NCAAF Game Recap - Virginia at Pittsburgh
Sat Aug 31, 2019 7:30 PM EDT

GATec
14
Clem
52
F
Duke
3
Bama
42
F
UGA
30
Vand
6
F
Hou
31
Okla
49
F
FlAtl
21
OSU
45
F
GaSo
3
LSU
55
F
MidTN
21
Mich
40
F
ND
35
Lou
17
F
LT
14
Tex
45
F
Oreg
21
Aub
27
F
TxSt
7
TxAM
41
F
EWa
14
Wash
47
F
Utah
30
BYU
12
F
Idaho
7
PSU
79
F
FlaAM
0
UCF
62
F
Tuls
7
MSU
28
F
Wisc
49
SoFL
0
F
MiaOH
14
Iowa
38
F
NoIa
26
IASt
29
F(2OT)
Syr
24
Lib
0
F
NMS
7
WaSt
58
F
SoAl
21
Neb
35
F
NW
7
Stan
17
F
Alb
21
C Mi
38
F
UCLA
14
Cin
24
F
RMor
10
Buff
38
F
Wagn
21
UConn
24
F
Mor
3
BGSU
46
F
C Ark
35
W Ky
28
F
GWebb
28
UNCC
49
F
JacSt
14
SouLA
35
F
AlaSt
19
UAB
24
F
FLInt
14
Tul
42
F
SDSU
21
MIN
28
F
NoCol
18
SJSU
35
F
Kent
7
AzSt
30
F
Rice
7
Army
14
F
UMass
21
Rut
48
F
UtSt
35
Wake
38
F
Purd
31
NEV
34
F
ColSt
31
Colo
52
F
OkSt
52
OreSt
36
F
Miss
10
Mem
15
F
MissSt
38
ULLaf
28
F
InSt
17
Kans
24
F
Akr
3
Ill
42
F
ECU
6
NCSt
34
F
How
0
MD
79
F
Toled
24
KY
38
F
Ind
34
Ball
24
F
Boise
36
FlaSt
31
F
JMU
13
WVU
20
F
URI
20
Ohio
41
F
Buck
12
Temp
56
F
HolyC
7
Navy
45
F
Colg
7
AF
48
F
GASt
38
Tenn
30
F
SCar
20
UNC
24
F
E Mi
30
CoCar
23
F
ETenn
7
App
42
F
MonSt
10
TxTch
45
F
PorSt
13
Ark
20
F
VaTec
28
BC
35
F
SamHu
31
NM
39
F
(N/A)
7
UTSA
35
F
Camp
14
Troy
43
F
UCDav
13
Cal
27
F
VMI
17
Marsh
56
F
IllSt
10
NIU
24
F
Monm
13
WestMI
48
F
AlcSt
10
SMiss
38
F
Nich
14
K St
49
F
SFA
17
Bayl
56
F
SMU
37
ArkSt
30
F
Norf
21
OD
24
F
MIZ
31
Wyo
37
F
Abil
31
NorTx
51
F
UVA
30
Pitt
14
F
Gram
9
ULMon
31
F
HBU
34
UTEP
36
F
ArkPB
7
TCU
39
F
Web
0
SDSU
6
F
SoUt
23
UNLV
56
F
Fres
23
USC
31
F

Aug 31, 2019, 7:30 PM EDT

Final

1

2

3

4

T

Virginia (1-0)

10

3

10

7

30

Pittsburgh (0-1)

0

14

0

0

14

Cavaliers ride Perkins, defense to 30-14 win over Pitt
Sun Sep 1, 2019 12:32 AM

PITTSBURGH (AP) Down a point at the half on the road against a team it knew it had to beat if it wanted to legitimately contend in the Atlantic Coast Conference, Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall wondered how his players would react.

The answer may have provided the foundation for what the Cavaliers hope is a breakout season. Virginia overwhelmed Pittsburgh in the second half of a 30-14 victory on Saturday night, a performance in which the Cavaliers showed Mendenhall how far they've come in his three-plus years on the job.

"The program just looks more seasoned," Mendenhall said. "There weren't the wild ups and the wild downs and the crazy miscues. It just looks like we are maturing, a more seasoned program."

One that finally pushed back after largely getting pushed around by the Panthers since Pitt joined the ACC in 2013. The Panthers won five of the previous six meetings largely by manhandling Virginia when it mattered. Not this time. The Cavaliers sacked Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett four times, picked him off twice and rarely let him get comfortable.

"We knew each game was going to come down to who was more physical, who wants it more," Virginia quarterback Bryce Perkins said. "That's exactly what happened. The last few years, they were more physical than us. I think this year we made an emphasis to be more physical than them."

Perkins threw for 181 yards and two touchdowns and the Cavaliers (1-0, 1-0 ACC) took advantage of a series of Panther miscues to win in Pittsburgh for the first time in program history. Perkins found Chris Sharp for a 2-yard score in the first quarter after Virginia blocked a punt and connected with Hasise Dubois on a 13-yard touchdown in the third quarter following an interception by Matt Gahm. Perkins also ran for 44 yards and Virginia's defense knocked around Pickett, who had an uneven night operating new offensive coordinator Mark Whipple's more pass-heavy attack for the first time.

Pickett attempted a career-high 41 passes, completing 21 of them for 185 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Pickett spent large portions of the night on the run as Pitt's offensive line - featuring four first-year starters -struggled to keep the Cavaliers at bay.

"That's what happens when you're throwing it a little bit more is they're going to come after you a little bit more," Panthers coach Pat Narduzzi said. "So that goes with the territory. We've got to learn how to pick that stuff up. Kenny took some hits today. We can't let our quarterback take hits like that."

