WISE - - UVA Wise will begin the 2023 season Saturday under the lights when Union College visits Carl Smith Stadium for a 7 p.m. kickoff. Eighth-year Head Coach Dane Damron's Cavaliers will be looking to improve off of last year's 2-9 mark while defying preseason prognostications that landed the program 10th in the South Atlantic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll.

After going winless last season, the Bulldogs have already scored a win in 2023. Fourth-year Head Coach John Luttrell's squad upended Cumberland (Tenn.) 27-0 behind a defensive effort that saw Union hold Cumberland to 194 yards of total offense, including just 78 passing yards.

For the defensive effort, Tramonte Gardner earned Appalachian Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Week. The senior linebacker posted six solo tackles as part of an 11-tackle performance that also featured a pair of pass deflections and a quarterback hurry. The shutout was the first for a Bulldogs' defense since 2011 when the team scored a 27-0 win over Kentucky Christian University.

Gardner's performance highlighted what was an opportunistic day for the defense. Union blocked a punt, intercepted three passes and registered four sacks en route to the season-opening win.

Tusculum University transfer Walker Russell is the signal caller for the Bulldogs. Against Cumberland, Russell passed for 265 yards as he completed 19-of-26 passes as part of a four-touchdown throwing effort. Russell's favorite target was Tony Norman who hauled in seven receptions for 116 yards. Norman's biggest play of the night came in the opening quarter when he caught a 60-yard touchdown pass to cap a 14-0 first quarter for Union.

UVA Wise will be looking for health and consistency this fall. A year ago, the Cavaliers were 1-0 and led FCS North Alabama 17-14 late in the first half before injuries on the offensive side of the ball began to pile up. Overall, 16 players had at least one rushing attempt while four different quarterbacks attempted a pass.

This fall, Damron's team hopes the return of running back Jaevon Gillespie who averaged 7.6 yards per carry last fall in limited duty will help provide a more balanced offense. In 2022, the Cavs attempted a program-record 422 passes, 23 of which went for interceptions.

Behind center in 2023 will either be Juwan Dent who appeared in 10 games last fall or West Alabama transfer Jake Corkren. Both men are slated to see action Saturday against the Bulldogs as is Shyheim Pannell. Pannell, a former baseball player at UVA Wise, has had a strong camp and will backup Gillespie at the running back position. At receiver, the Cavs are looking for a big season out of University of Virginia transfer Dorien Goddard who caught 38 passes for 437 yards last season as well as Daniel Davis who hauled in in 26 catches for 286 yards in 2022.

Defense is expected to be the calling card for UVA Wise. Free safety Patrick Taylor returns after posting 34 tackles, three tackles for loss, six pass deflections and two interceptions in just eight games a year ago. Additionally, cornerback Jalen Jones along with nose tackle Omar Tyson and linebacker Brub Hines III are back as starters to anchor a defense that ranked 19th nationally in passing yards allowed in 2022 at 162.1 yards per game.

The game will be one of two non-conference games for the Cavs this season. Next week, Damron's team visits Thomas Moore (Ky.) in a 12 p.m. kickoff before playing nine consecutive SAC games to close out the regular season.