Virginia's Week 1 Opponent Ranked in Top 10 of Preseason Coaches Poll

Virginia opens the season against Tennessee, ranked No. 10 in the USA TODAY Sports AFCA football coaches poll

The USA TODAY Sports AFCA football coaches poll was released on Monday, revealing the college football preseason top 25 as voted on by a panel of 66 FBS head coaches. As expected, Virginia was nowhere near the top 25, but several of the opponents on UVA's 2023 schedule are ranked or receiving votes in the preseason poll. 

Virginia will open the 2023 campaign on September 2nd in Nashville against Tennessee, which is ranked No. 10 in the preseason poll. The Volunteers went 11-2 in the 2022 season and defeated Clemson 31-14 to win the Orange Bowl. 

North Carolina is ranked No. 20 and is the only other opponent on UVA's 2023 schedule ranked in the preseason top 25. UNC went 9-5 overall in 2022 and won the ACC Coastal title. 

Five opponents on Virginia's schedule received votes in the preseason coaches poll: 

• NC State (Sept. 22) received 19 votes
• Miami (Oct. 28) received 16 votes
• Maryland (Sept. 15) received 10 votes
• Duke (Nov. 18) received 2 votes
• James Madison (Sept. 9) received 1 vote

See the full USA TODAY Sports AFCA coaches poll here. 

The 2023 UVA football season will begin on Saturday, September 2nd at 12pm ET when Virginia takes on Tennessee at Nissan Stadium in Nashville. 

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