James Franklin '95 was named the 36th head coach of Virginia Tech University's football team on Nov. 17, 2025. (Complete release)
Franklin joins Virginia Tech after spending the last 12 seasons as head coach at Penn State University, rebuilding the program into a national contender over the last decade plus. Franklin's tenure with the Nittany Lions included six bowl game wins, a Big Ten Conference Championship, six 10-win seasons, and a record of 104-45.
Before his time at Happy Valley, Franklin was head coach at Vanderbilt from 2011-13, leading the Commodores to unprecedented success. Under his coaching, Vanderbilt appeared in three straight bowl games, consecutive 9-win seasons, and back-to-back seasons ranked in the final AP Top 25 poll.
At ESU, Franklin:
* was starting quarterback in 1993 and 1994
* was a regional candidate for the Harlon Hill Award (top player in Division II) as a senior in 1994
* ranked 6th in DII in total offense (312.9 ypg) in 1994
* 1994: threw for 2,586 yards and 14 TD, and ran for 543 yards and 7 TD
* 1993: threw for 1,912 yards and 19 TD, and ran for 395 yards and 3 TD
* Graduated with 23 school records, including season records for passing yards and total offense in 1994, and passing TD in 1993
Franklin bio l twitter
A listing of stories posted on esuwarriors.com chronicling Franklin's career is below. More information on the Warriors football history can be found on the ESU Football archive page.
11/18/2025 - James Franklin announced as new leader of Virginia Tech Football
8/25/2014 - Douds, Warriors Football Featured in Piece on CSN Philadelphia
6/9/2014 - Douds, Franklin Featured on "This Week in the Big Ten"
5/22/2014 - Franklin, PSU Coaches Caravan makes trip to ESU (with complete media coverage)
5/10/2014 - Franklin speaks at ESU undergraduate commencement exercises
3/5/2014 - Franklin, Penn State Coaches Caravan headed for ESU on May 21
1/11/2014 - Franklin named head coach at Penn State (with complete media coverage)
1/4/2014 - Franklin, Vanderbilt Win 9 Games Again, Claim BBVA Compass Bowl
7/30/2013 - Franklin Featured on SportsCenter's Top 10 Plays
12/31/2012 - James Franklin '95 Leads Vanderbilt to Music City Bowl Win, First 9-Win Season since 1915
12/11/2012 - James Franklin '95, ESU Coaching Staff part of "Sports and Entertainment Nashville" Profile
11/19/2012 - ASSOCIATED PRESS: Franklin's wins most by Vandy coach since 1904-05
9/13/2012 - James Franklin '95 Featured by The New York Times
12/17/2010 - James Franklin '95 Named Head Football Coach at Vanderbilt
12/17/2010 - AP: James Franklin Hired as Vanderbilt Head Coach
