When Tabor Academy star Peter Bourque committed to James Franklin and Virginia Tech on Thursday, that gave the Hokies a huge recruiting win to land a four-star quarterback. It was a huge addition to the Class of 2027 for a class that Franklin is quietly building.
Some things about James Franklin will follow him to Blacksburg from Penn State. His struggles to win the big games in State College have been widely pointed out. However, even the biggest Penn State trolls who have followed every move that Franklin has made since being hired in Blacksburg should admit that Franklin's success in recruiting has been something that has been a strong point of his.
Virginia Tech fans are going to find out what Penn State fans knew about Franklin: he can recruit with the best of them. That was evident when Bourque committed to the Hokies over Penn State and Georgia. That's a recruiting win over Matt Campbell and Kirby Smart. That's the second time he's edged Smart recently in a recruiting battle.
Penn State will tell you that they didn't want Bourque, the seventh-ranked signal caller in the class, but instead are happy with a three-star and 33rd-ranked quarterback in the class, Will Wood from Xaverian Brothers High School in Massachusetts. Sure. However, Bourque's commitment has raised the Hokies to the 17th-ranked class according to 247Sports.
Virginia Tech Class of 2027 ranking rising under James Franklin
Bourque's arrival gives Virginia Tech one of its highest-ranked QBs in a while. That is not something they came close to getting under Justin Fuente and Brent Pry. Recruiting took a step back overall, and it took mending relationships under Pry within the state of Virginia, and now Franklin is going to continue the success.
Virginia Tech getting a Top 25 class is one thing, but getting a Top 20 class is another, and times are changing. The school recently pumping more money into the program is going to go a long way in helping the success on and off the field. There is an opportunity that this could rise this week as running back Javion Jones-Priest is set to commit. Noval McKenzie and Fanklin are building a nice running back room in the rising senior high school class.
A common theme coming from the commitments is that they are joining the Hokies to be part of the turnaround they think Franklin is going to do in Blacksburg. The future in terms of recruiting is off to a very good start under James Franklin, and nobody should be surprised.
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