Virginia Football Announces Kickoff Times For Five Games

Virginia announced some early season football schedule updates Thursday with time and TV information for five games. Adam Smotherman, UVA Head Strength and Conditioning Coach, and Vincenza Ranallo, Sports Dietitian for football, may have raised an eyebrow at the news. That’s because the Hoos will be playing in the late summer heat in September.

The first three games of the season on Sept. 3, Sept. 10, and Sept. 17 will all be played in the middle of the day with early afternoon kickoff times. The Hoos open with Richmond at 12:30 p.m. in a game that will be broadcast by regional sports networks. For game two, they travel to Illinois for a 4 p.m. ET kickoff (3 p.m. local time at the game), which will be carried by ESPNU. The third game against Old Dominion at Scott Stadium is scheduled for 2 p.m. on the ACC Network.

That could provide some conditioning and hydration questions for Smotherman, Ranallo, and other support staff members. Remember, for example, that Jelani Woods had some cramps during the William & Mary game last year that kicked off at 7:30 p.m. in Charlottesville. The heat and humidity at that time of year can always be challenging regardless of time obviously, but afternoon games simply add to it. The preparation and acclimation plans can start in preseason camp then carry into the September games.

Virginia also has a short turnaround before game four on the schedule. After facing ODU on Saturday, UVA travels to Syracuse for a Friday, Sept. 23 contest to open ACC play. That game time was announced as 7:30 p.m. on ESPN. The fifth time and TV designation announced Thursday was for the Oct. 20 game at Georgia Tech. That Thursday night game will air on ESPN at 7:30 p.m. as well.

Those two night games look more like the Cavaliers’ schedule last fall. They played seven games at 7 p.m. or later in 2021. The 2020 season featured just one kickoff before 3:30 and four games began at 8 p.m. In 2019, the Hoos had six night games in the regular season. The 2018 schedule had only four evening kickoffs, while the 2017 schedule had just two and both were Friday night kickoffs.

Looking back at those five schedules, the season opener at Scott Stadium kicked off at 3:30 p.m. or later each season. In fact, the Cavaliers haven’t played a home opener in the noon hour since the 2014 game with UCLA. Fans already started to discuss the early kickoff time on the message boards here and here.

The remaining games on the schedule will have times and television information announced at a later date. After the first three weeks of the season, TV and time selections shift to a 12-day advance notice with the ACC’s television partners making their choices. The networks can also use a 6-day selection notice on a limited basis during the season.

UVA’s other seven games are at Duke (Saturday, Oct. 1), Louisville (Saturday, Oct. 8) Miami (Saturday, Oct. 29), North Carolina (Saturday, Nov. 5), Pittsburgh (Saturday, Nov. 12), Coastal Carolina (Saturday, Nov. 19), and at Virginia Tech (Saturday, Nov 26).