Beau Pribula speaks to the media following Virginia’s win over NC State. Image courtesy of Virginia Athletics.

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Former Penn State and Missouri quarterback transfer Beau Pribula ran for 110 yards and threw two touchdown passes in the Cavaliers’ Week 0 win over the Wolfpack. This performance helped him earn an 8.55 BiteScore to start the year. 

Virginia’s running game was unstoppable Saturday, as they ran the ball a whopping 57 times for 258 yards and two scores. Its leading rusher was Pribula, who seemingly surprised NC State head coach Dave Doeren and his defense with his performance. 

At halftime, Doeren told sideline reporter Madison Fitzpatrick that they weren’t fully prepared for Virginia’s ability to get their signal-caller involved in the run game. 

“On defense, we got to adjust to the quarterback run game,” Doeren said.

Pribula is notably a very effective rusher, especially during his time at Penn State. In two seasons in Happy Valley, Pribula had nearly twice as many rushing attempts compared to passes thrown. It should have been pretty clear that he would add an extra layer to the game, but the Wolfpack weren’t prepared. 

NC State’s defense was one of the worst in the country last season, ranking 83rd among all FBS programs in points and rushing yards allowed per game. What makes this performance even more concerning is that they were 132nd out of 136 FBS teams in passing yards allowed per game. Considering Pribula completed nine of his 11 passes for 155 yards and two touchdowns, it’s safe to say they didn’t take much of a step forward defensively.

CJ Bailey was a big reason this team was widely regarded as an ACC sleeper, but he didn’t perform much better than his defense. He threw for a career-low 84 yards and averaged just 3.7 yards per attempt, finishing with an ugly 2.10 BiteScore for the game. 

While he didn’t look like the star some were expecting, he didn’t have much help around him. It was evident throughout the game that the Wolfpack are going to miss some of their stars from last year in Hollywood Smothers, Noah Rogers and Jacarrius Peak, who all left via the transfer portal.

NC State will get a bye during Week 1 of the full college football slate before its home opener on Sept. 11 against Richmond. 

As for Virginia, they look like a real contender in the ACC. They brought back a lot of talent from last year’s conference runner-up team, especially in the trenches. Their youngest starting offensive lineman is a fifth-year senior, signifying their elite experience. 

The Cavaliers were able to lean on that veteran group all game long, but time will tell if they will be able to do the same against powerhouses like Miami. 

They get Labor Day weekend off before hosting Norfolk State on Sept. 11 for their second game of the season.

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