James Franklin being hired as Virginia Tech head coach

James Franklin is set to become the new Virginia Tech head football coach, starting the next chapter of his coaching career, On3’s Pete Nakos confirmed. 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.

Franklin left State College with a 104-45 record since 2014 when he took the job. He is 128-60 overall as a head coach, which includes his three-year stint at Vanderbilt (24-15).

There was an abundance of criticism surrounding Franklin going into the 2025 season. Fresh off a 2-1 record in last year’s College Football Playoff, this year was seen as a national title or bust.

With a lot of players returning, Penn State got off to a 3-0 start to the year, beating up less-than-stellar non-conference foes. But losses to Oregon in overtime and then upsets at the hands of UCLA and Northwestern, the Nittany Lions found themselves unranked and searching for answers.

Franklin’s big game struggles were the biggest talking point among critics. He was 4-21 against AP Poll Top 10 teams in his tenure with the Nittany Lions. There were even “Fire Franklin” chants at the end of Penn State’s loss to Northwestern, signaling the end.

Returning Virginia Tech to national prominence is the goal now. Back in mid-October, Franklin joined ESPN’s College GameDay and said the goal was just to win a national championship elsewhere now, considering he fell short at Penn State.

“To think that essentially six games ago, we were fighting for a chance to be in the national championship, a two-minute drive away. So that’s the thing. I really can’t answer that. 12 years, a ton of good moments, a bunch of big wins,” Franklin said. “Decisions were made, and I’m not involved in those decisions.

“I’m very, very grateful for the time I had and, most importantly, for the relationships I was able to build. I thought we were going to win a national championship. We were close. That goal hasn’t changed. We’re just going to go win a national championship somewhere else now.”