Horrid Start Dooms Virginia in 37-7 Blowout Loss to Pitt

Brennan Armstrong threw back-to-back pick sixes on the first two plays from scrimmage and the Cavaliers never recovered

Never has an entire game - or an entire football season even - been better encapsulated by just two snaps, 16 seconds of football. On the first two plays from scrimmage, the Pitt Panthers scored 14 points without having their offense even set foot on the field. 

Brennan Armstrong started off the game by throwing a pick-six to M.J. Devonshire. Almost unbelievably, the next play after Virginia returned to the field was also a pick-six, as Marquis Williams intercepted Armstrong's pass and returned it for a touchdown. It took only 16 seconds for the Cavaliers to take themselves entirely out of the game. 

The Panthers outscored the Cavaliers 28-0 in the opening quarter and Virginia never recovered, losing to Pittsburgh in blowout fashion 37-7 on Saturday afternoon in Charlottesville. 

It had to have been unusually distressing for the Virginia defensive unit when it took the field for the first time and was already trailing 14-0. The Cavalier offense had already possessed the ball three times at that point, three drives which amounted to 14 yards, one first down, one punt and two pick-sixes. The UVA defense didn't have its A-game in the first quarter either, though, allowing superstar running back Israel Abanikanda to run all over the Cavaliers on the first drive. Abanikanda rushed seven times on an eight-play possession and capped the drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to make it 21-0. 

UVA punted on its ensuing drive and the Pittsburgh offense went right back down the field, this time beating the Cavaliers through the air. On a 3rd and 9 from the Virginia 31-yard line, Slovis was flushed out of the pocket and tried a deep ball to Bub Means in the end zone. Means was initially well-covered by Jonas Sanker, but then Sanker slipped at the last second and Means stepped up to make the catch for the 31-yard touchdown. 

The Virginia defense recovered very well after that, successfully holding one of the best running backs in the country in check and holding Pitt to just nine points on three field goals for the remaining three quarters of the game. Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, as has been the case all season, UVA got very little support from its offense, which didn't score until late in the third quarter. 

After having its first nine drives end in two interceptions, six punts, and a missed field goal from Will Bettridge, Virginia finally put a solid drive together. A 20-yard catch from Billy Kemp IV, a 12-yard scramble from Armstrong, and a short run from Ronnie Walker Jr. to move the chains on 4th down got the Cavaliers to the Pitt 9-yard line. Armstrong then threw a well-placed nine-yard fade to sophomore Malachi Fields, who made a great catch in the back left corner of the end zone for his first career-touchdown catch, finally getting the Cavaliers on the board more than 41 minutes into the game. 

Malachi Fields was the one bright spot for the UVA offense, hauling in five receptions for 58 yards and a touchdown in his season debut after missing the first nine games with a foot injury. His great game was entirely overshadowed by the darkness that was UVA's offensive performance. For the game, UVA finished with an abysmal 144 yards of total offense, including -8 net rushing yards. 

Armstrong completed 17 of his 33 passes for 152 yards and one touchdown, but he never fully recovered from the two pick-sixes. He was consistently under pressure, as Pitt's defensive front dominated the line of scrimmage and sacked Armstrong eight times. But with that said, this was yet another performance that fell well short of the unstoppable Brennan Armstrong that UVA fans had grown accustomed to seeing tear up defenses in 2021.

Virginia was missing Dontayvion Wicks, Keytaon Thompson, and Lavel Davis Jr. for the second week in a row, but it seems whatever combination of symptoms are plaguing the UVA offense have infected the entire offense. 

The loss ensures Virginia (3-7, 1-6 ACC) will finish with a losing record for the time since 2017, when UVA went 6-7 in the second year under Bronco Mendenhall. Excluding the 2020 COVID year when the Cavaliers went 5-5 and opted out of postseason play, this will also be the first season Virginia will not be bowl eligible since the 2016 season.  

Virginia plays its final home game of the regular season next Saturday against Coastal Carolina at 3:30pm. 

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