Virginia Football fall camp stock report: Who is up and who is down?

We're a little over halfway through Virginia's fall camp practice schedule, and it feels like a great time to start going through the notes and developing a player stock report for the Cavaliers. Here is the intel from Charlottesville:

Stock Up

CB/S Donavon Platt

Platt has been playing everywhere in camp — boundary corner, safety and at SPUR. He continues to move incredibly well for a 212-pound defensive back, and he should be one of the team's top playmakers in the secondary this year.

WR Jacquon Gibson

Though Rico Flores Jr. and Da'Shawn Martin have looked fine so far, Gibson has undoubtedly been the best transfer receiver in practice. He's incredibly sudden, is a smooth route-runner, and does everything well at the catch point. If Kam Courtney doesn't step up next week, it wouldn't be surprising whatsoever to see Gibson start in the slot against NC State in Week 0.

DT Darrion Henry-Young

Henry-Young's length is what stands out most on the field. At 6-foot-4, 295 lbs., he's able to consistently extend and lock out blockers from getting their hands on his chest, and he knows how to disengage from blocks early on in the rep. The top defensive tackles in camp so far have been Jason Hammond, Anthony Britton, Henry-Young, and Sichan John. Chase Morrison continues to impress as well with his quickness inside.

OG Grayson Reid

Reid got noticeably bigger in year two (+20 lbs.) and a lot stronger as well (600 lbs. squat), according to strength and conditioning coach Adam Smotherman. It's evident on the field as well, as he's playing with more power in both phases of the game.

DE Jewett Hayes

As mentioned in a previous article, Hayes has been running with the first-team defense at BANDIT while Matthew Fobbs-White is out nursing his leg injury. He's another player who's gained a significant amount of weight over the past two seasons, and it's translated to the field, specifically as a run defender. He doesn't get pushed around as easily as he did the past two offseasons.

CB Omillio Agard

This one's pretty obvious, as it's been reported on a lot over the first week of camp. He's finally getting closer to full health, and it's easy to see why the coaching staff was so adamant about bringing him to UVA this offseason.

QB Beau Pribula

Another popular player among media coverage, and he's honestly been a much better passer than many thought. Everyone knew he could run the football better than most, but despite having somewhat of an unorthodox throwing motion, he's been deadly in the short to intermediate areas of the field in practice.

RB Jekail Middlebrook

Jekail Middlebrook hasn't just "won" the starting running back job — he completely ran away with it. He's been the best runner and pass-catcher out of the backfield, and it looks like he's in line to be the Cavaliers' "1A" to Peyton Lewis' "1B", which is the opposite of what nearly everyone thought it would be heading into both spring and fall camp. It'll be interesting to see if Middlebrook is used as a workhorse in 2026 like J'Mari Taylor was used in 2025, which would obviously mean that the gap's even bigger between him and Peyton Lewis.

DT Sichan John

John completely transformed his body in year two, dropping extra weight and replacing it with muscle. He was considered a player who could make a big jump this offseason, and it's pretty safe to say he has, based on his weight discipline and on-field play throughout the first couple weeks of fall camp.

TE Connor Cox

Cox hasn't been talked about much in fall camp, but he's been standing out as both a blocker and receiver. Despite being 6-foot-6, he keeps his center of gravity and pad level pretty low when blocking, which is always nice to see from bigger tight ends. He'll be seeing the field a lot in 2026.

OT Alex Payne

Alex Payne was one of the most overlooked incoming transfers of the offseason despite being a blue-chip offensive tackle recruit in 2025. To no surprise, he's been mentioned multiple times by the coaching staff throughout fall camp, and there's a very good chance that he'll end up in the two-deep at either left or right tackle heading into the regular season.

Stock Down

RB Peyton Lewis

Despite coming to Virginia with tons of hype, he's been very quiet on the field for Tony Elliott and Co. so far. He reportedly had a harder transition than the coaching staff thought he would in terms of adjusting to UVA and life in Charlottesville in general.

OG Grant Ellinger

Another player who had some hype heading into 2026, Ellinger has looked "okay", but he hasn't taken that next step yet. Rotational guys like Grayson Reid and Cole Surber have looked better, and this was the time when Ellinger needed to solidify himself as a top-four offensive guard, but it doesn't look like he has.

WR Dillon Newton-Short

Like Ellinger, Newton-Short has looked fine in camp but he isn't shining like a lot of UVA fans hoped he would so far after seeing legitimate snaps as a true freshman last year. Let's see how he finishes camp, but right now coaches just want to see him do more than he has been.

DT Tyler Simmons

Simmons was Virginia's top-ranked recruit in the 2024 class, but he's struggled to find consistency in Charlottesville. The junior defensive tackle looks like a "tweener" on the field and plays like one as well, which makes it hard for the coaching staff to decide what he's really good at. He hasn't shown the kind of strength needed to play consistent snaps inside, and he hasn't displayed the pass rush repertoire to stick on the edge yet.

Add us as a preferred source on Google