CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2016 Virginia

2–⁠10 (1–⁠7 Atlantic Coast Conference), coached by Bronco Mendenhall.

Schedule and results

Virginia in 2016, game by game: lost vs. Richmond 20–37; lost at No. 24 Oregon 26–44; lost at UConn 10–13; won vs. Central Michigan 49–35; won at Duke 34–20; lost vs. Pittsburgh 31–45; lost vs. No. 22 North Carolina 14–35; lost vs. No. 5 Louisville 25–32; lost at Wake Forest 20–27; lost vs. Miami 14–34; lost at Georgia Tech 17–31; lost at Virginia Tech 10–52+14−42Lost 20–37 vs. Richmond-17RichmondLost 26–44 at No. 24 Oregon-18No. 24 OregonLost 10–13 at UConn-3UConnWon 49–35 vs. Central Michigan+14Central MichiganWon 34–20 at Duke+14DukeLost 31–45 vs. Pittsburgh-14PittsburghLost 14–35 vs. No. 22 North Carolina-21No. 22 North CarolinaLost 25–32 vs. No. 5 Louisville-7No. 5 LouisvilleLost 20–27 at Wake Forest-7Wake ForestLost 14–34 vs. Miami-20MiamiLost 17–31 at Georgia Tech-14Georgia TechLost 10–52 at Virginia Tech-42Virginia Tech
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 3vsRichmondL 20–⁠3762%
Sep 10at24OregonL 26–⁠4418%
Sep 17atUConnL 10–⁠1338%
Sep 24vsCentral MichiganW 49–⁠3538%
Oct 1atDukeW 34–⁠2034%
Oct 15vsPittsburghL 31–⁠4545%
Oct 22vs22North CarolinaL 14–⁠3535%
Oct 29vs5LouisvilleL 25–⁠3223%
Nov 5atWake ForestL 20–⁠2739%
Nov 12vsMiamiL 14–⁠3433%
Nov 19atGeorgia TechL 17–⁠3123%
Nov 26atVirginia TechL 10–⁠5216%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Virginia Tech 52–⁠10; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 13th in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

In program history: The 110th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 135 on file).

Record
2–⁠10
Conference
1–⁠7 tied for 13th in Atlantic Coast Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
270–⁠405
Coach
Bronco Mendenhall
Elo
1374 −94 this season
SP+ rating
-3.8 No. 83 of 128; offense No. 88, defense No. 67, special teams No. 85
SRS
−7.8 No. 94 of 128 in FBS
Returning
71% of last season’s EPA, No. 50 of 128
Recruiting class
No. 63 roster talent No. 42 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Robert Anae
Defensive coordinator
Nick Howell
Captains
Micah Kiser, Jackson Matteo and Donte Wilkins
Offense
Hurry-up spread
Defense
3–⁠4

How good, play by play

  • Offense114th of 128
  • Defense90th of 128
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted113th of 128
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted75th of 128
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense-0.0240%1.18114th of 128
Defense0.1644%1.3090th of 128
Opponent-adjusted0.00 off
0.12 def		41% off
43% def		—113th off
75th def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.2own 3117% allowed
Defense3.5own 2916% caused

CORE rating -11.9, 108th of 128 (offense -11.8, defense 0.2).

A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsKurt Benkert QB2,552 yds
Passing touchdownsKurt Benkert QB21 TD
Rushing yardsTaquan Mizzell 940 yds
Rushing touchdownsAlbert Reid 6 TD
Receiving yardsDoni Dowling WR626 yds
Receiving touchdownsOlamide Zaccheaus WR7 TD
TacklesMicah Kiser ILB133 tkl
SacksMicah Kiser ILB6.5 sacks
InterceptionsJuan Thornhill 3 INT

Top recruits in the 2016 class

Tre Harbison RB★★★No. 550
Joe Reed WR★★★No. 660
Hasise Dubois WR★★★No. 707
Jordan Mack ATH★★★No. 751
Cole Blackman WR★★★No. 754

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2016 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.852
Running backs23.00.840
Receivers53.00.844
Offensive line23.00.832
Defensive line23.00.808
Linebackers43.00.828
Defensive backs42.50.804
Athletes and specialists33.00.834
Whole class232.90.829

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

Roster 98

The 2016 roster

98 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2016 line; 58 have a stat line. See the roster

2016 Atlantic Coast Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Clemson7–⁠114–⁠11
Louisville7–⁠19–⁠421
Virginia Tech6–⁠210–⁠416
Florida State5–⁠310–⁠38
Miami5–⁠39–⁠420
North Carolina5–⁠38–⁠5
Pittsburgh5–⁠38–⁠5
Georgia Tech4–⁠49–⁠4
Wake Forest3–⁠57–⁠6
NC State3–⁠57–⁠6
Boston College2–⁠67–⁠6
Syracuse2–⁠64–⁠8
Duke1–⁠74–⁠8
Virginia1–⁠72–⁠10

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.