Penn State fans have a new rivalry game to circle on the 2026 calendar, and it comes with a familiar face at the center of it.
When Virginia Tech and Virginia meet in the final week of the regular season, the Commonwealth Clash will matter well beyond the borders of Virginia. For plenty of Penn State fans, the matchup will double as a chance to keep tabs on James Franklin’s new team. And on the other sideline, there will be a quarterback many of them already know well: Beau Pribula.
Pribula, the former Nittany Lion backup, was named Virginia’s starting quarterback this weekend after beating out Pitt transfer Eli Holstein. That sets up a reunion that should grab Penn State’s attention immediately, especially for fans who believed Franklin should have handed Pribula the starting job over Drew Allar.
Pribula spent two seasons backing up Allar at Penn State, then flashed in 2024 with Andy Kotelnicki’s gadget package and the No. 9 jersey that brought Trace McSorley comparisons. Some fans pushed for him to take over the offense before he left the program ahead of the College Football Playoff and eventually landed at Missouri.
The Pennsylvania native and 2022 three-star started 10 games for the Tigers last season. An ankle injury in the middle of the year slowed him down late, but he still finished with 1,941 passing yards, 11 touchdowns, nine interceptions and 297 rushing yards.
Now at Virginia for his final season of eligibility, Pribula gets another shot to show he can run a successful offense - and, for the Penn State crowd that still believes in him, another chance to prove them right.
That said, the Missouri tape also showed why the debate never went away cleanly. Pribula may have fit Kotelnicki’s system better because of his mobility, but his time with the Tigers did not turn into a breakout. Even before the ankle injury, the downfield passing was a problem that put a hard ceiling on the offense.
When the game stayed neutral or tilted in his favor, his legs and quick-game accuracy could stress defenses. But when he had to operate as a true dropback passer, without the run threat or play-action helping him, things got messy fast.
At Missouri, he completed 43 of 85 throws that traveled more than 10 yards in the air, averaging 9.3 yards per attempt with six touchdowns and eight interceptions. Those numbers were not enough to earn him another SEC opportunity, but the ACC gives him a fresh stage. If Pribula can hold the Virginia job and take another step, Penn State fans will have plenty of reason to watch him closely when he lines up against Franklin and Virginia Tech in the Commonwealth Clash.
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