The Virginia Cavaliers (2-1, 0-3 ATS, 0-3 O/U) take on the Syracuse Orange (3-0, 3-0 ATS, 2-1 O/U) in an ACC battle on Friday night. The Cavaliers rebounded from a loss to Illinois with a home win against Old Dominion in their previous action. The Orange recorded a home victory against Purdue last week to remain undefeated. These foes last met in 2015.
The Virginia Cavaliers are targeting a second consecutive win. They won the season opener 34-17 against Richmond but were 3.5-point dogs in an ugly 24-3 road loss against Illinois in week two. Virginia played stifling defense in a 16-14 home win against Old Dominion last week in a clash that had UVA as nine-point favorites. The Cavaliers have covered in one of their three games.
Brennan Armstrong hasn’t been a huge threat so far. He only recorded 180 passing yards against Illinois followed by 284 yards on a 54% completion efficiency against ODU last week. The senior QB has accrued 710 passing yards and a 2:3 TD to INT ratio in three games. The Cavaliers running game has been strong. Perris Jones did not play last season and has been productive, leading the team with 186 rushing yards on an average of 5 yards per carry.
Yesterday's @virginialottery Play of the Game!
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— Virginia Football (@UVAFootball) September 18, 2022
UVA has three receivers with at least 100 yards on the season led by Keytaon Thompson. The senior WR had a season-best 118 yards last week and is up to 235 receiving yards. The Virginia offense has struggled to generate offense in the air but could be in for a breakout game against a subpar pass defense.
The Cavaliers' defense is solid. They limited Old Dominion to only 289 total yards. The pass defense has especially been an asset, standing 46th in the FBS, while the rush defense is 82nd. Virginia is scoring an average of only 17.7 points, ranking them 117th. The defense is limiting opponents to 18.3 points, positioning them 39th in the country.