The Result: Virginia nearly pulled off a second major upset on the road in as many weeks on Saturday, but fell short 29-26 in overtime at Miami. The Wahoos led by double digits for the fifth time in eight games (10-0) and for the third time this year rallied from a second-half deficit to take the lead, before falling short in the extra period. The loss drops them to 2-6 on the season, 1-3 in ACC play, with four games remaining.

The Turning Point: It’s hard to pick a specific turning point in a game that went to overtime and was decided by razor thin margins. But UVa did have a chance to win the game late, getting to the UVa 45 after a long Perris Jones run with 1:23 to go. UVa picked up four more yards on the next play, but got nothing on 3rd down before being sacked on 4th, forcing the game into overtime. Realistically, UVa needed about 20 more yards to get into field goal range, but couldn’t quite keep the drive going after a big play to start it.

The Stat That Tells the Story: UVa reached the red zone five times in regulation on Saturday and scored on all of those drives. However, the Cavaliers scored just two touchdowns on those trips and settled for a total of 23 points out of a possible 35, with two touchdowns and three field goals. In a game that ended up in OT, settling for field goals proved costly.

Wahoo of the Week: It has to be Malik Washington again after another outstanding performance. The senior receiver caught 12 passes on 15 targets, for 152 yards including a 64-yard play in the second quarter. Washington (68 receptions, 935 yards) is now on pace to break the single-season receptions (93, Olamide Zacchaeus) and receiving yards records (1,203, Dontayvion Wicks) at Virginia.

Offense: UVa did a lot of good things on Saturday against a solid Miami defense but also left some opportunities on the table. The Hoos finished the game with 377 yards, and 4.5 yards per play. They were decent on 3rd downs, converting eight of 19, though they did go 0-for-4 in the fourth quarter. Virginia converted on 4th down as well, something we’ll touch on in the coaching section.

The Cavaliers had a big day on the ground at UNC last week and while they didn’t find quite as much success against the Canes, the ground game did create some plays to keep drives alive and finished a couple off as well. UVa put up 168 rushing yards when removing sack yardage, or 4.3 yards per carry. Mike Hollins continued his touchdown hot streak, with two more for five total in the last two weeks. UVa rushed 45 times including sacks and scrambles, and all of Jones, Hollins and Kobe Pace had an impact on the game.

The passing game was pretty solid throughout the day, with one major mistake. Tony Muskett went 24-for-38 passing for 239 yards in the loss, but his pick-6 in the third quarter was very costly. UVa battled back from that to retake the lead twice in regulation, but in a game where Miami’s offense scored just one touchdown prior to the extra session, the interception was a gift. We mentioned Washington’s exploits in the Wahoo of the Week section, and Malachi Fields had a solid game too, with seven catches for 67 yards. Other than those two, no receiver had more than one catch or six yards receiving on the day.

The offensive line had an up-and-down performance but gave the Hoos a chance against a physical, experienced Miami front. UVa allowed six sacks in the loss, though at least a few of those were on the quarterback for holding the ball a bit too long in the pocket. The offense didn’t have any penalties either, another positive for the offensive line, which usually generates most of the flags when a team has the ball.

The red zone shortcomings proved costly, as UVa moved the ball quite well throughout the game, similar to how things played out in Chapel Hill a week prior. UVa left red zone points on the table there too, with a pair of turnovers deep in Carolina territory. The difference is that the Hoos also scored four red zone touchdowns in the game (28 points), which was just enough to win the game.

In this one, UVa scored 23 red zone points in regulation, which was not quite enough to win. It was another weekly reminder that every play matters and the Cavaliers just came up a play or two short on their red zone trips and it was a determining factor in the game, along with a defensive touchdown allowed and a pair of drives that stalled at midfield to end each half.

Overall, though, the offense gave them a chance to win the game, they just didn’t quite make enough plays against a very talented Miami team.

Grade: B-

Defense: If someone looked at the score from Saturday’s game and saw that Miami scored 29 points, they may assume that UVa’s defense had a tough game, understandably, against a talented Hurricanes team on the road. But that was not the case in this one.

UVa allowed just 276 yards of offense in the loss. The Hoos held Miami to 5-for-13 on 3rd down, and the Canes never reached the red zone in regulation. Virginia also won the turnover battle, with Sam Westfall and Kam Robinson coming up with interceptions. Coen King dropped another, too. Miami finished with just 163 passing yards and no passing touchdowns. UVa’s defense got off the field and helped the Hoos dominate time-of-possession, and overall had a very solid performance.

