James Franklin sets record straight on Crumbl cookies at Virginia Tech National Signing Day

James Franklin, Crumbl cookies, Penn State, BYU and Virginia Tech are somehow all linked? Confused? Well, Franklin set the record straight Wednesday.

First, a little color. Penn State targeted BYU’s Kalani Sitake for their head coaching position, but noted BYU supporter and Crumbl CEO Jason McGowan stepped in. Once he did, Sitake signed a new contract with the school and Penn State was left scrambling.

Franklin, who was fired by Penn State midseason, was busy signing new recruits to his new stomping grounds Virginia Tech. But a box of Crumbl cookies was spotted in-house, perhaps as a slight troll to his former school. Franklin didn’t outright deny nor confirm, but left it up to everyone else’s imagination.

“People are trying to connect the dots there and stir up some drama,” Franklin said via CBS Sports College Football. “I’m focused on Virginia Tech. … We’ve been fans of Crumbl cookies for a long time.”

After striking out on Sitake, and Louisville’s Jeff Brohm if they targeted him since he plans to stay with the Cardinals, interim coach Terry Smith might be the move. Despite getting a head start by firing Franklin after a 3-3 record in 2025, Penn State has yet to hire a new permanent head coach.

On3’s Pete Nakos reported donors at Penn State are pushing AD Pat Kraft to give Smith the job. Smith went 3-3 during his interim stint, including three straight wins to end the year to qualify for a bowl game, saving the season from 100% disaster.

The ultimate goal for Virginia Tech is to one day be associated with the elite programs out there. A big financial commitment came from the school to help out the football program, which was part of the reason Franklin signed on. The Hokies want to get back to a competitive state before finding a way to make another jump.

“There’s a difference between being competitive — and we’ve made a move to be competitive,” Franklin said Wednesday on ESPN2. “But I think you guys follow this closely enough, there are 10 programs out there in the country that are different than everyone else. Like, significantly different than everybody else. That’s what everybody is trying to do. Find different ways to be creative and strategic in the closing of those gaps. We have a chance to be as successful as everybody else.”