It’s not uncommon to hear football coaches talk about one-on-one battles on the field. A defensive end has to beat an offensive tackle, for example. Anecdotes don’t always include a running back beating the first player to make contact. Virginia coach Tony Elliott wants exactly that out of his backs, though.

The new head of the program made that point after the Virginia Blue-White Spring Game, his first look at the Cavaliers in front of a live audience. The running backs combined for 34 carries, 207 yards, and a strong 6.1 yards per carry but hey didn’t get much early in the game or against the top line defense.

A big chunk of the production came from Perris Jones springing free on outside run for 75 yards and he ended up with 129 yards on 9 carries, all in the second half against increasing amounts of subs. Amaad Foston and Mike Hollins tallied 25 carries for 64 yards, an average of 2.56 yards per carry with a lot coming in the first half. Foston had 16 carries for 45 yards and a touchdown.

There were contributing circumstances to the production. The offensive line played the day with fewer than 10 available players and rotated guys on and off of both teams. The first half also included a healthy diet of inside zone read plays without a real threat of the quarterback keeping the football due to the no-contact rules place for that position.

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