Earlier this month, Frank Beamer announced that quarterback Ricardo Young had decided to transfer from Virginia Tech to an unknown destination.
Two weeks later, that destination is now known.
First reported by KRQE-TV in Albuquerque and later confirmed to the Washington Post, Young is heading westward and will transfer to New Mexico. Colorado and Kentucky were also reportedly a consideration for a potential landing spot.
Per the standard NCAA transfer rules, Young will have to sit out the 2011 season. As he took a redshirt his true freshman season last year, Young will have three years of eligibility beginning in 2012.
Young had hoped (eye roll) to battle Logan Thomas for the right to replace Tyrod Taylor (no relation) as the Hokies’ starter, but instead missed most of spring practice with a mid-foot sprain. Then, he was held out of Tech’s first scrimmage of summer camp due to a groin issue. As a result, he fell to No. 3 on the depth chart.
And, as a result, he felt the need for a fresh opportunity at playing time elsewhere.
“He didn’t want to be the No. 2 guy,” one of Young’s high school assistant coaches, Wayne Johnson, told the Post. “He wanted to be the No. 1 guy. And he showed them. ... And the coaching staff said he was good enough to be the No. 1. guy.”
Young was a three-star member of Tech’s 2010 recruiting class and the No. 21 dual-threat quarterback in the country.