The Panthers (0-1, 0-1) are coming off a surprising Coastal Division title last fall, when they emerged from a rocky start to become the sixth different team in as many seasons. The Cavaliers - coming off an 8-5 mark in 2018, including an impressive win over South Carolina in the Belk Bowl - were tabbed as the favorites heading into 2019 thanks in large part to Perkins and a defense led by cornerback Bryce Hall.

Virginia certainly looked ready to live up to the hype, particularly after halftime. The Cavaliers shut Pitt out after the break with Pickett absorbing a month's worth of hits in the span of three hours.

"The pressure we put on them had him frazzled," said Virginia safety Joey Blount, who had an interception to go with two sacks. "He was taking some hard hits. I thought on some plays he wasn't going to get up. I give him kudos for the resilience that he had to keep going forward but I think it had a cumulative effect on him and the team."

REINFORCEMENTS

Virginia expects to have H-Backs Tavares Kelly and Billy Kemp back next week. Both sat out the opener after violating team rules. Wide receiver Dejon Brissett is also expected back after dealing with an undisclosed injury.

THE TAKEAWAY

Virginia: The defense - and not Perkins - might be the biggest reason for optimism in Charlottesville. The Cavaliers mixed up coverages and blitz schemes brilliantly and the front three spent most of the night operating on Pitt's side of the line of scrimmage. Pitt's four running backs - A.J. Davis, Todd Sibley, V'Lique Carter and Vincent Davis - averaged just 3.4 yards per carry.

Pitt: The Panthers hired Whipple to reinvigorate a passing game that was one of the least effective in the FBS last season. The early returns were equal parts promising and problematic. There were times when receivers broke free down field, but either Pickett overthrew them or they dropped it. A bigger issue going forward? Finding a way to make sure Pickett doesn't endure the kind of punishment he took against Virginia.

UP NEXT

Virginia: Welcomes former Cavaliers coach Mike London and William & Mary to Scott Stadium on Friday. London went 27-46 at Virginia from 2010-15.

Pitt: Hosts Mid-American Conference preseason favorite Ohio (1-0) next Saturday. The Panthers lead the all-time series with the Bobcats 7-1.

---

More AP college football: https://apnews.com/tag/Collegefootball and http://www.twitter.com/AP-Top25

Passing

UVA Att Cmp % TD-Pa Yds-Pa LgPa Int Rat
B. Perkins 34 20 58.8 2 181 33 0 92.9
Pitt Att Cmp % TD-Pa Yds-Pa LgPa Int Rat
K. Pickett 41 21 51.2 1 185 59 2 51.4

Rushing

UVA Att Yds-Ru Avg LgRu TDRu
W. Taulapapa 10 66 6.6 14 1
B. Perkins 18 44 2.4 27 0
Pitt Att Yds-Ru Avg LgRu TDRu
A. Davis 8 25 3.1 16 1
T. Sibley Jr. 7 23 3.3 8 0

Receiving

UVA Rec Yds-Rc Avg LgRc TD-Rc
H. Dubois 4 45 11.3 27 1
J. Reed 7 34 4.9 14 0
Pitt Rec Yds-Rc Avg LgRc TD-Rc
A. Davis 2 65 32.5 59 0
M. Ffrench 6 54 9.0 16 0

Fumbles

UVA F FL
W. Taulapapa 1 0
H. Dubois 1 0

Returning

UVA KR Avg KRTD LgKR PR Avg TD LgPR
J. Reed 2 24.0 0 30 0 0 0
N. Taylor 0 0 0 1 2.0 0 0
Pitt KR Avg KRTD LgKR PR Avg TD LgPR
M. Ffrench 1 26.0 0 26 1 0.0 0 0

Punting

UVA Punt Yds Avg LgPu
N. Griffin 4 182 45.5 49
Pitt Punt Yds Avg LgPu
K. Christodoulou 4 172 43.0 48

Takeaways

UVA Int Yds InTD
M. Gahm 1 2 0
J. Blount 1 9 0

Team Stats Comparison

UVA Pitt
Points For 30 14
Total Yards 310 263
Rushing Yards 129 78
Passing Yards 181 185
Passing Completions / Attempts 20/34 21/41
Turnovers 0 2
Interceptions Thrown 0 2
Fumbles - Lost 2/0 0/0
First Downs 20 15
Penalties - Yards 3/35 5/51
Time Of Possession 16:16 44:44
Third Down Conversions/Attempts 7/15 7/16
Fourth Down Conversions/Attempts 0/0 0/1
Punts - Average Yards 4/46 5/34

Scoring Summary

1st Quarter UVA Pitt
UVA 06:43 FG Brian Delaney 39 yd FG 3 0
UVA 08:49 TD Chris Sharp 2 yd pass from Bryce Perkins (Brian Delaney kick) 10 0
2nd Quarter UVA Pitt
Pitt 01:31 TD A.J. Davis 2 yd run (Alex Kessman kick) 10 7
UVA 04:41 FG Brian Delaney 36 yd FG 13 7
Pitt 14:22 TD Tre Tipton 3 yd pass from Kenny Pickett (Alex Kessman kick) 13 14
3rd Quarter UVA Pitt
UVA 03:06 FG Brian Delaney 45 yd FG 16 14
UVA 06:37 TD Hasise Dubois 13 yd pass from Bryce Perkins (Brian Delaney kick) 23 14
4th Quarter UVA Pitt
UVA 14:28 TD Wayne Taulapapa 10 yd run (Brian Delaney kick) 30 14

Game Information

Stadium: Heinz Field, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Attendance: 47,144
Game Time:
Weather: