CJ Spiller was such a huge signing for Dabo Swinney and the Clemson football program all those years ago and this Saturday afternoon he will enter the Ring of Honor. The festivities are set for before the game, so get there early if you are headed out to Death Valley.
The Tigers will welcome home another favorite son as Tony Elliot comes back to Clemson and brings his Virginia Cavaliers with him for an intriguing match-up between teams that have not seen each other in recent years.
Our Tigers put it on Wake Forest after another slow start, actually trailing the Deacons after one quarter. Everything else clicked with complimentary football the remainder of the game and the Tigers walked out of Winston-Salem with glazed donut smiles and a 35 point victory.
Tommy Bowden, Spiller’s head coach all those years ago, was famous for saying that the Tigers were a play or two away from being undefeated. That sentiment is true for Tony Elliotts Hoos. They had Louisville beaten last weekend at home in front of dozens, but a final drive came up just short and they ended up losing 24-20.
Here is your preview of Clemson’s Week 8 Opponent, the Virginia Cavaliers.
Virginia Cavaliers
Head Coach: Tony Elliott (3rd Season)
Location: Death Valley, Clemson, SC
Time: Noon
Wins against: Richmond, Wake Forest, Coastal Carolina, Boston College
Losses against: Maryland, Louisville
Offense
Offensive Coordinator – Des Kitchings (3rd Season)
In his third season in Charlottesville, Kitchings has struggled to find an offensive identity. The inconsistency at quarterback was evident during his first season and well into the second season before a litany of injuries thrust true Freshman Anthony Colandrea into duty. The lightly-recruited fireball ignited the offense for the Wahoos and that has extended into this season. Colandrea is a “gun-slinger” in the true sense of the word, having some accuracy issues, but is not afraid to take a shot. He is also adept at making something out of nothing and using his feet to extend drives.
And oh yeah, former Tiger Kobe Pace is the starting running back for Virginia.
Virginia is averaging 435 total yards per game (44th in the country), with 260.2 (T-38th) coming through the air and 174.8 (T-56th) on the ground. Wake has scored 27.5 points per game (T-76th).
Here is a look at the projected starters for the Cavaliers on offense:
| Position | Name (#) | Year | 2024 Statistics |
| Quarterback | Anthony Colandrea (10) | Sophomore | 125-194, 1490 yds, 9 TDs, 4 Ints; 64 rushes 242 yds, 2 TDs |
| Running Back | Kobe Pace (5) | RS Senior | 71 rushes, 331 yds, 2 TDs; 13 catches, 123 yds |
| Wide Receiver | Malachi Fields (8) | Senior | 37 catches, 541 yds, 3 TDs |
| Wide Receiver | Chris Tyree (4) | RS Senior | 12 catches, 48 yds |
| Wide Receiver | Trell Harris (11) | Junior | 13 catches, 201 yds, 2 TDs |
| Tight End | Tyler Neville (16) | Senior | 19 catches, 261 yds, 2 TDs |
| Left Tackle | McKale Boley (52) | Junior | |
| Left Guard | Noah Josey (77) | Senior | |
| Center | Brian Stevens (55) | RS Senior | |
| Right Guard | Ty Furnish (51) | Senior | |
| Right Tackle | Blake Steen (54) | Junior |
Transfers galore for the Cavaliers on offense: Pace (Clemson), Tyree (Notre Dame), Harris (Kent State), Neville (Harvard), Stevens (Dayton), Andre Greene Jr. (North Carolina)
Defense
Defensive Coordinator: John Rudzinski (3rd Season)
Coach Rudzinski is in his third season in Charlottesville running the defense, and he has a stingy defense through 6 games. A defense that has kept them in a lot of games. Two of their wins are come-from-behind victories because the defense has made the appropriate adjustments and stymied opposing offenses.
Virginia’s defense is currently giving up 22.0 points per game (T-52nd in the country). They are giving up an average of 383.8 yards per game (91st) through 6 games this season. 123.3 yards coming on the ground (49th) and 260.5 through the air (111th).
Here is a look at the projected starters along with their statistics from their early season slate for the Wahoos defense:
| Position | Name (#) | Year | 2024 Statistics |
| Defensive End | Kam Butler (82) | RS Senior | 23 tackles, 2 TFLs, 2 Sacks, 2 FFs |
| Nose Tackle | Anthony Britton (55) | Sophomore | 12 tackles, 0.5 TFL |
| Defensive Tackle | Jahmeer Carter (90) | RS Senior | 16 tackles, 2 TFLs, Sack |
| Bandit End | Chico Bennett, Jr. (15) | RS Senior | 19 tackles, 4.5 TFLs, Sack, Int |
| Middle Linebacker | Kam Robinson (5) | Sophomore | 31 tackles, 4 TFLs, 3 Sacks, FR |
| Weakside Linebacker | James Jackson (7) | Senior | 43 tackles, 5 TFLs, 2 Sacks |
| Left Cornerback | Kempton Shine (29) | RS Senior | 15 tackles, TFL |
| Strong Safety | Antonio Clary (0) | RS Senior | 48 tackles, 1.5 TFLs, Int, FR |
| Free Safety | Jonas Sanker (20) | Senior | 49 tackles, 4 TFLs, Sack, FR |
| SPUR | Corey Thomas, Jr. (3) | RS Senior | 21 tackles, FF |
| Right Conerback | Jam Jackson (9) | Junior | 29 tackles |
Virginia is a +1 in turnover margin on the season and has 8 takeaways with four of them being interceptions.
Special Teams
Here is a look at the projected starters on Special Teams for the Wahoos.
| Position | Name (#) | Year | 2024 Statistics |
| Kicker | Will Bettridge (41) | Junior | 13-15 FGs, long of 47 yds |
| Punter | Daniel Sparks (38) | RS Senior | 23 punts, 44.0 avg, long of 62 yards |
| Kick Returner | Chris Tyree (4) | RS Senior | 5 returns, 22.8 yd avg. |
| Punt Returner | Ethan Davies (26) | Senior | 3 returns, 8.3 yd avg. |
Summary
Clemson is a big favorite at home against a really fun team to watch. The Tigers started slow again last weekend but a quick score and a couple of turnovers by Wake and the rout was on.
Virginia may lack in matching the Tigers talent, but the coaching has been tremendous this year and Elliotts guys do not quit. There can be no let up this weekend against Virginia if the Tigers want to keep the winning streak going. I think they will.
