The Atlantic Coast Conference released the 2014 football schedules for its member institutions today. Virginia’s slate features 12 regular-season games, including seven home contests. Starting times for all contests and the home game designated for Homecomings will be announced at a later date. The Cavaliers will play six of their first eight games at home at Scott Stadium.
Virginia’s annual matchup with in-state rival Virginia Tech will be played on Friday, Nov. 28 in Blacksburg. It marks the first time since the 1996 season the teams have played on the Friday following Thanksgiving. That game was also played in Blacksburg. Both UVa and Virginia Tech will play on the previous Saturday (Nov. 22) before this season’s Friday matchup.
“The coaching staff and student-athletes are focused on the process of preparing each and every day to be in a position to execute our assignments on game day,” said Virginia coach Mike London. “This schedule will require that we maximize our opportunities to get better as a football program and we’re eager for the opportunity to get back on the practice field to get ready for the 2014 season.”
Virginia will play home games against UCLA (Aug. 30), Richmond (Sept. 6), Louisville (Sept. 13), Kent State (Sept. 27), Pitt (Oct. 4), North Carolina (Oct. 25) and Miami (Nov. 22).
Virginia will travel for games at BYU (Sept. 20), Duke (Oct. 18), Georgia Tech (Nov. 1), Florida State (Nov. 8) and Virginia Tech (Nov. 28).
The Cavaliers will have bye weeks on Oct. 11 and Nov. 15. UVa does not face ACC opponents Boston College, NC State, Wake Forest, Syracuse or Clemson in 2014. The 2013 season will be Louisville’s first as an ACC member.
The Cavaliers will face a total of 10 teams that appeared in postseason bowl games in 2013, including BCS National Champion Florida State. Four other opponents won bowl games, including UCLA (Hyundai Sun Bowl), Louisville (Russell Athletic Bowl), Pitt (Little Caesars Bowl) and North Carolina (Belk Bowl). The other opponents that appeared in bowl games last season are Miami, BYU, Duke, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech.
Virginia’s game against Louisville will mark the first meeting between the teams as ACC opponents and the first game in the series since 1989. UVa and the Cardinals split a pair of games in 1988 and 1989. UCLA and Kent State are first-time opponents for the Cavaliers.
Season tickets for the 2014 season will be on sale for renewals and new buyers starting Feb. 28 at four price levels based on seating locations at Scott Stadium: $316, $278, $221, and $181. UVa faculty and staff may purchase up to four season tickets at a 20 percent discount.
Season ticket holders receive discounted pricing compared to the single-game ticket price, preferred seating location options within each price level, the ability to purchase reserved parking for the season, and the opportunity to participate in a payment plan that spreads out payments for up to five months.
Both fans renewing their season tickets and new buyers are encouraged to make their purchase by the April 11 priority seating deadline.
2013 Football Virginia Schedule
Aug. 30 UCLA
Sept. 6 RICHMOND
Sept. 13 LOUISVILLE
Sept. 20 at BYU
Sept. 27 KENT STATE
Oct. 4 PITT
Oct. 18 at Duke
Oct. 25 NORTH CAROLINA
Nov. 1 at Georgia Tech
Nov. 8 at Florida State
Nov. 22 MIAMI
Nov. 28 at Virginia Tech
Opponent/Series Notes
UCLA (Aug. 30 at Scott Stadium)
The 2014 season opener will be the first meeting between the two teams and just the fifth meeting between UVa and a Pac-12 opponent. UCLA finished the 2013 season ranked No. 16 in both the Associated Press and USA Today college football polls. The Bruins finished 10-3, including a victory over Virginia Tech in the Sun Bowl. The Cavaliers and Bruins are scheduled to meet again in 2015 at the Rose Bowl. UCLA ranked No. 8 nationally in passing completion percentage (.676) and returns quarterback Brett Hundley, who was No. 3 in the Pac-12 in passing efficiency (152.9). Hundley will enter his junior season with 7,914 yards of career total offense, including 6,811 passing yards.
Richmond (Sept. 6 at Scott Stadium)
The matchup with the Spiders will be the 32nd meeting in a series that dates back to 1893. Virginia leads the series 27-2-2 and has won the last nine games between the schools, a streak that started in 1947. The teams last met in 2012 when Virginia won 42-19 at Scott Stadium. This year’s matchup will be the third time Mike London has faced his alma mater and the program he guided to the 2008 FCS National Championship, since becoming the head coach of UVa.
Louisville (Sept. 13 at Scott Stadium)
Virginia and Louisville will meet as ACC foes for the first time in 2014. The all-time series between UVa and Louisville is knotted 1-1. UVa came out on top, 16-15, in the last meeting between these two teams in 1989 at Scott Stadium. UVa lost its lone contest at Louisville in 1988, 30-28. Louisville finished the 2013 season ranked No. 15 in both the Associated Press and USA Today college football polls. The Cardinals finished 12-1, including a victory over Miami in the Russell Athletic Bowl. Louisville was No. 1 in the nation in rushing defense (80.7 yards per game), No. 2 in the nation in scoring defense (12.2 points per game) and No. 3 in team passing efficiency (171.93).
