Jahmeer Carter and the Virginia defense must be ready with rushing defense. ~ Photo by Kris Wright/TheSabre.com
After consecutive wins, the Virginia football team is off to the program’s best start of the Tony Elliott era at 2-0. The Hoos will try to keep the momentum going when they return to Scott Stadium on Saturday to face Maryland in an 8 p.m. showdown.
UVA won its first home game two weeks ago when it took down Richmond 34-13, but that opener featured a long weather delay and a drastically reduced fan atmosphere when play resumed. This game with an old ACC rival in primetime figures to be a more lively scene, at least from the student section. The athletics department has pushed out social media content throughout the week to engage fans and remind everyone that is a ‘true blue’ game with blue clothing encouraged.
So what’s on tap for Virginia and Maryland? Let’s take a quick-hitting look through lists of three.
3 Players To Watch
Virginia Receiver Trell Harris (6’0”, 198), No. 11: Two games into his Virginia career, Harris has 9 receptions for 129 yards and 2 touchdowns. That includes a TD catch in each game, a 35-yard first quarter play against Richmond and 24-yard fourth quarter score against Wake Forest. He also had a deep throw fall incomplete that should have been a touchdown against the Demon Deacons. With fellow receiver Malachi Fields (6’4”, 220) also putting in work, it stresses defenses so keep an eye on that part of the attack again this week.
Maryland Receiver Tai Felton (6’2”, 186), No. 10: The Terps counter with a big receiving threat of their own. Felton currently leads the Football Bowl Subdivision with 330 receiving yards and he ranks second with 18 total catches. With 3 TDs, he’s tied for the Big Ten receiving lead in that category. Maryland notes that he is the first Big Ten player this century with at least 330 receiving yards and 3 touchdowns in his team’s first two games. A year ago, Felton made 2 receptions for 41 yards against the Hoos, but he figures to be a big part of the challenge this time around.
Maryland Defensive Back Glendon Miller (6’2”, 206), No. 1: With Virginia showing much of its production through the air the first two weeks, Miller and the Maryland secondary will have a key role in the flow in Week 3. He’s one of just two FBS players with 3 interceptions through the first 2 games of the season and he’s on a four-game pick streak dating back to last season. Miller also makes tackles with 74 in his career, including 5 tackles in last year’s meeting with UVA.
3 Trends To Know
Virginia quarterback Anthony Colandrea has multiple touchdown passes in four straight starts: Dating back to last season, Colandrea (6’0”, 183) has thrown 10 touchdown passes in his last four starts. This season, he had 2 against Richmond and 3 against Wake Forest. Last season, he closed with 3 against Duke and 2 against Virginia Tech. He also has at least 240 passing yards in five straight starts. Beginning with Louisville last November, he’s rattled off 314, 278, 243, 297, and 357 passing yards as QB1. If you take these five games together, that’s 1,489 passing yards with 11 TDs. He’s on pace right now for 3,924 passing yards, 30 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions this season.
Maryland has forced multiple turnovers in four of its last six games: The Terrapins bothered both Connecticut (a 50-7 win) and Michigan State (a 27-24 loss) defensively with 3+ turnovers forced in each game. UConn had 2 interceptions and a lost fumble, while MSU had 3 INTs. Dating back to last season, the defense actually has forced 3+ turnovers in four of its last six games. Nebraska committed 5 turnovers (4 interceptions, 1 fumble lost) last November. Michigan and Rutgers only had 1 interception each in the next two games, but Auburn coughed up 4 turnovers (2 interceptions, 2 fumbles lost) in the Music City Bowl (a 31-13 Terp win).
UVA center Brian Stevens has started 25 straight games: Dating back to his time at Dayton, Stevens (6’2”, 300) has a string of 25 straight starts among 33 total starts in his career. That includes all 14 games at Virginia thus far. The Cavaliers moved Stevens to center prior to the Maryland game last season and he’s stuck in that spot since. He’ll be a key factor in dealing with a big defensive line and frequent 3-4 looks this week.
3 Virginia Predictions
The Hoos break off a big kickoff return: Maryland has consistently ranked lower in the national standings for long kickoffs allowed since 2021. The Terrapins have allowed 12 returns of 40+ yards in that timeframe, including once this season already.
Virginia doubles its season total for 20+ yard runs: The Cavaliers enter the game with 2 runs of more than 20 yards this season, both from the opener against Richmond. Maryland has allowed 2 runs of 20+ yards this season. I think the Hoos get 2 rushes in that category this week.
UVA safety Antonio Clary makes at least 6 tackles again: Clary (6’0”, 203) piled up 11 tackles at Wake Forest, the second highest total of his Virginia career behind only a 13-tackle outing against Pittsburgh in the final game of the 2022 season. Obviously there’s a gap year in here due to Clary’s injury last season, but he has 6+ tackles in 5 straight games and in 8 of his last 10 games.
3 Keys To The Game
Handle the variety of runs: Maryland mixes up its running attack with the running back, quarterback, and sometimes receivers. In two games, four players are already at 60+ rushing yards on the season. That includes running backs Roman Hemby, Nolan Ray, and Colby McDonald plus quarterback Billy Edwards Jr. Felton has a couple of carries for 23 yards too. Virginia will need to be able to read its keys, make its fits, and finish with tackles this week. The Terps did have 4 rushing TDs in last year’s matchup.
Get at least 1 explosive touchdown: The Hoos have scored 4 touchdowns from 24+ yards this season. Maryland gave up 34- and 77-yard touchdown passes last week against Michigan State. UConn’s only touchdown came on a 27-yard TD catch. With the weapons Virginia has on offense, it should be able to get a long scoring touchdown on the board this week.
Limit turnovers: Yes, this can be every week. Given that last year’s matchup between these two teams swung dramatically on late turnovers from Virginia, however, this has to be on the list. Maryland made 17 interceptions last season to tie for third among power conference teams and scored 76 points off of takeaways in 2023 too to be third in the Big Ten. As noted above, the Terps have forced 3+ turnovers in both games so far this season. UVA overcame turnovers last week, but that’s not a habit that’s easy to sustain.
3 Virginia Picks
Offensive Player Of The Game: Receiver Malachi Fields (6’4”, 220) has roared out of the gates so it seems like he should be in this spot with another 100+ yard day on the sheet in the end.
Defensive Player Of The Game: Bandit edge rusher Chico Bennett Jr. (6’4”, 256) breaks through with a big game of 4+ tackles including at least 2 sacks.
Winner: Virginia 34, Maryland 28 (Season to date: 2-0)
I only hope the HOOS can win. They won’t come from behind 14 down in the 4th against the Terps. Nu 10 needs to play smart no forcing the ball therefore no turnovers.