In what can only be called an unparalleled season for UVA Football, the Cavaliers posted their first 11-win season in program history, won the ACC regular-season title outright, finally won a Gator Bowl and will likely be listed among the Top 20 at season’s end.
Disappointed odds-makers and prognosticators will wonder how they got this one so wrong. Missouri lost its first bowl game after three straight wins and ended a streak of 14 consecutive victories in night games going back to August of 2023.
Finally, it wouldn’t have been a 2025 UVA Football game without some drama at the end.
Tigers starting quarterback Matt Zollers’ head hit the turf while throwing the ball away to stop the clock, leading officials to remove him from the game for safety reasons. Walk-on freshman quarterback Brett Brown came into the game on fourth-and-10 at the UVA 21 with four seconds remaining. Brown threw maybe the best ball of the night for Mizzou, dropping it right into the breadbasket of Tiger receiver Daniel Blood. But UVA safety Devin Neal was right there to punch the ball out of Blood’s grasp and end the game.
Let me close the opening with these quotes from Coach Tony Elliott:
“This team is special, right? This team is special because the makeup is different. You got some forefathers, like a Clary, like a Jah, Josie, James Jackson. You have guys like Eli that have been around from the beginning. You have Chandler who just came in this year. Devin Neal came in this year. What they’ve been able to do is phenomenal. You take guys from totally different backgrounds, different universities, different experiences, coming to Virginia, then everybody puts their own personal goals and agendas to the side to commit to the team and the overall mission of the team. It’s really special. We’ve gotten contributions from all those guys, guys that were here from the beginning, guys that we recruited back when probably it wasn’t the most sexy thing to come to Virginia, right, to some of the guys we brought in this past portal cycles this year. It’s been really refreshing for me to realize in a landscape where there’s so many narratives that at the end of the day these are young people that want to win football games.”
Operations Breakdowns
Offense Game Recap & Game Grade: 72.75 (C-)
Coming into the game, the Tigers boasted the nation’s No. 10 defense (274.8 YPG) and ranked 11th nationally and second in the SEC in passing defense, allowing just 171.4 yards per game through the air. The Tigers brought the No. 18 third-down defense in the country, holding opponents to a .331 conversion rate while ranking third in the SEC along with the nation’s No. 16 rushing defense (103.3).
The Cavaliers’ offensive running game graded out at 82.3, gaining 110 yards, converting 46% of rushing third downs and going 5-6 on power rushes (rushes with 2 yds or less to go that convert a 1D or TD).
The wide receivers led the offensive unit with a 77.34 grade pacing the offense in first down run blocking and led with a 94.1 blocking grade on rush yards per attempt, third down conversions and were second in cumulative first down performance. They also led the offense in yards per play.
UVA’s offensive line came in second with a 73.15 mark. The road graders dug in, moving to the top of the hill with the high mark for cumulative first down percentage, yards per attempt passing success and first down passing average.
QB Chandler Morris posted a 71.8, but I feel that grade minimizes his overall play Saturday night. Morris graded out second in intangibles and overall execution.
The same can be said of the running backs. Both Harrison Waylee and Xay Davis averaged 3.41 yards per carry on the ground, converted 38% of their third down rushes and paced the offense with the highest red zone/PPPi20 grade of 75.67.
Defense Game Recap & Game Grade: 88.96 (B+)
Entering Saturday evening’s game, the Tigers averaged 234.1 rushing yards per game and were outgaining their opponents by an average of 154.5 YPG. Maybe they should have looked at the stats before leaving for Jacksonville. Only one team rushed for more than 234 yards against the ‘Hoos, and that was Florida State with 256. NC State broke the 200 mark with 216 yards. Virginia held six teams under 91 yards this season and limited 11 regular-season and ACC Championship Game teams under 145.
After Mizzou took a,n early lead on their opening drive, John Rudinski’s defense came to life. In Drives 1 and 11 the Tigers gained 135 yards. In Drives 2-10, they mustered 125.
Starting near the end of the first quarter, Rudinski appeared to start using a lot of movement up front and seem to disregard the Missouri passing game by drawing the safeties deeper into the box. It was interesting that coach didn’t push an aggressive pass rush too frequently, and despite that, the defense still only allowed a 52% completion percentage, the Tigers third worst passer rating of the season.
As the ‘Hoos began to slow down the Mizzou run game in the second and third quarters, Tiger QB Matt Zollers started telegraphing a lot of his throws, and after UVA’s 10-minute scoring drive, he became hurried and off-target.
The grades clearly show how well Virginia shut down the Missouri running attack. Against first down, the Cavalier defense graded out with 95.5, and on third down conversions they recorded a 94.52. In the red zone/PPPi20 they posted a 94.2. The third down numbers are especially interesting coming from a SEC opponent that entered the game with the No.8 rushing defense, 26th in third down success and 14th in fourth down conversions. Yet in the game the Tigers went 1-for-5 rushing on third down and 0-for-3 on fourth down chances.
Let’s look at the defense overall. Virginia’s defensive backs were the only operation that earned a championship level grade posting a 91.2. The linebackers were close with an 88.8 and the defensive front put up an 86.86.
The secondary was tough on first down runs with a 97.5 but the linebackers topped out against the run overall at 88.75. From the air, the defensive backs were in complete control boasting a 92.4. The defensive backfield also led Rudinski’s defense in cumulative first down efficiency (83.01) and yards per play efficiency (89). Virginia’s linebackers take the honors for third down conversions stops with a 97.8 and recorded the top grade for red zone/PPPi20 at 96.09.
