Virginia 19, BYU 16
The answer is usually somewhere in the middle. That is the case after Virginia's win over BYU. Most people seemed to think the Cavs were going to lose before the game. They didn't, coming back at the end to top the Cougars, 19-16.
BYU is a proud program and normally churns out winning seasons -- it has had seven in a row. The victory is a solid one for the 'Hoos. That cannot be denied. It could end up being the difference between five or six wins and a bowl game or not. But let's not get overly excited. There was a lot to be concerned about despite the win, almost all of it on offense, which was mostly ineffective. It gained only 223 yards and the touchdown drives went for just 16 yards and 13 yards. The only time UVa put together a semblance of a strong drive was at the end of the first half when the 'Hoos marched 42 yards and Ian Frye made a 53-yard field goal (which happened to be longest FBS field goal of the weekend).
QB David Watford struggled with his accuracy and when he could get throws on target, some of his teammates dropped passes. The line struggled to protect Watford as well. His escapability allowed him to not get sacked any, but he was running for his life a lot. The line also didn't do a great job of opening up holes for the running game, though I do think it showed a little promise with Kevin Parks in the backfield. His game-winning TD run was a well-executed and well-blocked play, one where Parks had great vision and gave a great effort to get to the goal line.
Now, there were some good things in the game as well. The offense struggled like it did in so many games last season. The difference in this contest? Defense and special teams, which routinely gave up lots of big plays in 2012, especially the special teams unit. The defense racked up three sacks and had an INT. Eli Harold had two of the sacks in a great start to his season and Anthony Harris, the player of the game, had a first-down saving sack where he dove at BYU QB Taysom Hill's feet where if he had missed him, Hill had lots of green grass in front of him. The INT was Harris' too. Oh, and he also had a punt block which set up a TD. Take any of these plays out of the game and Virginia maybe loses. Harris had a spectacular game. Frye also had a long field goal and Dominique Terrell recorded a 35-yard punt return.
Some people are saying BYU is terrible, and I don't believe that to be true. Hill, the QB, played some last year and was decent. He even started two games. This was not his first rodeo but UVa made him look bad. He completed only 13 of his 40 passes. BYU was missing Cody Hoffman, its best receiver who had a sore hamstring. So did UVa get lucky there? Sure. But BYU will some games this year. The Cougars are not terrible. Virginia had to play a pretty good game to beat BYU, and it did. The defense stepped up in the offense's absence, though, for sure.
While the 'D' and special teams shined, they had their faults, too. The defense allowed the Cougars to drive 92 yards for a TD in the fourth quarter to take the lead. It also gave up 144 yards to BYU RB Jamaal Williams. On special teams, Khalek Shepherd fumbled a kickoff, giving BYU possession deep in UVa's territory.
My point in all of this is that each unit did some good things and some bad things. The offense did not have a good game, but did score just enough to win and executed when it needed to, and the defense and special teams made big plays to change the outcome of the contest, even though they were not perfect. So when someone says that Virginia either played badly and BYU was terrible, or this could be a season-changing win, just remember that the answer is probably somewhere in the middle.
There is no doubt though that Virginia will need a better game against Oregon if it wants to just stick around.
The answer is usually somewhere in the middle. That is the case after Virginia's win over BYU. Most people seemed to think the Cavs were going to lose before the game. They didn't, coming back at the end to top the Cougars, 19-16.
BYU is a proud program and normally churns out winning seasons -- it has had seven in a row. The victory is a solid one for the 'Hoos. That cannot be denied. It could end up being the difference between five or six wins and a bowl game or not. But let's not get overly excited. There was a lot to be concerned about despite the win, almost all of it on offense, which was mostly ineffective. It gained only 223 yards and the touchdown drives went for just 16 yards and 13 yards. The only time UVa put together a semblance of a strong drive was at the end of the first half when the 'Hoos marched 42 yards and Ian Frye made a 53-yard field goal (which happened to be longest FBS field goal of the weekend).
QB David Watford struggled with his accuracy and when he could get throws on target, some of his teammates dropped passes. The line struggled to protect Watford as well. His escapability allowed him to not get sacked any, but he was running for his life a lot. The line also didn't do a great job of opening up holes for the running game, though I do think it showed a little promise with Kevin Parks in the backfield. His game-winning TD run was a well-executed and well-blocked play, one where Parks had great vision and gave a great effort to get to the goal line.
Now, there were some good things in the game as well. The offense struggled like it did in so many games last season. The difference in this contest? Defense and special teams, which routinely gave up lots of big plays in 2012, especially the special teams unit. The defense racked up three sacks and had an INT. Eli Harold had two of the sacks in a great start to his season and Anthony Harris, the player of the game, had a first-down saving sack where he dove at BYU QB Taysom Hill's feet where if he had missed him, Hill had lots of green grass in front of him. The INT was Harris' too. Oh, and he also had a punt block which set up a TD. Take any of these plays out of the game and Virginia maybe loses. Harris had a spectacular game. Frye also had a long field goal and Dominique Terrell recorded a 35-yard punt return.
Some people are saying BYU is terrible, and I don't believe that to be true. Hill, the QB, played some last year and was decent. He even started two games. This was not his first rodeo but UVa made him look bad. He completed only 13 of his 40 passes. BYU was missing Cody Hoffman, its best receiver who had a sore hamstring. So did UVa get lucky there? Sure. But BYU will some games this year. The Cougars are not terrible. Virginia had to play a pretty good game to beat BYU, and it did. The defense stepped up in the offense's absence, though, for sure.
While the 'D' and special teams shined, they had their faults, too. The defense allowed the Cougars to drive 92 yards for a TD in the fourth quarter to take the lead. It also gave up 144 yards to BYU RB Jamaal Williams. On special teams, Khalek Shepherd fumbled a kickoff, giving BYU possession deep in UVa's territory.
My point in all of this is that each unit did some good things and some bad things. The offense did not have a good game, but did score just enough to win and executed when it needed to, and the defense and special teams made big plays to change the outcome of the contest, even though they were not perfect. So when someone says that Virginia either played badly and BYU was terrible, or this could be a season-changing win, just remember that the answer is probably somewhere in the middle.
There is no doubt though that Virginia will need a better game against Oregon if it wants to just stick around.
Comments
Post a Comment