Well, after a 10-win regular season and a brutal loss in the ACC title game, the Virginia Cavaliers are set to do something the program has not done since 2019…play in a bowl game. The ’Hoos last qualified
for postseason play back in 2021, but never took the field as the Fenway Bowl was cancelled due to COVID-19 complications.
The ’Hoos eye what would be a program-record 11th win on Saturday night, while Missouri enters looking to end its season on a good note after an 8-4 campaign, one that ended with head coach Eliah Drinkwitz inking a six-year extension amid numerous big-time schools looking for a new head coach in the previous few weeks.
The ‘Hoos and Tigers are set to collide from EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville Saturday night. Kickoff is set for 7:30 EST, with Bob Wischusen, Louis Riddick, and Kris Budden scheduled to call the game on ABC.
A look at three players, two keys to the game, and one prediction ahead of yet another primetime game for the ’Hoos.
Three Players
RB Ahmad Hardy
There’s a strong argument to be made that Hardy was the best group of five turned power four transfer in the country this season. After a big freshman year at UL Monroe, Hardy kicked the door down in his first season in the SEC, boasting a league-leading 1,560 yards on the ground to go with his 16 touchdowns on the year. Hardy leads the country in rush yards per game (130) and has eclipsed the 100-yard mark eight times in 2025, including 157, 250, and 300-yard performances. Fair to say he’ll be the best player on the field Saturday night between both rosters.
QB Matt Zollers
Despite being the backup and a freshman, Zollers has seen a solid share of time with Beau Pribula missing multiple games in the middle of the year. Appearing in six games, Zollers owns 402 passing yards and four touchdowns, with his most notable game coming against No. 10 Vanderbilt, where he went 14-of-23 passing for 138 yards, a touchdown, and no interceptions. Zollers is a bigger guy at 6-foot-4, 214 pounds, and can rip the ball downfield as you’d expect from a player of that stature.
S Santana Banner
In addition to having one of the coolest football names out there, Banner can play at the safety spot. Coming over to Missouri after spending his freshman year at Northern Illinois, he sits second on the team in tackles with 51 total to go with three pass breakups and an interception. He had one of his best games in the regular season finale against Arkansas with three tackles and two PBU’s. Looking and Hardy and now Banner, I think Eliah Drinkwitz might be the transfer portal czar when it comes to finding good lower-level guys and bringing them up to the SEC.
Two Keys
Stop the Run
For as great as Hardy has been in his own right, the Tigers own the eighth-best running game in the country as a team, and backup Jamal Roberts is a huge reason why. A fellow sophomore, Roberts has rushed for 697 yards and five touchdowns — the perfect sidekick to Hardy. Relying on a backup QB and missing a few players on the perimeter suggests the Tigers will do their best to ride their talent at running back more than they have already this year, so the ‘Hoos will need to be up for the task after an up and down, but ultimately not good enough performance versus Duke, where they allowed 137 yards on the ground.
Find offensive production from the depth
It seems unlikely the ‘Hoos will have Trell Harris in this game after he suffered a leg injury down the stretch of the ACC title game, and as of Elliott and Drinkwitz’s press conference, J’Mari Taylor is said to be mulling over whether or not he will play as well. So, the offense will need production from some unheralded guys, at least at receiver, and maybe at running back.
Experienced guys like Eli Wood and Kam Courtney at receiver, as well as freshmen Dillon Newton-Short and Xay Davis at tailback, are all candidates to get more opportunities. Wood and Courtney have produced the past two games, with Wood catching a late touchdown against Duke and Courtney being one of the best players on the field in the win over Virginia Tech.
If Taylor is unavailable, Harrison Waylee has shown he isn’t afraid to tote the rock through contact, but against an SEC defense, pass blocking becomes all the more important, something Taylor has been awesome at, even when banged up. Whether it’s Waylee as the second back or Xay Davis sliding up into that spot to back Waylee up, the ‘Hoos will need guys outside of the starting lineup to produce and keep the offense balanced.
One Prediction
If there is anything we have learned from the last decade of bowl games, it’s that they are all about which team actually wants to be playing in them, and who all is available to play when the games kick off. This Gator Bowl is no exception, as the ‘Hoos will be without one of their better defensive playmakers in Ja’Son Prevard, in addition to the chances of not having Taylor and Harris. Not having Harris is costly; not having both he and Taylor? I’m not sure UVA can overcome that against an SEC-sized defensive front like Missouri’s.
The Tigers will obviously be leaning on their backup quarterback, in addition to missing by far and away their leading tackler in Josiah Trotter (who is an NFL-caliber dude in every sense of the word), as well as two of their top four pass-catchers in Marquis Johnson and Josh Manning.
But, by all accounts, it seems like UVA truly wants this bowl game after what happened down in Charlotte, and I think that matters a whole heck of a lot in a spot like this. Drinkwitz has had his Tigers ready to play in their last two bowl games, both being wins, so it appears Saturday night should have some real fire to it from a motivation standpoint. You can’t help but wonder how this game would be in a ‘best against best’ situation with no opt-outs and guys like Harris, Kam Robinson, Xavier Brown, Dakota Twitty, and Trotter all healthy and in this game.
Overall, I think this game stays tight all things considered. I’m not so sure we’ll see a big shootout, though. UVA’s ability to protect Chandler Morris in the pocket and have others on the perimeter make enough plays should tell us a good bit early on whether or not the offense can overcome missing one or two important pieces.
Missouri’s defense has been up to the task all year, allowing the fewest total yards of all SEC teams, and remains the league’s sixth-best unit in points per game, giving up just over 19. The ‘Hoos need a good start after what happened last game, and, choosing the optimistic outlook that Taylor is in the backfield, I think UVA gets that and scores just enough points to win, paired with a motivated effort by UVA’s secondary after a tough showing a few weeks ago.
Prediction: ‘Hoos 20, Mizzou 17
