Virginia Tech hiring James Franklin should help Miami and the ACC

One of the criticisms of Miami in its quest for a College Football Playoff berth has been its strength of schedule. Virginia Tech hiring James Franklin as head coach on Wednesday should help elevate the ACC and specifically, the strength of schedule for Miami.

Franklin has 128 wins and 60 losses in 15 seasons as a head coach. In three seasons at Vanderbilt before being hired by Penn State, Franklin had 24 wins and 15 losses and was 11-13 in the SEC. Franklin was 104–45 overall and 64–36 in the Big 10 before being fired in his 12th year with Penn State.

Penn State had six seasons with at least 10 wins in 11 full years under Franklin. After Penn State went 7-6 in each of their first two seasons under Franklin, the Nittany Lions went 11-3 in 2016 and won the Rose Bowl in their third season under Franklin.

Franklin was fired by Penn State after a 3-3 start to the 2025 season, less than a year after leading the Nittany Lions to the semifinals of the College Football Playoffs. Notre Dame scored twice in the final five minutes to beat Penn State 27-24 in the Orange Bowl.

Winless Big 10 start led to Franklin firing

Penn State fired Franklin after the Nittany Lions lost their first three Big 10 games in 2025. After losing to Oregon in overtime, Penn State lost as over 20-point favorites to UCLA and Northwestern. The loss to Northwestern was at home and Penn State fired Franklin shortly afterwards.

Penn State consistently signed top-20 classes under Franklin. The 2022 Penn State class that set the foundation for the 2024 CFP run was sixth in the 247Sports composite rankings. Penn State is 10th, Miami is 15th and Virginia Tech is 40th in the 247Sports 2025 College Football Team Talent Composite.

Expect Virginia Tech to quickly upgrade its roster under Franklin. Penn State has frequently gone into Virginia and signed blue-chip players. With Franklin at Virginia Tech now, expect more players from the Commonwealth to stay in-state.

Miami-Virginia Tech rivalry

Florida State and Virginia Tech are Miami's two annual rivals in the ACC. Miami and Virginia Tech have played every season since 1992 except 2023. The Hurricanes and Hokies won or shared 10 of the 13 championships in their 13 seasons in the Big East from 1991 through 2003.

Franklin could make an immediate impact and elevate the roster and competitiveness of Virginia Tech in 2026. Franklin gets a head start in recruiting and the transfer portal over other coaches who will start new jobs in 2026. The Miami-Virginia Tech rivalry should return to its levels of the 1990s and early 2000s.