Ex-ECU QB Kurt Benkert transfers to Virginia (Update)
Update: May 16 – 2:05 p.m. ET
Virginia has officially announced the addition of former East Carolina quarterback Kurt Benkert to its roster.
Original story: May 1 – 12:10 p.m. ET
Virginia has added a quarterback to its roster.
A week after announcing his intention to leave East Carolina, Kurt Benkert told multiple outlets (and later confirmed on Twitter) Sunday that he has committed to play for the Cavaliers. Benkert is set to graduate from ECU this month, so he will be immediately eligible once he arrives at UVA, where he will have two years of eligibility remaining.
At Virginia, Benkert will reunite with former East Carolina head coach Ruffin McNeill, who was abruptly fired in December at the conclusion of his fifth year with the program. After his dismissal, McNeill quickly landed at UVA as assistant head coach and inside linebackers coach under Bronco Mendenhall, who left BYU for the Virginia gig.
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Benkert was named East Carolina’s starting quarterback entering the 2015 season, but tore his ACL late in preseason camp and missed the entire season.
After recovering from surgery, Benkert competed with Philip Nelson for ECU’s starting quarterback gig throughout the spring. The competition was set to continue into the summer, but Benkert opted to pursue another opportunity.
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The addition of Benkert adds another name into the mix for Virginia’s starting quarterback job. Fifth-year seniors Matt Johns and Connor Brewer split first team reps throughout the spring. Johns started all 12 games last season, throwing for 2,810 yards, 20 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. Brewer began his career at Texas, where he redshirted, and also had a two-year stint at Arizona as a backup. He transferred to UVA in 2015 and served as Johns’ backup, appearing in two games.
Virginia went 4-8 in 2015.
For more Virginia news, visit CavsCorner.com.
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Sam Cooper is a contributor for the Yahoo Sports blogs. Have a tip? Email him or follow him on Twitter!
