It has been a few years since Virginia was a top-three seed. That last came in 2019, the year the Cavaliers went 35-3 en route to capturing a national championship.

Fast forward eight years to the 2026-27 season and Coach Ryan Odom might just have Virginia’s best chance to make another deep run in the spring. There is a talented roster, cerebral coaching staff and one more important detail — they have ample opportunities to build a near-unmatchable resume.

This year, Odom and his Cavaliers are not shying away from a gauntlet of challenges. In addition to a more difficult ACC schedule compared to last year, Virginia is taking on several elite programs in non-conference play. 

Overall, the Cavaliers face Duke (twice), North Carolina, UConn, Louisville, Arkansas, Miami, Marquette, Maryland, Xavier and pesky ACC opponents. That is not the schedule of just any NCAA Tournament team. 

That is the schedule of a No. 1 seed.

Heavyweight wins are one of the most notable prerequisites to earn one of the four top seeds. The other is to simply win more games than just about any other team. Neither of those will be easy. 

Virginia will certainly lose a few games against that brutal lineup. But in terms of a postseason resume, there may only be three or four teams who can even remotely match the impressive schedule the Cavaliers have. One of those teams is Duke — which could play Virginia three times if including an ACC Tournament rematch.

The Cavaliers are already an ACC contender. If they somehow managed to beat the Blue Devils in a hypothetical ACC Championship rematch, then they would certainly be seeded well given their schedule. 

All of these scenarios aren’t as impossible as some might think. Virginia, with a continuity-fueled lineup, will start the season with an advantage over just about every other team in the country. Chance Mallory, Sam Lewis, Thijs De Ridder and Johann Grunloh return to form an elite unit both offensively and defensively — with shooters at every level.

Even if the Cavaliers stumble and lose a few games, their impressive wins could outweigh an ugly loss. Pundits will have to look at Virginia's body of work compared to other Power Four teams, and reward those who took the path less traveled.

Regardless of what happens this year, though, the Cavaliers will be on primetime television and should play some must-watch basketball.