Tony Elliott and ‘Hoos earn 30-27 home win over Duke

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (WVIR) - UVa freshman quarterback Anthony Colandrea threw three touchdown passes, two of them to Malik Washington, leading Virginia to a 30-27 win over Duke Saturday at Scott Stadium.

It was the first ACC game the Cavaliers have won at home under second-year coach Tony Elliott. It was only Virgnia’s second ACC win of the season. After the game Elliott said he was happy for his players.

“So humble, so thankful, so grateful that they got to experience victory,” said Elliott. “At the end of the day it’s a group of winners. I know people are going to judge us on scores and stats and wins and losses but that’s a group of winners in there that are going to do great things in life.”

Virginia racked up 448 yards of total offense, including 170 rushing yards in the win which improved the Cavaliers record to 3-8.

Virginia hasn’t won its final two regular seasons games since 2003. The ‘Hoos have a chance to accomplish that with a win over Virginia Tech next weekend. That game will kickoff at 3:30pm.

Here are some other notes from a UVA football media release:

Virginia Team Notes

• Virginia is 41-33 all-time against Duke and has won eight of the last nine matchups against the Blue Devils. The two teams have played every year since 1963.

• UVA has won six-straight meetings against Duke at Scott Stadium

• The Cavaliers clinched their first ACC win at Scott Stadium since Oct. 23, 2021, a 48-40 win over Georgia Tech.

• Virginia rushed for 170 total yards in the contest, the sixth-straight game UVA has produced a 100-yard team rushing effort. The last time UVA rushed for 100 yards as a team in six-straight games was 2020.

• Eight different Cavaliers caught a pass in the contest, tied for the most in a game this season (8 different pass catchers vs. William & Mary).

• Virginia did not commit a turnover for the second time this season (0 turnovers vs. Tennessee). UVA forced two turnovers (interception and a fumble) for the third time this season. UVA had lost its

Player Notes

• Wide receiver Malik Washington broke UVA’s single-season receiving yards record and the program’s single-season receptions record in the contest. Washington had eight catches for 112 yards and two touchdowns on the day. For the season he has 96 catches, 1,311 yards receiving and nine touchdowns.

• Washington broke the UVA single-season receiving yards record with a 34-yard touchdown catch in in the first quarter to give the Cavaliers a 7-0 advantage. Washington surpassed the UVA single-season receptions record and setup UVA’s go-ahead touchdown in the third quarter with a 27-yard catch.

• Washington is tied for ninth-most receptions by an ACC player (96) in a single season. He needs 36 receiving yards to crack the ACC’s top-10 single-season receiving yardage list.

• Washington extended his consecutive games with a reception to 36.

• Washington’s nine receiving touchdowns on the year are tied with Germane Crowell (1997), Heath Miller (2002), Olamide Zaccheaus (2018), Dontayvion Wicks (2021) for the fifth-most ever in a single-season in UVA history.

• Washington has produced six-straight 100-yard receiving efforts and has nine total on the season, the most in the nation. The nine 100-yard receiving games are a single-season school record, the most in the nation and tied with Germane Crowell (1995-97) and Kris Burd (2008-11) for the most in a career by a UVA player.

• Anthony Colandrea was 21-for 30 with 278 yards passing and three touchdowns. He added 66 rushing yards and was responsible for 344 yards of total offense. The win was his first as a starting quarterback at UVA.

• True freshman Kam Robinson led UVA with 11 tackles (7 solo). It marked his third double-digit tackle effort of the season. He also added a pass break up and a tackle for loss.

• True freshman Caleb Hardy was credited with his first career interception that ultimately led to UVA’s third touchdown. He also recovered a fumble in the contest, his first of his career. The fumble was forced by Jonas Sanker, his team-best third of the season.

• Tayvonn Kyle matched his career-high with nine tackles and recovered Duke’s onside kick attempt in the fourth quarter to seal the Cavalier victory.

• Mike Diatta recorded his first sack of the season and second of his career, bringing down Grayson Loftis to force fourth down late in the first quarter. He finished with three tackles.

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