No. 24 Virginia Wins Second Straight Overtime Thriller at Louisville

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — There’s no time like overtime for the Virginia Cavaliers.

Eight days after defeating then-No. 8 Florida State in two extra periods at Scott Stadium, UVA had to play more than 60 minutes of football again, this time against ACC rival Louisville at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium.

After holding the Cardinals to a field goal on the first possession of overtime, the Wahoos needed only four plays to score the winning touchdown: a 14-yard completion from quarterback Chandler Morris to tight end John Rogers; a 2-yard run by tailback J’Mari Taylor, a 7-yard run by Morris, who had to leave the game after taking a hard hit on his carry; and, on third-and-1, a 2-yard run by Taylor on a direct snap from center Drake Metcalf.

Taylor’s eighth TD of the season lifted Virginia to a 30-27 victory and silenced the home fans in the crowd of 50,032.

The Cavaliers, who are in their fourth season under head coach Tony Elliott, improved to 5-1 overall, matching their win total from 2024. They’re 3-0 in ACC play for the first time since 2007, and they ended a three-game losing streak in their series with Louisville.

Virginia’s offense came in averaging 539.6 yards per game. Louisville (4-1 overall, 1-1 ACC) held the Cavaliers to 237 yards Saturday, and 75 of those came on a second-quarter touchdown drive. But UVA’s defense contributed two touchdowns—the first on a 60-yard return of a fumble by cornerback Donavon Platt, the second on linebacker Kam Robinson’s 47-yard interception return—to help offset the offense’s uncharacteristic struggles.

“In moments where we needed them, they stepped up, gave us the ball back, gave us points,” Rogers said of the defense. “And that’s what we needed, especially on a day where our offense, we were fighting for yards. And they stepped up big time. “

Penalties had not been an issue this season for the Cavaliers until Saturday, when they were flagged seven times for 68 yards. Somehow, though, the Hoos found a way to prevail.

“Super proud of our guys, and a win’s a win,” Elliott said. “In this conference, you take it. I’ve been a part of some quote-unquote ugly wins. There’s truly no ugly wins.”

The teams went into halftime tied 14-14. The Cavaliers led 24-14 after three quarters, only to see Louisville outscore them 10-0 in the fourth to force overtime.

On an unseasonably warm fall day, the Cavaliers struck first. On its first drive of the game, Louisville went for it on fourth-and-1 from the UVA 37, only to have tailback Isaac Brown fumble a pitch from quarterback Miller Moss. Platt picked up the ball on the bounce and raced down the right sideline for a touchdown, and Will Bettridge added the extra point to make it 7-0.

After Louisville tied the game at 7-7 on the final play of the first quarter, UVA responded with a touchdown drive that covered 75 yards and took eight minutes and four seconds off the clock. Morris hit wide receiver Cam Ross with a 19-yard TD pass, and Bettridge’s PAT made it 14-7.

The Cardinals answered with a 70-yard touchdown drive. It started with Moss’ 28-yard completion to wide receiver Chris Bell, and it ended with a 15-yard completion to Bell.

For the second straight weekend, the Hoos struggled to cover a tall, talented receiver wearing jersey No. 0. Florida State’s Duce Robinson finished with nine receptions for 147 yards and one touchdown at Scott Stadium. Bell, a 6-foot-2, 220-pound senior, had 12 catches for 170 yards and two TDs Saturday.

Robinson, who as a true freshman in 2023 returned an interception for a touchdown against Louisville, led the Cavaliers with 10 tackles in his second visit to L&N Stadium. UVA recorded five sacks Saturday, all in the second half. Mitchell Melton, a graduate transfer from Ohio State, led the way with two sacks, and fellow defensive end Daniel Rickert and tackles Jason Hammond and Hunter Osborne had one each.

Virginia held Brown, one of the nation’s top tailbacks, to 66 yards on 13 carries. Brown, who rushed for 151 yards and two touchdowns against UVA at Scott Stadium last season, came into Saturday’s game averaging 8.1 yards per carry.

UP NEXT: The first of UVA’s two bye weekends is straight ahead. The Cavaliers return to action on Oct. 18, when they host Washington State at Scott Stadium. The 6:30 p.m. game will air on The CW.

The Cougars, who didn’t play this weekend, are 3-2. Washington State visits No. 4 Ole Miss next Saturday afternoon.

UVA and Wazzu have never met in football.

