Cavaliers Face Middle Tennessee

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Game 6: Saturday, Oct. 6, 7 p.m. (6 p.m. Central)
Johnny “Red” Floyd Stadium (30,788), Murfreesboro, Tenn.

Virginia Cavaliers (4-1, 3-0 ACC) vs. Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (1-4, 1-1 Sun Belt)

Surface: Sportexe Synthetic Turf
Series vs. MT: first meeting
Television: CSS
Radio: Virginia Sports Network

Game Day Information

TV Coverage
This game is being televised by CSS (Comcast Sports South). George Plaster (play-by-play) and Pat Sperduto (analyst) call the action.

Radio Coverage
All Virginia games are broadcast on the Virginia Sports Network, originating at WINA/WWWV in Charlottesville. Mac McDonald calls the play-by-play. He is joined in the broadcast booth by former Cavalier great Frank Quayle, the 1968 ACC Player of the Year. Former UVa quarterback Tim Sherman reports from the sidelines.

Cavaliers Meet MIddle Tennessee
Virginia hits the midpoint of the season with its first-ever match-up against Middle Tennessee in Murfreesboro, Tenn. The game is scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m. (6 p.m. Central). Both teams come into the game following impressive performances last week. The Cavaliers have won their last four games, including a 44-14 win over Pittsburgh the last time out. The Blue Raiders erupted for 47 first half points and rolled to a 47-6 win over Florida International for their first win of the season after four losses.

5 Things You Need To Know About Virginia Football
Cedric Peerman, the ACC’s leading rusher, has rushed for 548 yards in the last four games, an average of 137.0 ypg
DEs Chris Long and Jeffrey Fitzgerald have combined for nine sacks and are the only ACC DE tandem each averaging more than six tackles per game
Jameel Sewell has thrown five TD passes and no interceptions during the four-game winning streak. He also has not been sacked in the last two games.
Virginia has two national special teams leadersVic Hall (punt returns, 23.3 avg.) and Ryan Weigand (punting, 48.1 avg.)
Virginia has won its last four games, its longest winning streak in three years

The Series vs. the Blue Raiders
This is the Cavaliers’ first match-up with Middle Tennessee
The Blue Raiders are the first of two first-time opponents for Virginia this season (along with Connecticut next week)
They were members of the Ohio Valley Conference for many years before moving to NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision status (formerly Division I-A) in 1999
They joined the Sun Belt Conference in 2001
Virginia is the first ACC team to play the Blue Raiders in Murfreesboro
Middle Tennessee is 0-5 vs. the ACC

Virginia vs. the Sun Belt Conference
This is the Cavaliers’ first game against a Sun Belt Conference school
The only other Sun Belt Conference school Virginia has played is Troy
UVa defeated Troy 24-0 in 2003, however Troy was an independent at the time and joined the SBC the following season

Cavaliers Visit Volunteer State
Virginia is playing in Tennessee for the second time in the last three years
The Cavaliers defeated Minnesota 34-31 in the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl in Nashville two years ago
UVa has won its last two games in the Volunteer State, including a 16-13 win over Tennessee at Neyland Stadium in 1980, a win that snapped an eight-game losing streak in the state of Tennessee
Overall Virginia is 4-10-2 in Tennessee

Nice to Meet You
This is the first season since 2003 UVa has played two first-time opponents (UConn is next week) during the regular season
The last time UVa played back-to-back first-time opponents occurred in 1975 (East Carolina, Syracuse)

Long Winning Streak
Virginia has won its last four games, its longest winning streak since a five-game run in 2004
The winning streak is tied for the 14th-longest current streak in the country
On Road vs. Non-Conference Foes
This is the last of two road non-conference games the Cavaliers play this season
This also marks the 10th year in a row UVa has played at least one non-conference road game
Under Al Groh Virginia is 3-7 in non-conference road games since 2001 (this only includes regular season games)
UVa’s last non-conference road win was a 27-24 win at Syracuse in 2005

Wahoos Win on the Road When Scoring First
Virginia was just 1-5 on the road in 2006 and is 3-10 over the last three seasons
Since 1987, UVa has played 107 games at opponents’ stadiums, winning 52
One of the keys in the 52 wins is UVa’s ability to score first. The Wahoos are 38-15-1 (.713) in that span when they score first
Virginia has scored first in four of its last six road wins dating back to 2004, including this season’s 22-20 win at North Carolina