Virginia Football: Can Cavaliers meet lofty 2019 expectations?

Can defense build on strong 2018 season?

Bronco Mendenhall, who is known for fielding very good defenses throughout his career as a collegiate head coach, had a defense that was outstanding in Charlottesville last season.

We just outlined the offensive numbers, and despite Virginia fielding a mediocre offense across many metrics, it was more than enough to get by due to their strong defense.

Virginia returns seven starters on the defensive side of the football from a year ago, highlighted by senior cornerback Bryce Hall, who is a consensus All-ACC defensive back.

While Virginia loses safety Juan Thornhill and cornerback Tim Harris, the return of Bryce Hall helps ease the burden in the secondary which should still be quite productive heading into the new season.

Charles Snowden and Jordan Mack anchor the middle of the defense for the Cavaliers, as both are emerging as two of the top linebackers in the ACC.

The question on the defensive side resides on the defensive line, where Virginia is thin outside of senior defensive tackle Eli Hanback, who looks to build on the successes of the 2018 campaign. The search for defensive line talent and a competent pass rush is something that Virginia will need to locate sooner rather than later with the schedule that awaits them.

Even with seven starters returning, it may be hard to replicate the banner year for the defense last season. Virginia was third in the ACC and 21st-ranked nationally in scoring defense, allowing a mere 20.1 points per game. The Cavaliers also fielded the 16th-ranked passing defense in the country, and the second-ranked unit in the ACC, yielding only 183.0 yards per game.

Replicating that success will be difficult considering the losses up front and some of the losses in the secondary, but even so, Virginia should field a top 40 defense, which could be enough to get them to Charlotte for the ACC Championship.