Virginia’s 2026 schedule won’t exactly hand Tony Elliott and his defense a soft landing. After an 11-3 season and a Gator Bowl win over Missouri, the Cavaliers are trying to keep the momentum rolling after falling to Duke in the ACC Championship Game by a touchdown. That path back to the title game runs through a tough slate, and it starts with a handful of quarterbacks who can wreck a game in a hurry.
Here are the five best signal-callers Virginia will see in 2026.
C.J. Bailey stands out as the toughest matchup on the list, and it’s not hard to see why.
He brings the kind of game that stresses a defense in every possible way, dangerous as both a passer and a runner. He already proved in 2025 that he can swing games against strong opponents, and if Virginia’s secondary isn’t sharp from the jump, he could make the Cavaliers pay in the season opener.
2025 stats: 3,105 passing yards, 25 TDs, 9 INTs, 68.8% comp., 215 rushing yards, 6 TDs
Jennings has been climbing the college football quarterback ladder since 2024, and he took another step in ACC play last season. SMU has tried to keep him more in the pocket, even though he’s shown he can do damage on the ground too. The bigger issue for Virginia is what he can do through the air: he’s fully capable of hanging 300-plus passing yards on a defense if it loses discipline.
2025 stats: 3,641 passing yards, 26 TDs, 13 INTs, 66.1% comp., 55 rushing yards, 4 TDs
“JKS” made a strong first impression as a true freshman in 2025 and looked every bit the blue-chip prospect he was billed to be. His best traits are easy to spot: accuracy in the short and intermediate game, plus enough movement in the pocket to keep plays alive. The buzz around him is only growing, and if he builds on that freshman year, he becomes a problem fast.
2025 stats: 3,454 passing yards, 18 TDs, 9 INTs, 64.2% comp., -120 rushing yards (sacked a lot), 4 TDs
Angeli’s season was cut short, but before the injury he was putting together a dominant stretch for the Orange. Against Clemson, he was rolling before tearing his Achilles in the third quarter, finishing with 245 passing yards, 2 touchdowns and no interceptions. If he gets back to that level, there’s a real case he belongs even higher than fourth on this list.
2025 stats: 1,317 passing yards, 10 TDs, 2 INTs, 62.8% comp., -33 rushing yards, 1 TD
Hawkins arrives from Oklahoma with plenty of intrigue after once being labeled “the next big thing” at quarterback there before John Mateer made the jump from Washington State to OU in 2025. As a true freshman, he stepped in against Tennessee after replacing Jackson Arnold, then started four games and helped engineer a wild fourth-quarter comeback win over Auburn in his first career start. He’s a true dual-threat and can turn a routine snap into a 50-yard touchdown through the air or on the ground.
2025 stats: 167 passing yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs, 55.6% comp., 58 rushing yards, 1TD
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