When James Franklin was hired at Virginia Tech, he made it known that, despite a new coach coming in, it didn't mean that the current Hokies were going to be sent packing for the 2026 season. There were some players that he needed to retain, and he did.
One way to figure out who to retain and who to let walk was by rehiring former coach Brent Pry, who was fired last September, which opened the door for Franklin to be hired after he was fired a month later at Penn State. Franklin ended up bringing Pry back as his defensive coordinator, and it helped with determining who was worth retaining and who wasn't.
However, one thing was clear: there was going to be at least one need, and that was at quarterback. Kyron Drones was leaving for the NFL, and Pop Watson and Garret Rangel each hit the Transfer Portal. That left Franklin and quarterbacks coach Danny O'Brien looking for some experienced signal callers. In the end, they landed two in the portal, Ethan Grunkemeyer from Penn State and Bryce Baker from North Carolina. Andy Staples of On3 ranked the Top 10 ACC quarterbacks going into the 2026 season, and he had Grunkemeyer rather low.
On3 lists Virginia Tech QB Ethan Grunkemeyer as the 8th best singal caller going into 2026
First and foremost, Grunkemeyer is expected to be the Hokies' signal caller on Sept. 5 when the James Franklin era begins against VMI at Lane Stadium. There should be no battle in camp needed this summer. However, despite his success replacing Drew Allar last season for the Nittany Lions after Franklin was fired, he was rather disrespected.
Last fall, Grunkemeyer completed 69% of his passes for 1,339 yards and eight touchdowns with four interceptions. He led the Nittany Lions to a bowl game and a win over Clemson in the Pinstripe Bowl at Yankees Stadium in December.
However, coming in at No. 8 feels a little disrespectful to someone who has the experience that Grunkemeyer has and what he accomplished for Penn State last season. By the end of the season, he'll be better than some of the names on the list above him.
Three names that popped up right above Grunkemeyer were Mason Heintschel of Pittsburgh, Lincoln Kienholz of Louisville, and Steve Angeli of Syracuse. Grunkemeyer will get a chance to go head-to-head with Heintschel in October when the Panthers visit Blacksburg for a Friday night tilt.
Grunkemeyer and Virginia Tech have a lot to prove in 2026, but if he can come in and play as he did, and a little better than he did in 2025, he will be a Top 5 QB in the ACC by the time the season ends.
Add us as a preferred source on Google