When James Franklin was fired at Penn State, it was done for several reasons. If you want to know what they are, just ask a Nittany Lions fan on social media. They talk about him every day; they will be more than happy to fill you in.
However, as much as they pile on him, one thing that even Penn State followers have to admit is the success that he had in recruiting. He always loaded up his class in State College and had them pushing other top programs in the country for commitments.
After he was hired at Virginia Tech, Hokies fans were hoping he could bring that same success to Blacksburg at some point once he got settled in. It has been six-plus months since he was hired as the boss at Virginia Tech, replacing his former defensive coordinator at Penn State, Brent Pry, whom he has since hired to run his defense for the Hokies. Franklin hit the ground running with getting a commitment to flip from Penn State to Virginia Tech in the Class of 2026, but with the Class of 2027, he is taking it to another level rather quickly.
Virginia Tech football recruiting is soaring under James Franklin with the Class of 2027
Virginia Tech and Franklin have been on a recent recruiting heater, and it has moved the Hokies to the No. 9-ranked class in 247Sports Recruit Football Team Rankings. Tech recently picked up commits from tight end Sam Faniel, joining Jordan Karhoff. Along the offensive line, position coach Matt Moore picked up a commitment from Luke Braham over the weekend.
On Monday, two more commitments came the way of the Hokies when cornerback Austin Barrett committed, and then later on Monday, offensive tackle Dylan Latell committed to Virginia Tech. Following those commitments, the Hokies' ranking moved inside the Top 10. Don't look now, but Virginia Tech is just a couple of spots behind Penn State. Oh, the agony if they pass them.
Franklin just had a slew of recruits on campus this past weekend, and there are more big recruiting weekends coming up with some big names visiting. After the June visit cycle ends and there is a dead period before camp begins for the fall, there are still going to be commitments made, and the class will likely grow. Virginia Tech fans are learning what Penn State already knew about James Franklin: if you build it, they will come. They are quickly coming to Blacksburg, and the results speak for themselves.
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