2018 Virginia Football Preview: Offseason has produced SERIOUS increase in team size

For more than a year, dating back to before the 2017 football season kicked off, one recurring theme coming from the Virginia Cavaliers has been size—and the need to get more of it.

Height and weight are two metrics of paramount importance to this coaching staff. (Even incurring their first NCAA infraction in pursuit of more information about recruits’ size.) After their first season going through an ACC schedule, the coaches realized just how far behind its peer programs UVA was in terms of size and strength. And the 2017 strength program showed plenty of big gains across the roster.

With 2018 camp now underway, those gains haven’t slowed one bit.

The 2018 roster is now up on VirginiaSports.com, with updated weights for the returning players. And there are some big, BIG jumps for players coming back.

Holy Isaac Buell, Batman! The Viking headlines the beefing up in Charlottesville with a 35-pound jump to get over 3 bills. Then there’s the 6-foot-5, 245-pound tight end ... wait, I’m sorry, I’m being told that’s PUNTER Lester Coleman with a 20-pound offseason weight gain. Bombs away, big leg.

Five offensive linemen added at least twenty pounds. For Tyler Fannin, Chris Glaser, and Ryan Nelson, their new sizes all clock in over the 300-pound threshold. Nelson and Glaser were both under 260 when they committed to Virginia; thanks to two years in the weight room and at the training table, they’re now battling for a starting tackle spot.

R.J. Proctor is now the biggest player on the roster at a mammoth 335 pounds. Ryan Swoboda also added twenty pounds to his 6-foot-10 frame and now clocks in at 290.

A handful of guys also lost weight, undoubtedly in an effort to reshape their physique. Offensive tackle Ryan Bischoff dropped 25 pounds, the most of any player, with fellow lineman Ben Knutson dropping 15.

The weights for incoming players show how seriously the class of 2018 took their target sizes as well.

Bobby Haskins leads the way—no surprise, given that he enrolled early in large part to, well, get larger. Jordan Redmond reporting at 320 pounds is HUGE news (pun intended), as it means he might have the size to play nose tackle this year and alleviate the Hoos’ defensive line depth worries.

One other new guy number to watch: Dylan Thompson. When he left Ohio State, Thompson was between 275 and 280. As of his last Instagram update, the defensive lineman was up to a jacked 315.

Thompson can report to UVA once he finishes (and passes) his summer classes in Columbus and officially graduates.

Having the right size and knowing what to do with it on the field are two separate issues. But at the very least, there’s more ACC-caliber size on the Virginia roster as we get closer to kickoff on September 1st.