Ahead of the start of winter workouts soon, our Looking Ahead series returned on Wednesday when we broke down three questions facing UVa’s offense.
Today, we move to the other side of the ball where Bronco Mendnehall and Co. figure to have an incredibly deep and experienced group in 2020.
Still, there are surely some unknowns that have to be handled before the Wahoos head to Atlanta on Labor Day to face the Georgia Bulldogs, who saw quarterback Jake Fromm declare for the NFL Draft this week.
So, here are three important questions facing the Cavaliers heading into the spring and summer.
1. How do things sort out at corner?
Few teams in America would turn down the situation that UVa appears to have this fall, with all but three starters returning. The loss of Eli Hanback up front and Jordan Mack in the middle seem pretty easily answered given the depth at those respective spots.
But what happens at cornerback, even outside of just the loss of All-American Bryce Hall, is especially interesting and could go a long way toward dictating just how special this defense can be.
Co-DC Nick Howell has a track record of getting a lot from his defensive backs but he was really challenged given the injuries there, especially to Hall during the season and Darrius Bratton before it even started.
Bratton and Nick Grant figure to be the presumptive starters at cornerback with Heskin Smith, Jaylon Baker, and Fentrell Cypress all pushing for time as well. Also of note from this past season’s roster, UVa will be without Myles Robinson (who is reportedly transferring) and Germane Crowell (who is retiring from football due to medical concerns) but Howell could certainly look to younger guys like Major Williams or even Tenyeh Dixon if the fit is there.
As far as the 2020 class, UVa has signed three DBs thus far with two of them, Elijah Gaines and Dave Herard, seeming like potential fits at corner depending on how Howell sees them factoring in.
Lastly, it helps UVa a great deal to have Brenton Nelson back in the Nickel. As important as Hall’s injury was, losing Nelson might have had as much if not more impact.
Bottom line is that this is the one position where Virginia needs to find more concrete answers as the D looks for guys who can make plays downfield for a group that will be elite in just about every other way.
2. What does the next step look like for Noah Taylor?
Technically, the sophomore finished with 57 tackles (sixth on the team), 13.5 for loss (most on the team, eighth most in the ACC), along with seven sacks (second on the team, seventh in the league). He also racked up six QB hurries and four PBUs to go with his two interceptions, one off the team high.
But what Taylor meant to UVa this season was somehow even bigger than that. At 6-foot-5 and with both OLB and DB skills in his toolbox, he might be the most versatile piece on Mendenhall’s defense. That was evident throughout the season but especially in the 39-30 win over Virginia Tech when Taylor played more than half his snaps as the Nickel back. It’s rare to see an outside linebacker that far down field in coverage as often as Taylor was and yet he made it look routine, particularly on the play that may have been as critical as any other in helping UVa win the game, picking off Hendon Hooker in the fourth quarter to help set up the go-ahead score.
So, considering the leap he made from 2018 to 2019, what does Taylor do for an encore, especially when the defensive line will be chock full of talent and Virginia will be able to have Charles Snowden on the other side once again?
This is one of the rare instances where the “look ahead question” has a positive connotation. And there’s no denying that the sky really is the limit for the Silver Spring (MD) native.
3. How do the Hoos deploy their wealth of depth in the front seven?
This is a fun question to try and frame but one that will absolutely play a role in determining how successful UVa is in 2020. Most of the time, features like this rely on the negative (the “loss” of someone, for example) but as with Taylor above, this one is a case where it’s the abundance of good options that is the focus.
At linebacker, UVa does lose Mack but returns the two starters on the outside in Taylor and Snowden as well as the expected starters inside, Zane Zandier and Rob Snyder. From there, the Cavaliers will have (among others) Nick Jackson and Josh Ahern back at ILB and Matt Gahm outside as well as guys like Hunter Stewart and D’Sean Perry coming off their redshirt years.
On the D-line, Hanback’s consistency and reliability will be gone but with everyone else is expected back (including Year 2 for Jowon Briggs), as well as the addition of Ben Smiley coming off his redshirt, meaning the Cavaliers will have as much talent in the front seven as they have had at any point since roughly the mid 90s.
We’ve already seen Howell and co-DC/OLB coach Kelly Poppinga point the defense toward creating havoc plays in the backfield and it worked. As good as UVa was in 2019—the Wahoos were tied for sixth nationally with 46 sacks and 15th with 99 TFLs—there is a very real chance that the group could actually be better in 2020.
What that looks like will certainly be interesting to see play out but just as with Taylor’s encore, UVa’s as a team this fall will be a major question to answer.
JOIN CAVSCORNER TODAY!
If you are not already a member of CavsCorner, come join us and see what all of the buzz is about.
Click HERE to subscribe and get all of the latest news and join hundreds of other UVa fans in talking about Cavalier football, basketball, and recruiting. You won't be disappointed!
