Tony Muskett A Full Participant in Practice | Virginia Football Injury Report
Virginia quarterback Tony Muskett has been a full participant in practice this week leading up to UVA's week 3 game on the road at Maryland on Friday night, according to head coach Tony Elliott.
"Tony [Muskett] looked good in practice," Elliott said in his weekly press conference on Tuesday. "I feel a lot better about the day-to-day decision coming up to game time, but he's back in full practice, while last week he was limited a little bit. He's been able to do everything, make all the throws, go through all the handoff progressions. So I'm excited about his possibility for this weekend."
Muskett suffered a left shoulder injury in the fourth quarter of UVA's season-opening loss to Tennessee and did not play in Virginia's week 2 game against James Madison. In his stead, true freshman Anthony Colandrea made his first-career start and delivered an outstanding performance, completing 20 of 26 passes for 377 yards and two touchdowns.
Of course, that showing prompted many to suggest that Colandrea, who was named the ACC Rookie of the Week for his efforts, should remain the starting quarterback even if Tony Muskett is healthy. Tony Elliott dismissed that idea in his postgame press conference, saying that his "approach is that you don't lose your job for an injury."
True to his word, Muskett is listed as the starting quarterback on Virginia's depth chart this week with Colandrea as his backup. It should be noted, however, that UVA's depth chart leading up to the JMU game also listed Muskett as the starter and he ended up not being available for the game, more proof that depth charts are fluid instruments. For now, it appears that there is an ongoing position battle at quarterback and it will be very interesting to see how Virginia handles this situation moving forward. It would not be surprising to see both quarterbacks play some snaps against Maryland on Friday.
In other injury news, Virginia is expected to get back three starters who missed the JMU game with various injuries as tight end Sackett Wood, linebacker Josh Ahern, and safety Lex Long are all expected to be available for Friday's game at Maryland. Elliott noted that fifth-year safety Antonio Clary is still "day-to-day" with a high ankle sprain that has held him out of each game so far this season.
"Antonio [Clary] unfortunately is still day-to-day," Elliott said. "The ligament in the ankle is just taking its time. He's pushing hard. I know Kelly [Pugh] and the medical staff are working daily, but it's just a day-to-day thing with Clary."
Elliott also provided an update on graduate defensive end Chico Bennett, who played, but did not start against James Madison after missing the season-opener with a knee injury suffered during fall camp. He has also been working through a lingering shoulder injury. Bennett, an All-ACC honorable mention in 2022, played 22 snaps and tallied four tackles against the Dukes.
"I was pleased with the snaps that he played this week," Elliott said of Bennett. "He's been full go. He hasn't been limited in any way. Not only does he have the knee, he's still working through the shoulder, getting back there, being able to use his right arm. I think we need a larger sample size to kind of compare it to where he was last year, but I am just excited that he's back out there. One, because of his play, and then two, because of the leadership that he gives us up front."
Bennett is listed as the starter at Bandit on UVA's depth chart for the first time this season. As a result, Kam Butler has moved from Bandit back to starting defensive end and Ben Smiley is now the backup at that position. Paul Akere is backing up Bennett at the Bandit spot.
Another player who made his season debut, but did not start against JMU is Penn State transfer Jimmy Christ, who is expected to play a key role as a tackle on the struggling UVA offensive line once he's healthy. Christ is not listed on the depth chart, but he should be available to play some snaps against Maryland on Friday.
All in all, Virginia is in pretty good shape from an injury standpoint as compared to last week.
"I feel like going into this game is probably the most healthy that we've been all year, having everybody back from last week with the exception of Clary being a day-to-day game-time decision," Elliott said.
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