It’s been a long, eventful offseason, but we’re inching closer to the 2022 college football season.
A lot has happened since we saw Georgia top Alabama in the national title game. And in the era of the transfer portal and the one-time transfer waiver, player movement is more prevalent than ever.
That’s especially true among quarterbacks, where the search for playing time so often propels players from one school to another. As players like Joe Burrow, Justin Fields and Kyler Murray have shown us, these quarterback transfers usually play a huge role in the race toward the College Football Playoff.
Now with the start of the 2022 season less than two months away, it seems like a good time to recap a busy offseason of quarterback movement.
ACC
Clemson: Hunter Johnson (Northwestern)
A one-time five-star recruit, Hunter Johnson is back at Clemson in a depth role after a rocky stint at Northwestern. He’s behind DJ Uiagalelei and freshman Cade Klubnik and isn’t expected to see the field.
Georgia Tech: Zach Gibson (Akron), Taisun Phommachanh (Clemson)
Jeff Sims has been the main QB for Georgia Tech the past two seasons, but the program is 6-16 during that span and just 9-25 in three years under Geoff Collins. With new offensive coordinator Chip Long in the fold, Sims has some competition with Zach Gibson and Taisun Phommachanh added to the roster. Gibson threw for 1,262 yards and 10 TDs last year at Akron while Phommachanh played sparingly over three seasons at Clemson.
Pittsburgh: Kedon Slovis (USC)
With Heisman finalist Kenny Pickett off to the NFL, Pitt brought in former USC starter Kedon Slovis. Slovis started 26 games in three seasons at USC and was especially impressive as a freshman, throwing for 3,502 yards and 30 TDs. Without OC Mark Whipple (Nebraska) and star receiver Jordan Addison (USC), the Pitt offense will likely look different in 2022 but Slovis gives the team a veteran presence.
Virginia Tech: Grant Wells (Marshall), Jason Brown (South Carolina)
Braxton Burmeister, Virginia Tech’s 2021 starter, left the school after Justin Fuente was fired. New Hokies head coach Brent Pry added two transfers soon after his hire. Grant Wells, who threw for 5,623 yards and 34 TDs at Marshall, is the favorite to start over Jason Brown, who was an FCS star before spending one year at South Carolina.
