There are multiple reports that. James Franklin is negotiating with Virginia Tech to be their next head coach. The former Penn State coach was fired earlier this year after he started the season 3-3. Penn State was expected to be a national championship-level team, but it struggled to meet early-season expectations. Overall, Franklin did a good job at Penn State, ending his career there with a record of 104-45. Franklin, on paper, would be a good option for a Virginia Tech program that had struggled largely.
Since legendary head coach Frank Beamer stepped down in 2015, Virginia Tech has struggled to gain traction in the ACC. Justin Fuente came from Memphis and went 43-3, including 10-11 in his last two seasons. Then they hired Penn State defensive coordinator Brent Pry, and he went 16-24 and was fired earlier this year. Franklin would be an immediate upgrade over the past two coaches. Franklin also had success at Vanderbilt before. Franklin would benefit from being at a place like Virginia Tech, where he could win consistently and not feel the pressure of winning a National Championship.
The other reason he would be a good fit is that Franklin is an excellent recruiter. At Penn State, he constantly recruited well. The reason I think it could translate at Virginia Tech is that he did well in the DMV region and throughout the Mid-Atlantic area. I can easily see him going into those schools and stealing these players from other schools. This is something that Virginia Tech has struggled with for a long time.
The other area that helps Franklin is coaching in the wide-open ACC. At Penn State, he could never get past Ohio State, the best team in the Big Ten. Franklin, Penn State was usually always the underdog against teams like Ohio State and Michigan. In the ACC this season alone, we have seen Virginia (Virginia Tech rival) be the best team in the ACC most of the season. We have also seen other teams are such as Georgia Tech, have been a good team this season. There is no reason Franklin couldn’t do the same thing at Virginia Tech.
Franklin makes a ton of sense as the next head coach at Virginia Tech. Franklin is also hungry to prove the doubters wrong. He has recruiting ability, the coaching experience to be successful at Virginia Tech. It would be a homerun hire for both Franklin and Virginia Tech.