If you want to get a glimpse of the 2026 UVA Football team for yourself as spring practice wraps up, you’re going to need to head out to Scott Stadium in person on Saturday.
The 3:30 p.m. ET spring game will not be televised, and it wouldn’t surprise me if they have security watching you to make sure you’re not surreptitiously recording the action on your cell phones.
Everybody in college football is doing the cloak-and-dagger thing with their spring games, if they’re even having spring games – and I’ll be honest here, I wouldn’t.
Admission is free.
Details
- Fans are encouraged to arrive early for a pregame fan fest on the east side of the stadium with inflatables, vendors, live music, tailgate games and more. Following the contest, players will be available on the field for a Meet the Team event and autograph session.
- The annual UVA Equipment Sale will take place prior to the start of the game on the east side of the stadium. Fans can enter using the stadium’s East Gate. The sale includes used official UVA Athletics-licensed merchandise, including authentic football jerseys ($75). The sale will be card only; no cash will be accepted. The sale will be open to the public from 2:30-3:30 p.m.
What to watch for
Head coach Tony Elliott and the front office had to retool a bit after the 11-win season in 2025.
Starting QB Chandler Morris lost his petition for a seventh year from the NCAA and the state courts, but Elliott pivoted well, landing a pair of guys with Power 4 starting experience, in the form of Beau Pribula (Missouri) and Eli Holstein (Pitt).
There’s pretty good depth on the lines, at running back, wideout and the defensive secondary – and holes to fill at linebacker and tight end.
Roster analysis: offense
QB
- Beau Pribula (Missouri): completed 67.2 percent of his passes for 1,941 yards, 11 TDs and nine INTs, with 434 sack-adjusted yards on the ground – 244 yards on designed runs, 190 yards on scrambles.
- Eli Holstein (Pitt): over two seasons, completed 61.8 percent of his passes for 3,309 yards, 29 TDs and 13 INTs, with 576 sack-adjusted yards on the ground – 198 yards on designed runs, 378 yards on scrambles.
Needs: Who emerges as the QB3?
Tailback
- Jekail Middlebrook(Middle Tennessee): 750 rushing yards, 5.4 yards/attempt, four TDs, two fumbles.
- Peyton Lewis (Tennessee): 630 yards and 10 TDs in two seasons, averaging 4.7 yards/attempt.
- Solomon Beebe (UAB): 338 rushing yards, six TDs, 31 catches/38 targets, 284 yards.
- Xavier Brown (Virginia): 241 rushing yards, 4.7 yards/attempt, one TD.
- Noah Vaughn (Virginia): 174 rushing yards, 7.6 yards/attempt.
- Xay Davis (Virginia): 41 yards on 12 attempts in the 13-7 win over Missouri in the Gator Bowl.
Needs: This is a lot of depth, which is great, considering the churn at this position.
Wideouts
- Wideout Jacquon Gibson (UMass): 63 catches/95 targets, 616 yards, 9.8 yards/catch.
- Wideout Da’Shawn Martin (Kent State): 33 catches/48 targets, 507 yards, 15.4 yards/catch, four TDs in 2025.
- Wideout Rico Flores Jr. (UCLA): 26 catches/37 targets, 274 yards, 10.5 yards/catch.
- Slot receiver Tyson Davis (Central Michigan): 25 catches/33 targets, 323 yards, 12.9 yards/catch, two TDs.
- Slot receiver Kam Courtney (Virginia): 25 catches/37 targets, 234 yards, 9.4 yards/catch.
Needs: You’d like to see some of the younger guys step up to push these guys for snaps, to increase depth.
Tight ends
- TE Dakota Twitty (Virginia): 11 catches/18 targets, 129 yards, 11.7 yards/catch.
- Tight end Connor Cox (North Carolina): five catches/five targets, 21 yards, 4.2 yards/catch.
- Tight end Lukas Ungar (New Mexico State): three catches/eight targets, 14 yards, 4.7 yards/catch.
Needs: Twitty looks like he could be a good pass-catching tight end. But he’s the only one in this group. Maybe find another in the summer.
O line
- G Noah Josey (Virginia): 983 snaps, 12 pressures/zero sacks allowed.
- T McKale Boley (Virginia): 856 snaps, 11 pressures/two sacks allowed.
- G/C Drake Metcalf (Virginia): 911 snaps, 17 pressures/one sack allowed.
- T Monroe Mills (Louisville, 2024): 566 snaps, seven pressures/one sack.
- T Ben York (Virginia): 262 snaps, 11 pressures/ two sacks allowed.
- G/C Noah Hartsoe (Virginia): 65 snaps in 2025.
- T Jon Adair (Virginia): 51 snaps in 2025.
