UVA ushers in a new era of football at the acc kickoff
July 27, the University of Virginia participated in the ACC Kickoff. Coach Tony Elliott, Brennan Armstrong, Nick Jackson, and Keytaon Thompson all took the stage for the Hoos.
Dressed in custom kicks designed by Lindsay Huff, former UVA basketball star Jay Huff’s wife, the Cavaliers had a clear message for the press: 2022 is the beginning of a new era for UVA football- one focused on team success.
Coach Tony Elliott was the first to take the podium. Elliott opened up by discussing the impact of starting quarterback Brennan Armstrong deciding to stay at Virginia, despite having other NFL options. The first-year coach said that by Brennan deciding to stay, “he brings initial credibility to me by making a decision to stay. Obviously, he had opportunities to move on and transition to the next level. So he brings that immediate validation because he believes -- showing his belief in me to the rest of the locker room.”
This credibility will be incredibly important as he came into a disjointed locker room following the Bronco Mendenhall era.
While there will of course be challenges with taking over a new program, Elliott’s former head coach Dabo Swinney provided him encouragement on the first day of the ACC Media Kickoff, saying that UVA was the “right fit” for his former assistant. In response to these comments, Elliott said that while his initial conversations with Virginia didn’t make this apparent, his follow up conversations with Athletic Director Carla Williams sealed the deal.
When searching for a relationship based program, he said that these off the record conversations were all he needed to know Virginia was the right place for him.
Tony Elliott’s most important response came with regard to Virginia’s offensive line. When asked about the state of the offensive line, he responded, “that is the biggest question.” He continued, “the only regret that I have is that I didn't do a good job of recruiting those guys that left when I first got to UVA.”
While it certainly would have been good to retain the veteran talent the Cavaliers lost, Elliott is still hopeful about what the offensive line can do this season, and mentioned several players by name.
I'm excited about the opportunities that we have, so we have guys that have some experience. Just not a lot of it. Leech is a guy that we've been really, really counting on, and he had a great -- he had a great offseason, great spring. He showed some versatility. Logan Taylor is a big body that's very, very talented coming off of injury. He was limited in the spring. Then we have Devine. Devine is an older guy. A veteran guy. He hasn't played as much, so there's three guys that have some experience. Just not a lot of it.
Though he was not able to keep all of UVA’s talent at the University, he did note some of the acquisitions he was able to make, like grad transfer John Paul Flores. As he mentioned, though, Virginia’s biggest issue with regard to its offensive line this year will undoubtedly be depth. Elliott commented, “We brought in some ready-made guys that we believe can transition quickly, and we have some developmental guys on the offensive line that we think over time are going to be really good players. So the key is can we get two or three of those guys that we brought in this summer to be ready to be depth guys, so that the guys that are starting don't have to play every single snap? But they're going to have to grow up fast.
While Elliott’s analysis of the Cavalier offensive line was notable, Virginia’s biggest statement of the ACC Media Kickoff was that this year, it’s all about team success. Each of the three Cavalier players that spoke, Armstrong, Jackson, and Thompson, all made this abundantly clear.
When asked about what his goals were for the season, with regard to how close he is to the passing record, quarterback Brennan Armstrong had this to say.
“It's not personal for me. No personal goal. That's not the reason why I came back. It was always the team goal stuff. I feel like we just have more to give, more wins, to have more of a better season I feel like. I just feel like it was a team thing that we didn't accomplish that I thought what we could accomplish, and I wanted to give it one more shot.”
Upon being asked about how he will improve upon other stats after leading the league in tackles last season, leading linebacker Nick Jackson had a similar response.
“Kind of going off what B.A. said. It's not really about me individually this year. It's not really about stats. I think stats just come with the game, but just leading my team, just trying to get to the Coastal Championship, each game at a time, and then get to the ACC Championship. That's the goal. Just every single day just helping to be a leader, just being a resource to my teammates so that we can all improve and collectively perform as a defense and take it to the next level as a defense.”
Star wide receiver Keytaon Thompson echoed these sentiments, when asked about what he wants people to know about him, saying, “one of the most important things, I guess I would have to say I'm just -- I pride myself on being a really good teammate and being there for my guys and trying to make a play for them whenever need be. Also, off the field as student-athletes we go through a lot and a lot of people don't necessarily get it or understand it, but you know student-athletes are under stress a lot of times, and I try to be there for my guys off the field as much as possible just to try to make sure that they're having a good experience and that they're happy and in a good space mentally because I've been in college a long time, and I have seen a lot. I've been through a lot. I just really want to be there for my guys.”
It is hard not to get excited about what the 2022-23 Virginia football season holds when you hear what these players have to say about their team mentality and state of the program. In short, Nick Jackson said it best, “Getting Coach Elliott has been electric, honestly. You can feel the buzz around campus on the grounds, and just having him, he has changed a lot.”
While questions about the offensive line are still lingering, the Virginia football program and culture are definitely energized following the ACC Kickoff.