After going down to Death Valley and putting up a respectable showing at No. 1 Clemson, UVa now gets to return home for a key matchup against NC State (noon, ACC Network).

After being steady and resilient in the opener against Duke, the Wahoos did plenty of nice things in the loss to the Tigers. There was plenty there to leave Bronco Mendenhall feeling pretty good about where his group is headed.

Much like with Clemson, UVa doesn’t get to see the Wolfpack too often. This will be the first time since 2011 that NC State has come to Charlottesville and on the fifth time in the last 20 years.

If State (2-1, 2-1 ACC) wants to snap Virginia’s nine-game home winning streak, it’ll probably be on the back of “newly” minted starter Devin Leary. After staring the last five games of 2019, he was forced to miss more than two weeks of preseason practice due to contact tracing. He got the starting nod last week against Pitt and threw for a career-high 336 yards.

So, as we do each week during the season, we’ve looked at the depth chart and Mendenhall’s comments in order to break down some things we know, some questions we have, and one prediction we have for the week ahead.

Here’s our latest installment of the 3-2-1:

1. Brennan Armstrong is moving in the right direction.

Watching the first two games and seeing his progressions therein, it’s pretty clear that UVa in a good spot at the most important position on the field. And as the season moves forward, it’s likely that No. 5 is going to get better and better.

He passed for 270 yards and three touchdowns against the No. 1 team in the country while also picking up 89 more yards on the ground. He is the only quarterback to pass for 225+ yards, pass for three touchdowns, and rush for 70 yards in a game against the Tigers in two decades. Armstrong heads into the matchup with NC State averaging 337.5 yards of total offense a game, which ranks No. 1 in the ACC and No. 8 nationally.

Still, he has some learning and growing to do and that includes finding ways to start a little faster.

“The other day his second throw I think hit Wayne Taulapapa right in his shoulder pads,” Mendenhall recalled. “But that was kind of the intent. It was just a little longer than a handoff and hit the guy right in the shoulder. And so, I think that’s just part of maturing and growing. It’s hard to even remember that’s how he started because he just was so competitive and did such a nice job down the stretch. I think that is going to be part of managing each team when we play them, the new looks they give, just calming down. And, yeah, we’ve made a clear intent to have manageable throws that he likes to begin with. But just going to take time, I think.”

2. Billy Kemp is going to put up big numbers.

The former Highland Springs standout has had quite the start to his junior season. He’s currently the top receiver in the ACC and No. 8th nationally with 8.5 receptions per game. He’s coming off a career-high 10 receptions against Clemson and his 96 yards was also a career high. He’s also second in the league and 24th in the country with 83.0 receiving yards per game.

And the momentum isn’t just specific to this season: Over his last seven games, Kemp has caught 38 passes for 359 yards and a TD.

So when was it clear he was ready to take such a big step forward?

“Saw it from the minute he showed up for fall camp this year, for fall reporting,” Mendenhall said. “He’s been the most consistent, the most competitive, and the most productive player on our roster period, day in and day out. He has just been relentless in his preparation and he’s playing exactly as he prepares. So the game doesn’t just kind of look like practice, it looks exactly like practice. And I give him so much credit for his work ethic and consistency and he’s carved out that role.

“It wasn’t just given to him but just by his production every day” he added. “He’s just required the ball has to go there because he’s open and then he makes players miss and then he gets hit, and he gets up and keeps going. He’s just really done a nice job.

3. Bobby Haskins is close to being back, giving the OL even more pieces.

One aspect of UVa’s start so far has been the play of the offensive line, which got a boost this past game when Haskins was able to get back out on the field. A former starter, the added depth at tackle only boosts a group that the Cavaliers see as extremely reliable.

“Absolutely one of the bright spots of my journey here to the University of Virginia,” he said of the O-line. “Coach [Garett] Tujague has worked so hard, and has taken his lumps and has been working and growing and trying to get depth and trying to get the performance the way we, he and I, we all want it. And for the first time in going on, here in our fifth season, our offensive line, I would say is the cornerstone of why we’re having success as a program and as a football team and as an offense.

“They’re blocking effectively in the run and the pass,” he added. “They’re healthy. We’re deep. We’re adding Bobby back to it. And that’s when teams don’t just have good seasons, they become really good programs, and consistent and sustainable. It’s the biggest difference in our program from a year ago to this year is the offensive line play.”

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