UVa’s 2024 season came to an end like so many others have in the past couple decades: a disappointing loss to rival Virginia Tech and questions lingering into the offseason about the direction of the program. Virginia’s athletic department didn’t release any sort of statement following the season to let fans know what the future held, but it was clear they would be bringing back Tony Elliott and his staff for a pivotal fourth year in Charlottesville. But questions remained about what the staff would do over the offseason to take the program to the next level and hopefully to turn things around for years to come.
But just after the season ended, UVa received a significant anonymous donation to help bolster resources for the football program.
“A football team is the flagship brand of a public university; it is the part of the school most frequently seen by the largest number of people,” the anonymous donor said in a statement released by UVa. “Sustained winning in football energizes the student body and activates our alumni. It attracts our country’s best and brightest to matriculate at school. I am bullish on the future success of this program and optimistic that this commitment will be a catalyst for increased support.”
This donation was not necessarily part of a larger plan, but it has certainly helped UVa get aggressive in the transfer portal. And it led to more donations from others inspired by the initial giving; another donor pledged to match fan donations up to $3 million, for example. Since the beginning of the NIL era, many at UVa have been hesitant on whether going all in on NIL and acquiring talent fit with the University and the athletic department’s core principles. But with this influx of cash, Virginia has been able to turn around their roster in the last few months.
Despite any hesitations, it seems that most have come around to the idea of going all in on NIL and the portal, and UVa is certainly playing the game now. Just today, Virginia landed a commitment from Army defensive back Donavon Platt, their sixth defensive back commitment in the spring portal window alone, taking their number of inbound transfers up to 30.
It’s more than just the money, though. There are a ton of players in the portal, and figuring out where potential matches could be and then working on getting those players interested in UVa was certainly not an easy task. A lot of credit should go to the staff, and the behind-the-scenes folks like Director of Recruiting Justin Speros, who took advantage of their bolstered resources. It’s one thing to have a war chest, and it’s another thing to use that money to find players that are good enough, fit needs, and fit the culture of the team. Doing that in the mad dash that is the transfer portal window, is not easy and should not be taken for granted. In both the winter and spring window, UVa was able to identify key targets, get them on Grounds, and in many cases, close commitments quickly and in their favor. So if this works, the staff deserves the credit for executing a plan and finding players that made a difference.
Now the question is, what exactly have they built? On paper, UVa looks a lot deeper across the roster, and they should have more difference makers than they did a year ago, or before that. The staff clearly had a few key needs that they had to address in both portal windows. Most obviously, they had to find a quarterback, and they ended up signing two. Both Chandler Morris and Danny Kaelin looked pretty good in April’s spring game, and now will battle it out to see who leads the team on the field for the season opener against Coastal Carolina. It’s not exactly a profound thought, but obviously what happens at that position will be a big part of what happens for this program in the fall.
Beyond QB, the staff attempted to turn weaknesses into strength. Over the last two seasons, the line play, on both sides of the ball, has left a lot to be desired. The Hoos have given up a lot of sacks, and have had trouble running the football against quality competition. Enter a slew of new blockers, who should remake Virginia’s line play. The Hoos did lose a key addition for the season when tackle Monroe Mills suffered a knee injury in spring practice, but simply went out and added three more linemen in the spring portal window. That group has a lot of competitive depth and should be able to withstand injuries that have derailed Terry Heffernan’s group in the past. UVa’s pass rush has been woeful over the past two years, finishing near the bottom nationally in sacks. So, naturally, UVa went out and got a bunch of productive pass rushers who will form a new-look edge group. It’s unclear exactly how Virginia’s rotation will work out and who will start, but the staff should be able to find a way to get after the quarterback with what they’ve assembled there.
Virginia added talent across the rest of the roster, too. The Hoos added three wide receivers, all of whom will have a chance to be key contributors right away, along with a decent group of young playmakers that return. Virginia has added multiple running backs, and NC Central transfer J’Mari Taylor was one of the stars of the spring game. Virginia added some impact defenders too, including Eastern Kentucky linebacker Maddox Marcellus, who looks like a playmaker, and a bunch of promising defensive backs, rebuilding the cornerback group completely, and adding a few talented safeties like Louisville’s Devin Neal, too.
And now, the staff has a new-look roster that should be their most-talented and deepest team, by far, since arriving in Charlottesville. But of course, with that come higher expectations. The fanbase is already growing impatient with three consecutive losing seasons to open the Elliott era, so there would have been considerable pressure for the staff going into this season regardless. While it’s a big boost for Elliott’s group that they’ve been able to rebuild the roster, and it gives them a real chance to turn things around when a path forward didn’t seem so clear last November, there are no more excuse cards left to play.
At this point, the entire roster is Elliott’s, give or take. There are only a handful of players left that played for Bronco Mendenhall, and they aren’t exactly dead weight; that group includes long-time starters Antonio Clary and Noah Josey. All of these transfer additions were hand-picked, and most of them had significant interest outside of Virginia. Elliott opted to keep his staff together, too, so continuity of scheme shouldn’t be a problem, though there are a lot of new players that have to master those schemes. The schedule doesn’t exactly look impossible right now, either. UVa will have seven home games for the first time since 2019, they get a bye before the Virginia Tech game, and road trips to NC State, Louisville, Cal, UNC and Duke could result in a win or two on top of what they get at home.
The hope for UVa is that this influx of cash and the ability to turn that into new players will turn into wins in the fall, and hopefully build some momentum, even though many of these players will only be around for one year. But you have to start a turnaround somewhere and so far, the on-field gains have come very slowly. If UVa uses this offseason to spark big improvement in 2025 and more success because of that in years to come, it started with an aggressive portal window and really, a willingness to commit to success from some big-money donors.
This fall, UVa fans should see an improved team, and they’ll be expecting to see more wins. The new-look Wahoos face a major fork in the road in 2025, and they’ll either turn their influx of talent into wins, or the program will be forced to once again hit the reset button.
