Virginia Football Finishes The Season Ranked For The First Time Since 2004

Virginia finished the season ranked in the top 25 for the first time in over two decades

Dec 27, 2025; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Virginia Cavaliers head coach Tony Elliott looks on during a timeout against the Missouri Tigers during the second quarter at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Travis Register-Imagn Images | Travis Register-Imagn Images

For the first time since 2004, the Virginia Cavaliers have finished the season ranked in the AP Poll.

The Cavaliers moved up four spots to No. 16 in the final poll that was released today, one day after Indiana defeated Miami in the national championship game.

Virginia football finishes ranked No. 16 in the final AP Top-25.

This is the first time since 2004 that UVA finished ranked in final poll. pic.twitter.com/1y0hHi3MFM

— Jacquie Franciulli (@JacquieFran_) January 20, 2026

Great run in 2025

Virginia set a school record for wins in a season with its 11th of the year. Only one other team (1989) in program history has won 10 or more games.

• Virginia’s six-win improvement from 2024 (5-7) to 2025 (11-3) is the largest overall win improvement from year-to-year in its 136-year history.

• The program earned its 699th all-time win. UVA’s first season of football was 1888.

• UVA’s 13 points scored are its fewest in a win since Sept. 9, 2006, in a 13-12 overtime win over Wyoming. The Cavaliers had lost their last 41 games, only scoring 13 points or fewer.

• Virginia won its seventh game of the season while ranked in the AP poll. The last time UVA had six or more wins while ranked in the AP Top-25 was in 2004, when it was ranked in every game that year.

• The victory is the second over an AP Top-25 opponent this season. The last time UVA had two Top-25 wins was in 2011.

• The win was also UVA’s first-ever in the Gator Bowl, this year sponsored by TaxSlayer. UVA improved to 1-2 at EverBank Stadium after previously falling 48-14 to Oklahoma on Dec. 29, 1991, and 31-28 to Texas Tech on Jan. 1, 2008.

• The Cavaliers secured their first bowl victory since the 28-0 shutout over South Carolina in the 2018 Belk Bowl in Charlotte, N.C.

• The win was also Virginia’s first over an SEC opponent since the 2018 Belk Bowl and its first win over an SEC opponent that is not South Carolina since 1998, when the Cavaliers shut out Auburn 19-0 in the season opener.

• After Missouri scored on the first drive of the game, UVA shut the Tigers out for the final 56:56.

• UVA’s defensive unit has only surrendered three fourth-quarter touchdowns in its last eight games.

• UVA improved to 11-2 when not losing a fumble this season and 10-1 when forcing at least one turnover (Emmanuel Karnley interception). UVA's only loss when forcing a turnover was against Duke (Dec. 6) in the ACC Championship game.

• UVA finished the season with only three fumbles lost, the fewest in school single-season history.

• The Cavaliers finished 5-3 in one-score games in 2025.

• UVA held the Tigers to only 37 yards of total offense in the third quarter, which marked the 17th
time this year the Cavaliers surrendered less than 50 yards in a quarter.

• UVA finished 13-for-23 on third down, which marked the fourth time (NC State, Cal, Duke-1) this year it tallied at least 10 third-down conversions.

• The Tigers were held to seven points or less for only the second time this season.

• The 2025 Gator Bowl is the lowest-scoring bowl game (excluding CFP game - Miami vs Texas A&M) this bowl season. It is the lowest-scoring bowl game since 2023 (Missouri vs Ohio State; 14-3).

• UVA surrendered a 43-yard rush (by Ahmad Harris) on the Tigers’ opening drive, only the fifth rush this season of 25 yards or more.