Grady Brosterhous scored on a 1-yard run with 2:07 remaining, helping Virginia come from behind to defeat Wake Forest 31-30 on Saturday night.
Virginia (2-0, 1-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) was down 30-17 going into the fourth quarter.
“I told them at halftime: ‘Look, this game’s going to come down to somebody making a play,” Virginia coach Tony Elliott said, adding; “But you’ve got to be ready to make a play.”
His team proved him right in the final minutes, particularly when Malcolm Greene forced Taylor Morin to fumble, and Antonio Clary recovered the ball with 1:24 left after Wake Forest had moved past midfield.
This key play was crucial for Virginia, which held firm as Wake Forest attempted a final drive without any timeouts. The drive ended with a flurry of laterals as time ran out.
Anthony Colandrea threw for 357 yards and three touchdowns for the Cavaliers, despite two interceptions.
“For a young kid, he’s calm, cool and collected,” said tight end Tyler Neville, who caught two touchdown passes. “So that’s all you can ask for.”
Colandrea’s final touchdown was a 24-yard pass to Trell Harris on the left side of the end zone, bringing Virginia within six with 10:37 left.
He then led a 12-play drive that included two fourth-down conversions, the last of which was a pass to Malachi Fields — who was closely guarded by a Wake Forest defender — setting up a first-and-goal before Brosterhous scored two plays later.
Fields had career highs with 11 catches for 148 yards.
