Virginia Tech Struck Gold With James Franklin. Now, Can The Hokies Reach The CFP?

Story by

Story by
Virginia Tech Struck Gold With James Franklin. Now, Can The Hokies Reach The CFP?

Virginia Tech Struck Gold With James Franklin. Now, Can The Hokies Reach The CFP? — IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Dana Becker · Sportsnaut

Fri, Oct 30, 2026 ·

3 min read

About Our Ads

Virginia Tech hit a home run by hiring James Franklin after Penn State fired him.

Virginia Tech football was once the king of the Big East. After that, they dominated the ACC under legendary head coach Frank Beamer.

Now, thanks to a decision by Penn State that looks worse by the week, the Hokies appear ready to return to the top under James Franklin.

Franklin was let go last year after struggling with the Nittany Lions. He was eventually replaced by Matt Campbell, but Penn State's season has yet to reach new heights.

James Franklin Has Virginia Tech Riding High Into November

Virginia Tech, meanwhile, has won two straight and sits at 6-2 overall with four key games left on the schedule.

The Hokies have a bye this weekend before heading to SMU. They followed that up with Stanford at home as a precursor to a trip to top-ranked Miami. Virginia concludes the regular season.

Things in the ACC outside of the Hurricanes remain a muddled mess, but Franklin definitely has Virginia Tech in the mix.

The Hokies last won the ACC in 2010, claiming division titles in 2011 and again in 2016. They were unsuccessful both of those seasons.

Past Success A Big Part Of James Franklin's Resume

Bowl games have also been a rough go for the school. They won the Military Bowl over Tulane in 2023, but lost in 2024 and went 0-4 in the years prior to the win three years ago.

All of those numbers were likely taken into consideration when Franklin became available. For the negatives he carries with him, the positives cannot be ignored.

In his head coaching career, Franklin is 134-62, winning eight bowl games and two games in the College Football Playoff. While that might not be enough for Penn State, Virginia Tech was definitely happy to take him off the bench and put him back on the sidelines.

Franklin had 10 winning seasons in his first 11 with the Nittany Lions. That included four years with 11 victories, including a 22-5 mark in 2016 and 2017. He had his best season in 2024, going 13-3 with a pair of wins in the College Football Playoff.

From 2022-2024, Penn State won 34 games and lost just eight, including a victory in the Rose Bowl in 2022.

Hokies Used Transfer Portal To Get Back To The Top Quickly

Franklin showed his growth as a coach upon taking over. Instead of relying on the talent that was there, he looked to the transfer portal.

Ethan Grunkemeyer, a quarterback at Penn State under Franklin, hopped on board. He has thrown for over 2,100 yards and 17 touchdowns this year.

Grunkemeyer engineered the game-winning drive on the road to defeat Clemson last week. That win kept Virginia Tech in the discussion for a spot in the ACC title game.

And possibly a bid to the College Football Playoff.