Virginia 24, Pittsburgh 19
A game of inches. Yes, a cliche, but an accurate one. Virginia got a key goal line stop on Saturday against the Panthers that might have ultimately helped them pull out the win.
With Pittsburgh down 24-10 with about four minutes left in the third quarter, the Panthers' big 6-foot-2, 250-pound running back, James Conner, bullied his way toward the goal line and stuck the ball out, getting pulled back by Anthony Harris and hit from above by Quin Blanding. On replays, I really thought the ball was across the goal line when Conner's knee was on the ground. The refs called him down at the half-yard line on the field, though, and I think that is why the call wasn't overturned. It was just too close to switch the call when looking at video evidence. On the very next play, Pittsburgh was called for a snap infraction and pushed back to the five-yard line. Ultimately, the Panthers ended up with only a field goal on the drive, making the score 24-13 instead of 24-17. Later, of course, Pittsburgh scored another touchdown. Had the Panthers scored a touchdown late in the third, too, that final TD might have sent the game to overtime. From there, we could be talking about a different result today. That goal line stand and favorable call by the refs was a huge part of the game.
Blanding ballin'
In a team game, you never like to say that one player makes a difference between winning and losing, but Blanding's play at safety, as a true freshman, has been remarkable. And his forceful, violent hit on Conner on that goal line stand helped make it look like he didn't score a touchdown in my opinion.
I'm not sure that play would have been made by anyone last year. But Blanding, who came to UVa as a five-star recruit out of Virginia Beach, has been great and he can be even better since he is so young. As it stands, though, he ranks 27th in the NCAA with 10.2 tackles per game, which leads Virginia. He is on pace for 122. He has laid the boom on several hits this season and showed no fear right off the bat. There were a few times Saturday where he seemed to stop Conner in his tracks. He is stronger than he looks and he still looks pretty skinny at 6-foot-4, 215 pounds. He has room to get stronger and faster and that is a scary proposition for opponents.
Valles' pick and daggone good 'D'
As a whole, the defense had another great game. Sophomore linebacker Max Valles pretty much clinched the win with his pick six in the first half that made it 24-3. Valles, who came in as unheralded two-star player, unlike Blanding, has had a fantastic season as well with five sacks and seven passes broken up. The lanky, 6-foot-5, 240-pounder from New Jew Jersey has become a real menace for opposing QBs and it seemed like it was just a matter of time before he got his first interception and it happened against the Panthers. The Cavalier defense held Conner to his lowest output of the season, 83 yards on 21 carries. After six carries, he had 40 yards but Virginia really buckled down after that and he got just 43 more yards on his final 15 carries.
The Pitt game was a little like the Duke game last year. In that one, the Wahoos took a 22-0 lead and lost 35-22. The difference, of course, is that Virginia closed out the win over Pitt. I think the defense is better able to close out games this season. I thought last year, the defense was more affected by the offense's problems. It seemed to slump its shoulders when things weren't going well.
This year seems to be different whether that is a leadership thing, confidence thing, or maybe just because the defense/team is better overall. The unit repeatedly put Pitt in bad positions with the pass rush, sacking QB Chad Voytik four times and hitting him several more. This year, the defense seems to relish playing good defense on its own and doesn't seem to care what the offense is doing as much. Last year vs. Duke, the offense didn't score any second-half points and the team lost to the Blue Devils by 13. On Saturday, the offense didn't score any second-half points vs. the Panthers, but the team still won by five. This team tends to have a resolve that just wasn't there a year ago.
Voytik, by the way, was a pretty tough guy. He made some heady plays in completing 16 of 30 passes for two TDs. He might not win many games by himself, but he is a scrappy and elusive player that had some wheels.
Shifting out of Parks
I can't complete this post without mentioning Kevin Parks' career day at running back. The good thing is this year that I have other good things to talk about. Parks was usually the only bright spot during games last season. On Saturday, the senior bowling ball of a tailback rushed 29 times for 169 yards and scored on a 48-yard touchdown run. He continues to impress me with his ability to miss tacklers and avoid contact. He isn't the speediest guy but he hits holes hard and before you know it, he has 10 yards.
