With a UVA Football roster loaded with new faces on both sides of the ball, you have to wonder how many fans in the announced attendance of 46,143 on Saturday night in Scott Stadium were simply curiosity seekers.
Intrigue, or not, Virginia didn’t take long to give the home folks a glimpse of what might be in crushing Coastal Carolina, 48-7, in the season-opener for both squads.
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The Cavaliers sparkled with transfers on both sides of the ball and overpowered the Chanticleers all evening long.
The lone damper to the game: transfer quarterback Chad Morris left the contest midway through the third quarter with what first appeared to be a head injury.
Tony Elliott, however, caught the Virginia media off-guard when he stated that Morris had an AC joint shoulder injury and would be further evaluated on Sunday.
A hush fell over the room.
My first thought: “Why can’t we have nice things?”
Up until the injury, Morris had thrown for 264 yards, with two touchdowns.
Morris was a yard short of adding a rushing score to his night’s resume when the injury occurred.
Morris, the North Texas transfer, broke free on a run and opted out of the safe play, a slide, instead juking his defender, getting to about the one-yard line when he collided with Coastal cornerback Myles Mooyoung.
Down went Morris, with what initially appeared as a helmet-to-helmet collision. Morris stayed down for a few minutes before being helped off the field, where he immediately headed to the medical tent.
Morris left the tent and was escorted to the locker room.
A sigh of relief was felt when Morris, in street clothes, returned to the field and was seen talking with his fellow teammates.
Bullet dodged.
Or so we thought.
A team official, outside the UVA locker room, said that Morris was in “moderate pain.”
It’s hard to find fault in the effort Morris had to try to score the touchdown of simply sliding to see another play, but there’s a reason the coaches teach and preach for a quarterback to know when to say when, and slide.
Hopefully, it’s nothing more than a bruise.
UVA isn’t known to go to great lengths to share injury news, so we may not know the extent of the injury until closer to next Saturday’s game at NC State.
But, back to the game.
Virginia was able to showcase its rebuilt offseason roster.
Cam Ross, a former JMU star receiver, caught seven passes for 124 yards and a touchdown.
For good measure, Ross also had a 100-yard kickoff return score.
J’Mari Taylor held to his prediction earlier in the week, when he said he felt he had at least two rushing touchdowns in him.
Taylor had two rushing scores in his first game since transferring from NC Central.
“We have the guys, and they want to win, and they know what to do,” said Taylor.
I asked Taylor how it felt to run behind Virginia’s rebuilt offensive line, and his one-word response was “incredible.”
All of Virginia’s touchdowns were courtesy of, yep, transfers.
In addition to Taylor’s two scores, Wyoming transfer Harrison Waylee had a score, Ross one, and a wide receiver, Jahmal Edrine, a Purdue transfer, caught a 2-yard TD pass.
The UVA defense was also stellar. Again, the transfer portal delivered.
The Cavaliers limited the Chanticleers to just 254 yards, with 60 of those a result of their only scoring drive.
Virginia forced three turnovers; linebacker James Jackson recovered a first-quarter fumble, and safety Ethan Minter logged a third-quarter interception.
Jackson and Minter are both returning players.
Jackson, who was teammates with Lavel Davis Jr., Devin Chandler and D’Sean Perry in 2022, is using his fifth season to honor his fallen teammates.
Jackson wears No. 1 this season, the same number Davis wore in 2022.
Minter was UVA’s only freshman in 2024 to appear in all 12 games.
Transfers Fisher Camac (UNLV) and Maddox Marcellus (Eastern Kentucky), both of whom assisted on a sack, were credited with a tackle-for-loss as well.
It wouldn’t be my style not to throw at least a little water on the Cavaliers’ big opening game win.
Coastal Carolina isn’t exactly entering the 2026 season as a juggernaut.
Actually, it’s the opposite.
While Tim Beck’s seat as head coach may not be hot, it’s definitely warm.
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The Chanticleers had a dreadful performance at home in the Myrtle Beach Bowl last season, losing to UTSA, 44-15.
And if Virginia fans find it challenging to learn all the new faces, Coastal Carolina has more than 60 new players this season, mainly transfers.
It was an absolutely gorgeous evening for college football Saturday, and Virginia answered the bell.
Now, it’s on to Raleigh and a non-conference contest with NC State, for Round 2 of the 2025 campaign.
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