Two Position Groups That Will Help Virginia Football Win Games

These two position groups will make a huge difference

Oct 4, 2025; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Louisville Cardinals quarterback Miller Moss (7) scrambles under the pressure of Virginia Cavaliers linebacker Kam Robinson (5) during the second half at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium. Virginia defeated Louisville 30-27. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images | Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

Virginia has made a lot of changes on their team and in a year where it will depend on new players to get them back to the level they were at last year. They will need several players to step up big. However, there are two position groups that should help them win a lot of games in the fall. Let’s take a deeper look. 

Linebackers 

A position group that wasn’t talked about a lot during the spring is the linebackers. However, Virginia was very good at linebacker this past season, and returned two of their key players at the position.  

Kam Robinson will also return from injury for the Cavaliers after tearing his ACL. He was the third leading tackler on the team with 64 tackles, two interceptions, and two sacks. Robinson was an elite tackler a season ago, finishing with an 82.2 tackling grade in 2025. He had an overall defensive grade of 70.6. He is, without a doubt, Virginia’s best defensive player when healthy. 

Maddox Marcellus returns for another year at the helm after getting a lot of experience in 2025. Marcellus fit in beautifully for Marcellus, who went down with an injury and was the fourth-leading tackler with 49 a season ago. Marcellus finished with a good defensive grade, posting a 76.0 PFF grade. He also graded well in coverage, finishing with a 74.7 coverage grade. He is an underrated run defender and posted a 73.0 run defense grade.

With both of these veterans returning, Virginia should be able to win a number of games on defense.  

Quarterback 

Despite the position battle being ongoing and the clarity not being known at the moment, the quarterback will be a key position group to the success of the Cavaliers. 

Beau Pribula is a guy with a lot of experience and has shown he can be a competent starter in college football. He now just needs to take the mantle and cut down on some of the turnovers to be the guy for Virginia. It is his job to lose, and he should be named the starter in the fall. 

Eli Holstein also has a good amount of experience coming in as a freshman and playing a lot for his former team, Pittsburgh. Injuries played a part in him losing the starting quarterback role ot Mason Heintschel. Holstein is now looking for a fresh start and redemption with Virginia. It makes for an intriguing battle for the Cavaliers this fall. 

If the Hoos can get the quarterback position right, it will allow them to win games in the fall and get back to the level that they were at, which was on the cusp of winning the conference. It was the reason they made history last year, and Virginia doesn’t need someone who can throw for 300 yards and multiple touchdowns every game. They just need someone to lead them and make the right plays consistently to win.