Editor’s Note: This is the fourth installment in an our annual series of position breakdowns as we look at the depth, players in the mix to start, and potential breakout candidates heading into UVa’s 2024 season. You can read the previous breakdowns by clicking the links below:
2023 Performance
It’s safe to say that UVa’s pass defense was up and down through the 2023 season and in 2024 the cornerback group will look very different.
Virginia had several veterans at the position last year, including a pair of transfers in Tayvonn Kyle and Sam Westfall, who are no longer with the program. Gone too is Coen King, who moved to corner from safety and finished the season with 60 tackles, second among defensive backs. Gone as well is Dave Herard, who transferred out after a career year, recording 40 tackles, including 25 solo.
UVa’s cornerbacks were among the highlights of the 2022 season but a new-look group wasn’t able to replicate that lockdown pass defense in 2023. Now, the coaching staff will reset the position again with four key contributors gone and several new cornerbacks added to the roster as replacements.
The Projected Starters
Malcolm Greene
Transferring from Clemson, Greene ended up being a key contributor on last year’s defense. He played in 10 games, missing two with injury, and saw most of his action at corner. Greene finished the season with 15 tackles, 4 TFLs, and no pass defense statistics were registered. He is a versatile DB that can play either safety or corner and should be leaned on more heavily this season, meaning he should be penciled in as a starter for now.
Dre Walker
One of Virginia’s breakout freshmen in 2023, Walker looks like a very nice find for the coaching staff with the rising sophomore being an under-the-radar signee not that long ago. He played in nine games as a freshman, unfortunately getting banged up in the middle of the season, breaking up his momentum a bit. Walker recorded one interception, in the loss at Boston College, and finished with 11 tackles and five pass break-ups. It’s not a stretch to think Walker could be the No. 1 cornerback on the depth chart when camp breaks in August, though we’ll have to see how the transfer additions fit into UVa’s depth as well.
Kempton Shine
This is a low-confidence projection, but we’re putting the Eastern Michigan transfer in our final starting spot heading into camp. Shine started 40 games with the Eagles and has 176 career tackles and has forced five turnovers in his career. UVa could benefit from a defensive back with that much game experience at the FBS level, and after a solid 2023 season in Ypsilanti Shine seems like a logical candidate to play starters minutes for the Hoos this fall.
The Depth Options
Elijah Gaines: Gaines is one of UVa’s elder statesmen at this point, but hasn’t really had his breakout moment yet. He played in 10 games last year, recording three tackles, and didn’t see a lot of time on defense. Gaines should be able to compete for snaps and at a minimum could contribute on special teams.
Kendren Smith: Another experienced transfer addition, Smith joins the Hoos after a solid career at Penn. Playing at the FCS level, he was a team captain for the Quakers and recorded 58 tackles with eight PBUs last season, being named second-team All-Ivy League. Smith could also end up moving around in UVa’s defense and could cross-train at safety. And if he can become an impact player in the nickel, it will only help him see the field more quickly and often.
Jam Jackson: Yet another DB transfer, Jackson transferred to Virginia after a couple of years at Robert Morris, another FCS program. He had a breakout redshirt freshman season last year, recording 40 tackles with five PBU’s and was named conference defensive freshman of the year. Jackson may have a bit of a learning curve moving up from the Big South to the ACC, but he has several years of eligibility and a solid frame at 6-foot-2, 175 pounds.
Micah Gaffney: Now a senior, Gaffney has played here and there throughout his Cavalier career but did make a couple of impact plays in 2023. He played in 11 games last year, and finished with seven tackles and a pair of TFL’s, while also recording his first career interception, picking off Brennan Armstrong in the loss to NC State.
The Breakout Candidate
Dre Walker: Walker was a nice het for the coaching staff and keeping him out of the portal after a promising freshman year was big, too. Now, we’ll see if the North Carolina native can take his game to the next level.
Walker has the physical tools and played like a much older player than he was a year ago. The cornerback position is certainly in transition, with a lot of new faces and not a lot of returning experience or production, so opportunities should be relatively limitless for Walker, a rising sophomore.
The Big Question
Which transfers will earn playing time?
The reps at corner should be quite competitive through fall camp. Almost nothing should be settled at this point; even the three players we listed as potential starters have plenty to prove and haven’t done enough at Virginia to be handed anything yet. And there are plenty of new faces able to come in and prove they should be on the field.
In particular, how Smith, Jackson, and Shine fit in will be interesting to watch as fall camp plays out. Each player is different from the next but the one thing all three have in common is a lack of power-conference experience.
The good news is that all three enrolled early, so the coaching staff has already seen them play through fall practice, which should help them create a pecking order going into camp.
