Cavaliers Now

UVA Football: Jonas Sanker Again Named ACC Defensive Back of the Week

Matt Newton

Amber Searls-Imagn Images
In this story:

For the second week in a row, Virginia senior safety Jonas Sanker was named the ACC Defensive Back of the Week, as announced by the Atlantic Coast Conference on Monday afternoon. Sanker is the first Cavalier defensive back to win the award twice in one season since Juan Thornhill did so in 2018.

Sanker led the Cavaliers in their 24-20 loss to Louisville with 11 total tackles, eight of which were solo stops, and he also contributed one tackle for loss and and a pass breakup. Saturday marked the third time this season that Sanker has posted double-digit tackles and his 30 solo tackles on the season are second-most of any ACC defender. Behind Sanker's strong play in the secondary, Virginia held Louisville's passing offense, which entered the game ranked 13th in the country, averaging better than 303 passing yards per game, to a season-low 231 passing yards on Saturday.

Last week, Sanker became the first UVA defensive back to win the ACC Defensive Back of the Week award since the 2019 season, when both De'Vante Cross and Joey Blount earned the honor. Sanker is the first Virginia defensive back to win this award in back-to-back weeks since Quin Blanding did so in weeks 6 and 7 of the 2017 season.

So far this season, Virginia has had three ACC Player of the Week awards, as Sanker won ACC Defensive Back of the Week twice and Noah Josey was named the ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week for his performance in week 4 against Coastal Carolina.

See the ACC Football Team of the Week for week 7 below.

Week 7 Football Players of the Week
Quarterback of the Week – Cade Klubnik, Clemson
Running Back of the Week – Jamal Haynes, Georgia Tech
Receiver of the Week – Jackson Meeks, SyracuseΒ 
Offensive Lineman of the Week – Keylan Rutledge, Georgia TechΒ 
Defensive Lineman of the Week – Jimmy Scott, Pitt
Linebacker of the Week – Justin Barron, Syracuse
Defensive Back of the Week – Jonas Sanker, Virginia
Specialist of the Week – Ben Sauls, Pitt
Rookie of the Week – Isaac Brown, Louisville

Now 4-2 overall and 2-1 in ACC play, Virginia will hit the road for a top 10 matchup at No. 10 Clemson on Saturday, October 19th at 12pm at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina. The game will be televised on the ACC Network.

MoreΒ Virginia FootballΒ News

Hitting the Keys: Looking Back at Our Five Keys to Virginia vs. Louisville

UVA Football Report Card: Handing Out Grades for Virginia vs. Louisville

By the Numbers: Breaking Down Virginia's Loss to Louisville

UVA Football: Five Takeaways From Virginia's 24-20 Loss to Louisville

VIDEO: Malachi Fields, Anthony Colandrea & More React to Louisville Loss

Published
Matt Newton
MATT NEWTON

Matt launched Virginia Cavaliers On SI in August of 2021 and has since served as the site's publisher and managing editor, covering all 23 NCAA Division I sports teams at the University of Virginia. He is from Downingtown, Pennsylvania and graduated from UVA in May of 2021.