Virginia
Darrius Bratton and the Virginia defense continue to prepare for the 2022 season. Photo Courtesy Jim Daves/Virginia Athletics Media Relations

When new coaches enter a program, there’s a choice to make on how much to give players and how fast to do it as new schemes are installed. Virginia defensive coordinator John Rudzinksi went with a fast and furious approach.

Beginning in the spring and running through the first half of preseason practices, Rudzinski has placed a lot of concepts in front of the players. UVA coach Tony Elliott joked after the first scrimmage that it’s almost like the defense has two full playbooks in use.

After the Hoos’ second scrimmage Friday, the defensive coaches will reduce the load and focus on what the players can execute best as the season approaches. Virginia hosts Richmond on Saturday, Sept. 3 at 12:30 p.m. for its opener.

“We’ve really had a firehose mentality with these guys,” Rudzinski said. “Then what we’ll do as a coaching staff as we start to get ready for the season is be really retrospective as far as what have we done really, really well in spring ball and fall camp and then let that be our package. That allows us to boil it down and ultimately try to put guys in the position where they can play the fastest, which I think can lead up to us playing the best defensive football.”

In general, the scheme tries to make opponents earn their way down the field with sustained drives of multiple plays. It’s a bend but don’t break style and Rudzinski brings a strong track record with him from Air Force.

In four years as the AFA defensive coordinator, he produced a top 20 defense for three straight years from 2019 through 2021. The Falcons ranked 19th (tie), 3rd, and 16th (tie) in scoring defense, 7th, 32nd, and 9th in run defense, 51st, 5th, and 18th in pass defense, and 17th, 6th, and 5th in total defense in 2019, 2020, and 2021 respectively.

Getting similar production at Virginia will require a big turnaround for a defense that struggled last season. The Hoos ranked 103rd (tie) in scoring defense and 123rd in run defense, 88th in pass defense, and 121st in total defense last season. The numbers ranked near the bottom of the 130 teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision.

The first scrimmage for UVA last Saturday did not start well in terms of turning that tide. The offense scored touchdowns on each of its first two drives. After that the defense improved its play and in the following Tuesday’s practice, the group contributed to a miserable day for the offense that saw six total turnovers.

Whether you’re analyzing the good or bad results, however, the film is a valuable tool as Rudzinski and his staff decide where to aim that fire hose in the next two weeks.

“I think the scrimmage, we did start slow in the first few series,” Rudzinski said. “There’s a lot to teach from those situations. It’s always tough because you’re moving different guys in and out of those scrimmage situations [and] playing with multiple groups so it’s always really hard to get a true feel of really what the flow of the game was until you watch the film. There was a lot of things for us to learn from and we’re going to continue to grow and learn. That’s why we’re in camp.”

Darrius Bratton Settling Into Potentially Key Role For Virginia

During the coaching transition and offseason months, a lot of focus with the defense has surrounded the ‘Bandit’ position that comes with Coach Rudzinki’s new scheme. That spot is a hybrid defensive end-linebacker player that exists within the base defense and sub packages.

There’s another hybrid role in play too. It doesn’t have a special name, but when the Cavaliers go to sub packages there will be an extra defensive back on the field. That fifth back has been described as or is used frequently like a third safety. It’s sort of a nickel back. It really is a hybrid spot between a safety and a linebacker, though.

“It’s a hybrid spot that they’ve got to do a lot of different things in the defensive scheme, but shoot we’re going to have to be really, really good at that SAM linebacker spot,” Rudzinski said. “What we’ll do is find a way to put somebody out there that can go over and stand over [a receiver at times] and hopefully disrupt some timing there for the quarterback.”

With that role carrying a lot of importance, the Hoos have currently turned to one of their most experienced players to be in the mix. Darrius Bratton, entering his sixth year in the Virginia program and fifth year of playing time, obviously has seen a lot of college football during his career. That combined with good size and speed at 6’0” and 193 pounds makes him an interesting player to put in a hybrid role.

“He gives you a lot of diversity in what you can do schematically,” Rudzinski said. “He’s a great young man.”

While the scheme and coaching staff are new, the role is not a completely foreign concept for Bratton. He said he played similar spot late in the 2018 season for the Hoos. That year saw a lot of attrition on the defensive line and the Virginia defense threw a lot of 2-4-5 looks at opponents on the way to 8 wins that included a Belk Bowl victory.

Bratton said he’s comfortable in the hybrid spot, but also versatile enough to flip into other secondary positions if the need arises. For now, he’s focused on the hybrid spot that could be a key part of the UVA D.

“I’m pretty versatile, I really can play whatever the team wants me to play but I’m pretty settled in the spot that I am and really getting comfortable there,” Bratton said. “I’m just really happy and ready to got out and perform for my team.”

Virginia Scholarships

The team shared some down time with a Karaoke session among team members. It turned out, however, that coach Tony Elliott stole the show. And it wasn’t his singing.

Elliott took the moment to get on the mic and announce that junior quarterback Jared Rayman and senior receiver Josh Clifford had received scholarships.

Rayman (6’2”, 195) earned a reputation last fall as a scout team dynamo, often mimicking the upcoming opponent’s quarterback. He appeared in four games as well as a holder on the field goal unit. He also worked as the back-up quarterback this spring and continues to take reps in preseason practice. He played for Chris Slade at Pace Academy in Georgia.

Clifford (6’1”, 198), meanwhile, has appeared in six games the past two seasons. Last year, those chances came in the blowout wins against William & Mary and Duke. He played on a Virginia 2A State Championship team at Glenvar High School in Salem.

Extra Points

  • It’s probably not surprising, but quarterback Brennan Armstrong just exudes confidence during practice.
  • Cavalier legend Ahmad Hawkins mentioned on a recent podcast that receiver Dillon Tennyson (5’7”, 170) has put together a good preseason. He’s easy to spot in receiver drills because of his quickness getting in and out of breaks.
  • The protective jersey rotation continues. Among the players limited in practice Thursday were Ben Smiley III (6’4”, 274) and Devontae Davis (6’4”, 306).
  • Safety Langston Long (6’3”, 215) said that the large group of sophomore defensive backs push each other constantly to try to bring out the best in everyone.
  • Running backs coach Keith Gaither does not let ball security details go. In the handful of practices with media access, I’ve heard him repeatedly emphasize where and how the ball should be held. Plus, he’s made guys redo reps when it’s not right.
  • The old Virginia favorite - play-action bootleg to a dragging receiver - should make a reappearance in this scheme. Somewhere, the likes of John Phillips, Tom Santi, and company are probably smiling.
  • Rudzinski noted that in order to be a defense that tries to cause fumbles, you have to be a good tackling team first. If the first defender wraps up to secure a tackle, then the second and third defender arriving can try to strip or punch the ball as they help finish the play.
  • Rudzinski said that Nick Jackson has shown to be a leader and a “tremendous football player.”
  • The Hoos are scheduled for a Friday scrimmage followed by two off days this weekend. That will lead to a preseason shift next week as the work to fine tune things and dial in for the opener with Richmond begins.

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