Virginia Tech is swinging big – and landing bigger. The Hokies are finalizing a deal to bring in James Franklin as their next head football coach, sources confirm.
It’s a bold move, but one that signals Virginia Tech isn’t content to linger in the middle of the ACC pack any longer. After parting ways with Brent Pry midseason, the Hokies are betting on a proven winner to lead them into a new era.
Franklin hits the market with a résumé few can match. His time at Penn State ended abruptly after a rocky 3-3 start to the 2025 season, but the body of work tells a much deeper story.
In 12 seasons in Happy Valley, Franklin turned the Nittany Lions into a perennial contender. Aside from a COVID-affected 2020 campaign, Penn State never finished below .500 under his watch.
From 2022 to 2024, they rattled off three straight 10-win seasons and, most notably, made their first-ever College Football Playoff appearance last year – a run that ended in a tightly contested semifinal loss to eventual runner-up Notre Dame.
The 2025 season, however, didn’t unfold as expected. Penn State opened ranked No. 2 in the AP poll – their highest preseason ranking since 1997 – and were early favorites to win the Big Ten for the first time since 2016.
But after an undefeated nonconference start, things unraveled quickly. A 30-24 overtime loss to Oregon was the first crack.
Then came a stunning upset at the hands of winless UCLA, followed by a loss to unranked Northwestern. That last defeat also saw starting quarterback Drew Allar go down with a season-ending ankle injury.
Shortly after, Franklin was out.
Still, Franklin’s track record speaks volumes. He led Penn State to 10 postseason appearances in 11 full seasons, posted six 10-win campaigns, and finished in the AP Top 10 five times.
He’s 5-3 in New Year’s Six and College Football Playoff games – a stat that might surprise those who’ve criticized his performance in big moments. And before his Big Ten run, he made history at Vanderbilt, becoming the first coach there to win back-to-back bowl games.
For Virginia Tech, this isn’t just a coaching change – it’s a statement. Franklin becomes the first Hokies head coach since Frank Beamer with an 11-win season at a Power Four school on his résumé.
The program hasn’t sniffed a New Year’s Six Bowl since 2011 and hasn’t appeared in the AP Top 25 since Week 3 of the 2021 season. That’s a long drought for a fanbase that once expected to be in the national conversation every year.
Franklin also brings something Virginia Tech sorely needs: recruiting muscle in the Mid-Atlantic. He’s a Pennsylvania native, coached at James Madison, and had two separate stints at Maryland.
That gives him serious pull in the DMV – one of the most talent-rich regions in the country. During his time at Penn State, he made Virginia a top priority, landing two of the state’s top three prospects in 2023, including current linebacker Tony Rojas.
The timing couldn’t be better for a program looking to rise. The ACC is wide open.
Traditional powerhouses like Clemson and Florida State are stumbling – the two are a combined 5-9 in conference play this season. Florida State, in particular, is spiraling, with just one ACC win in its last 11 games.
That’s opened the door for programs like Georgia Tech and Virginia to climb the standings, while SMU, Duke, and Pittsburgh remain firmly in the mix.
That chaos creates a real opportunity for Virginia Tech to make a move – and Franklin has the credentials to take advantage. He’s now one of the most accomplished head coaches in the ACC, with success in both the SEC and Big Ten under his belt. If he can stabilize the roster and hit the ground running on the recruiting trail, the Hokies could be in the mix sooner than later.
And it looks like the university is ready to support that push. After moving on from Pry, Virginia Tech’s board of visitors approved a major investment in athletics – adding $229 million to the budget over the coming years.
For context, the Hokies spent $132.8 million on athletics last year. That number will rise to $190.1 million this fiscal year and is projected to hit $212.1 million by 2029-30.
That spending trajectory puts them in the same financial ballpark as Clemson and Florida State, both of whom topped $160 million in 2024-25.
Bottom line: Virginia Tech isn’t just hoping to get back to relevance – they’re building for it. With James Franklin at the helm and major resources behind him, the Hokies are positioning themselves to be more than just competitive in the ACC. They’re aiming to be contenders.
