Virginia football coach Tony Elliott hadn’t been on the job long when he started to talk about building a balanced offense. After the dizzying numbers that returning quarterback Brennan Armstrong put up in a pass-heavy approach last season, a lot of the outside reaction resembled something like Lee Corso on College GameDay – ‘not so fast my friend!’

Armstrong set school single-season records in 2021 with 4,449 passing yards, 4,700 total yards, 326 completions, and 31 touchdowns. He also set the career passing record for 300-yard passing games with 9 to surpass Matt Schaub, who he likely will overtake on many of the career charts this season. In one stretch last fall, he threw for 400+ yards in three straight games when no other Cavalier quarterback had ever eclipsed 300+ in three straight games.

Many of his top targets return with Dontayvion Wicks, Keytaon Thompson, and Billy Kemp IV all back in orange and blue. Wicks set the school single-season record with 1,203 receiving yards last fall, while Kemp is chasing his third straight season with 600+ yards and 60+ catches. Thompson led the team in receptions and nearly hit 1,000 yards himself with 990. Plus, Lavel Davis Jr. rejoins the Virginia receiving group after recovering from an ACL injury last year; he led the ACC at 25.75 yards per reception as a freshman.

So while balance – long a staple for Elliott as an offensive coordinator at Clemson – doesn’t necessarily mean an even ratio of runs and passes, but the ability to call on either approach when wanted, a whole lot of Hoo fans landed on the Corso sentiment. You’ve got weapons. Throw the ball.

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