BYU (Sept. 20 at Provo, Utah)
Virginia and BYU play for the second consecutive season after UVa came out on top in Charlottesville during the 2013 season, 19-16. UVa and BYU are meeting for the fifth time in a series which UVa leads 3-1. Virginia defeated BYU 22-16 during the 1987 All-American Bowl in Birmingham, Ala. The Cavaliers beat the Cougars 45-40 in Provo, Utah, in 1999 and the following season, BYU downed UVa 38-35 in overtime in Charlottesville. The teams are scheduled to meet again in Charlottesville in 2019 with a return trip to Provo slated for 2020. BYU went 8-5 in 2013, including an appearance in the Fight Hunger Bowl against Washington. BYU returns quarterback Taysom Hill, who was No. 10 in the nation in total offense (329.4).
Kent State (Sept. 27 at Scott Stadium)
This will be the first meeting in the series. Last season, Kent State went 4-8 and finished in fifth place of the MAC’s East Division. The Golden Flashes were in the midst of a five-game losing streak and registered wins over Miami of Ohio and Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl-bound Ohio to close the season. Of the active MAC schools, Kent State is one of four that Virginia has never played (Bowling Green, Northern Illinois, Toledo). UVa is 10-2-1 all-time against teams that currently represent the MAC and all but one of those games have been played at Scott Stadium.
Pittsburgh (Oct. 4 at Scott Stadium)
Pittsburgh will make its third trip to Scott Stadium and first as a member of the ACC. This will be the seventh all-time meeting in the series that the Panthers lead 4-2, including a 14-3 win over UVa at Heinz Field in 2013. The teams have met once in the postseason, when the Cavaliers handed the Panthers a 23-16 loss at the 2003 Continental Tire Bowl. Pitt is coming off a 7-6 season that saw the Panthers top MAC champion Bowling Green in the Little Caesars Bowl.
Duke (Oct. 18 at Durham, N.C.)
Duke and Virginia will be meeting for the 52nd consecutive season. The Cavaliers own the series lead 33-32. Last season the Blue Devils won the ACC Coastal Division and faced eventual BCS National Champion Florida State in the ACC Championship game. Duke finished the 2013 season ranked No. 23 in the Associated Press college football poll and No. 22 in the USA Today college football poll. The Blue Devils notched a 10-4 record and made an appearance against Texas A&M in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. Duke finished the season No. 5 in the nation with 3.86 tackles for loss allowed per game. Blue Devil head coach David Cutcliffe was the 2013 Walter Camp, Maxwell Football Club and The Sporting News National Coach of the Year. Cutcliffe has also won back-to-back ACC Coach of the Year accolades.
North Carolina (Oct. 25 at Scott Stadium)
The South’s oldest college football rivalry will continue this year when UVa hosts the Tar Heels for the 119th game in the series. The series, which UNC leads 60-54-4, is tied for the third longest in FBS history along with the Texas/Texas A&M and Miami (Ohio)/Cincinnati series. The Tar Heels finished 7-6 in 2013, including a win over Cincinnati in the Belk Bowl. UNC averaged 425.7 yards of total offense, which ranked No. 49 nationally.
Georgia Tech (Nov. 1 at Atlanta, Ga.)
Georgia Tech finished the 2013 season with a 7-6 record, including an appearance against Ole Miss in the Music City Bowl. Georgia Tech finished sixth nationally and first in the ACC in rushing yardage in 2013, averaging 299.3 yards per game. The series between the two schools leans slightly in the Yellow Jackets’ favor, 18-17-1. The teams have met each season since 1982.
Florida State (Nov. 8 at Tallahassee, Fla.)
Florida State, the 2013 BCS National Champion, host UVa in a battle for the Jefferson-Eppes Trophy. These two teams meet for first time since the Cavaliers gained possession of the trophy in 2011 following UVa’s first-ever win over FSU in Tallahassee. FSU owns the all-time series advantage over UVa, 14-3. Florida State is coming off a 14-0 campaign, its second ACC championship in a row and a win over Auburn in the BCS National Championship game. This marks the third time UVa has faced a BCS titleholder on its schedule the season after that team won the championship. UVa had FSU on its schedule in 2000 after the Seminoles’ first BCS title win. The Cavaliers also played Auburn in the 2011 Chick-fil-A Bowl a season after the Tigers’ title win. FSU boasted the nation’s sixth-ranked offense (519.1) behind the potent play of 2013 Heisman Trophy winner Jameis Winston. FSU boasted the No. 1 ranked scoring defense (12.1), the No. 2 scoring offense (51.6) and the No. 1 passing efficiency team (174.69). Winston returns to FSU for his sophomore season after finishing No. 1 in the nation in passing efficiency (184.4), No. 2 in the nation in passing touchdowns (40), No. 3 in passing yards per completion (15.79), No. 9 in the nation in passing yards (4,057) and No. 13 in passing yards per game (289.8).
Miami (Nov. 22 at Scott Stadium)
Virginia’s three-game win streak over the Hurricanes was snapped at Sun Life Stadium in 2013, giving Miami a narrow 6-5 lead in the all-time series. Miami finished the 2013 campaign 9-4 and faced Louisville in the Russell Athletic Bowl. The Hurricanes’ sophomore running back Duke Johnson was No. 63 in the nation with 920 rushing yards despite missing the final four games of the season with an injury. This will be the 12th meeting between the teams.
Virginia Tech (Nov. 28 at Blacksburg, Va.)
The 2014 matchup will be the 96th in series history. The Hokies finished 8-5 in 2013, including a 42-12 loss to UCLA in the Sun Bowl. Virginia Tech was fourth nationally in total defense in 2013, allowing 283.2 yards per game. The Hokies also were No. 5 in the nation in passing efficiency defense (100.48) and No. 7 in team sacks per game (3.00).
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