The 3-2-1: Old Dominion

1. The focus this week has been improving fundamentals and execution.

Following a rough 24-3 loss at Illinois, Tony Elliott and the coaching staff got right back to work on correcting things on Sunday morning. The defense played well enough the day before, so the offense was in the crosshairs this week. Based on Elliott’s comments after the game and again on Tuesday, it seems that he feels that execution is the biggest area of focus, including winning one-on-one matchups.

The offensive line faced a five-man front against Illinois, meaning each player had one-on-one blocks to win. Anyone who watched the game could tell you that didn’t always happen. Receivers needed to win one-on-one matchups too, and it doesn’t seem like they did that, either. Elliott also talked about the need to do less “freelancing” and execute the task, and while staying within the play, find a way to tweak things and make an impact.

The good news is that Elliott said that the first two practices of the week have been solid and the team seems to be responding well to the loss. He talked a lot about handling success and now, we’re going to find out how the team handles failure.

2. Elliott is continuing to challenge his players, publicly and privately.

Speaking of responding well, it will be interesting to see how the team responds to the coaching they are receiving, especially after a rough performance. Elliott has been very candid about where his team stands and areas where he is pushing individual players to improve since arriving in Charlottesville. Communication is so key and it’s clear that Elliott is giving the media more honest soundbites than many other coaches would, but it’s a fine line to walk.

During fall camp, when we asked players about how they were responding to the new staff, the vibe was very positive. Many players, including Brennan Armstrong, talked about how the coaches had made him a better quarterback and how he appreciated the constant feedback he has received from his coaches on ways he can perform. Elliott continued to talk this week about areas where players, all the way up to his senior quarterback, can improve.

We’re going to find out in the coming weeks whether that feedback is getting through or, eventually, if players tune it out if they aren’t winning or making big plays. Like we’ve seen with other coaching staffs at UVa, coaching styles and culture things are often well received when things are going well, and maybe not so much when there is adversity.

3. Mike Green isn’t with the team this year (and maybe not again?)

Virginia fans got some unfortunate news on Tuesday, when Elliott confirmed that the up-and-coming defender was “no longer active” with the football program. Green has not been at practice or appeared in either game and disappeared from the depth chart heading into the Richmond game. It is a big loss for UVa considering he showed some flashes as an edge rusher at the end of last season and looked to be a breakout candidate heading into the fall on defense. UVa has been somewhat vague about Green’s status, so there’s clearly something going on behind the scenes there that needs to be worked out before his status is fully resolved. Still, the Wahoos are going to need some linebackers and edge players to continue to step up to make up for Green’s loss.