Melton Repeats, Three Cavaliers Recognized by ACC

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – For the third-straight week a trio of Cavaliers have been honored by the Atlantic Coast Conference. Defensive end Mitchell Melton, linebacker Kam Robinson and punter Elijah Slibeck were named ACC Players of the Week on Monday (Oct. 6).

Virginia has collected 12 ACC Player of the Week honors in the first six weeks of the season, the most since 2011.Melton is the ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week for the second consecutive week. He’s only the third Cavalier defensive lineman to win it in back-to-back weeks in program history and the first since Nate Collins in 2009.

The Cavaliers are coming off a triumphant, 30-27 overtime victory at Louisville. It was only the second road win at Louisville in seven tries.

ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week – Mitchell Melton

Melton recorded his first multi-sack game of his career on Saturday at Louisville. To go along with his two solo sacks, he added five tackles (three solo), forced a fumble and had a pass breakup. Melton is one of seven ACC players with multiple forced fumbles this season and is tied for 13th in the league with .42 sacks per game.

ACC Linebacker of the Week – Kam Robinson

Kam Robinson earned the weekly accolade for the first time in his career after a team-high 10 tackles (six solo), had one tackle for loss and one QB hurry against Louisville. He gave UVA its first lead of the second half by returning an interception 47 yards for a touchdown. It was his second interception return for a touchdown of his career and the first by a Cavalier since his pick-six against Louisville in 2023. Robinson has recorded double-digit tackles in each of the last two games and now has five 10+ tackle efforts in his career.

ACC Specialist of the Week – Elijah Slibeck

Slibeck punted five times for a total of 243 yards, an average of 60.8 yards per punt. His 71-yard punt in the third quarter pinned Louisville at the 1-yard line and led to three-and-out by the Cavalier defense. The 71-yarder is tied for the fourth-longest punt in FBS this season and was 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.

Week 6 ACC Football Players of the Week
Quarterback of the Week: Carson Beck, Miami
Running Back of the Week: Hollywood Smothers, NC State
Receiver of the Week: Chris Bell, Louisville
Offensive Lineman of the Week: James Brockermeyer, Miami
Defensive Lineman of the Week: Mitchell Melton, Virginia
Linebacker of the Week: Kam Robinson, Virginia
Defensive Back of the Week: Jakobe Thomas, Miami
Specialist of the Week: Elijah Slibeck, Virginia
Rookie of the Week: Mason Heintschel, Pitt

After back-to-back games needing overtime, the No. 19 Cavaliers head to the bye week 5-1 for the first time since 2017 and 3-0 in league play for the first time since 2007. Virginia will play its next game on Oct. 18 when it squares off against Washington State at Scott Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. and the game will air live on the CW Network.

Fans can celebrate Virginia’s win over Louisville with a 2-for-1 ticket offer for the Homecomings game on Oct. 18 against Washington State. The offer expires on Monday, Oct. 6 at 11:59 p.m.