It didn’t come as a surprise to anybody, but Penn State football’s starting QB at the end of last season will be Virginia Tech’s starting QB at the beginning of this one.
ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported late Monday morning that VT has named Ethan Grunkemeyer its starting QB. Coach James Franklin confirmed it at his weekly press conference.
When former Penn State coach Franklin took the Virginia Tech job, it didn’t take a Rhodes Scholar to know that he’d be taking plenty of his former players with him.
12 ended up transferring, and Grunkemeyer was one of them. He was long thought to be the clear favorite for the starting job. Unlike backups Bryce Baker and Kelden Ryan, Grunkemeyer has been a Power 4 starting QB. When Penn State’s Drew Allar went down with a season-ending injury midway through last year, Grunkemeyer became the guy. He started PSU’s last six games and seemed to get better with each one, ending the year with eight touchdown passes, four interceptions and a nice completion percentage of 69.1.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.So how has Grunkemeyer gotten better since the end of last season?
“He’s worked really hard on getting stronger and getting more explosive,” Franklin said Monday. “His ability to distribute the ball and decision-making, those things are big,” Franklin said. “And I think he has the ability to still be a threat in the running game, or a guy that can extend plays. But just his daily approach, I think he leads the position the right way. He approaches the position the right way. I think our coaches and his teammates have a ton of confidence in him based on his approach and consistency.”
Virginia Tech opens its season Saturday, Sept. 5 at 7:30 against VMI at home. Penn State opens it four hours earlier against Marshall at Beaver Stadium.
