When the Virginia football team kicks off its season on Saturday against NC State at Scott Stadium, some players could have a slightly different look on the field. That’s because a new safety rule is now in place in the NCAA.
The National Football Foundation (NFF), College Hall of Fame, and the College Football Officiating (CFO) released rules updates and changes for the 2026-2027 season earlier in August. Among them is that helmet attachments that enhance players safety are now allowed during game play. Examples of this safety technology include the Guardian Cap and SAFR Helmet Cover, which are soft and padded shells placed over a player’s existing helmet.
Per Guardian Sports, these caps are designed to “absorb impact force, reduce repetitive sub-concussive blows, and lower the risk of head injuries and concussions during practices and games.” It may not be noticeable form the stands, but up-close shots on television will capture the cover, which “must be of the same color and design” as the rest of the team’s helmets on the field. The NFL first allowed these caps during game play beginning with the 2024 season, but it had mandated their use in practices for certain positions beginning in 2022.
Virginia routinely uses soft helmet covers across positions during practices already. Photos like the one above show players with the protective cap in practice sessions. In the background of the photo, you can see multiple players from both offense and defense with the caps.
Cavalier coach Tony Elliott said that he would follow the guidance of Kelli Pugh, UVA Senior Associate Athletics Director for Sports Medicine, and the team medical staff for use of the covers in game play. If a player wants to wear a cap cover beyond that, Elliott said it will be an individual’s personal preference that makes the call. The Hoos already have that approach with knee braces.
“That’ll be starting with the medical staff if they decide that somebody needs it from a protection standpoint, and then absolutely. Miss Kelli [Pugh] knows she’s the boss anyway, whatever she says for player safety,” Elliott said. “That’s what we do and if a player feels strongly about it and he wants to wear it, then I’m not going to stop him. I’m not going to force him, kind of like the knee brace issue. We wear them in practice and then your decision when you get to the game on if you want to wear them, or not. So that’ll be how we approach that.”
Devon Baxter Still Flashing
Early in training camp, junior Devon Baxter had caught the attention of coaches with his play on the edge of the defense. Of course, those first reports came before the Cavaliers had gone to full pads and ramped up their season preparation.
The flashes continued once the Hoos cranked up their work, though. Elliott said during the final week of the training camp portion of the preseason that Baxter had shown off some physicality and a high motor for the defense.
Baxter joined the Cavaliers after two years at Michigan where he did not see game action as he battled injuries, but the moments the coaches have seen so far in practice match what they liked about him as a high school recruit. UVA recruited the 6’6”, 244-pounder heavily out of Gwynn Park High School in Maryland where he had 55 tackles with 13 sacks as a senior. He finished as a 4-star recruit in the 247Sports, which also rated him as the No. 16 edge rusher nationally. He’s worked at the Bandit spot (Hybrid defensive end/linebacker) during the preseason.
“Baxter’s had a good camp. We didn’t know much about him on the field this spring just because he was down coming off the shoulder injury. But he flashes,” Elliott said. “He can get to the quarterback. He’s tough. He’s physical. He plays with a high motor. Those are the things that I like about him. And he’s still got a ton of upside because his body is still not fully developed and he can get really, really big and maintain his quickness and athletic ability. So I think he’s got a chance to be a really, really good player long term. And right now he’s taking the right steps in the developmental process to put him there. And then also that’s going to result in being a guy that’s going to have an opportunity to play and be productive for us this season.”
Analytics Impact
The Grady Bunch and the running back direct snap became staples of the UVA offense in recent seasons, as outlined in this Sabre preseason article. Those formations, of course, get the most attention in 4th-and-1 or 4th-and-2 type situations or maybe on the doorstep of the end zone.
But what do those short yardage pieces do to third down? In earlier eras of college football, a 3rd-and-long or 3rd-and-medium down and distance overwhelmingly would have been an automatic passing down. Or, in some cases, maybe even a give up down where a draw play leads to a punt and the field position game. With that, a personnel group may have included a ‘third down back’ that specialized in pass protection by picking up blitzes or catching short passes.
As analytics have pushed going for it on fourth down more, that ‘third down back’ concept has altered the concept a bit. One, teams can now make a third down call that gets close to a first down and sets up a fourth down short yardage situation more often. Two, coaches may now want more running backs that can do everything in the game vs. specializing in something specific.
“I think it’s probably changed more so because of analytics and the ability to go for it or the encouragement to go for it on fourth down,” Elliott said. “So that changes some of your philosophy. ... Whereas like, okay, we get to 3rd-and-5, right? It’s a passing down [in the past]. Well, now 3rd-and-5 can be a run down, all right? And so, which back do you want in there? I think you need guys that have more versatility because of the analytics and that also now allows you schematically to be a little bit more multiple, which takes or creates some more guesswork for the opponent because you can do a lot of different things on third down.”
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