Former Vanderbilt and Penn State head coach James Franklin has his next job, according to a report.
Franklin is finalizing a contract to become the next head coach at Virginia Tech. That’s per ESPN’s Pete Thamel, who notes that Franklin has 128 career victories and brought the Nittany Lions to the final four just last season.
Franklin replaces Brent Pry, who was fired earlier this season after less than 4 years on the job. It’s been a disappointing decade for Virginia Tech, who has not won 9+ games in a single season since the 2017 campaign. The Hokies are 3-7 so far this year and will not be bowl-eligible in 2025.
Franklin will be looking to turn things around quickly in Blacksburg. Virginia Tech competed for ACC Championships at the height of the Frank Beamer era. The Hokies won 10 consecutive games every year from 2004-11 under Beamer’s leadership.
This is the first major hire of this year’s coaching carousel. Florida, LSU, Penn State and Arkansas are among the jobs that are expected to be filled in the coming weeks.
Franklin does have ties to the region. Prior to being named the head coach at Vanderbilt, he was the offensive coordinator at Maryland from 2008-10. He also worked for the Terps from 2000-04. He was also the wide receivers coach at James Madison for one season back in 1997.
Spenser is a news editor for Saturday Down South and covers college football across all Saturday Football brands.
