Virginia spent all offseason hearing the noise. Even after an 11-win year, even after the school’s first regular-season Atlantic Coast Conference title, the Cavaliers were treated like a team that had already peaked. On Saturday, they answered in the loudest way possible.
Virginia rolled past NC State 34-8 in its opener at home, looking every bit like a ranked team in front of a sellout crowd of 62,779 and a national audience. For a program that was picked sixth in the preseason ACC media voting and got only one 25th-place vote in the AP preseason poll, the performance felt like a blunt reminder that last season was no accident.
"I think we just took advantage of the opportunity," Elliott said. "That's what we've been asking for - an opportunity to show that Virginia can be a destination. ...
I didn't come to Virginia to go somewhere else. I came to Virginia to make Virginia a destination."
The Cavaliers controlled the game from the start and never let NC State settle in. Virginia finished with a 413-168 edge in total yardage and owned possession for 38:03 to 21:57.
The defining sequence came in the second half: a 23-play, 75-yard touchdown drive that chewed up more than 12 minutes and went down as the longest by snaps and time in school history. Virginia converted four fourth downs on the march, turning the whole thing into a statement about grit as much as execution.
The defense was just as imposing. A year after CJ Bailey gave Virginia problems in Raleigh, the Cavaliers made him work for everything.
He was sacked twice, turned it over twice and finished with 117 total yards - 84 rushing and 33 passing. The Wolfpack’s longest play was only 21 yards.
"We just showed the team we are," said fifth-year defensive end Fisher Camac, who tipped a Bailey pass that Brandyn Hillman picked off. "We knew the team we were, and we just had to go out and show it today."
Virginia did it without two important pieces. Kam Robinson remains in recovery from the torn ACL that ended his 2025 season in November, and Rico Flores Jr. sat out with a sore hamstring. Elliott said he thought about letting Robinson suit up, but didn’t want to take the risk.
"I couldn't live with myself if something happened to him."
Even with those absences, Virginia’s depth was hard to miss. Five running backs took carries, and Xavier Brown was the most productive of the bunch. Back from his own ACL tear, he scored twice, once on the ground and once through the air.
"We circled [this game]," Brown said. "The last two times, we let the game get away, so obviously it was a focal point.
We knocked down two of our team goals, winning our home opener and our ACC opener. I just think that's a testament to the leaders that we have and the work we put in."
Quarterback Beau Pribula also gave the offense a steady edge with his legs. He rushed for 110 yards, nearly matching his passing total of 155, and completed 9 of 11 throws. Behind him, the Cavaliers kept the pressure on all day and never gave NC State much room to breathe.
There are still 11 games left, and Virginia’s Oct. 17 trip to 19th-ranked SMU stands out as the one obvious roadblock mentioned here. But if Saturday is any indication, the Cavaliers have a much different look this season. Elliott said it plainly after the win.
"We've still got work to do. But we kind of showed what kind of potential we have here at U.Va."
In Other News...
Virginia Tech Just Sent An Early Message With This Kentucky Result
Virginia Tech opened the weekend with a clean statement in Blacksburg, taking care of Kentucky in a 3-0 men's soccer win on Friday night. The Hokies controlled the result from start to finish, and the kind of composed home performance they needed never really let the Wildcats into the match.
Diego Dauzier helped set that tone in goal, turning aside pressure when it mattered and giving Virginia Tech a steady last line of defense. For a team trying to build early momentum, the shutout was the sort of result that can carry weight beyond one night, especially with bigger tests likely ahead. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Just Gave Fans A Reason To Dream Bigger
Virginia opened the 2026 season with a performance that looked bigger than a routine September win, leaning on a defense that forced turnovers and an offense that controlled the game on the ground and through the air. Xavier Brown found the end zone twice, while quarterback Pribula showed exactly why Virginia can build around his dual-threat ability, running for 100 yards and keeping NC State under pressure from start to finish at Scott Stadium.
The conservative approach from Virginia's offensive coordinator left room for the Cavs to keep plenty in reserve, which only adds to the feeling around this team after a one-sided opener. If the rushing attack keeps working this way and Pribula keeps stressing defenses as both a runner and passer, Virginia may have more upside than the box score from opening day could fully capture. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Just Sent An Early ACC Message Fans Will Love
NC States opener in Charlottesville turned into exactly the kind of early ACC statement Virginia fans have been waiting for, as the Cavaliers rolled to a 34-8 win and handed the Wolfpack their first season-opening loss since 2017. Virginia looked the more prepared and more physical team from the start, and quarterback Beau Pribula was at the center of it, helping drive an offense that controlled the game in multiple ways and set the tone for the afternoon.
For Dave Doeren and NC State, the postgame message was blunt: his team was unprepared and got beat at the line and in the biggest moments. For Virginia, the bigger question now is whether this was just a sharp opener or the first real hint that the Cavaliers can carry this level of physicality and execution into the rest of ACC play. [Read more 🡒]