Gulliver Prep placekicker and Virginia football signee Will Bettridge, pictured here with former Virginia football linebacker and current Gulliver Prep head varsity football coach Earl Sims. ~ This photo and the photo on the main page courtesy of Will Bettridge.

In 2021, Brendan Farrell capably filled Virginia football's placekicking void left by Brian Delaney, who departed Charlottesville following the 2020 season. Farrell, who had not played a game since walking on his first year in 2019, made 11-of-13 field goals, drilling all 10 tries from under 40 yards (4-4 from under 30, 6-6 from the 30-39-yard range).

Led by Farrell, who could have three years of eligibility remaining because of the COVID year, Virginia’s 2022 placekicking unit figures to be strong. Redshirt sophomore Justin Duenkel, who began 2021 as the starter but was sidelined for an extended period because of an early season injury, is also expected back. The unit may include Hunter Pearson, who came to UVA on a scholarship but has not played since his true freshman campaign in 2018. Rounding out the group is highly regarded placekicker prospect Will Bettridge, who signed with the Hoos last month.

“I wouldn’t say it’s nice or a bad thing,” Bettridge answered when asked about having experienced, proven players ahead of him as a first year. “Just can’t wait to get in the room and compete.”

The latest Gulliver Prep (Miami, FL) product to sign with Virginia, Bettridge helped the Raiders to a 9-2 record in his final high school season. According to MaxPreps, the Kornblue no. 1 placekicker in the 2022 Class made 11-of-16 field goals, including a 51-yarder, and was 35-of-40 on extra points. Bettridge was the team’s punter too, averaging 38.3 yards per punt in 24 tries with a long of 63. On kickoffs, the talented prospect booted 61 touchbacks in 70 attempts.

“Senior Season went great,” Bettridge said. “Didn’t end the way we wanted but it was great to spend more time with my brothers. We lost in the state quarterfinals in a tough way. Hit some great field goals and great kickoffs this year and was able to just have fun after already being committed.”

Offseason training is well underway for the future Hoo, who provided a glimpse of what a typical training day looks like as well as what aspects he is looking to improve before enrolling on Grounds next summer.

“A typical training day would be going out to kick,” Bettridge said. “Before I leave to go kick I would do some stretching to get me loose. Would then get to the field and stretch some more and do some field goal steps with no ball to make sure everything is fluid and working on my steps and tempo. I would then hit some no step field goals then some one step from the sideline. Never really care about how far I go, just want to make sure my technique is where it needs to be and my tempo is good. I think before I arrive at UVA I need to work on my timing. My timing will be quicker now with a D1 snapper and quicker and faster guys coming after me.”

In terms of range, Bettridge said his “longest kick in practice is 65 and in a game is 51. I think currently in an in-game situation I would feel comfortable like 57 and in. Feel like I can be 100% from there.”

A Virginia pledge since July 8, 2021, Bettridge was surprised when Bronco Mendenhall announced his resignation shortly after the season ended. Virginia moved quickly in the hiring of former Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott, who had less than a week before the Early Signing Period began to convince commitments to stay.

“After talking with Coach Elliott after the coaching change he gave me some reassurance and some of his thoughts that he wanted to put in the program and I knew I wanted to be on board after that,” said Bettridge. “UVA is the best place for me on the field because I think I can come in early and compete for the spot and learn from a lot of great guys in the room. It also fits my needs academically and is very close to family I have.”

Speaking further on Coach Elliott, Bettridge said, “I think Coach Elliott is great. He knows what he’s doing and his mindset is perfect for UVA. He knows what will make us better. He has a championship background and he will get that mindset into all the players. I talked with him one-on-one. We talked about me as a person and he got to know me more. I vouched for [UVA football analyst for special teams] Drew Meyer as he went into the coaching search for new coaches.”

“[Elliott’s] main message was that we are the guys he wants and before he spoke to us he knew a lot about us, meaning he did his research quickly and was on top of things very fast,” Bettridge continued. “He outlined some of his thoughts and plans for UVA and wanted us to be all in with him.”

Reassured on the decision he made five months earlier, Bettridge enjoyed National Signing Day. He was one of 10 student-athletes – nine high school prospects plus one transfer – to sign with the Cavaliers during the Early Signing Period.

“Signing day was a great experience,” said Bettridge, who follows in the footsteps of Mandy Alonso and D’Sean Perry, Gulliver Prep alums who signed with Virginia. “I was able to sign alongside eight of my close high school friends. It was amazing to see all of our hard work finally pay off.”

Bettridge says he “most likely” will try to make another visit to Virginia, primarily to get a better feel for and develop face-to-face relationships with the new coaching staff, particularly the new special teams coordinator.