Virginia Tech names Grant Wells starting QB: Former Marshall star will take the field Week 1 vs. Old Dominion

Grant Wells has been named Virginia Tech’s starting quarterback for the 2022 season opener against Old Dominion on Sept. 2, Hokies coach Brent Pry announced Wednesday. Wells, a redshirt junior transfer from Marshall, topped South Carolina transfer Jason Brown and Connor Blumrick in the competition.

Wells ranks among the most productive transfers in college football, having completed 64.4% of his passes for 5,626 yards and 34 touchdowns with a 14-9 record in two seasons for the Thundering Herd. In 2020, he became the first freshman to earn first-team All-Conference USA honors.

The West Virginia native has at least two years of eligibility remaining, not counting the blanket eligibility waiver granted by the NCAA after the COVID-19 season. More importantly, Wells hopes to bring consistency to what quietly was one of the most inconsistent quarterback situations in the country over the past half-decade.

Wells will be the sixth different opening-day starter for Virginia Tech in the last eight seasons. Only one quarterback, Hendon Hooker, led the Hokies in passing yards in consecutive seasons after Justin Fuente took over the program in 2016. Hooker transferred to Tennessee in 2021 despite having multiple years of eligibility remaining.

Pry, who is in his first season, brought in multiple different coaches to handle the more administrative aspects of the offense after leaving his co-defensive coordinator post at Penn State. Tyler Bowen joined as offensive coordinator after stretches at Penn State and the Jacksonville Jaguars. Brad Glenn comes to Blacksburg as the quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator after spending much of his career in the Appalachian State system. Furthermore, Pry brought in Stu Holt as the assistant head coach of the offense after three years as special teams coordinator at Louisville.

The braintrust hopes to improve an offense that ranked No. 97 nationally in scoring offense and No. 112 in passing offense behind departed quarterback Braxton Burmeister, who transferred to San Diego State.