Virginia Drops Road Game at Wake Forest, 40-23

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Virginia (1-3, 1-3 ACC) was outscored 17-3 by Wake Forest (2-2, 2-2 ACC) in the fourth quarter in the 40-23 loss on Saturday afternoon at Truist Field.

The Cavaliers used three different quarterbacks in the game and rushed for 218 yards in the game. Quarterback Iraken Armstead (South Bend, Ind.) scored his first career touchdown for the Cavaliers in the second quarter.

UVA tied the game up twice and was tied early in the fourth quarter, 23-23, but Wake Forest went back ahead, scoring the final 17 points of the game. Virginia led the game in first downs (27-18) and time of possession (32:52-27:08). Wake Forest led in total yards, 483-420.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Wake Forest scored touchdowns on its first two drives of the game in the first four minutes. UVA got on the board with a field goal by Brian Delaney (Chantilly, Va.) at the 6:59 mark in the first quarter and stopped the Demon Deacons on the ensuing drive. The Cavaliers then drove the field with 11 plays for 75 yards and scored when Armstead ran for his first career touchdown to cut it to 14-10 early in the second quarter. The teams traded field goals before a touchdown by Wayne Taulapapa (Laie, Hawaii) tied the game 20-20.

Virginia missed a field goal and Wake Forest converted one at the end of the third quarter as UVA trailed 23-20 heading to the fourth. The Cavaliers tied it up once again with a field goal early in the fourth, but Wake Forest scored back-to-back touchdowns to lead 37-23. The Demon Deacons scored a field goal to close out the win.

STAT LEADERS

QB Lindell Stone

• Passing: 24-42, 193 yards

QB Keytaon Thompson

• Rushing: 10 attempts. 71 yards

HB Billy Kemp

• 9 receptions, 68 yards

ILB Zane Zandier

• 8 tackles

OLB Charles Snowden

• 8 tackles

FROM BRONCO MENDENHALL

On feeling of where team was going into fourth quarter:

“Yeah 23-23 against a really explosive offense, and really believed we had a great chance to win. At that point, we had played the run game very well, up until that point. A run game or a running play goes out the gate for a touchdown immediately following, we muff a kickoff return and then an interception. And so really those three plays back-to-back-to-back, changed the outcome. Up until then, yeah, it was more what we had hoped, more what we planned for and more what we had expected in managing the game and expecting whoever basically is driving at the end of the game would win or not win. And so that’s what it looked like at that point. And then our lack of execution. Again, one-on-one on defense, one in the special teams and then an interception was the difference I thought.”

NOTES

• With 218 rushing yards, UVA rushed for 200+ yards in the game for the eighth time since the start of the 2018 season. It was the first time against an ACC opponent since the 2018 UNC game.
• WR Billy Kemp IV recorded nine receptions. He now has 36 through the first four games of the season, which is the most in program history for a Cavalier through the first four games of the year.
• QB Lindell Stone made his first career start. With 193 passing yards, he became the 22nd Cavalier in program history to throw for 150+ yards in his first career start.
• With 48 receiving yards, Jana has moved into No. 24 on UVA’s all-time receiving list. He passed Tim Finkleston (1,279), the father of UVA long snapper Tucker Finkleston. Jana now has 1,301 for his career.
• QB Iraken Armstead rushed for his first career touchdown on the first play of the second quarter. The score went for four yards. Armstead rushed for a career-high 46 yards.
• NT Jowon Briggs notched a career-high 2.0 sacks.

UP NEXT

Virginia remains on the road as it travels to Miami Gardens, Fla., to play Miami at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 24. The game will be broadcast on ACC Network.