Garett Tujague Talks Virginia's Offensive Line Entering Fall Camp

UVA's offensive line coach previewed fall camp and talked about the battle for the starting center position

Matt Newton | Jul 29, 2022

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Virginia Cavaliers

Virginia Cavaliers offensive line coach Garett Tujague reacts during the second half against the Louisville Cardinals at Cardinal Stadium. — Garett Tujague has his work cut out for him in reconstructing the UVA offensive line / Jamie Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports

Without a doubt, the biggest question mark entering the 2022 Virginia football season is the offensive line. From an offense that ranked third in all of college football in total offense last season, UVA returns one of the most prolific quarterbacks in the country in Brennan Armstrong as well as a dangerous array of receiving weapons. But, the Cavaliers lost their entire starting offensive line: OT Ryan Nelson (49 starts), OG Chris Glaser (44 starts), C Olusegun Oluwatimi (38 starts), OT Ryan Swoboda (24 starts), OT Bobby Haskins (20 starts), and OG Joe Bissinger (7 starts).

Just one returning player has started games on the UVA offensive line: junior tackle Jonathan Leech, who has started in two games.

That said, Tony Elliott did himself a big favor when he retained Garett Tujague on his coaching staff. Tujague has a proven track record of developing offensive linemen, but this will be his toughest task yet as he is faced with the challenge of totally reconstructing a functioning wall to protect Brennan Armstrong and ideally, facilitate a capable rushing attack.

When asked about the pressure on the offensive line to perform, Tujague said, "That can become almost crippling when you start thinking about it... I think you have to look at it as, "Man, we have the opportunity to help [Brennan Armstrong] create success."

This offseason, Tujague has emphasized that even though the roster lost several players with starting experience, there are still players remaining in the program with a great deal of experience learning from Tujague as well as from the starters who played above them on the depth chart in previous years. Tujague specifically mentioned Jonathan Leech and senior guard Derek Devine as individuals who have taken on leadership roles this summer, even directing player-led practices with the offensive line.

"I love Derek [Devine] and [Jonathan] Leech," Tujague said. "Man, those guys are not afraid to make somebody do it again or to hold people accountable... And those two guys, now remember, have had the opportunity to learn from some pretty good guys before them."

The 6'4", 280-pound Leech and Logan Taylor, a 6'7", 332-pound sophomore from Nova Scotia, are the leading favorites to start at the tackle positions entering fall camp. 6'6", 286-pound Pittsburgh native Derek Devine is likely to start at guard and candidates for the other guard spot include 6'5", 315-pound sophomore Luke Johnson (Annandale, VA) and 6'5, 323-pound sophomore Noah Josey (Brentwood, TN).

The starter at the center position will have some large shoes to fill. Olusegun Oluwatimi, who transferred to Michigan this offseason, started 32 consecutive games at center and was the first Cavalier in program history to be named a finalist for the Rimington Trophy, awarded to the top center in all of college football.

Tujague expects there to be some significant competition for starting center during fall camp and he named sophomores Jestus Johnson III (Laurel, MD) and Ty Furnish (Woodstock, GA) as frontrunners along with Dartmouth grad transfer John Paul Flores. If Flores does not end up starting at center, he is likely to end up playing elsewhere on the offensive line depending on need. The 6'5", 300-pound lineman was a two-year starter at left tackle at Dartmouth and was named to the All-Ivy League Second Team in 2021 after helping the Big Green win a second-consecutive Ivy League Championship.

See the following video to hear what Tujague had to say about Flores and the impending battle for Virginia's starting center position:

Garett Tujague has already made a name for himself as one of the top offensive line coaches in college football. If he can get the job done again and get the Virginia offensive line to a serviceable state by the time conference play comes around, the Cavalier offense could be in for another record-breaking season.

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