Sounds like Clemsoning back in the day.
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I think weâll come out sharp from the start against UNC. There were some fundamental breakdowns (not properly wrapping up the ball carrier at first contact as well as some poor pursuit angles) that were just unacceptable and we clearly lacked the focus, attention to detail, and edge that we typically played with. Coach will get on them this week and I anticipate a sharp start against the worst P4 team in the nation this saturday
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Another thing thatâs become abundantly clear this year is that Rudâs defense gets better as the game goes on. Maybe thatâs the depth helping?
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Make no mistake the Hoos took that game. The 97 yard drive was pedect. The defense had to make 2 stops including the game winning safety. Then the offense had to convert the 3rd and 4.
WSU made a ton of mistakes and left the door open and the Hoos ripped the door off the damn hinges and barged through
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Have seen this talked about in multiple other places, I do think the depth plays a part but I also believe itâs just part of Rudâs strategy to save a lot of his more exotic pressure looks for later in the game.
I have mixed feelings about that gameplan overall but it has worked to make us a much better 2nd half team this season compared to the past.
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He absolutely plays a near shell in tje first half and becomes Jim Johnson in the 4th.
Luckily they havenât trailed by more than 10 so far
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Where you do your rewatch? Still trying to watch the full game!
Yeah I guess you could make the argument itâs better to finish strong but it ends up evening out to us having a fairly average defense. And these first halfs where we basically just concede yards and let teams nickel and dime us down the field can be pretty frustrating.
Iâm of the opinion it shouldnât be a necessity to have to shell up like we do in the first half in order to play dominant in the 2nd, but maybe itâs a product of us still not being at the talent level required on that end and Rud picking his poison for how he wants the game sequence to go.
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I think itâs just Ruds nature. He sees himself as gaming the opposition. I agree Iâd prefer an agressive defense throughout. But as long as they arent giving up too much in the first half i guess its ok
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Philosophically, when you keep everything in front, itâs basically telling the offense from snap 1 that you are going to have to methodically manufacture drives. It might seem frustrating to us as fans, but it allows the defense to be truly opportunistic. When there are more plays, there are more opportunities for mistakes. Big reason why weâve been good at forcing turnovers is because we force long methodical drives which can frustrate opposing offenses. Like that boneheaded Miller Moss int? Not saying that was all on us, it was a horrific mistake, but that was on a 3rd and long. Moss prob doesnât feel the need to press and try and make that play if he doesnât feel like he has to put together a 10+ play drive every time his unit goes out there.
Also make no mistake, the scheme is very sound and can be more lockdown esque if (1) we are very fundamentally sound with tackling and wrapping up at the point of attack, and (2) our corners can effectively play both press and off coverage so that they are able to hold up when our defenseâs pattern-match principles convert to man: Giving Rud more time to disguise and the safeties more time to rob routes.
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I mean I get it philosophically, itâs not like itâs a strategy without merit. I just donât fully agree with it. The end result is still giving up an average amount of yards and an average amount of points, which is fine and statistically lines up with the level of talent our defense has, I just donât think that philosophy does much to elevate our play as a whole (it definitely does in the 2nd half).
And again going back to the issue of overall talent, our tackling and closing speed hasnât been nearly good enough to justify the cushion we give up at times. I understand you canât play a full game of press man and exotic blitzes, but it would be nice to not feel like weâre starting off games on our back foot defensively.
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These recaps have been 
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We played like crap and they maxed out for 3 quarters. Then we decided.
I mean this is all valid, and hopefully when we are able to get true high quality corners who can play both press and off (weâve been fundamentally sound tackling on the whole during Rudâs time which would need to continue) we can all see what this scheme can do when operating at peak efficiency because it truly is beautiful how much Rud will disguise and keep opposing QB/OCs on edge.
I will also add one thing that doesnât get talked about nearly enough when we are evaluating offensive and defensive systems/schemes. The primary purpose ofc is to win games, but you also need to run systems that properly âtrainâ the other unit. What do I mean by this? Well the defense that we run effectively prepares our offense to be really sound. It teaches/prepares our QBs and WRs to be sound in diagnosing disguise and defensive rotations due to how much Rud does that. It forces our WRâs to be very sharp with our spacing and route discipline because defenses that heavily utilize pattern-match/match-zone principles require our wideouts to be very precise with their timing, route spacing, and leverage. It gives the OL and RBâs reps in post snap recognition and blitz IDing.
It is not a coincidence in the slightest that one of our offenseâs greatest strengths has been our ability to be consistent and manufacture long and methodical drives. itâs what our defense trains our offense to do. Why has Elliott (very intentionally btw) adopted this approach? Bc Itâs what wins at the highest level (elite defenses do not give up explosives so you are gonna have to earn drives) which is what his ultimate goal to do here is.
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This is awesome, big kudos to the team that puts these together.
Also hilarious that the âhighlight reelâ for this game includes three false start penalties and a fair catch. 
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I think they were trying to highlight the energy from the crowd, which can tell ya, the crowd was electric late in that game. It was seriously awesome.
I wish I could post the vid, but my wife got took a video leading up to the safety and the play, what a great memory. My 7 year old son was losing his mind, heâs hooked lol
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@jwhelan33 ESPN2 will run it on Tuesday 10/21 at 10 pm EDT
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Incredible moment! Canât wait to experience this with my daughters
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I forget where I was listening to it but someone was saying after the FSU games the amount of kids under 20 who will have that memory ingrained in their mind and have that be their association with UVA football going forwards canât be understated.
Stuff like that makes be very emotional. Like Itâs one thing to talk about the crowd being loud and strong attendance etc. but when you create memories for kids, thatâs when you truly build momentum for a program. And I legitimately think itâs happening this year.
I think back to how I became a UVA fan. It started with football. Grew up in Richmond with two parents from NY who went to a small catholic college in the NE. Had zero affiliation with UVa outside of living 55 minutes away. Went to like 1 game per year before 2002. I would even say I liked UVA and VT equally before then, largely due to Vick. My dad got more into UVA since he went to the same HS as Al Groh and admired him greatly, and we ended up getting season tickets starting in 2003. My neighbors were also UVA alum with two sons a few years younger than me so they definitely had an influence too.
But if one moment sticks out in my mind as really hooking me on UVA football, it was probably the Wake game in 2003. I believe that was the first game we attended as season ticket holders (I can even remember what the tickets looked like). Conor Hughes hitting the 53 yarder to tie, then another to win. Then obviously the Tech game at the end of the year.
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