Special Teams Recap & Game Grade: 83.36 (B)
Because of the low-scoring nature of the game, there were only five kickoffs, seven punts and four field goals. I thought this was one of the most uneventful special teams football games I’ve ever seen.
Punt coverage led the operation with a 92.92 grade followed by the kicking crew with an 86.22. The kickoff return and kickoff coverage crew posted respective grades of 82.96 and 82.09. The final grade falls to the punt return unit with a 72.61.
Gator Bowl Grades & Notes
Offense – Grades: 72.75 (C-)
- Quarterback: 71.8 (C-)
- Running backs: 68.75 (D+)
- Wide receivers & tight ends: 77.34 (C)
- Offensive line: 73.2 (C)
Offense – Quick Takes & Notes
Highlights: Going 10-for-10 on third down passing attempts and converting 70% of them is outstanding. That’s elite level stuff. Add to that the offenses third down grade average was 93.25.
Not so bright: Virginia’s offense had what is likely their worst first down passing efficiency grade of the 2025 campaign recording a 57.75 mark.
Notes & Stats
- MU’s vaunted third down defense and No. 16 rushing defense were fodder for the Hoos who tied the 2017 Georgia Bulldogs with 13 third down conversions – a span of 107 contests. Virginia also posted a 56.52 conversions percentage, the most in 22 games against Missouri since Texas A&M last October.
- During the regular season, Mizzou’s rushing offense averaged a 33.7% third down conversion number. Des Kitchens’ boys had a higher third down rushing percentage (5-of-13, 38.5%) than the Tigers seasonal average.
- Virginia’s offense lost three fumbles in the 2025 regular-season campaign; all came against Wake Forest. In the other 13 games, including the ACC title game, the Cavalier offense did not lose a single fumble.
- UVA recorded 122 yards after catch (YAC) receiving compared to the Tigers 19.
- The 51 touchdowns scored by the Cavaliers this season was the fourth highest TD total in program history. Virginia’s 303 first downs were the second highest seasonal FD total.
- Virginia is one of three teams this season the limited the Tigers to a single sack in their respective games.
Defense – Grades: 88.96 (B+)
- Defensive line: 86.86 (B)
- Linebackers: 88.8 (B+)
- Secondary: 91.2 (A-)
Defense – Quick Takes & Notes
Highlights: Devin Neal’s textbook punch out pass breakup of Brett Brown’s game ending pass.
Not so bright: Mizzou’s opening drive. The next 57 minutes were pretty good after that.
Notes & Stats
- The Wahoo defense held Mizzou’s offense 1-for-5 (20%) on third down rushes.
- The seven points Virginia’s defense allowed against the Tigers were their second worst scoring number since a 34-0 shutout by Alabama on 10/26/24, 19 games ago.
- UVA’s defense held the Tigers to a 25% third down conversion percentage. That makes Missou the 11th opponent this season the Cavaliers have held under 37.5% and the eighth they have stalled at 25%. Currently the ‘Hoos are No. 2 nationally with a 27.98 conversion defense mark.
- The Cavaliers defense is one of four teams that held the Tigers to a single rushing TD or less this season. For the year, the Cavalier defense held three opponents to zero rushing TD’s and eight others to a single rushing score in 2025.
- The Wahoos completed the regular season, forcing seven fumbles and 14 interceptions. UVA surpassed its opponents gaining seven more takeaways, tied for the 11th most nationally.
- UVA held the No. 8 rushing offense in the country (234.1) to just 159 yards – a 32% drop from the regular season.
- John Rudinski’s defense held 10 opponents to 21 or fewer points this season. They held 10 opponents (excluding North Carolina State, Florida State and Louisville) to under 21 points in regulation.
- Virginia’s rushing defense held opponents to 1436 yards rushing, the fewest allowed in 16 years (12 games season+).
- UVA’s defense held MU’s passing offense to its second worst single game passer rating (80.35) of the season, third worst completion percentage (52%), third least yards per attempt (4.97) and tied for first for the fewest single touchdown passes (0).
- Not to be outdone, the Cavalier rushing defense restrained the Tiger run game holding their conferences leading run team 75 yards below their SEC per game average. The 159 yards the Missouri crew could gather notched the third worst single game rushing total of the season, MU’s 4.97 yards per carry was a season low fourth worst and the Hoos tied for second in fewest rushing touchdowns allowed with one.
Special Teams – Grades: 83.36 (B)
- Kickoff return: 82.96 (B-)
- Kickoff coverage: 82.09 (B-)
- Place kicking: 86.22 (B)
- Punt return: 72.61 (C-)
- Punt coverage: 92.92 (A-)
Special Teams – Quick Takes & Notes
Highlights: Chandler Morris’ 41-yard punt downed on the Mizzou 2-yard line.
Not so bright: I love Cam Ross as a player but his muffed punt near the end of the first half could have been major turnover for the Cavaliers. Fortunately, the Wahoo defense
Notes & Stats
- Kicker Will Bettridge was 2-for-3 on field goal attempts, connecting from 39 and 42 yards. The 39-yarder with one minute remaining in the third quarter broke UVA’s single-season field goal record (previously held by Rafael Garcia – 23) and career field goal record (previously held by Connor Hughes, 65). Bettridge finished year 24-for-30 on field goals this season and is now 67-for-82 for his career.
- During the regular season, the UVA offense lost three fumbles, all in the Wake Forest contest. The ‘Hoos lost their fourth fumble of the season against Missouri on Ross’s muff of Tiger punter Connor Weselman’s second punt of the game.
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