No. 14 Virginia vies to avoid ‘distraction,’ prepares for Wake Forest

Picked 14th in the Atlantic Coast Conference preseason poll, first-place Virginia faces a clear path to the conference championship game as the only remaining unbeaten team in ACC play.

Ranked 14th in the first College Football Playoff poll released Tuesday, the Cavaliers (8-1, 5-0) will play two of their last three games in Charlottesville, Va., starting Saturday night against Wake Forest (5-3, 2-3).

After hosting the Demon Deacons, the Cavaliers will visit Duke on Nov. 15 before returning from a bye to welcome rival Virginia Tech on Nov. 29. Those three Virginia opponents are a combined 0-6 this season against teams in the AP Top 25.

This is the highest CFP ranking ever for Virginia. The Cavaliers were 25th in the initial rankings in 2018 and returned for the final two rankings in 2019 at Nos. 23 and 24.

Virginia has won seven consecutive games -- three in overtime -- since its only blemish, a four-point loss at North Carolina State in a non-conference contest on Sept. 6.

The 8-1 start is the Cavaliers' best in 35 years, and it's the first time they've ever been 5-0 in the ACC. Defeating Wake Forest would mark their first eight-game winning streak in a single season; they won 10 straight across 1914-15 and 1951-52.

Virginia coach Tony Elliott said he told his players to focus on football and "simplify your life."

"I've tried to tell them that a lot more people are going to come out of the woodwork," Elliott said Tuesday. "You're going to get a lot more messages after every game. A lot more people are going to want to be a part of what's going on, and unfortunately, that becomes a distraction."

The Demon Deacons are coming off their worst loss under first-year coach Jake Dickert, falling 42-7 last weekend at Florida State. They were outgained 421-247, were penalized 11 times for 93 yards, and committed two turnovers.

"This is a culture test," Dickert said of his team being able to bounce back this week. "It's a test of who we are and what we're about. I know the way our team's going to respond to this. ... We have to be better as a football team. It starts with me and me only, and I've got to put our players in a better position to succeed."

Wake Forest nearly won its only game against a ranked team this season, losing 30-29 in overtime to then-No. 16 Georgia Tech on Sept. 27. The Demon Deacons have dropped eight straight games to Top 25 foes dating to 2022.

"You're starting to see them formulate an identity under the new staff," Elliott said of Wake Forest. "They play really hard. They play a physical brand of football. They have some very dynamic weapons on offense that can score at any time. ... So don't let the record or the scores of previous games fool you."

The Demon Deacons' weapons include running back Demond Claiborne (639 rushing yards and eight touchdowns) and a pair of quarterbacks -- Robby Ashford and Deshawn Purdie -- who are capable of engineering an upset.

The Cavaliers will counter with a balanced offense led by Chandler Morris (2,069 passing yards and 16 total touchdowns) and J'Mari Taylor (686 rushing yards and 11 TDs).

Wake Forest has won five of the last six meetings with Virginia, including the last two in Charlottesville (2012, 2021).