- G Grant Ellinger (Virginia): 45 snaps in 2025.
- T Ryan Brubaker (South Carolina): 39 snaps in two seasons (2024, 2025).
- T Alex Payne (Southern Cal): four-star recruit; redshirted in 2025.
Needs: This is good depth. Who plays on the inside?
Roster analysis: defense
D line
- DE Fisher Camac (Virginia): 428 snaps, 18 QB pressures, five sacks, 36 run-game tackles.
- DE Ezekiel Larry (Yale): 577 snaps, 46 QB pressures, 10 sacks, 31 run-game tackles.
- DE Matthew Fobbs-White (Baylor): 387 snaps in 2025, with 33 QB pressures, 20 run-game tackles.
- DE Nnanna Anyanwu (UTSA): 278 snaps, 20 QB pressures, five sacks, 11 run-game tackles.
- DE Devon Baxter (Michigan): four-star prep recruit, redshirted in 2024, did not play.
- DT Zion Wilson (East Carolina): 457 snaps, 29 QB pressures, six sacks, 25 run-game tackles.
- DT Jonathan Allen (UAB): 390 snaps, 14 QB pressures, three sacks, 32 run-game tackles.
- DT Jason Hammond (Virginia): 360 snaps, 18 QB pressures, three sacks, 28 run-game tackles.
- DT Anthony Britton (Virginia): 227 snaps, 11 QB pressures, one sacks, 16 run-game tackles.
- DT Darrion Henry-Young (Coastal Carolina): 134 snaps, 11 tackles, three QB pressures.
Needs: Tremendous depth. The strength of this unit.
Linebacker
- Kam Robinson (Virginia): 416 snaps, 64 tackles, two INTs, one PBU, nine QB pressures, two sacks.
- Maddox Marcellus (Virginia): 334 snaps, 11 QB pressures, three sacks, 26 run-game tackles, two pass breakups, INT.
- Landon Danley (Virginia): 299 snaps, 49 tackles, four QB hurries.
- Caleb Hardy (Virginia): 157 snaps, 17 tackles, three QB hurries.
Needs: Not a lot of depth here, to say the least.
Secondary
- CB Donavon Platt (Virginia): 576 snaps, 29 catches/49 targets, one INT, three PBUs.
- CB Jam Jackson (Virginia): missed 2025 with an injury; in 2024, 760 snaps, 45 catches/71 targets, five PBUs.
- CB Patrick Campbell (Dartmouth): 534 snaps, 40 tackles, 20 receptions/34 targets, one INT, three PBUs.
- CB Ja’Maric Morris (Georgia State): missed 2025 with an injury; in 2024, 212 snaps, nine tackles, 9 receptions/16 targets, two INTs, two PBUs.
- CB Jacobie Henderson (Rutgers): 600 snaps, 40 tackles, 28 receptions/50 pass targets, two PBUs.
- CB Jaylen Jones (Georgia State): 562 snaps, 69 tackles, 13 receptions/15 targets, one INT, one PBU.
- CB Justin Ross (Navy): 466 snaps, 30 tackles, 18 receptions/26 targets, one INT, three PBUs.
- CB Omillio Agard (Wisconsin): four-star prep recruit, redshirted in 2024, did not play in 2025.
- S Christian Ellis (Virginia Tech/New Mexico): played in four games at Tech in 2025, with eight tackles, one reception/five targets, three PBUs. At New Mexico: 900 snaps, 92 tackles, 23 catches/33 targets, four PBUs, one INT, four QB hurries, one sack in 2024.
- S Jaylen Jones (Georgia State): 563 snaps, 69 tackles, 13 catches/14 targets, one INT, one PBU.
- S Brandyn Hillman (Michigan): 545 snaps, 56 tackles, 9 receptions/15 targets, one INT, three PBUs.
- S Jalen McNair (Buffalo): 543 snaps, 50 tackles, 14 receptions/27 targets, two INTs, four PBUs.
- S Ethan Minter (Virginia): 523 snaps, 47 tackles, 10 receptions/17 targets, one INTs, two PBUs.
- S Corey Costner (Virginia): 260 snaps, 28 tackles, 9 catches/16 targets, two INTs, one PBU.
Needs: Lots of depth here as well.
Roster analysis: special teams
- Placekicker Will Bettridge (): 24-of-30 FG (8-of-12 40-49, 0-of-1 50+, long: 47), 49-of-49 XPA.
- Punter Daniel Sparks (at Virginia): 47.2 yards per punt, 14-of-37 inside the 20.
- Punter Elijah Slibeck (at Virginia): 42.3 yards per punt, 4-of-12 inside the 20.
Needs: Bettridge could get just a little more consistent on longer kicks.
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Chris Graham
