Getty Former West Virginia QB Will Grier
The West Virginia Mountaineers are getting all that they could wish for from their senior quarterback, Will Grier. The six-foot-two-inch, 223-pound signal caller has been playing lights out since the season had begun. Had he been on a different team in say, the SEC, Grier would probably be the favorite to win the Heisman with the way his current stat sheet looks like.
Unfortunately for Grier, the NCAA world is caught up with Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa. That’s no knock on the Crimson Tide superstar, but it’s time for everybody to get familiar with Grier as he has earned himself some recognition. And through five weeks of college football, Grier has been outstanding. He’s passed for 1,487-yards, along with 17 touchdowns.
It’s crazy to think that Grier’s worst game to date has been against Texas Tech this past weekend. Are you ready for these numbers? 370-yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions with a passer rating of 165.8. Somehow, that’s been Grier’s least productive day on the job. At this point, the only thing holding Grier back from being number one on the Heisman watch is the fact that he plays for West Virginia.
No Respect?
The strength of schedule argument is difficult in college football. These guys don’t create their opponents. Grier plays who he has to play, and gets his job done rather well. The good news is that his hard work hasn’t gone unnoticed. This week, Pro Football Focus has ranked not Tua Tagovailoa or Dwayne Haskins, but Will Grier as the number one quarterback in the NCAA through the first five weeks of football.
With an impressive rating of 93.5, Grier has displayed incredible accuracy, especially on deep balls. Although ESPN didn’t think this highly of Grier about a week ago, it doesn’t mean that he is off of their radar for now.
Heading into Saturday’s game versus Texas Tech, ESPN had Grier ranked as the third-favorite to win the Heisman, just behind Haskins and Tagovailoa. Due to Grier’s slight downgrade in performance on Saturday, he didn’t exactly see an increase in his stock.
With Kansas coming to town this week, WVU is heavy favorites at (-29). Another five-touchdown game could plainly put Grier on the right track to increasing his Heisman stock this week. It’s only a matter of time until the national media has Grier trending in the right direction for the Heisman race.