linebacker

A team captain, Mack is second on the team in tackles with 20 on the season. More notably, he leads the team in sacks with four through only three games. Those four sacks rank 10th in the nation among all FBS defenders this season. He leads a defense that has been getting to the quarterback at will this season, racking up 14 sacks as a team. Only one other team in the FBS has more sacks this season than the Virginia defense, Florida. Look for Mack to continue to lead this defense and put constant pressure on Smartt throughout the game.

3. The wide receiver group

After three games, the Cavaliers have nine wide receivers with at least four receptions on the season. While the media and opposing teams like to focus on Joe Reed and Hasise Dubois out of this group (rightfully so as the pair has combined for 33 receptions, 345 yards, and 3 touchdowns), this is one of the most talented and deep wide receiver groups Virginia has had in years. Perkins has done a terrific job spreading the ball around, and the Cavaliers will need more of this as defenses continue to lock in on Reed and Dubois.

Remember when …

Saturday’s game is the first ever meeting between UVA and ODU in football so that means there’s no video out there for a memorable play from past years. Instead, here’s a video of Demetrius ‘Pete’ Allen taking the kickoff to the house for the game-winning touchdown in the 1995 Peach Bowl. Allen played at Granby High School in Norfolk, home of the Monarchs, prior to coming to Virginia.