Wisconsin offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes called Billy Edwards Jr. ‘one of the top two or three’ transfer quarterbacks in the country in a recent Q&A with Matt Lepay and the Varsity Collective.
“I love this kid,” Grimes said in a video clip posted on X. “We looked at a bunch of quarterbacks in the portal. And from the beginning, Billy was one of the top two or three guys in the country, in my estimation.”
Edwards committed to the Badgers on Dec. 16, just four days after initially entering the portal. 247Sports lists the former Maryland starter as a three-star transfer recruit, ranked as the No. 284 overall player in the portal and No. 27 quarterback.
Grimes is much higher on the Badgers’ new signal-caller than the broader consensus. He expanded on some of the reasons for that high evaluation.
“There were a lot of guys that some experts may have had rated higher. But I thought his combination of size, arm talent, intelligence, decision-making and athletic ability, combined with personality, toughness, energy that you can tell from watching the film. All of those things were important to me.”
Here is the full clip, courtesy of the Varsity Collective:
Edwards is set to start for the Badgers in 2025 after one year as Maryland’s full-time starter. The veteran completed 65% of his passes for 2,881 passing yards, 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 2024 for the Terrapins.
Those numbers include the context of Maryland finishing second-to-last in the conference (4-8 overall, 1-8 Big Ten). Edwards wasn’t surrounded by much talent or production on his side of the football, especially along the offensive line.
The Virginia native figures to be a near-perfect fit in Grimes’ pro-style offense. He’ll be aided by a terrific offensive line unit, talented running back room and strong wide receiving corps. Those convergent factors should lead to career numbers from the senior quarterback. He won’t have much trouble delivering Wisconsin’s best season from the position since 2019 (Jack Coan).
247Sports transfer quarterback rankings were led by Carson Beck (Georgia to Miami), John Mateer (Washington State to Oklahoma), Luke Kromenhoek (Florida State to Mississippi State), Fernando Mendoza (Cal to Indiana) and Jaron Kaewe Sagapolutele (Oregon to Cal).
According to Grimes, Edwards could surpass most of them.
Wisconsin fans know the first step toward that reality is Edwards staying healthy through an entire season. The team’s high-profile veteran transfer additions have combined to play just 13 combined games over the last two seasons — 10 from Tanner Mordecai in 2023 and three from Tyler Van Dyke in 2024. That dynamic hurt Phil Longo’s air raid attack.
Grimes will need better luck in that regard has he works to return the program to its classic pro-style roots.
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