Virginia Team Notes 

• For the first time in school history, No. 24 Virginia recorded back-to-back wins in overtime. The only other time UVA played consecutive games in OT was in 2018 (lost both to Georgia Tech & Virginia Tech).
• With the win, Virginia improved to 6-8 in the all-time series and snapped a three-game losing skid against the Cardinals. The win also marked the Cavaliers’ at UofL since their 34-33 win at L&N Stadium in 2021. Virginia is 2-5 in road games against the Cardinals.
• UVA tallied its fourth straight win, its first four-game win streak under head coach Tony Elliott and since 2021.The Cavaliers also earned their third consecutive ACC win, also a first since 2021.
• The last time UVA started 3-0 in conference play was in 2007.
• Virginia is 5-1 through its first six games for the first time since 2017.
• UVA’s three ACC wins match that of last year and tie a season high under Elliott. Elliott’s ACC win totals have improved in each year of Elliott’s tenure.
• The Cavaliers have won back-to-back ACC road openers for the first time since 2016 and 2017.
• Saturday was UVA’s first road win as a ranked team since defeating Miami 48-0 on Nov. 10, 2007, the last game ever played at the Orange Bowl.
• UVA has scored at least 30 points in all six games played so far this year.
• For the first time this season, Virginia was outscored in the fourth quarter. The Cavaliers still lead their opponents this season in fourth-quarter scoring, 26-19.
• UVA improved to 4-0 this season when forcing a turnover. The Cavaliers returned both a fumble and an interception for touchdowns in today’s win.
• UVA recorded two defensive touchdowns in a game for the first time since 2003 against Western Michigan (two interception returns).
• UVA recorded a its first win while ranked in the AP top 25 for the first time since Sept. 21, 2019, when it defeated Old Dominion at Scott Stadium, 28-17.
• The Cavaliers have yet to lose a fumble this season. The last time UVA had not lost a fumble in six consecutive games were in its final six of 2019.
• With Donavon Platt’s 61-yard fumble return on fourth down, UVA has scored at least one touchdown in the first quarter in each of its first six games this season.
• For the second consecutive game, Virginia was tied with its opponent at the half and won.
• Former Cavalier running back Perris Jones served as an honorary captain in the contest. He suffered a neck injury playing at Louisville in 2023 that ended his football career and is now pursuing his doctorate at the University of Louisville.

Virginia Individual Player Notes 

• Donovan Platt’s 61-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown was his first score and first fumble recovery of his career. It’s UVA’s longest fumble recovery for a touchdown since Art Thomas’ 92-yard return against Penn State in 2001. UVA has won its last five games when recovering a fumble for a touchdown.
• Reigning ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week, Michell Melton, had a career-high, two sacks to go along with five total tackles (3 solo) and a pass breakup.
• J’Mari Taylor scored the game-winning touchdown in the first overtime and now has at least one rushing TD in 16 of his last 17 games, dating back to his time at North Carolina Central. He upped his season total to eight in six games this year. Taylor is the first Cavalier running back with eight touchdowns in a season since Wayne Taulapapa in 2019 (11).
• Kam Robinson made a team-high 10 tackles (6 solo), one tackle for loss and one QB hurry. He recorded his second interception return for a touchdown of his career and the first by a Cavalier since his pick-six against Louisville in 2023.
• Will Bettridge made all four of his kicks, including a season-long 46-yard field goal in the third quarter. Bettridge stands at No. 5 on UVA’s all-time scoring list with 254 career points (98-100 PAT, 52-64 FG).
• UVA punter Elijah Slibeck had a 71-yard punt, the longest by a UVA punter since Nash Griffin booted a 78-yarder in 2019, also at Louisville. Slibeck is one of only 11 punters in UVA history to record punt of at least 71 yards.
• John Rogers had a career-long 26-yard reception in the second quarter. His previous long was 25 yards against William & Mary (Sept. 13). He had two receptions for a career-high 40 yards.
• Cam Ross’ 19-yard TD reception in the second quarter was the 10th of his career.
• Lexington, Kentucky natives Devin Neal and Xavier Brown played only 75 miles from their hometown.
• Nose tackle Jahmeer Carter made his 50th career start. Carter has also started in UVA’s last 41 games.
• Receiver Jahmal Edrine tallied his 25th career start.

Offensive Starters: QB #4 Chandler Morris, RB #3 J’Mari Taylor, WR #7 Jahmal Edrine, WR #11 Trell Harris, TE #0 Sage Ennis, TE #9 Dakota Twitty, LT #52 McKale Boley, LG #77 Noah Josey, C #60 Drake Metcalf, RG #78 Kevin Wigenton II, RT #68 Jack Witmer. 

Defensive Starters: DE #14 Fisher Camac, NT #90 Jahmeer Carter, DT #91 Jason Hammond, DE #17 Mitchell Melton, LB #1 James Jackson, LB #5 Kam Robinson, CB #9 Jordan Robinson, CB #28 Donavon Platt, NB #10 Ja’son Prevard, S #30 Ethan Minter, S #27 Devin Neal. 

Game Captains: QB #4 Chandler Morris, RB #20 Xavier Brown, S #27 Devin Neal, DE #52 Daniel Rickert, LT #71 Monroe Mills (honorary).