James Franklin said that he was not looking to take recruits from any particular school, but he just wanted to target prospects that he had already built relationships with. And the Hokies coach probably wasn't lying.
Just because many of them were committed to Penn State? Well, that's just the way these things work out sometimes. The fact that Franklin was able to convince many of those former Nittany Lions commits to follow him to another school where he had no hired staff outside himself, says more about those relationships than him specifically targeting the school that fired him in mid-October.
In his National Signing Day press conference, James Franklin explained that Virginia Tech was not aiming to flip commitments from Penn State, or any other program:
— Basic Blues Nation (@BasicBlues) December 4, 2025
“I want to make sure that this is interpreted right: by no means were we out looking to take commits from any… pic.twitter.com/5viSnUzZbP
"By no means were we out looking to take commits from any specific school. It really just came down to the kids that we’ve had relationships with, that we’ve known for multiple years. That’s really what that was about," Franklin said.
Franklin deserves more credit than he's getting
What Franklin pulled off over the past two weeks was hard. He had no coaches on staff other than himself, and he couldn't tell these prospects who their position coaches were going to be. They had to trust him, and he deserves credit for having enough of a bond with those players that they are taking him at his word.
Also some of those prospects were probably very excited about playing in the Big Ten and being in the spotlight for games against Ohio State and Michigan. They are now part of a rebuild in the ACC, granted many fans expect to the rebuild to be quick, but it's still a leap of faith. These young men are willing to adjust their dreams because they believe in Franklin.
The balancing act was harder than you think
It's tough for a new coach to come into a situation midway through the season. There are recruits that were still committed to the Hokies and targets that were interested. Franklin had to evaluate these prospects as well and decide which ones fit his vision for the future of the program.
"It was a scramble. It really was a scramble. We were fortunate to be able to hold on to most of the Virginia Tech commitments, which was cool."James Franklin
There weren't many commitments still with the Hokies by the time Franklin arrived, but the ones that stayed on board were players where relationships had to be developed quickly as well. This was all a very difficult balancing act for Franklin, one that he handled successfully. That should be another great sign that Virginia Tech football is in good hands.