Carla Williams sends powerful message to Virginia community ahead of 2026 season

Ahead of the 2026 season opener, Athletic Director Carla Williams penned a message to the Virginia community. She wrote candidly, touching on the importance of football, visibility and revenue generation.

A tumultuous era of college athletics has become even more chaotic as the rules continue to evolve. What remains ever-important for a college program, though, is investment — both financially and in terms of attendance and engagement.

"College athletics is in a new era where winning, national visibility and financial strength are more closely intertwined than ever before,” Williams said. “Success drives visibility. Visibility generates resources. Those resources fuel future success. The ACC's new revenue distribution model is built around that reality. Simply put, greater success and greater visibility create greater opportunity.”

Williams made it clear that the epicenter of success is football, the sport that consistently garners the most viewership both in-person and online. She called football the “front porch” of Virginia Athletics as well as UVA overall.

“When Virginia football thrives, it strengthens every corner of our athletics department while serving as a powerful first impression of the University of Virginia for prospective students, alumni and supporters across the country and globally,” Williams said. When that front porch is healthy and vibrant, the entire institution benefits.”

According to Williams, UVA applications grew by 27% — to a record of 82,118 total applications. It would not be ridiculous to draw some sort of connection to the success that the Cavaliers have had in most sports. The University has frequently used photos and videos from Virginia’s historic win over Florida State as evidence of school spirit and camaraderie.

Williams said that she wants to make 2025 the standard of success for Cavaliers football, particularly in the realm of attendance. Virginia led the Power Four in attendance percentage increase — a statistic which proved pivotal when Washington State suffered multiple pre-snap penalties while struggling to communicate over crowd noise.

“When we invest in Virginia Athletics — through our attendance, our philanthropy and our enthusiasm — we strengthen far more than a football program," Williams said. "We strengthen the University itself.”

UVA is strengthened by community and joy, through moments like these:

The Cavaliers hope to author more lifelong memories in 2026.

"As we begin this new season together, I invite you to join us and take your place in what comes next," Williams said. "Sell out Scott Stadium. Stand with our student-athletes. Invest in the future of Virginia Athletics. The next chapter of Virginia football won't be written by chance. "

"It will be written by choice."

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