The Hoos opened the Tony Elliott Era successfully on Saturday with a workmanlike 34 to 17 victory over visiting Richmond.

Like during past seasons, we’ll be doing a weekly update focusing on which true freshmen played over the weekend and how they’ve contributed over the course of the season. For the Richmond update, the year to date is the same as the game itself.

As a reminder, if a player plays in four games or less during a football season, he’s eligible to receive a redshirt for that season. We only track the first years as that class generates the most interest each season.

Against the Spiders, we identified three true freshmen on the field during the game.

McKale Boley (Offensive Line) – 1

Boley started at left tackle for the UVA offense against Richmond. In doing so, he became the first true freshman to start the season opener at offensive tackle for UVA since D’Brickashaw Ferguson in 2002. Boley joined Ferguson as the only true freshmen in UVA history to start season opener at offensive tackle. Boley also joins Ferguson, Brad Butler, Morgan Moses,  Eric Smith, and Chris Glaser as the only true freshman at UVA to start any game at offensive tackle.

Stevie Bracey (Linebacker) – 1

Bracey played on the kick coverage unit during the game against Richmond. He did not record any stats during the game.

Xavier Brown (Running Back) – 1

Brown saw action at running  back to close out the fourth quarter of the Wahoo victory. Brown rushed 4 times for 25 yards (6.25 yards per carry) with a long rush of 12 yards.