Column: Another last-second win gives UVa even more mojo
“If they do get the ball over that line,” my 7-year old said to me with hope in her voice, “will you pick me up over your head again?”
Keytaon Thompson was so close to scoring, but it was obvious to me that he was just short. Virginia was driving late, needing a score and an extra point to push ahead of Louisville. The clock would start immediately on the whistle thereafter, as roughly 30 precious seconds would begin counting down.
But all my daughter knew was that we were both standing in front our TV living for every single one of them. And we weren’t going to sit down any time soon.
She got her celebration after the next play, a 1-yard TD pass to a wide open Grant Misch. She got one more trip up, up, and away after James Turner’s field-goal attempt came off his foot veering well outside the left upright.
And with that, a miraculous comeback that again shooed away certain doom, UVa had not only stunned the Cardinal fans in attendance for the 34-33 decision but the Wahoos had given their own fans even more hope, even more reason to celebrate.
Even more reason to believe.
This is a crucial three-game stretch for UVa (4-2, 2-2 ACC) and with the next two games at home, the heaviest of the heavy lifting was done in the Derby City. And as has been the case all season, it came largely thanks to the well-worked left arm of Brennan Armstrong, who is clearly the league’s most-improved player and in the discussion for it’s best player period.
The national leader in passing yards, this is what No. 5 has been doing all season long. This time, a 40-for-60 outing for 487 yards through the air and three scores helped give UVa its first back-to-back win on the road since 2011.
Ah, yes, 2011. When Cavalier fans watched as Chase Minnifield streaked down the field in the third quarter to stop Florida State’s Bert Reed on what was otherwise about to be a TD. Instead, he stopped Reed at the 1-yard line, the Noles got three points instead of seven, and the Hoos ended up winning by one.
Sound familiar?
Darrius Bratton didn’t give up on the play Saturday afternoon, racing down the field to stop Hassan Hall on what was otherwise about to be a TD. Instead of an 80-yard score, it was a 53-yard run. Four plays later, Turner hit a 40 yarder to make it 33-27.
They were the only points the Cards scored in the period and their last on the day.
Chosen by Bronco Mendenhall to break the rock because of the heart he showed in making that play, Bratton was one of several heroes on the day emblematic of a group that simply didn’t quit.
There was Ra’Shaun Henry, stepping up in a major way after Dontayvion Wicks was knocked out of the game on UVa’s seventh play from scrimmage. Henry, who had already caught a 30-yard pass by that point, finished with 12 targets, nine receptions, and 179 yards.
Despite the cast on his wrist and the other bumps and bruises along the way, Thompson was another of those heroes. Targeted 15 times, he caught nine passes as well for 132 yards on the day.
There was Coen King, thrust into a larger role thanks in large part to the unavailability of Joey Blount. King finished with a team-high eight tackles, five solo, to go with his forced fumble.
And then there was Billy Kemp who did a little bit of everything from special teams to receiving, where he was targeted 13 times and also came down with nine catches to go with 64 yards and a score.
The unlikeliest of heroes may well have been Misch, who came into this season with just one catch in his career: A touchdown at Carolina in 2019. Thus far, he’s caught three more to go with the game-winning score in the final minute.
A week ago in this space, the topic of the day was what exactly UVa did for itself by holding on and escaping Miami Gardens with a victory. The truth, of course, is that after the previous two games it was going to take some time for that question to be sorted. That’s how these things work.
“What is for sure, though,” I wrote, “is that for those glorious few minutes Thursday night Virginia fans finally got a chance to see what happens when certain doom rapidly renders instead into instant euphoria.
“Now, did it change the complexion of UVa’s season?” I asked in the next graph. “That’s a question for which only time will provide an answer.”
On some level, the win over the Cardinals answered that as much as it could. The Wahoos are now firmly in a Coastal Division conversation that not long ago they seemed to have exited. If nothing else, it put Virginia in a position to answer that larger question more fully.
After all, when you become just the second team in the league’s last 15 years to trail by 17 or more in the fourth quarter and come back and win, you clearly have something to build on.
You have heart, at the very least. You have resolve. And teams can do a lot when they’ve got those. Plus, ya know, this one also has one of the best signal callers in the entire country.
From here we start to find out if all of this is the making of something special or if the latest pivot point for UVa’s season will just be a moment to remember.
“Are all Wahoo games like that?!” my kid said to me a bit after the end Saturday night.
“Only the best ones,” I replied.
Now we wait and see what other bits of magic lie ahead.
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