Know Your Notre Dame Football Enemy: Virginia preview

Head coach Bronco Mendenhall will lead an improved Virginia squad against Notre Dame football this Fall.

Virginia wasn’t supposed to be very good last season. The expectations were low, and the Cavaliers exceeded them. That was, at least, in part due to a weak ACC. Florida State, Miami, and Virginia Tech were all average at best. That said, 8-5 with a bowl win is nothing to discredit. Notre Dame football needs to be ready.

Even though Virginia exceeded expectations, there is a lot of room for them to grow. They could have and should beat arch-rival Virginia Tech. They also missed a chance to play in the ACC Championship Game because they lost gas in November and lost their last three ACC games.

From last year’s team — which had its talent developed, not recruited — the Cavaliers aren’t losing much. At running back, All-ACC honorable mention Jordan Ellis is gone. So is Belk Bowl MVP, Olamide Zaccheaus. That leaves a big gap at running back to fill in. Two starting linemen and the primary tight end are also gone for the Cavaliers.

Luckily for Virginia, they bring back their starting quarterback. Bryce Perkins came into his own as the starter last year and kept the offense moving. It helps with the turnover at running back that Perkins is a dual-threat.

The Cavaliers also return all their major receiving threats, so it’s just a matter of finding a replacement at running back for Ellis and Zaccheaus. PK Kier, who struggled in 2018, will be the probably starter based on experience. It wouldn’t take a ton for another back to surpass Kier on the depth-chart, though.

The defense doesn’t lose a ton of talent, either. Former captain and outside linebacker, Chris Peace is their biggest loss. That will only be compounded by the loss of middle linebacker Malcolm Cook. The Virginia defense also loses a couple of key pieces in the secondary — Tim Harris, and Juan Thornhill — 1st team All-ACC selection as a strong safety.

So there’s a few gaps to fill on defense, but that’s what head coach Bronco Mendenhall hangs his hat on: developing talent — especially on defense. Virginia should be at least average in the pass rush like they were last season. They’ll look to get better with the entire core of the defensive line returning.

This game could get tricky if Notre Dame is unable to contain the quarterback running game that Perkins brings to the table. If Drue Tranquill’s replacement isn’t up to the task of covering the RPO, and read option plays, it could be a long day of chasing Perkins around. Also, if Mendenhall’s defense does even an alright job replacing talent in the secondary, they could do an excellent job frustrating Ian Book.

That being said, the game is being played in South Bend and Notre Dame has tons more talent than Virginia. The size and speed difference should keep the Irish as the favorites in this one.

Prediction: Notre Dame 34, Virginia 20

The Irish are too talented for a Virginia team that develops talent well and has recently been exceeding expectations.