When Virginia Tech hired James Franklin, the narrative around the Hokies also changed when it comes to the offense. As expected, the veteran coach brought some assistant coaches from Penn State with him to Blacksburg, including tight end coach Ty Howle.
However, Howle was not only brought to Virginia Tech as the Hokies' tight end coach, but he is also the new offensive coordinator, replacing Philip Montgomery, who spent just one year in Blacksburg and was named interim coach when Brent Pry was fired in mid-September. Anyway, when Franklin was hired, it signaled a change in philosophy in some areas, including on offense.
One new change that Virginia Tech fans are going to see and like is the usage of the tight end in the Hokies' offense. It's something that Penn State did under Franklin, and he has some very good tight ends that he has sent to the NFL. The next one might very well have followed him to Blacksburg: Luke Reynolds. Along with Virginia Tech returner Ja'Ricous Hairston, both tight ends were ranked as two of the top 10 returning tight ends in the ACC by PFF.
Virginia Tech only school with two of the top 10 returning tight ends in the ACC
According to PFF, Reynolds, who played all of his snaps at Penn State, is the eighth-ranked returning player in the conference, and Hairston was 10th. Reynolds graded out at 62.8 and Hairston at 62.0 in 2025.
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The 6-foot-4, 250-pound Reynolds is already drawing some NFL interest and is coming off a 2025 season in State College where he had 26 catches for 257 yards after catching nine balls for 111 yards and a touchdown in 2024. The Massachusetts native should be a big target for former Penn State quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer, like he was at Penn State.
As for Hairston, he had what many called a breakout 2025 season with 12 catches for 112 yards and three touchdowns. He had a touchdown catch against Vanderbilt in Week 2 and two in a loss in mid-October at Georgia Tech. Along with teammate Benji Gosnell, the Hokies are going to have a very talented tight end room in 2026.
The Hokies have a talented group of receivers and tight ends for Grunkemeyer in 2026 and expect the ball to be floated around to some different players. Virginia Tech has been known as DBU, and now, under Franklin, they are about to become TEU.
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