Virginia Football: Can Cavaliers end offensive drought vs. Duke?

Virginia football hosts the Duke Blue Devils in Charlottesville in a crucial ACC Coastal division battle. Here’s a preview, prediction and how to watch.

This game is for sole possession of first place in the ever turbulent ACC Coastal division. The Duke Blue Devils (4-2, 2-1) come to Scott Stadium fresh off of a win against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. The host Cavaliers (4-2, 2-1) come into this game having lost two games in a row.

However, Virginia is struggling on offense especially along the offensive line. The Cavaliers haven’t scored a touchdown since the second quarter of the Notre Dame game.

Duke, on the other hand, haven’t had issues scoring. They’ve have issues defensively. After a dominant performance against Virginia Tech defensively, the Blue Devils have given up 53 points in the last two games — 23 of them to Georgia Tech.

Can the Cavaliers score on the Blue Devils defense? Can the Blue Devils contain the Cavaliers’ offense?

Here is more information on the game:

Date: Saturday, Oct. 19
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Location: Charlottesville, Va.
Venue: Scott Stadium
TV: ACC Network
Live Stream: WatchESPN

Keys to Victory

Duke has to play better defensively. Georgia Tech had its first 200-yard passer and 100-yard rusher against the Blue Devils last Saturday. They found themselves down 19-3 at halftime against Pitt. They are bend don’t break defensively and don’t have any dynamic playmakers on the defensive side of the ball.

The Cavaliers have to score touchdowns. The Virginia running game has been non-existent most of the season, and they don’t have a lot of chunk plays in the passing game as well. Virginia should have no issue with stopping Duke’s offense with the pressures they’ll throw at the Blue Devils’ offensive line.

Although Virginia isn’t super dynamic on offense, and their offense line has had its struggles, but they should be able to score some touchdowns in this game.

Prediction

This one is going to be tight for four quarters. Points might be at a premium because both offenses don’t have many dynamic playmakers. Duke is going to struggle to score against Virginia’s defense. It’s going to be hard for them to move the ball through the air even with Bryce Hall out for the year for the Cavaliers.

Final Score: Virginia 21, Duke 13