Virginia and North Carolina were knotted at 10-all late in third quarter Saturday when Tar Heels linebacker Andrew Simpson intercepted Chandler Morris at midfield and raced 16 yards down the sideline before Morris tackled him.
Positioned to seize its first lead of the afternoon, North Carolina moved to UVA’s 16, where on third-and-6, defensive end Mitchell Melton deflected Gio Lopez’s pass. Blanketed by cornerback Emmanuel Karnley, receiver Shanard Clower was helpless as the ball ricocheted off his helmet high into the air, allowing the uber-athletic Melton to pick off the pass.
Such complementary football, specifically the defense bailing out the offense, has defined the No. 15 Cavaliers’ last three outings, victories over Louisville, Washington State and UNC by a combined six points, the former and latter in overtime.
INTERCEPTION, @m17m__
His first career INT comes in the red zone
@accnetwork pic.twitter.com/scysZId47l
— Virginia Football (@UVAFootball) October 25, 2025
As Virginia (7-1, 4-0 ACC) prepares for Saturday’s test at Cal (5-3, 2-2), the questions hovering over the team’s improbable quest for a conference championship are whether the defense can sustain its excellence while the offense rediscovers its vibe.
Through five games, the Cavaliers were a scoring machine, averaging 45.6 points and 539.6 yards. They were gaining 6.8 yards per snap.
But opponents gathered more video and game-planned more effectively. Center Brady Wilson, running back Xavier Brown and receiver/return specialist Cam Ross missed time with injuries — Brown is done for the season after tearing an ACL.
Morris hasn’t missed games, but he and Elliott acknowledge that his left shoulder is compromised, forcing offensive coordinator Des Kitchings to refrain from many of the designed quarterback runs that were so productive in September.
In three October contests, Virginia averaged 23 points and 265.7 yards, a recipe for defeat. And that scoring average was inflated by two defensive touchdowns at Louisville and one overtime touchdown each against the Cardinals and North Carolina.
But the Cavaliers won all three games.
Donavon Platt and Kam Robinson produced the defensive scores against Louisville; Robinson tackled Washington State’s Kirby Vorhees for a game-winning safety; Karnley and Ja’son Prevard teamed to stop UNC’s Benjamin Hall inches from the goal line on the decisive two-point conversion attempt in overtime.
Yielding 22.4 points and 352.8 yards per game this season, Virginia is on pace for its best defensive performance since 2018, when Bryce Hall and Juan Thornhill were first-team All-ACC, and the Cavaliers shut out South Carolina in the Belk Bowl.
And let’s not forget special teams, a liability for most of Tony Elliott’s first three seasons as head coach.
During this current run of four consecutive one-score victories, Will Bettridge has made all five of his field goal attempts, none more clutch than the 39-yarder that forced a second overtime against Florida State. Conversely, opponents during this span have converted only six of their nine field goals, a massive disparity given the thin margins.
Virginia kicker Will Bettridge (41) kicks a field goal in the second half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Oct. 18 2025, in Charlottesville, Va. (AP Photo/Robert Simmons)
Incumbent Daniel Sparks, backup Elijah Slibeck and the coverage unit have made the Cavaliers among the ACC’s best punting teams. Ross returned a kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown against Coastal Carolina, and when he missed last week’s game at UNC with an undisclosed injury, Jayden Thomas broke a 31-yard punt return that set up Virginia’s only touchdown in regulation, a 30-yard Morris pass to Trell Harris.
Here’s how good Ross and Thomas have been returning punts: The Cavaliers’ 200 punt-return yards are already more than they managed in 2023 and ’24 combined and are the program’s most since 2018.
Finally, don’t discount effort and luck from UVA’s formula to date. The Cavaliers have recovered each of their nine fumbles, a remarkable defiance of odds.
Virginia, Miami and Texas A&M are the only Bowl Subdivision teams yet to lose a fumble, and they are a combined 21-2, each with realistic College Football Playoff aspirations as the regular season’s defining month beckons.
The Cavaliers’ plus-8 turnover margin, which ranks ninth nationally has “been all the difference,” Elliott said this week. “I’ve made that known to the guys … that the reason that we won football games is because we’ve been fortunate to not turn it over.
“We’ve had some on the ground, and we’ve gotten them back. So, we didn’t lose fumbles, but we’ve been taking care of the ball and defense has been fanatical about getting the ball back. And I think it’s a combination of just the emphasis, the things we talk about, the examples that we show them, and then the way that the guys practice. The guys are being intentional on trying to get the ball out.”
Even on a charter, jetting across the country for a game can be tricky, especially for first-timers such as the Cavaliers. But Virginia should be able to expose Cal’s soft run defense — Virginia Tech bludgeoned the Golden Bears for 357 rushing yards last Friday.
Then the Cavaliers close the regular season against the ACC’s No. 2 scoring defense (Wake Forest), the nation’s leading passer (Duke’s Darian Mensah) and their decades-long nemesis (Virginia Tech).
Elliott isn’t blind to his team’s recent missteps and certainly not to its impending challenges. But like his players, he’s confident.
“I’m not panicking,” he said, “because we’re finding ways to win.”
David Teel, david.teel@virginiamedia.com
