The Virginia football team is closing in fast on the season opener. UVA hosts NC State at Scott Stadium on Saturday, August 29 at 3:30 p.m. It’s a rare occasion of the season opener also serving as the ACC opener for the Hoos, which last occurred in 2019 and 2003 with the exception of the pandemic-altered 2020 season.

The Cavaliers finished with a program-record 11 wins last season, which included a win against Missouri in the Gator Bowl. That marked the first season to end with a W since the 2018 Belk Bowl victory against South Carolina. Virginia lost just three games all season, but one of those did come against NC State (it was a non-con game last season, but the ACC’s shift to a nine-game league schedule flipped this rematch into the conference column.)

Of course, much has changed since last fall. Some of the key playmakers from quarterback Chandler Morris to safety Devin Neal and others have departed. Plus, the Hoos brought in more than 40 new players between the transfer portal and high school recruiting. ACC media members picked Virginia to finish 6th in the preseason poll as a result.

With that as the backdrop and kickoff getting closer and closer, there are a lot of previews popping up on YouTube so the social media sweep starts there. Many diehard fans have heard or know the close-to-home perspective on the Hoos, but what about from a zoomed out view? The sweep rounded up some videos.

First up, the ACC Digital Network has been rotating through previews for teams from the conference. Host Evan Lepler and analyst Wes Bryant cover the Cavaliers. Coach Tony Elliott, Beau Pribula, and Kam Robinson join the show that was filmed in Charlotte around the ACC Kickoff event.

From ESPN, the Always College Football show with Greg McElroy dove into an ACC season preview. The approach was to put teams in tiers. Where did UVA fall? The video is teed up to the segment on the Wahoos.

Also from ESPN, the College GameDay Podcast looks at some of the ACC in Part I of a preview. Pete Thamel, Dan Wetzel, and Ryan McGee get into UVA around 48 minutes in, which is set below.

The Cover 3 Podcast has been going team by team as well. The video is set to start with Virginia at the 34:05 mark where Chip Patterson, Tom Fornelli, and Bud Elliott discuss the team.

The Voice of College Football hosted by Mark Rogers released an episode this preseason looking at the Hoos too. Joined by Jacquie Franciulli from 247 Sports, the episode is titled “Beau Pribula has Virginia dreaming big in 2026 - Can he deliver?”

On the GameDay Garage channel, the On Campus Blitz show brought on David Teel from The Virginian-Pilot to help break down a comparision between Virginia and Virginia Tech.

Joe Broback’s College Football Show took 10 minutes to look at Virginia as well. There’s some out of date information in there (Zion Wilson signed with the Philadephia Eagles), but it does give a quick overview of the team.

Throwing in one more with hosts identified only as Dalton and Nick because they seem surprised by the UVA QB choice. The Everything College Football channel looked at Virginia for 25 minutes.

More Thoughts On The Hoos

After an 11-win season set a program record last fall, there seems to be more preseason interest in figuring out the Cavaliers this fall. Everyone wants to know if that campaign was a flash in the pan or the sign of something more consistent settling in. Suddenly Virginia pops up in places that it hadn’t in recent years.

Take this College Football Zone Tweet for example that asks about teams with the best shot of winning the ACC. It dropped a Virginia logo in the discussion right off the top.


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There was also this post from Zak Bigelow, who describes himself as a former college football staffer. He gave a graphic-based look at the Hoos, but notes that “Football is won in the trenches, and they got trenches.”


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Fan Favorites

Some long-time fan favorites from the basketball team popped up on X (Twitter) this week. Check out the posts below about Kyle Guy, Ty Jerome, and Trey Murphy III.


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