Home Notebook: Inside the UVA win over William and Mary
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Notebook: Inside the UVA win over William and Mary

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uva-logo-new2Running game woes continue: As was the case last week, the UVA running game had deceptively decent numbers in the win over William and Mary.

For the game, the Cavs gained 110 yards on 29 carries, for a modest 3.8 yards per carry.

It gets more modest when you account for two big second quarter runs, on back-to-back plays, a 36-yard scamper by Taquan Mizzell, followed up by a 39-yard TD run by Jordan Ellis.

Take those out, and the run game gained 35 yards on 27 carries, 1.3 yards per.

Yikes, indeed.

 

Run defense woes continue: William and Mary gained 145 yards on 39 carries, 3.7 yards per rush. Quarterback Steve Cluley was sacked three times for 23 yards in losses. Those sacks count against the run game in college, but take those off the total, as should be the case, and you get 36 runs for 168 yards for W&M, 4.7 yards per.

The game is won and lost on the lines.

 

Four! William and Mary ran 27 offensive plays in the fourth quarter and put up 93 yards in total offense. Virginia ran nine offensive plays and had a grand total of three yards in total offense.

W&M had seven first downs; UVA had zero.

The Tribe was 4-of-9 on third downs and 1-of-3 on fourth downs.

UVA was 0-for-3 on third downs and didn’t attempt a fourth-down conversion.

William and Mary, just to remind you, is the FCS team with 63 scholarship student-athletes. UVA, as an FBS school, has 85 student-athletes on scholarship, and thus ostensibly more roster depth.

 

T.J. Thorpe sighting: Graduate transfer wide receiver T.J. Thorpe participated in pregame drills and then got into the game for at least two offensive plays, the back-to-back big running plays on a quick second quarter scoring drive.

Thorpe had been expected to miss the first half of the season after breaking his right clavicle in practice last month.

– Compiled by Chris Graham

 

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