Greg McElroy believes James Franklin will take Virginia Tech to the ‘top of the ACC’

On Nov. 17, Virginia Tech named James Franklin its next head coach. Franklin began this season at Penn State, but was fired after the Nittany Lions suffered three consecutive losses. On Tuesday, ESPN’s Greg McElroy reacted to Virginia Tech hiring Franklin.

“What was intriguing about this is that James Franklin was going to have options,” McElroy said. “They weren’t necessarily going to be Florida or LSU. From what I gather, he was never really a candidate for either one of those two places, and that’s part of the reason why things accelerated for Virginia Tech here down the stretch.

“Once he realized that wasn’t probably going to happen, then, all of a sudden, it became more realistic. ‘Hey, I’ll take Virginia Tech,’ and it’s been really good. But this, I think, indicates that in the ACC there is some upward mobility. And, depending on what type of staff James Franklin is able to assemble, he’s going to have tremendous inroads in recruiting in the state of Virginia, a place that he has long relied heavily upon as a recruiter at Penn State.”

Franklin is already making waves at Virginia Tech. Multiple Penn State commits have shown interest in following Franklin to Blacksburg, Virginia. Moreover, players who were committed to Virginia Tech while Brent Pry was the head coach are reportedly liking what they’re seeing from Franklin.

Franklin brings an impressive resume with him to Virginia Tech. He spent 12 seasons at Penn State, amassing a 104-45 overall record and a 64-36 mark in conference play. In 2016, Franklin led the Nittany Lions to a Big Ten title.

The program appeared in the Big Ten championship game in 2024, but fell to Oregon. The Nittany Lions made their first CFP appearance under Franklin that season and advanced to the semifinals. While McElroy isn’t ready to guarantee Franklin will reach similar heights at Virginia Tech, he isn’t shutting down the idea, either.

“I think they’re going to be in a really good spot. This will allow Virginia Tech to compete at the top of the ACC I think for the foreseeable future. Now, will they make runs in the playoffs? Will they win a national championship? I don’t know the answer to that just yet, but I do think of the candidates that were available for Virginia Tech, they hired the best one.”