The expected became official on Monday for the Virginia Tech Hokies as the team named former Penn State football quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer its starter for the 2026 season, per reports.
While things can change, it would be surprising to see another player steal that role from Grunkemeyer in the young and pretty unexperienced quarterback room in Blacksburg, Va. The former Nittany Lion is actually the only Hokie with NCAA experience, and was also named a captain for Virginia Tech.
Grunkemeyer only saw action in one game as a true freshman in 2024, but was thrown out on the field in 11 contests in 2025. No one expected the sudden change at quarterback midseason, but with Drew Allar sustaining a foot injury in Week 7, another mishap derailed Penn State's season.
Prior to his single snap vs. Northwestern, Grunkemeyer played in two non-conference matchups vs. Nevada and Villanova. From Week 9 on, he was the Nittany Lions' starting quarterback. He completed 123-of-178 passes for 1,339 yards and eight touchdowns. He finished with a 69.1 completion rate and threw four interceptions. Grunkemeyer wasn't successful on the ground and lost 46 yards on 35 carries over his 11 appearances.
Sources: Virginia Tech has named transfer Ethan Grunkemeyer the starting quarterback, and he’ll debut for the Hokies against VMI. Grunkemeyer is a Penn State transfer who threw for 1,339 yards and eight touchdowns. Won his final four starts of the year at Penn State. pic.twitter.com/mHc3gJlinh
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) August 31, 2026
Behind Grunkemeyer will most likely be North Carolina transfer and redshirt freshman Bryce Baker. Baker did not see any game action as a true freshman in 2025. Redshirt freshman Kelden Ryan, a returner for the Hokies, also did not make a game appearance last season.
True freshman Troy Hunh was a former Penn State commit while head coach James Franklin was in Happy Valley, but officially de-committed on Oct. 16, 2025. On Nov. 17, 2025 — the same day Franklin was hired — Virginia Tech offered Hunh a scholarship.
Virginia Tech names Ethan Grunkemeyer starting QB and Beau Pribula impresses in Virginia debut
Another former Penn State quarterback is off to a hot start with his new team. After transferring from Missouri to Virginia for the 2026 season, Beau Pribula made the most of his first game as a Cavalier.
Pribula was 9-of-11 for 155 yards and two touchdowns in Virginia's season-opener vs. Nevada. He finished with an 81.8 completion percentage and threw zero interceptions. He had a 45-yard pass to running back Xavier Brown and a 47-yard pass to Da'Shawn Martin in the contest. While efficient in it, the pass game wasn't where Pribula shined the most. On the ground, he had 15 carries for 110 yards, averaging 7.3 per run.
Per Virginia Cavaliers On SI, Pribula's 110 rushing yards were the most by any FBS quarterback in Week 0 and the most of any Virginia quarterback since 2022. His performance landed him a spot on the ACC's Football Players of the Week.
While the Cavaliers played against the Wolfpack, it doesn't make it any less important to start the season off on the right foot. We might not see Pribula put up impressive numbers every week, but the ACC is a much more tolerable beast than the Big Ten and SEC where he was last.
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