Where Will Virginia Football See the Most Attrition Heading Into 2026 Season?

The Virginia Cavaliers are likely going to face the most attrition in this key area.

Nov 15, 2025; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Virginia Cavaliers head coach Tony Elliott during the fourth quarter against the Duke Blue Devils at Wallace Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images | Zachary Taft-Imagn Images

The Virginia Cavaliers managed to wrap up their latest season with a 13-7 victory over the Missouri Tigers at the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl last weekend. Despite the low scores from both programs, UVA was able to pull off a nail-biting win.

With the offseason now in full swing, head coach Tony Elliott is looking ahead to Virginia's next campaign and trying to solidify his roster. However, he is going to face some challenges with attrition in one key area, more so than others.

Offensive Unit Likely To Face Struggles With Attrition

Dec 27, 2025; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Virginia Cavaliers quarterback Chandler Morris (4) celebrates with the MVP trophy after defeating the Missouri Tigers at EverBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Travis Register-Imagn Images | Travis Register-Imagn Images

With uncertainty surrounding Virginia's offense heading into 2026, concerns have been raised regarding how Elliott plans to build his new roster. The eligibility status of starting quarterback Chandler Morris is still up in the air. Throughout his 2025 campaign, Morris completed 282 of 436 passes for a clean 3,000 yards at 64.7%. Along the way, he logged 16 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Considering his efficiency on the field, losing Morris next year would be detrimental to Elliott's program.

It's safe to say that the quarterback position will see the most attrition, with Morris, the Cavaliers' top signal caller, potentially being out of the lineup. As Morris stated during his media appearance after Virginia's Gator Bowl victory:

"Yeah, no, I guess just for me personally, I mean, it's kind of how I've been raised, anytime you go somewhere, you're whole goal is to leave it better than you found it. It means the world to me to come to a university that has a ton of passion for their sports teams. I'm also extremely grateful for the opportunity that I got to come to this awesome university and really get to experience it with everyone here. It starts in the locker room. This is my favorite team I've ever been a part of. I'm not saying that because we won a lot of games this year.

You go in the locker room, everybody really does love each other, they're pulling for each other, and it's just great people which starts with Coach Elliott and his staff and bringing in the right people and everything like that. It's awesome. I mean, I'm so blessed to be in this position."

Overall, although UVA's quarterback position has the most question marks raised at this time, the offensive unit as a whole will face some difficulty with the transfer portal right around the corner and eligibility concerns looming.