What I'm watching closely during Virginia fall camp (and why you should too)

UVA football fans should be paying close attention to one thing in fall camp, and it's not Beau Pribula or the offense.

Oct 25, 2025; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; Virginia Cavaliers safety Corey Costner (18) reacts in the first quarter at Kenan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Fall camp officially begins tomorrow (7/29) for Virginia football, and though everyone will be anxious to see how new UVA QB Beau Pribula looks in Des Kitchings' offense, my attention will be focused on the defensive side of the ball.

Tony Elliott and Co. brought in a slew of transfer defensive backs this offseason, mainly due to the simple fact that they struggled quite a bit on the back end of the defense in 2025. The Cavaliers allowed teams like Stanford, Cal, and Florida State to pick them apart through the air early on in the year, but thankfully things began to improve later on in the season.

Transfer portal bonanza

Brandyn Hillman | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

Virginia DC John Rudzinski wanted to ensure this problem would be solved not only by bringing in eight transfer defensive backs but also by adding players who were starters at their former schools.

Here are the incoming transfers who will be counted on to play a major role in shoring up the Cavaliers' pass defense in 2026, and who everyone should be laser-focused on in camp:

• Michigan S Brandyn Hillman

• Virginia Tech S Christian Ellis

• Rutgers CB Jacobie Henderson

• Georgia State S Jaylen Jones

• Navy CB Justin Ross

• Wisconsin CB Omillio Agard

• Buffalo S Jalen McNair

• Dartmouth CB Patrick Campbell

Two players in particular, Jacobie Henderson and Brandyn Hillman, "should" end up starting for UVA at cornerback and free safety, respectively, this season. Henderson has been very reliable wherever he's been (Marshall and Rutgers), and Hillman is a Portsmouth, VA, native who Tony Elliott and Co. were recruiting incredibly hard in 2023 before the former 4-star safety committed to Michigan.

Depending on how Coach Rud plans to run things throughout the first few days of camp, the initial first-team defensive back unit will likely consist of Henderson and Donavon Platt at cornerback, along with Hillman and Ethan Minter at free and strong safety. Sophomore Corey Costner should also be heavily utilized in 2026, either at SPUR or in three-safety looks.

I'm going to be keeping a close eye on the performance of this unit during the scrimmage and team portions of practice, as this is undoubtedly one of the most talented secondaries the program's had, at least on paper. It's also going to be extremely interesting to see how the staff uses Christian Ellis, as he's a bigger safety (6'0", around 210 Lbs.) and could be used as a nickel linebacker or hybrid player in UVA's multiple-type defense.

The performance and quick cohesion of this year's defensive back unit will be vital to Virginia's quest to return to the ACC Championship game this season.