The running game was the best it has been this season Saturday, and that is a very good thing going forward with two young quarterbacks still getting comfortable in the passing game. The offensive line opened up big holes and all Parks really needs is a crease and he can get a significant gain. Even in the second half when Virginia scored zero points, the running game, which accounted for 225 yards, moved the ball and ate up clock. Pittsburgh came in with a pretty highly ranked rushing defense. If UVa can continue to get more of those performances, that will help the team pick up more victories.
A game of inches. Yes, a cliche, but an accurate one. Virginia got a key goal line stop on Saturday against the Panthers that might have ultimately helped them pull out the win.
With Pittsburgh down 24-10 with about four minutes left in the third quarter, the Panthers' big 6-foot-2, 250-pound running back, James Conner, bullied his way toward the goal line and stuck the ball out, getting pulled back by Anthony Harris and hit from above by Quin Blanding. On replays, I really thought the ball was across the goal line when Conner's knee was on the ground. The refs called him down at the half-yard line on the field, though, and I think that is why the call wasn't overturned. It was just too close to switch the call when looking at video evidence. On the very next play, Pittsburgh was called for a snap infraction and pushed back to the five-yard line. Ultimately, the Panthers ended up with only a field goal on the drive, making the score 24-13 instead of 24-17. Later, of course, Pittsburgh scored another touchdown. Had the Panthers scored a touchdown late in the third, too, that final TD might have sent the game to overtime. From there, we could be talking about a different result today. That goal line stand and favorable call by the refs was a huge part of the game.
Blanding ballin'
In a team game, you never like to say that one player makes a difference between winning and losing, but Blanding's play at safety, as a true freshman, has been remarkable. And his forceful, violent hit on Conner on that goal line stand helped make it look like he didn't score a touchdown in my opinion.
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| UVa S Quin Blanding |
Valles' pick and daggone good 'D'
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| UVa LB Max Valles |
The Pitt game was a little like the Duke game last year. In that one, the Wahoos took a 22-0 lead and lost 35-22. The difference, of course, is that Virginia closed out the win over Pitt. I think the defense is better able to close out games this season. I thought last year, the defense was more affected by the offense's problems. It seemed to slump its shoulders when things weren't going well.
This year seems to be different whether that is a leadership thing, confidence thing, or maybe just because the defense/team is better overall. The unit repeatedly put Pitt in bad positions with the pass rush, sacking QB Chad Voytik four times and hitting him several more. This year, the defense seems to relish playing good defense on its own and doesn't seem to care what the offense is doing as much. Last year vs. Duke, the offense didn't score any second-half points and the team lost to the Blue Devils by 13. On Saturday, the offense didn't score any second-half points vs. the Panthers, but the team still won by five. This team tends to have a resolve that just wasn't there a year ago.
Voytik, by the way, was a pretty tough guy. He made some heady plays in completing 16 of 30 passes for two TDs. He might not win many games by himself, but he is a scrappy and elusive player that had some wheels.
Shifting out of Parks
I can't complete this post without mentioning Kevin Parks' career day at running back. The good thing is this year that I have other good things to talk about. Parks was usually the only bright spot during games last season. On Saturday, the senior bowling ball of a tailback rushed 29 times for 169 yards and scored on a 48-yard touchdown run. He continues to impress me with his ability to miss tacklers and avoid contact. He isn't the speediest guy but he hits holes hard and before you know it, he has 10 yards.
The running game was the best it has been this season Saturday, and that is a very good thing going forward with two young quarterbacks still getting comfortable in the passing game. The offensive line opened up big holes and all Parks really needs is a crease and he can get a significant gain. Even in the second half when Virginia scored zero points, the running game, which accounted for 225 yards, moved the ball and ate up clock. Pittsburgh came in with a pretty highly ranked rushing defense. If UVa can continue to get more of those performances, that will help the team pick up more victories.
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