James Franklin bolsters Virginia Tech's secondary by plucking another Penn State transfer

There is a sizeable makeover going on with the Virginia Tech football roster. It's not really a surprise that new head coach James Franklin is having some big turnover after taking over for a program that went 3-9 in 2025.

Franklin and his staff have also got some key retention with the roster from some players, but they have also added a lot of players from the outside. As expected, a handful of the players added from outside the program are players who played at Penn State and are following Franklin and some of the other assistant coaches to Blacksburg.

Virginia Tech has added players on both sides of the ball, and on Wednesday morning, Franklin picked up another commitment from a former Penn State commit, and it brings much-needed depth to the secondary for 2026.

Virginia Tech picks up commitment from Penn State Nickel

Franklin picked up a commitment in the Class of 2024 from 5-foot-11, 170-pound Kenny Woseley, Jr., who was a Nickel in the Nittany Lions' secondary. In two years with Penn State, Woseley, Jr. registered 15 tackles and played in seven games in 2025. He reportedly drew interest from Georgia, Clemson, Tennessee, Notre Dame, South Carolina, and Virginia Tech.

Woseley, Jr. joins Isiah Brown-Murray, who transferred from East Carolina for the 2025 campaign, at Nickel. Brown-Murray has one season of eligibility remaining and will be pushed by Woseley, Jr. in his first season with the Hokies. Brown-Murray had 39 tackles, two for a loss, five pass breakups, and an interception in October against Wake Forest for Virginia Tech in 2025.

The makeover of the Hokies' defense continues, and Woseley, Jr.'s commitment continues a trend of adding some players who have more than one year of eligibility remaining in their college career. That's building not only for 2026, but also for the future.