This Secret Key Would Unlock a Strong College Football Playoff Run for Virginia

The Virginia Cavaliers could have a clear shot to the CFP if they do this one thing.

Virginia Cavaliers wide receiver Jahmal Edrine | Travis Register-Imagn Images

Early on in their 2025 campaign, the Virginia Cavaliers developed a pattern of clinching last-minute victories. Throughout the season, they competed in numerous overtime thrillers, even throwing themselves into double overtime against Florida State.

This habit, while entertaining for fans, is not a reliable way to reach the College Football Playoff. If there's any drastic change that the Cavaliers must make this season, it's this.

Taking and Maintaining an Early Lead

Virginia Cavaliers head coach Tony Elliott and players | Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Particularly once October rolls around, the Cavaliers will need to hit the ground running and start claiming early leads. That month, they will face Florida State, Syracuse, SMU, Duke and Wake Forest. Defeating each of these teams will solidify the Hoos as threats in the ACC. However, to do so, they must ditch their habit of waiting until the final moments of a game to pull ahead.

If Virginia wants a shot at a College Football Playoff run, the key will be to take an early lead. Easier said than done, but Virginia can't keep putting itself at risk with only a few minutes left on the clock.

After coming out on top over North Carolina 17-16 last year in yet another tight overtime battle, Elliott sat down with the media and shared his thoughts on UVA's rather frustrating habit. As he stated:

"... Unfortunately, this is what we do, right? We take it all the way down to the end. But I could sense the same, you know, just like the same attitude and belief as I did in the Florida State game. And I think that kind of started it, and then it carried over into the Louisville game and then today. So the guys just had confidence that we were going to play however long it takes. And that's one of the bedrocks of our program is we play 60 minutes, or however long it takes to find a way to win the game."

Throughout the season, Elliott hammered the importance of a fourth-quarter mentality, which ultimately helped propel his program forward to the ACC Championship Game. The Cavaliers have grown familiar with down-to-the-wire matchups, but if they carry that into this year, they might end up with a less desirable outcome.

Bottom line, Virginia needs to capitalize on opportunities early on, especially when they hit that rough five-game stretch in October. Their schedule this year presents obstacle after obstacle—a tight score will not be enough to edge out their unforgiving opponents.

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