Virginia football vs North Carolina GAME THREAD

Virginia Cavaliers vs. North Carolina Tar Heels

HOW TO WATCH THE ‘HOOS:

Location: Chapel Hill, NC
Date: October 21st, 2023
Time: 6:30 p.m. ET
Channel: The CW Network

Hey! The ‘Hoos got into the W column the last time out! Now after beating W&M, Tony Elliott’s squad will look to stage a massive upset on the road against #10 UNC. We’ve previewed the matchup with our typical 3 players, 2 matchups, and 1 prediction to watch for. Additionally, we put together our five takeaways from the first half of the 2023 season, looking ahead to the final six games.

All of the rest of our UVA football coverage can be found here!

Kickoff is at 6:30 — leave your pre, in, and post-game thoughts here and be sure to check back in for plenty of mid and post game content later today, tomorrow, and next week!

We’ll also be active on Twitter throughout the game and all season long so follow along on their for our staff’s live reactions.

Streaking the Lawn — @STL_UVA

Zach Carey — @Zach_Carey_

Dan Siegel — @DanSiegel_

Ryan Reese — @HoosOn_First

Ben Wieland — @BenWieland

Paul Guttman — @Tiki_UVA

Corbin Lathrop — @CorbinLathrop

John Kurcina — @JohnKurcina

Here are a few game notes from UVA:

INSIDE SATURDAY’S MATCHUP

• Dubbed as the South’s Oldest Rivalry, Saturday marks the 128th all-time meeting between Virginia and North Carolina, a series that was first played in 1892. It is tied with Georgia/Auburn (128 games) for the second-most played rivalry in FBS. Only Wisconsin/Minnesota (131 games) have played more games against one another in FBS history.

• Virginia squares off against its second nationally-ranked opponent of the 2023 season. The Tar Heels are the first top-10 opponent UVA has faced since squaring off against then No. 7 Notre Dame at Scott Stadium in 2021. UVA’s last victory over a top-10 opponent came against then No. 4 Florida State, 26-21 in 2005.

• North Carolina (6-0) and Florida State (6-0) are the only two remaining unbeaten teams in ACC play this season. UVA hasn’t won against an undefeated ACC opponent with three wins or more since topping then-No. 12 Georgia Tech 24-21 in 2011.

• Saturday will be a matchup of the ACC’s top passing offense in North Carolina (317.0 yards per game) and a UVA defense allowing 202.8 yards per game through the air, the fifth fewest in the ACC. The last time on the field, Virginia allowed just 72 passing yards against William & Mary on Oct. 7, the fewest allowed by the Cavaliers in a game since the 2021 season.

• The Tar Heels are ranked in the top-10 in their meeting against Virginia for the first time since 1997. The Cavaliers upset North Carolina as the No. 6 team in the country in their 1996 clash, 20-17 at Scott Stadium.

TOP STORYLINES

• No. 10 North Carolina is one of three nationally-ranked opponents left on UVA’s schedule - No. 16 Duke (11/18) and No. 21 Louisville (11/9). Including UNC, the combined record of UVA’s final six opponents is 27-11. Four of last five opponents have been either unbeaten or had one loss coming into the contest against UVA.

• Saturday will be the fifth time ever UVA has played UNC coming off a bye week. The Cavaliers are 2-2 against the Tar Heels after a bye week. Virginia has won three of its last four games coming off a bye, including a 16-9 win at Georgia Tech last season, Tony Elliott’s first ACC win as head coach at UVA.

• Virginia has owned double-digit leads in four of its six games this season. The Cavaliers have been on the wrong end of three games decided by three points or less this season. In the first 16 games of Tony Elliott’s tenure, the Cavaliers have been a part of seven games decided by a field goal or less and are 1-6 in those contests.

• Five true freshmen, CB Dre Walker, WR Jaden Gibson, QB Anthony Colandrea, WR Suderian Harrison and LB Kam Robinson have started games for the Virginia this season. A total of 10 true freshmen have seen action this year and 25 Cavaliers have made their collegiate debuts.

• In Malik Washington and Malachi Fields, UVA has one of the most productive wide receiving duos in the country. Their combined 1,086 receiving yards are the seventh most of any combo in the country. Washington and Fields have teamed up to catch 75 passes, including 44 from Washington, the third most of any ACC wideout.