First look at revamped Virginia squad going into Week 2 matchup

NC State hosts Virginia at 12 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2 in a rare non-conference game between ACC teams.

Virginia rolled past Coastal Carolina 48-7 on Saturday in front of listed crowd of 46,143. The game marked a battle of Coastal Carolina coach Tim Beck and Virginia offensive coordinator Des Kitchings, who both coached at NC State for coach Dave Doeren. Kitchings, whose son has transferred to play for NC State’s baseball team, was the Wolfpack’s running backs coach from 2012-2019, and added co-offensive coordinator duties his last year in Raleigh.

Teammates reunited

NC State redshirt sophomore cornerback Brian Nelson has seen plenty of Virginia senior quarterback Chandler Morris’ passes — but in practice.

Nelson and Morris were teammates together at North Texas lsat year, helping the Mean Green go 6-7 and a berth in the Servpro First Responder Bowl.

Morris went 322-of-510 passing for 3,774 yards, 31 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, and rushed for 242 yards and four scores. He has taken the long route to UVA, and has been doubted along the way. He started off at Oklahoma in 2020, then played three years at Texas Christian before flourishing at North Texas.

Morris ended up at Virginia due to the unique relationship his family has with coach Tony Elliott. Morris’ father, former SMU and Arkansas head coach and Clemson offensive coordinator Chad Morris, worked with Elliott at CU from 2011-14.

Morris threw for 264 yards and two scores and rushed for 50 yards in the 48-7 win over Coastal Carolina. He exited the game in the third quarter after taking a hit. Nebraska sophomore transfer Daniel Kaelin came in with a 42-7 lead late in the third.

They aren’t the only former teammates in the game. Kaelin is a former teammate of NC State redshirt freshman tight end Ian Flynt.

Reserve running back Harrison Waylee of Virginia played at Wyoming with new NC State defensive end Sabastian Harsh. Waylee rushed for 947 yards and five touchdowns for Wyoming in 2023, and then 63 carries for 323 yards and a score last year in four games. He also played at Northern Illinois.

Former Ohio State edge rusher Mitchell Melton played with NC State redshirt sophomore wide receiver Noah Rogers played together on the Buckeyes in 2023. He had 12 tackles and two sacks last year at OSU.

Defensive end Cazeem Moore at Virginia and NC State tight end Cody Hardy were teammates at Elon. Moore had 51 tackles, six sacks and 12 tackles for loss last year.

Virginia wide receiver Jahmal Edrine and NC State center Jalen Grant were teammates at Purdue. Edrine played at Florida Atlantic, and then was at PU last year, catching 23 passes for 365 yards and two scores.

UVa defensive tackle Hunter Osborne and NCSU outside linebacker Sterling Dixon played together at Alabama. Osborne had three tackles last year for the Crimson Tide.

NC State tight end Justin Joly and Virginia wide receiver Cam Ross were teammates for two years at Connecticut. 

Instant impact

It didn’t take long to learn that NC State will be paying special attention to former UConn/James Madison wide receiver and kick returner Ross.

The 5-10, 186-pound senior caught seven passes for 124 yards and a touchdown and returned a kickoff 100 yards for a score against Coastal Carolina.

Ross had an eclectic four years at Connecticut due to injuries. He caught 60 passes for 723 yards and four touchdowns in 2019. He then combined for 10 catches in five games the next two years.

Ross stayed healthy and had 44 catches for 552 yards and two scores for the Huskies in 2023, including one catch for 14 yards in a 24-14 loss against NC State.

Ross transferred to James Madison and had 37 receptions for 443 yards and three touchdowns last year for the Dukes, plus added 94-yard score among his 13 kickoff returns (28.2 yards per return). He had seven catches for 107 yards and a touchdown in the 70-50 big win over North Carolina on Sept. 21, 2024.

Bull City knows J’Mari Taylor

Virginia senior running back J’Mari Taylor will have some folks in Durham, N.C., paying attention to how he does against NC State.

The 5-foot-9, 204-pounder from Charlotte (N.C.) West Mecklenburg High developed into a 1,000-yard rusher at North Carolina Central. He finished his Eagles career with 1,882 career yards, which ranks No. 10 all-time, and he had 196 carries for 1,146 yards and 15 touchdowns last year. He became the first 1,000-yard rusher at NCCU since 2005.

North Carolina Central coach Trei Oliver told the story at the Pigskin Preview Luncheon about month ago about how he saw a Virginia Tech assistant football coach hanging around the sideline, presumably for Taylor, when the Eagles played Howard. Oliver said he’ll be rooting for Virginia to beat the Hokies this season.

Taylor rushed 10 times for 32 yards and two scores, and caught three passes for four yards in the win over Coastal Carolina.