With good reason, UVa's 30+ transfer additions have received a lot of attention and hype going into the summer, with the hope that they'll dramatically impact the 2025 season. But Virginia's roster does have plenty of returning talent that will be counted on this season, as well, including a few that may have larger roles than many expect ahead of the season.
We're taking a look at five players that we think could have a larger role on the 2025 team, and may surprise in their competition with UVa's transfer additions in fall camp.
Kameron Courtney, WR
Wide receiver is one of the positions that will probably be more reliant on returning talent than they will be on transfers. Make no mistake, transfer additions Jahmal Edrine, Cam Ross and Jayden Thomas will all be in the mix to play a lot, but since receivers can rotate in and out constantly and UVa has some young, promising talent returning at the position, we expect that some players from the 2024 team will still have a big role in 2025.
Enter rising sophomore Kam Courtney, who saw a good amount of playing time last year, and showed some flashes. Courtney, a native of Manssass who was initially committed to Indiana before flipping to UVa, played more early in the 2024 season when UVa dealt with several injuries at receiver. Courtney had a breakout game against Maryland with a couple big catches, and then caught five passes for 42 yards against Louisville. He finished his first season with 12 receptions for 114 yards, and earned two starts.
This year, Courtney should be in line for a bigger role if he’s able to hold off a lot of competition. Courtney was behind a bunch of veterans last year but still made an impact, and looked the part of a player with potential to breakout. Courtney also caught a touchdown in the spring game, and was one of the best receivers in that scrimmage. We expect Courtney to earn a de facto starting role this season (though UVa will, as always, rotate a lot) and see a big increase in targets and receptions.
Mekhi Buchanan, DE
Virginia has been aggressive this offseason in adding pass rush talent and depth after struggling to get after the quarterback in the past several seasons. But don’t discount UVa’s returning talent on the edge, including a few players that were stuck behind veterans the last couple years or, in the case of Mekhi Buchanan, sidelined with an injury.
Buchanan suffered a season-ending injury last summer before camp began, and missed what looked like a potential breakout sophomore campaign. Buchanan saw playing time late in his true freshman season in 2023, and looked to take on a larger role last season. Now, after a year on the sideline, Buchanan is back and should be a factor in UVa’s new-look pass rush group. Buchanan has flashed athleticism when he’s been on the field, and looked healthy and ready to go in April’s spring game, where he got the better of his counterpart on the offensive line a few times.
Buchanan will have to earn whatever snaps he gets this year, as UVa has really upgraded their edge group in the portal. But we expect him to find a way into the rotation at a minimum, and could be a surprise breakout player this season, picking up where he left off after a promising 2023 campaign.
Dre Walker, CB
Cornerback was UVa’s most-thin position coming out of spring ball, and the staff went out and signed six more defensive backs to load up before the summer. It looks like it will be a wide-open competition at cornerback, with almost all of the competition coming from other programs via the portal. One returnee who could be a factor is junior corner Dre Walker, who had such a promising start to his career derailed by injuries.
Walker played in nine games as a true freshman with three starts, and showed lots of potential. Walker recorded 11 tackles but flashed in coverage, recording five PBU’s and his first career interception in a loss at Boston College. Walker was banged up down the stretch that year, an unfortunate trend that carried over to the 2024 season. Last fall, Walker was only able to play in four games, finishing with seven tackles and no coverage stats. Like Buchanan, a promising freshman season in 2023 didn’t translate to success in 2024 as injuries got in the way.
Walker should be ready to compete now though, but he’ll have a lot of competition. Walker fits the big cornerback type that this staff seems to prefer, especially given their recent portal additions are all similar body types. Walker was ready to compete as a freshman, and while he hasn’t played as much as he would have hoped over the past season plus, he should be mentally and physically ready to compete for playing time this season. The corner spots seem wide open right now, and while all eyes have been on the additions, don’t discount Walker’s ability to earn playing time.
McKale Boley, OT
Virginia’s offensive line also got a makeover in the offseason, and should have robust competition for starting spots in fall camp. UVa added three more transfer offensive linemen in the spring portal window, and odds are pretty good at there will be at least three starters on the offensive line that weren’t on last year’s roster.
But don’t discount McKale Boley’s chances to win one of the starting spots at tackle. Boley has played a ton of football at Virginia, starting his first-career game as a true freshman back in 2022, and when he’s been healthy, he has typically been a starter at left tackle. Now, Boley will have to fight to earn his job back against a lot of quality competition, but he’s going to have a chance. And his chances didn’t get any worse when fellow starting tackle Blake Steen transferred, or when Louisville transfer Monroe Mills suffered a season-ending injury in fall camp.
There’s been a ton of attention paid to UVa’s new players on the roster and particularly on the offensive line, a group in need of improvement across the board. But Boley knows UVa well, knows the schemes and expectations having been with this staff for years, and has been pretty solid when he has played. So while it’s far from a given, we wouldn’t write off Boley’s chances to earn a starting role, and at a minimum he’ll be in the two-deep, which means he’s always a play away from getting back in the mix.
Dakota Twitty, TE
One position that UVa didn’t upgrade in the portal was tight end. Virginia did lose a couple of veterans at the position, with Tyler Neville and Sackett Wood gone. Their departures, coupled with an injury to veteran Sage Ennis, has opened up playing time to others at the position, including former receiver Dakota Twitty. After switching positions last year, Twitty saw some playing time as a reserve tight end last season, and ended up playing in 11 games. Twitty carved out a role in the passing game, catching 10 passes for 78 yards and a touchdown in UVa’s loss at Clemson. Now, Twitty has an opportunity to play a much-larger role.
UVa’s use of the tight end position in Des Kitchings’ offense has been a bit hit and miss, though they did work to get Neville more involved last year than other tight ends had been in previous seasons. Twitty obviously has athletic upside given his receiver background, and could prove to be a quality target for UVa’s new quarterbacks. If Twitty can embrace the blocking aspects of the position, he has a chance to be a versatile weapon in Virginia’s new-look offense.
