Virginia Releases Its Depth Chart Ahead of Week 8 Matchup vs Washington State

How does Virginia's depth chart look for its matchup against Washington State?

Oct 4, 2025; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Virginia Cavaliers head coach Tony Elliott watches from the sideline during the second half against the Louisville Cardinals at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium. Virginia defeated Louisville 30-27. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images | Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

After a much-needed bye week, the Virginia Cavaliers are now getting back into the swing of things as they prepare for their upcoming matchup on Oct. 18 against Washington State. Heading into the game, UVA sits at No. 18 in the AP Top 25 poll, marking its highest ranking since 2019.

With their next game right around the corner, Virginia has officially released its depth chart.

Offense

Position	Starter	Backup #1
QB	Chandler Morris	Daniel Kaelin
RB	J'Mari Taylor	Xavier Brown or Harrison Waylee or Noah Vaughn
WR	Trell Harris	Eli Wood
WR	Jahmal Edrine	Jayden Thomas
WR	Cam Ross	Kameron Courtney
TE	Sage Ennis or Dakota Twitty
LT	McKale Boley	Jon Adair
LG	Noah Josey	Kevin Wigenton II
C	Brady Wilson	Noah Hartsoe
RG	Drake Metcalf	Tyshawn Wyatt or Ethan Sipe
RT	Jack Witmer	Ben York

Defense

Position	Starter	Backup #1
DE	Fisher Camac or Cazeem Moore	Billy Koudelka
NT	Jahmeer Carter	Anthony Britton
DT	Jason Hammond or Hunter Osborne or Jacob Holmes
Bandit DE	Mitchell Melton or Daniel Rickert	Billy Koudelka
WILL LB	James Jackson	Maddox Marcellus
MIKE LB	Kam Robinson or Landon Danley	Trey McDonald
SPUR	Ja'Son Prevard or Corey Costner	Caleb Hardy
LC	Donavon Platt or Emmanuel Karnley
RC	Jordan Robinson	Kevon Gray or Josiah Persinger
FS	Ethan Minter or Christian Charles
SS	Devin Neal	Da'Marcus Crosby II

Special Teams

Position	Starter	Backup
Punter	Daniel Sparks	Elijah Slibeck
Kickoff	Daniel Sparks	Will Bettridge
Placekicker	Will Bettridge	Jorge Diaz Nicholas
Punt Return	Cam Ross	J'Mari Taylor
Kickoff Return	Cam Ross	J'Mari Taylor
Long Snapper	Bryce Robinson	Stevie Bracey

Brady Wilson Returns to Practice

Aug 30, 2025; Charlottesville, Virginia, USA; Virginia Cavaliers head coach Tony Elliott looks on from the field during the second quarter against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers at Scott Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images | Amber Searls-Imagn Images

For quite some time, Virginia has been playing with the absence of center Brady Wilson. Although the Cavaliers have been pulling off spectacular wins despite not having Wilson at the core, having him back on the field will inevitably provide the program with a boost. Head coach Tony Elliott had high hopes that he'd be able to return after the bye week.

While Wilson was out, Elliott described the situation as being similar to musical chairs — various players needed to step up in his absence, namely Drake Metcalf.

Fortunately, according to Greg Madia of The Daily Progress, Elliott announced that Wilson and offensive lineman McKale Boley are expected to return to practice in preparation for Saturday's matchup. This is great news for UVA, which is hoping to continue its hot streak this week.

#UVa coach Tony Elliott said LT McKale Boley is fine and is back in practice. Hoos are also expecting C Brady Wilson to return to practice, too, in preparation for Saturday's game against Washington State.

— Greg Madia (@GregMadia) October 14, 2025

Although UVA's bye week couldn't have come at a better time for the program, there is always the chance that the break could have disrupted the flow of progress. With an overall record of 5-1 and 3-0 in conference play, it's clear that Virginia is at an all-time high this year, but will they be able to return on Saturday with the same drive that they've had in prior weeks?

As Mitchell Melton said heading into last week, per Virginia Sports, "I've never had a more perfectly timed bye week in my career. I'm definitely going to take advantage of it as best I can. Just rest, rejuvenate, and recover."

UVA Must Continue To Play With Confidence

Oct 4, 2025; Louisville, Kentucky, USA; Virginia Cavaliers running back J'Mari Taylor (3) runs the ball in for a touchdown during the overtime against the Louisville Cardinals at L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium. Virginia defeated Louisville 30-27. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images | Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

Elliott has mentioned time and time again the importance of playing each game with confidence. UVA has played without some of its key players this season, yet the program has maintained a high level of confidence on the field that can make all the difference in terms of performance.

As Elliott stated in his press conference following his latest upset over Louisville:

"I think that managing the success of last week, and we didn't play our best last week, and we found a way to win. And so I think that's what they were leaning on. They leaned on that confidence coming out of that game to just believe all the way until the end... Super proud of our guys, and hey man, a win's a win in this conference. You take them. I've been a part of some quote on quote ugly wins. There's truly no ugly wins. We came up here with the objective to win, and the young men, super proud of them for their effort to just find a way,"

Kickoff on Saturday is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. EST. The matchup will take place at Scott Stadium, giving the Cavaliers a home-field advantage