Fall camp has arrived at Virginia Tech with the final preparation for the first season of the James Franklin era starting today. Unsurprisingly, the Hokies do have plenty of starting jobs available entering into fall camp, especially on the offensive side where almost every position group except running back has some of starting competition (whether it's a serious one or not) and even RB is built around a 1-2 punch of Marcellous Hawkins and Jeff Overton Jr that should be one of the ACC's best.
So with that in mind, let's dive into all the open competitions for starting jobs.
Quarterback
Let's start with the competition that technically is still open at quarterback.
While Bryce Baker does look like a talented quarterback and showed lots of potential during the Spring Game, and James Franklin has praised his quarterback room as being the deepest in the country, I have a very hard time imagining that Ethan Grunkemeyer won't be the starting quarterback for the Hokies.
All signs have been that Grunkemeyer has looked the part since his arrival after a solid debut season at Penn State during which he threw for 1,339 yards, eight touchdowns, and four interceptions plus a 69.1% completion rate. His completion rate would have been good enough to break Hendon Hooker's 2020 single-season record of 65.3% for quarterbacks who attempted at least 150 passes in a season.
Add in a very solid Spring Game and the deep familiarity he has with Franklin, OC Ty Howle, and QBs coach Danny O'Brien and I have a hard time imagining a scenario where Grunkemeyer isn't the starting quarterback this fall.
Now whether Franklin decides to announce it during fall camp or wait all the way to the start of the season remains a mystery. For now, it would be very surprising if Ethan Grunkemeyer wasn't the starting quarterback versus VMI.
Prediction: Ethan Grunkemeyer
Third Wide Receiver
Now let's get into one of the more open starting competitions on this roster: the third wide receiver spot.
