Virginia may have left Charlotte disappointed again, but the Cavaliers got a bit of encouraging news this week on one of the injury situations that mattered most in last weekend’s loss to West Virginia.
Head coach Tony Elliott said left guard Noah Josey was back around the practice field and moving well after leaving the Mountaineers game with an ankle injury.
"He was out at practice yesterday, moving around. He'll work back in today, so hopeful for this weekend," said Elliott. "Don't believe it's as severe, but he wasn't able to finish in the game."
Josey played 20 snaps before exiting, and his absence showed up quickly in Virginia’s offense. Before the injury, he was one of the Cavaliers’ better performers, finishing with a 65.6 overall grade from Pro Football Focus and a 78.5 pass-blocking grade.
Once he was replaced by Ben York, the rhythm changed. Virginia’s offense stalled more often, and the line gave up three sacks.
York ended up logging 55 snaps after Josey left and received a 55.7 overall grade at PFF. It wasn’t all on him, but the unit looked less connected without Josey in the mix.
The timing of the update matters for a Virginia team that should have a chance to reset against Delaware on Saturday in Charlottesville. The Blue Hens are a solid G6 team, but the Cavaliers will need cleaner work up front if they want to bounce back.
That includes more than just the offensive line. The passing game has to find some consistency, too. Even in Virginia’s first two wins, questions lingered about Beau Pribula and whether the Cavaliers have enough at receiver to really stretch defenses.
Those concerns won’t disappear with a win over Delaware, but they’ll need answers before ACC play arrives. Virginia’s setback last Saturday served as a wake-up call, and the return of Josey would at least soften one of the biggest blows.
In Other News...
Virginia Is Waiting On One Offensive Line Decision After West Virginia
Virginias offensive line is still sorting out one of its key early-season questions after the West Virginia game, with left guard Noah Josey working through an ankle injury and the Cavaliers preparing for Delaware. Josey left the contest partway through and was replaced by Ben York, who handled 55 snaps in relief, giving Virginia a workable answer in the moment while the staff kept an eye on the bigger picture.
Tony Elliott said Josey was out at practice and described him as hopeful for Saturday, which leaves the Cavaliers in a familiar spot this time of year: balancing caution with the need to get their best five up front on the field. The line looked capable with York filling in, but Virginia would clearly prefer to have Josey back as it keeps building toward its next game. [Read more 🡒]
Virginias Rebound Game Comes With A Week Four Lineup Mess
Virginia had a rough reset after the West Virginia loss, a 38-27 setback in a game it was favored to win, and the attention now shifts quickly to Delaware with a rebound effort on deck. The Cavaliers are also sorting through the aftermath of that defeat, where injuries and lineup shuffling have started to complicate what looked like a straightforward path into the next week.
Noah Josey went down in the first half against the Mountaineers, and defensive tackle Jason Hammond is expected to be out for the foreseeable future, which only adds to the uncertainty on both sides of the ball. The week four depth chart did not fully match what Virginia has actually used on Saturdays, either, with John Rogers and Corey Costner already starting games even though they are listed as backups, so the Cavaliers are heading into the Delaware game with a few more moving parts than the official chart suggests. [Read more 🡒]
Virginia Must Fix One Worrying Problem Before Delaware Tests It
Virginia heads into Saturday evenings matchup with Delaware still sorting through the lessons of its first loss of the season to West Virginia. The Cavaliers want more from their running game and more bite up front on the defensive line, two areas that can help settle a team down after a setback and put a game on Virginias terms. Delaware has been competitive enough against other opponents to make this a real test, not just a routine tune-up.
The bigger concern, though, is in the defensive backfield, where Virginia needs a cleaner showing to avoid giving the Blue Hens easy answers through the air. If the Cavaliers do not tighten that area, Delaware quarterback Nick Minicucci could make them pay by finding the soft spots in coverage. For Virginia, the assignment is straightforward: play more physically, stay focused and make sure one shaky area does not turn a manageable game into a stubborn one. [Read more 🡒]