To say that UVA quarterback Anthony Colandrea struggled Saturday against SMU would be pointless.
That’s been the rap on the sophomore quarterback for the last month or so.
While the Mustangs did clinch a spot in the ACC Championship Game, their defense wasn’t what got them there.
SMU has been allowing over 22 points a game this season, yet they sacked Colandrea nine times and pressured him from the moment he stepped on the field.
Virginia fans who bothered to show up at Scott Stadium Saturday began asking for a quarterback switch around the start of the second quarter.
To be fair, it was hard to detect that request; there was only so much noise that 20,000 people could muster.
Tony Elliott stuck with Colandrea, electing to keep fifth-year senior Tony Muskett as a spectator.
Would it have mattered?
No.
Muskett may have sparked a couple of scoring drives, but the outcome was not going to change.
So, instead of a 33-7 final, maybe it’s 33-21.
What difference would it make?
Elliott was wrong if he thought Colandrea would give the Cavaliers the best chance of winning.
If Elliott thought yanking Colandrea in favor of Muskett would risk losing Colandrea to the transfer portal, he’s again wrong.
Here’s what’s facing Elliott, or whoever the UVA Football coach may be after the season.
A roster overhaul of as many as 50 or more players starts with at least one or two quarterbacks, likely graduate students with one year of eligibility remaining.
The recruiting pitch to these potential targets will be instant playing time.
The transfer at the QB position isn’t coming to Charlottesville to be an understudy and hold a clipboard; they’re coming to start.
Why would they?
A transfer player at the quarterback position, if he is a grad student transfer, is not high on the NFL scouts list.
Back to Colandrea.
He’s no longer a young, promising quarterback; he’s now thisclose to being halfway through his college career.
While I will be gentle here and not say he has regressed since his first college game against JMU in 2023, you do not see a significant progression, either.
If you think the answer is currently on the Virginia roster, stop, it’s not.
If you think the answer may be in the bumper crop of high school recruits, Elliott has landed for next season, again, stop.
For one, the high school recruiting class for UVA Football next season is ranked almost at the bottom of the 17-team ACC.
Second, I’m not sure if a true freshman quarterback would be an upgrade over the current situation.
So, Elliott and the staff have painted themselves into a corner.
How can they recruit 50 or more new players to the roster?
How would the folks in the academic office have enough time to process that many transcripts in about six weeks?
Maybe for Elliott, getting a pink slip may not be all that complicated to swallow compared to this upcoming daunting task.
Remember, that pink slip will be accompanied by a hefty check, like a “spoonful of sugar makes the medicine go down.”
Anyway, you slice it, the UVA Football coaching staff has a mess on its hands.
It makes me wonder if winning next week against Virginia Tech and becoming cold-water bowl-bound is worth it.
Sure, beating the Hokies would be great, but Tech is also a mess.
Remember the ‘60s song by The Fortunes, “You’ve got your troubles, I’ve got mine”?
That’s probably how Tech and UVA feel heading into Saturday’s Commonwealth Clash.
For Elliott, the quarterback situation is just the tip of the iceberg.
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