If there are any regrets from Saturday’s loss, its the overtime possession, where UVa allowed 25 yards relatively easily on three straight rushing plays, including the game-winning score. Other than that, the Hoos didn’t get much pressure at all and didn’t have a sack for the third time in the last four games.

Still, the defense got the job done on Saturday and probably did enough to win against most teams. Its worth noting, of course, that the defense allowed just one touchdown and three field goals in regulation, and of those made field goals all three were 47 yards or longer. Credit to Miami’s kicker Andre Borregales for knocking those through, because there probably aren’t many teams in the country that would have made all three kicks from 47+ yards, and the Canes needed all three of them to force overtime.

Virginia had a number of defensive standouts on Saturday. We mentioned the picks for Westfall and Robinson, and Robinson once again tied for the team lead in tackles with nine. Jonas Sanker made a number of big plays in the game and finished with nine tackles and a pair of PBUs as well. James Jackson had a solid game, too, with eight tackles including a TFL and a PBU. UVa received positive contributions from other freshmen, too, with Caleb Hardy (six tackles), Mekhi Buchanan (two tackles) and Jason Hammond (one tackle) all contributing.

UVa’s defense has been much improved since the slow start to the season, and considering how many injuries they’ve had to deal with and the quality of opponents, the staff and players on that side of the ball are doing a very decent job.

Grade: A-

Special Teams: Virginia’s special teams, for the most part, had another solid showing on Saturday at Miami. The kicking and punting games were solid, with Will Bettridge going perfect on PATs and 4-for-4 on field goals. Daniel Sparks averaged 44 yards per punt on five kicks, with a long of 57. UVa didn’t really have any returns to speak of, with no kick return attempts, and one punt return from Ethan Davies for just a yard.

The only issue on special teams was the occasional long return for the Canes. Miami had 112 return yards on six attempts, an average brought down by a terrible error on one return, where Miami had the ball go off of a helmet and were downed deep in their own territory. The home team did have a long kick return of 31 yards, and their primary returner averaged 25 yards per attempt.

Still, overall it was another solid day for Virginia’s special teams, a far cry from where they were earlier in the season.

Grade: B+

Coaching Staff: UVa came up a play or two short in this one and while it's disappointing to lose, it shouldn’t take away from the fact that the Hoos are fighting tooth and nail as big-time underdogs.

Virginia went to Miami and jumped out to an early lead, and while the Canes fought back UVa didn’t flinch despite giving up touchdowns on back-to-back scrimmage plays, and seeing a seven-point lead turn into a seven-point deficit in seconds.

The team continues to play hard and has been very competitive in six of its eight games, including Saturday’s overtime loss.

UVa was not penalized on Saturday, another mark of a team becoming more sound and disciplined, That’s particularly noteworthy for the offensive line, which has taken some steps forward under Terry Heffernan’s direction this season. UVa’s special teams were clean once again and the Hoos won the turnover battle, too. All are signs of a team playing more sound football, despite the odds being stacked against them for the second straight week.

There were a few odd situations in Saturday’s game, particularly late in the first half, when UVa had the ball and were on the move, up 10-3. UVa appeared to try a HB pass with Jones that got blown up, and the coaching staff made an oddly conservative decision to let clock run and not really try to move into field goal range. Perhaps they were playing it safe to avoid a turnover or sack late since they were getting the ball to start the second half, but the situation still played out as a missed opportunity in a game that ended up tied after 60 minutes.

Other than that, the only surprising decision was UVa going for it on 4th and 2 from its own territory late in a tie game and ultimately that decision paid off, as UVa went down and kicked a field goal to take the lead. Still, it was a super-aggressive call that could have backfired spectacularly, but fans will usually support a staff trying to make something happen late as big underdogs on the road, rather than playing it safe.

Overall, the Cavaliers put together another very solid showing on the road against a solid team, and while they made just enough plays to upset UNC the week before, Miami made just the one or two extra plays in this game to win.

We mark success or failure with wins and losses, but in this game, against this team, UVa was right where it needed to be, the Hoos just needed another play to go their way.

This program has been close throughout the season, with four tough losses all decided in the game’s final minutes, or in this case, overtime. Still, it does feel like the guys may be turning a corner, given the quality of opponents they’re hanging with or beating now.

The upcoming game this weekend against Georgia Tech will be a big test of UVa’s improvement. The Yellow Jackets are much improved from where they were in recent years but this game may not have the same juice as the last two. Can UVa defend its home turf and get up for this opponent? If they can, the Wahoos have another good chance to come away with a win and try to build some momentum to close the season strong, with three of their last four games at home.

Grade: A-