CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – UVA head football coach Bronco Mendenhall spoke with the media via webcam on Thursday about the loss of spring practice due to COVID-19 precautions.
“So spring practice has huge benefits in player development especially when you have a new quarterback,” he said. “However, to say that you can’t get a team ready without it just isn’t true. It’s more challenging, it’s more difficult, it’ll take more work, more innovation, but when you measure that against the circumstances were in, it really doesn’t seem that important, quite frankly, in relation to the broader perspective.”
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The Cavaliers are coming off of an Orange Bowl appearance and will be turning to a new quarterback this fall in Brennan Armstrong. He is set to replace the record-breaking Bryce Perkins under center.
Mendenhall spoke about how UVA is preparing for multiple options assuming that football, and all sports are able to resume. The Virginia coach said options being prepared for include a shortened practice session in the summer for those that missed spring ball, fall camp only, and also the possibility that the opening non-conference games would be missed, and the season would start with just an ACC schedule.
“We’re preparing exactly with that model in place,” Mendenhall said during his video-conference. "We’re acting as if, and we’re making preparations as if, we won’t have spring practice. We possibly won’t have players here for summer school, any session, and possibly we won’t have the opportunity for anything other than fall camp to begin.
“Knowing that fall camp timing might even be pushed back, meaning that there certainly could be a chance that it’s not even be a full schedule played this year -- if football is played, period.”
The FBS college football season begins in less than six months on Saturday, Aug. 29. Most of the programs around the country begin on Week 1-- Saturday, Sept. 4.