Updated UVA football starting lineup projection following Saturday's scrimmage

Virginia football had its first official scrimmage of fall camp on Saturday, and now that we've gotten to see a few different personnel rotations, it's time to update our starting lineup prediction heading into the 2026 season.

Offense

QB - Beau Pribula

Not much to say here, Pribula was always going to be "the guy" at quarterback for Virginia.

RB - Jekail Middlebrook

Needless to say, Middlebrook has been incredibly impressive at running back since the moment he arrived in Charlottesville. With Peyton Lewis taking a longer time than expected to get up to speed for UVA, things look great for Middlebrook's outlook as the starter heading into Week 0 against NC State.

X - Rico Flores Jr.

Flores Jr. has had to multitask this summer, balancing a class load while attending practice. He's still looking like the starter at X as things currently stand.

Z - Kameron Courtney

This is where things have been wonky. Heading into the offseason, Kam Courtney was expected to be the favorite to start in the slot. Jacquon Gibson hit the ground running in practice, and he's the one who's been more effective there. To begin Saturday's scrimmage, the starting receivers were TyLyric Coleman at X (Flores Jr. was in a non-contact jersey), Kam Courtney at Z, and Jacquon Gibson in the slot. This type of lineup has been pretty common lately, so it looks like Courtney and Gibson might have found their sweet spots in UVA's offense for 2026.

Slot - Jacquon Gibson

As mentioned above, Gibson has been rolling with the starting offense in the slot, so the Cavaliers' wide receiver rotation might have finally been solidified.

TE - Dakota Twitty

Like Beau Pribula at quarterback, Dakota Twitty was always going to head into 2026 as the starting tight end.

LT - McKale Boley

One of the best left tackles in the ACC.

LG - Noah Josey

One of the best left guards in the ACC.

C - Drake Metcalf

Metcalf is moving from right guard to center in 2026, and he should have another productive year on the interior for OC Des Kitchings.

RG - Makilan Thomas

Thomas returns from a season-ending injury to take over as the starting right guard after playing exclusively at offensive tackle at Arkansas State the last time he saw game action.

RT - Monroe Mills

Like Thomas, Monroe Mills suffered a season-ending injury in 2025 before the year even began, and now he's set to start at right tackle in 2026. He was one of the top-ranked transfer portal offensive tackles in the 2025 cycle.

Defense

BANDIT - Matthew Fobbs-White

Here's another incredibly blurry spot. With Fobbs-White out with his leg injury, Jewett Hayes was acting as the starting BANDIT early on, but now Michigan transfer Devon Baxter has been all that Tony Elliott's been talking about lately. Baxter also started at BANDIT on Saturday, so realistically, Baxter could be in line to open the 2026 season as the starter if Fobbs-White can't get things together by Week 0.

DE - Fisher Camac

Camac could be one of the best defensive ends in the ACC this season, and he'll undoubtedly look to improve on his sack/QB pressure numbers from 2025.

DT - Jason Hammond

Hammond is the leader of the defensive line, and he's incredibly effective as a gap-shooter at 3-technique. Nobody's going to unseat him inside.

DT - Anthony Britton

Britton should be the main 1-technique and a dominant run-stopper for DC John Rudzinski in 2026. He's very hard to displace between the "A" gaps, and if he picks up where he left off in 2025, Hammond and Britton could form a formidable duo on the interior of Virginia's defensive line this year.

LB - Kam Robinson

Robinson is heading into his senior season as one of the top off-ball linebackers in the country, and if he can stay healthy in 2026, he'll be in line to take home some serious post-season awards.

LB - Maddox Marcellus

Marcellus will be stepping into a full-time role this year, and if he can play anywhere near as well as he did in 2025, UVA is going to have one of the better linebacker duos in the conference.

SPUR - Donavon Platt

It sounds like Platt has solidified himself as the starting SPUR heading into 2026, though a healthy Corey Costner could see reps there when he's back.

CB - Omillio Agard

Agard is another player who's been getting tons of love from the coaching staff, and it's easy to see why on the field. All he does is fly around and make plays even though he's had a cast on his arm in practice.

CB - Jacobie Henderson

Henderson has been the starter opposite Agard since day one of fall camp, so this is a pretty safe projection.

FS - Brandyn Hillman

Hillman came in and got to work immediately this offseason, and now he's established himself as one of the leaders of the defense. Hillman's processing skills and closing speed have been his most impressive qualities, and it's going to be extremey fun to watch him in 2026.

SS - Ethan Minter

Minter was very good for UVA last season, and he provides the defense with another linebacker-like athlete at strong safety, who allows Coach Rud to do some really fun things up front. Christian Ellis started in his place on Saturday, as Minter's still not ready for game action yet.

Special Teams

K - Will Bettridge

Much like Beau Pribula and Dakota Twitty, everyone knows that Bettridge is going to be Virginia's kicker this year.

P - Daniel Sparks

Sparks earned All-ACC honors last year, and he's entering his fifth season with UVA in 2026.

LS - Zach Christinat

Another projection, but the UConn transfer has been the most consistent long snapper in practice.

Add us as a preferred source on Google