1997 Virginia Cavaliers football team

1997 Virginia Cavaliers football
Conference	Atlantic Coast Conference
Record	7–4 (5–3 ACC)
Head coach	George Welsh (16th season)
Offensive coordinator	Sparky Woods (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Rick Lantz (7th season)
Captains	Doug Karczewski Anthony Poindexter
Home stadium	Scott Stadium
Seasons ←  1996 1998  →

1997 Atlantic Coast Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
No. 3 Florida State $		8	–	0					11	–	1
No. 6 North Carolina		7	–	1					11	–	1
Virginia		5	–	3					7	–	4
No. 25 Georgia Tech		5	–	3					7	–	5
Clemson		4	–	4					7	–	5
NC State		3	–	5					6	–	5
Wake Forest		3	–	5					5	–	6
Maryland		1	–	7					2	–	9
Duke		0	–	8					2	–	9
$ – Conference champion Rankings from AP Poll

The 1997 Virginia Cavaliers football team represented the University of Virginia during the 1997 NCAA Division I-A football season. The team's head coach was George Welsh. They played their home games at Scott Stadium in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 4	8:00 pm	No. 16 Auburn *	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA	ESPN	L 17–28	45,300	[1]
September 13	3:30 pm	Richmond *	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA		W 26–7	38,200	[2]
September 27	12:00 pm	at No. 5 North Carolina	Kenan Memorial Stadium Chapel Hill, NC (South's Oldest Rivalry)	ABC	L 20–48	57,800	[3]
October 4	12:00 pm	Wake Forest	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA	JPS	W 21–13	40,000	[4]
October 11	6:00 pm	at Clemson	Memorial Stadium Clemson, SC	ESPN2	W 21–7	74,987	[5]
October 18	12:00 pm	Duke	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA	JPS	W 13–10	36,600	[6]
October 25	7:00 pm	No. 3 Florida State	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA (Jefferson–Eppes Trophy)	ESPN	L 21–47	45,300	[7]
November 1	12:00 pm	at Maryland	Byrd Stadium College Park, MD (rivalry)	JPS	W 45–0	23,479	[8]
November 8	3:30 pm	Georgia Tech	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA	ABC	W 35–31	41,000	[9]
November 15	12:00 pm	at NC State	Carter–Finley Stadium Raleigh, NC	JPS	L 24–31	42,400	[10]
November 29	5:30 pm	Virginia Tech *	Scott Stadium Charlottesville, VA (rivalry)	ESPN	W 34–20	44,200	[11]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

^[12]

Personnel

1997 Virginia Cavaliers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB Aaron Brooks	Defense Pos. # Name Class LB 9 Shannon Taylor  So	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach George Welsh Coordinators/assistant coaches Paul Schudel – Offensive line Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "SEC's Auburn defeats ACC's Virginia". The Orlando Sentinel. September 5, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
2. "Sloppy U. Va. tops UR". Daily Press. September 14, 1997. Retrieved November 6, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Reversal of fortune; UNC rallies for huge win over Cavs". The Chapel Hill News. September 28, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Virginia QB leads Cavs' charge past stunned Wake". The Charlotte Observer. October 5, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Clemson not Cavalier about loss to Virginia". The Atlanta Constitution. October 12, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Late game taunt costs Duke chance at OT". Asheville Citizen-Times. October 19, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Double dip; Memory of only ACC loss sparks Florida State to rout of U.Va". Richmond Times-Dispatch. October 26, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Once again Virginia pummels Maryland". News and Record. November 2, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
9. "Cavaliers survive another wild finish". The Roanoke Times. November 9, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
10. "Wolfpack hangs on to defeat Cavs". Rocky Mount Telegram. November 16, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Cavaliers stoke bowl hopes". The News and Observer. November 30, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
12. "1997 UVa Football Schedule/Results". Virginia Athletics. Archived from the original on September 2, 1999. Retrieved December 5, 2012.