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Drew Allar reveals his emotions of James Franklin taking Virginia Tech job

Danby: Daniel Hager1 hour agoDanielHagerOn3
Drew-Allar-reveals-his-emotions-of-James-Franklin-taking-Virginia-Tech-job
Oct 12, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar (15) is is congratulated by head coach James Franklin after defeating the USC Trojans in overtime at United Airlines Field at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

James Franklin officially took over as Virginia Tech‘s head football coach on Monday, starting the next chapter of his coaching career. Franklin most recently coached at Penn State for over a decade, but was let go after six games in 2025.

Franklin replaces Brent Pry, who, ironically, worked under Franklin with the Nittany Lions from 2016-21 as the defensive coordinator. Pry was 16-24 as Virginia Tech’s head coach, but was fired after an 0-3 start this season.

Over his 12-year stint at Penn State, Franklin led the Nittany Lions to a 104-45 (64-36) record with an appearance in the 2024 College Football Playoff. When he became an available name on the head coaching market, it was a no-brainer for the program to go after him.

His quarterback on that College Football Playoff team, Drew Allar, also had his Penn State tenure cut short following the Nittany Lions’ loss to Northwestern. One day before it was revealed that Franklin would be let go, it was announced that Allar had suffered a season-ending ankle injury. During a media opportunity on Thursday, Allar spoke highly of his former coach.

Drew Allar claims Franklin will ‘do a great job’ at Virginia Tech

“Yeah, as you guys know, I have a great relationship with Coach Franklin,” Allar said. “I probably talk to him every other day, really since we’ve both been done. I could now phrase it like that, but yeah, I’m very excited for him. He’s gonna do a great job at Virginia Tech. I think it’s a great spot for him, and I’m very excited to see how he does. Very happy for him and his family.”

“They’ve done a great amount for me and my teammates, obviously, but I have a really good relationship with all of them. I was just texting with his wife yesterday, but I’m kind of trying to leave him alone right now since I know he has a pretty busy schedule with everything he has going on right now. But it’s gonna be really fun to just keep in touch with him and follow his journey and just see how everything unfolds for him.”

Over his four-year career at Penn State, Allar passed for 7,402 yards, 61 touchdowns, and just 13 interceptions. As the program’s starting quarterback, Allar led the Nittany Lions to a 26-9 record across two and a half seasons. The 2025 season, however, took a turn for the worse for both Allar and Franklin following their 2OT loss to No. 6 Oregon on Sept. 27, ushering in a completely new era in Happy Valley.