Heel Tough Blog: Tar Heels Set to Host Transfer QB

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The transfer portal officially opens on Friday and the Tar Heels have officially been tied to their first quarterback in the transfer portal.

As first reported by the Tar Pit Podcast, Wisconsin transfer quarterback Billy Edwards will be taking a trip to Chapel Hill on Friday. According to Andrew Jones of TarHeel 247 has confirmed the visit and is reporting that he will meet with head coach Bill Belichick and prospective offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino in his time on campus.

Edwards, a former 3✮ prospect in the 2021 class, entered the transfer portal on Monday after spending just one season with the Wisconsin Badgers. He played in just two games this season for the team, suffering a Grade 3 PCL strain in the season-opening game against Miami (OH). He would return in the game against Maryland where he would play just six snaps before being sidelined for the rest of the season. He would finish the season 7 of 16 for 113 yards in 34 total snaps.

Prior to his time at Wisconsin, Edwards spent three seasons at Maryland where he split time at the position in his first two years before taking over as the full-time starter in 2024. In his first two seasons with the team, he played in 16 games with the team, including four starts, throwing for 441 yards, four touchdowns and one interception on 38 of 76 passing and running for 227 yards and eight touchdowns on 63 rush attempts. In 2024, he took over as the full time starter, throwing for 2,881 yards, 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions on 273 of 420 passing and running for 148 yards and five touchdowns on 81 carries for a Terrapins team that finished the season 4-8 (1-8).

Edwards originally committed and signed with Wake Forest out of high school and spent one season with the program where he would not see the field. He entered the transfer portal after taking the redshirt and landed in College Park in April of 2022.

This is certainly not the splash at quarterback that we were hoping for, but it feels like the staff is not looking to pay a quarterback that much money so they are settling for cheaper options. While his numbers might not be horrible, Edwards is not the type of quarterback that comes in and immediately changes the trajectory of the team which is what many were hoping for after a dismal first season for a coach that should be looking to win now. This is a move that you make to bring in competition for Gio Lopez as opposed to finding a guaranteed improvement over him, a strategy of which many, including ourselves would not be thrilled with.