Will Grier

Will Grier
West Virginia Mountaineers No. 7
Position Quarterback
Class Sophomore
Career history
College
High school Davidson (NC) Day
Personal information
Date of birth (1995-04-03) April 3, 1995
Place of birth Davidson, North Carolina
Height 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight 212 lb (96 kg)
Career highlights and awards

Will Grier (born April 3, 1995) is an American football quarterback for the West Virginia Mountaineers. He previously played for the Florida Gators.

Early years

Grier attended in Davidson Day School in Davidson, North Carolina. As a junior, he threw for a national record 837 yards in a game, breaking the old record of 764.[1][2][3] As a senior he had 4,989 passing yards with a nation-leading and North Carolina record 77 touchdowns.[4] He also rushed for 1,251 yards with 13 touchdowns.[5] He was named the Parade Magazine Player of the Year and Mr. Football USA.[6][7] For his career, Grier had 14,565 passing yards, a state record 195 touchdown passes, 2,955 rushing yards and 31 rushing touchdowns.

Grier was rated by Rivals.com as a four-star recruit and was ranked as the second best dual-threat quarterback in his class and 46th player overall.[8] Grier was offered scholarships to play football at Auburn, Arkansas, Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Wake Forest. He committed to play quarterback at the University of Florida.[9][10]

College career

Grier competed with Treon Harris to be Jeff Driskel's backup as a freshman in 2014.[11] As a Redshirt freshman in 2015, he competed with Harris to be the starting quarterback. Although Harris started the first game, Grier received playing time, attempting 18 passes and completing 16 for 166 yards with two touchdowns. He rushed for 43 yards with a touchdown. Grier started the second game.[12][13][14] In the fourth game of his college career against the Tennessee Volunteers, he was a key player in the Gators 28–27 comeback victory. The Gators were down 14–27 with 5 minutes left and he threw 2 touchdowns to take the lead, one of those touchdowns being a 63-yard touchdown to Antonio Calloway on 4th and 14 with a 1:26 left in the game. He ended the game going 23 of 43 for 283 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. The next week against the Ole Miss Rebels, he had the best game of his young career, going 24 of 29 for 271 yards and four passing touchdowns. He threw his four touchdowns in the first half; he is the first Gator quarterback since Chris Leak in 2005 to do that. The game ended up being a 38–10 win for the Gators.

Grier received a one-year suspension, effective October 12, 2015, after it was revealed that he had tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs. He said the positive test stems from the over-the-counter supplement Ligandrol, and that he was not aware it was banned, while also admitting he never followed protocol and cleared the supplement with team trainers.[15] His appeal was rejected by the NCAA, and he will not be eligible to return until the sixth game of the regular season in 2016.[16][17][18] On December 19, 2015, Florida announced that Grier plans to transfer to another school.[19] On April 6, 2016, Grier announced that he is transferring to West Virginia University and will sit out the 2016 season per NCAA transfer rules.[20]

Personal

Grier is the oldest sibling in his family and is the son of Chad Grier and Elizabeth Floyd (nee Whitaker). His father was a standout quarterback for the East Carolina Pirates and also coaches football.[21] He has two brothers, Nash and Hayes, and a half-sister, Skylynn Floyd. All were popular users of Vine, the defunct video sharing service.[22] He now has a daughter named Eloise Marie Grier.

References

  1. "North Carolina prep QB Will Grier throws for 837 yards, 10 TDs in 104–80 state playoff game". Fox News. November 11, 2012. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  2. Grautski, Amara (November 10, 2012). "Davidson Day HS quarterback Will Grier throws for national-record 837 yards in offense-heavy game against Harrells Christian Academy". NY Daily News. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  3. Bradley, Ken (November 1, 2013). "Will Grier: Florida commit, state champion, 837 yards". Sporting News. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  4. Mehrtens, Cliff (January 2, 2014). "Grier's gridiron play stood out locally, nationally". The Herald Weekly. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  5. Smits, Garry (August 12, 2014). "Florida offensive coordinator optimistic about freshman QB Will Grier". Jacksonville.com. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  6. Hays, Chris (February 2, 2014). "Gators' QB Will Grier named Parade player of the year". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  7. Huber, Todd (January 14, 2014). "2013 Mr. Football USA – Will Grier". Student Sports. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  8. "Will Grier". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  9. Abolverdi, Zach (December 19, 2012). "UF picks up commit from top QB". Gainesville.com. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  10. Mehrtens, Cliff (December 19, 2012). "Davidson Day quarterback Grier commits to Florida". The Herald Weekly. Retrieved September 14, 2015.
  11. Kurt Roper enjoying QB competition between UF freshmen Will Grier and Treon Harris
  12. Treon Harris, Will Grier put on show as Florida overwhelms New Mexico State
  13. Will Grier to start at quarterback for Gators Saturday against East Carolina
  14. Redshirt freshman QB Will Grier to make first career start for Gators
  15. Grier, Will. "A YEAR IN PED PURGATORY", Bleacher Report, 27 October 2005. Retrieved on 5 December 2016.
  16. Brett McMurphy (2015-10-12). "Florida's Will Grier suspended for one year after positive PED test". espn.go.com. Retrieved 2015-10-12.
  17. Edgar Thompson (2015-10-12). "Gators QB Will Grier suspended for year for using banned substance". touch.orlandosentinal.com. Retrieved 2015-10-12.
  18. Carter, Scott (October 13, 2015). "Answers to some questions people have about Gators QB Will Grier". gatorzone.com. University Athletic Assoc., Inc., Fox Sports Sun & IMG College. Retrieved October 14, 2015.
  19. "Will Grier to transfer out of Florida". ESPN.com. ESPN. December 19, 2015. Retrieved December 19, 2015.
  20. Haney, Travis (April 6, 2016). "QB Will Grier transfers from Florida to West Virginia". ESPN.com. Retrieved August 23, 2016.
  21. "Gatorzone.com:Will Grier". Retrieved October 17, 2015.
  22. Anglis, Jaclyn (September 8, 2015). "Who Are Hayes Grier's Siblings? This Family Definitely Represents #SiblingGoals". Bustle. Retrieved September 14, 2015.

External links

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