Virginia coach Tony Elliott names Beau Pribula starting QB entering the 2026 season

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Virginia coach Tony Elliott on Wednesday named Missouri transfer Beau Pribula the team’s starting quarterback to open the 2026 season.

The defending Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season champion Cavaliers open the season at home on Aug. 29 against North Carolina State.

Pribula completed 67.4% of his passes last season for 1,941 yards for the Tigers with 11 touchdowns and nine interceptions. He also ran for 297 yards and six TDs.

He played his first two seasons at Penn State. He has played in 34 college games during his last three seasons with 20 TDs and 10 INTs.

“He's a competitor and he has a ton of leadership and a lot of moxie,” Elliott said. “He's extremely intelligent as a quarterback and he has an awareness of the areas that he wants to improve upon and has attacked those with tenacity this offseason. I'm excited about the potential that he has.”

Elliott notified his team of the news before summer workouts.

Pribula said that vote of confidence from Elliott was reassuring heading into the summer workouts.

“You know, you can kind of get a head start in terms of communication with my guys and see the things that I’m comfortable with,” Pribula said. “That makes it kind of easier from my perspective to take a bigger leadership role.” ___

AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-football