Given the state of college football, some teams were set up to compete and spend money, while others, well, not so much. One of those schools that were not set up and well behind the current times was Virginia Tech.
Last summer, outgoing athletic director Whit Babcock pushed for more money to be pumped into athletics to give the Hokies' programs as a whole the ability to keep up with the current times of college sports. The numbers compared to the rest of the ACC were concerning.
However, there is a plan in place at Virginia Tech where they are investing money into the program, and there have been some huge record donations that are going to help. Truthfully, the only reason that Virginia Tech was able to land the biggest free-agent coach available, James Franklin, was because of the investment being made to athletics. He wouldn't have considered this job and replacing his former Penn State defensive coordinator, Brent Pry, not too long ago without this commitment in place.
CBS Sports college football analyst Bud Elliott dropped some schools on his X account that have the realistic resources to win the National Championship in the next 10-15 years. He listed four ACC schools, and one was Virginia Tech.
CBS Sports analyst says Virginia Tech is set up with resources to win under James Franklin
Elliott was asked and answered with a list of schools from each conference. From the ACC, he listed Virginia Tech, Miami, Clemson, and Florida State. Who would have imagined the Hokies would have been on a list like this just a couple of years ago?
Things are falling into place, and Franklin has made it clear that resources are needed to win. He had a big part in the hiring of new athletic director Brian White from Florida Atlantic. There needed to be alignment, and it appears it is.
During his time at Penn State, Franklin was able to get the Nittany Lions to the College Football Playoff semifinals just over a year ago. Then he was fired in State College in October. How things can change quickly. However, if we're being honest, competing in the ACC is not as hard as competing in the Big Ten or SEC in terms of getting into the CFP field. If Virginia Tech can give him the resources he needs, and it appears that they are, then who knows what the future could hold in Blacksburg. Virginia Tech falling on Elliott's list is certainly a step in the right direction.
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