This was the glimpse of what Virginia was striving for on offense all along.
On an afternoon in which settling for field goals wasn’t going to provide enough points to keep pace with high-scoring North Carolina, the Cavaliers only scored touchdowns — and thrived in the red zone — on Saturday in their effort to try to take down the No. 17 Tar Heels.
“It wasn’t anything spectacular other than making the play required,” first-year UVa coach Tony Elliott said in the aftermath of his team’s 31-28 loss. “You hit a hitch here, you run the ball, you stay ahead of the chains.”
Said tight end Sackett Wood Jr. of the Hoos’ four touchdowns in four red-zone tries: “It was just the simplicity of what we had planned.”
Until Saturday, though, red-zone opportunities proved largely difficult for the Cavaliers and were magnified the previous week during their four-overtime loss to Miami.
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UVa entered its contest against North Carolina, having registered just 11 touchdowns in 26 red-zone chances, and the 42% touchdown rate in the red zone ranked 124th in the FBS. The Cavaliers’ failure to push the ball past the goal line with two sets of fresh downs inside the Hurricanes’ 3 — dropped passes, penalties and a failed trick play plagued them then — was a reason they didn’t win that game.
But Elliott and offensive coordinator Des Kitchings spent the days leading into UVa’s bout with UNC prioritizing how to correct those woes.
“A very high emphasis,” said running back Ronnie Walker Jr., whose 1-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter gave the Hoos a 21-17 lead, “and I remember Coach was talking about it on Monday.”
Wood added: “There was intentionality that, ‘We’ve got to score when we get in the red zone.’”
Mistakes that showed up in past games didn’t appear on Saturday.
The Cavaliers logged 11 plays in the red zone, and none of those plays went for a loss of yards. The Hoos avoided penalties and didn’t have any in the red zone against Carolina either.
Most importantly, according to Kitchings, they ran the ball effectively.
“The thing I liked was the O-Line,” Kitchings said, “we challenged them to be able to block these guys in the run game because we felt like if we could run the ball and control it, that it’d give us a chance to win the game.”
UVa averaged 5.5 yards per run in the red zone.
Running back Mike Hollins’ 15-yard run from North Carolina’s 19-yard line in the opening quarter set up quarterback Brennan Armstrong’s 4-yard rushing touchdown.
Fellow running back Xavier Brown’s 3-yard touchdown run during the second quarter was the perfect follow-up play to Wood’s 11-yard reception from Armstrong.
Walker’s leap over the goal line in the third quarter was a determined and not-to-be-denied effort, and Armstrong’s 8-yard touchdown scramble in the game’s final minutes had the same feel, especially considering he rumbled through three trying tacklers at the goal line before falling into the end zone.
“Football originated on running the football,” Kitchings said. “If we’re able to knock guys off the ball and run the ball and stay ahead of the chains, it’s demoralizing to run the ball on people in the red zone.
“Yes, we all want to throw it, that’s sexy,” he said. “No doubt about it and I want to throw it. I played receiver, but again, it’s a physical game and we were able to run the ball, control the line of scrimmage and keep Brennan clean.”
Walker said the Cavaliers’ offensive line and tight ends opened holes for the running backs to move through.
Offensive tackle Logan Taylor had a critical block, enabling Hollins forward on his 15-yard run, and guard Derek Devine pulled on the next snap to help Armstrong on his first rushing touchdown of the afternoon. Armstrong’s first TD run was dressed up, too, giving the defense a different look, as he was paired with backup quarterback Jay Woolfolk in the backfield before taking off.
“When those guys can have success in the run game, you should see them when they come to the sideline,” Elliott said. “Man, [guard] Noah Josey, about took my arm off three times, because they’re so excited. They’re so engaged in the game and what you saw is that chemistry.”
Wood said he and his teammates gained confidence as those chances to score were converted.
“It’s reaffirming that we’ve known we can do this the entire year,” Wood said.
