James Franklin pulls off massive flip of 4-star Penn State TE commit to Virginia Tech

Thanksgiving is a day for family, food, and football. For new Virginia Tech football coach James Franklin, it was a busy and successful one.

The former Penn State boss not only got two big commitments earlier in the afternoon, but he got a third one Thursday night when he plucked another Penn State commit from the Nittany Lions to finish off a memorable day of commitments on Thanksgiving.

Virginia Tech football James Franklin got his third commitment on Thursday when a 4-star tight end flipped from Penn State

After getting a pair of offensive linemen, Marlen Bright and Roseby Lubintus, to commit on Thursday afternoon, Franklin picked up a third commitment at night when four-star tight end Pierce Petersohn announced that he was committing to Virginia Tech.

The 6-foot-5, 200-pound Petersohn is from Dodge Center, Minnesota, and the fourth Penn State commit in the Class of 2026 to pledge to Franklin in Blacksburg with signing day next week. Petersohn was on campus last weekend when Franklin hosted a slew of recruits for Tech's final home game of the 2025 season against Miami.

To say that Franklin has been on a heater the last couple of days would be a major understatement. It began on Tuesday night when four-star running back Messiah Mickens committed to Virginia Tech, before Lubintus and Bright committed early on Thursday as people were sitting down for their Thanksgiving dinner. To close out the day, Petersohn announced his commitment to Virginia Tech.

The 2025 Hokies will be at Virginia on Saturday night to close out the season and try to spoil the Cavaliers' ACC Championship Game hopes, while Franklin will be back in Blacksburg hosting more recruits with signing day next week. There are expected to be more commitments over the coming days, and it's safe to say that Virginia Tech is quickly getting better under Franklin.