“The Game Was Never the Same”: Late Hit Dooms UVA’s Shot at Ranked SMU (10-17-26)
By: Xavier Jones
Headline Photo Credit: Suzanne Velasco-LMS Network
DALLAS, TX — For a half, Virginia looked like a team ready to steal a road win from a ranked opponent.
Then the second half happened.
The Cavaliers fell 23-13 to No. 24 SMU on Saturday at Gerald J. Ford Stadium, dropping to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in the ACC. The Mustangs improved to 5-1 and 3-1 in conference play.
Virginia actually led 7-3 in the second quarter after Beau Pribula punched in a 1-yard touchdown run on fourth-and-goal. The drive covered 75 yards and showed the kind of physical, methodical football Tony Elliott’s team wants to play. Will Bettridge later added a 47-yard field goal to tie the game at 10-10 late in the half.
Then came the sequence that flipped everything.
With the clock expired and the half seemingly over, defensive end Billy Koudelka delivered a late hit on SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings out of bounds. The 15-yard personal foul gave the Mustangs an untimed down. Brendan Baird drilled a 45-yard field goal as time expired, sending SMU into the locker room with a 13-10 lead.
Virginia never recovered the momentum. The offense managed just a 43-yard Bettridge field goal in the second half and finished with only 258 total yards — the third straight game under 300. Pribula completed 13 of 22 passes for 137 yards and added the rushing score, but the Cavaliers were limited after missing key pieces on both sides of the ball (multiple starting defensive backs and top receivers were sidelined).
SMU’s Kevin Jennings threw two touchdown passes (a 6-yarder to Randy Pittman Jr. and a 37-yard strike to Jalen Hale early in the fourth that effectively sealed it). Kendrick Raphael ran for 124 yards, and Baird was perfect on three field goals after the unit had struggled earlier in the season.
Virginia’s defense generated pressure and kept the game within striking distance for most of the afternoon, but the lack of offensive rhythm and that one costly mental error proved too much on the road. The Cavaliers are now 0-3 away from Scott Stadium this season.
This one stings because it was there for the taking. A ranked opponent at home, a half of competitive football, and a chance to climb the ACC standings. Instead, another low-scoring road loss and more questions about finishing drives and staying disciplined when the moment is biggest.
The Hoos will have to bounce back quickly. The margin for error in the ACC is thin, and afternoons like this — competitive for 30 minutes, then gone — are the ones that define a season.
Wahoowa through the frustration. The fight was real. The finish just wasn’t.
