James Franklin Says Penn State Left Him With 'Huge Chip' On His Shoulder After Shocking Midseason Firing

It's hard to be surprised by modern college football, but even with the relentless, breakneck changes in the sport, Penn State firing head coach James Franklin in the middle of the 2025 season was shocking.

Franklin's resume in State College, as a whole, was undeniably impressive. His Nittany Lion teams won 10 games or more six times during his tenure. In his third year on the job, he took them to the Rose Bowl, losing 52-49 to USC in one of the greatest bowl games in recent memory. They rebounded the next year to win the Fiesta Bowl over Washington, then in 2019, won the Cotton Bowl to finish 11-2. After disappointing 2020-2021 seasons, he won a Rose Bowl in 2022. Then made the College Football Playoff in 2024, reaching the semifinals, and missing out on a National Championship berth by three points. 

A few months later, he was out of a job. 

The reasons for Franklin's firing are complicated, and his record against Ohio State, 1-10, and Michigan, 3-7, was undeniably bad. But there's little doubt that he's a well above-average head coach who deserved better than 2025. And he certainly feels that way too.

Former Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

James Franklin Brings ‘Chip’ To Virginia Tech

With the crazy coaching carousel that played out in 2025, it was only a matter of time for Franklin to find a new spot, and sure enough, Virginia Tech swooped in to bring him to Blacksburg. Immediately, he turned around their recruiting. Per On3's industry recruiting rankings, the Hokies finished with the 29th best 2026 high school class. Penn State, with the delays and uncertainty on their staff, finished 15th…in the Big Ten. Behind Purdue, Northwestern, and Rutgers.

Franklin spoke to On3's Andy Staples this week, saying that his bringing a renewed energy and "huge chip" on his shoulder to the new job that could help Virginia Tech get back to the top of the ACC.

When asked, "How hungry are you to show that you're better than what happened to you last season?" Franklin responded, "Well yeah, I've got a huge chip on my shoulder. Kind of an unusual situation. Again, six games earlier, we're playing for a national championship. Now, obviously some things happened that were in my control, and I take total responsibility for that. But, yeah, I've got a big chip on my shoulder. Extremely motivated, really enjoy coming to work every single day, working with a group of people that are passionate about making Virginia Tech proud."

He continued, saying he feels a "responsibility" to the administration at the school and prior coaches, as well as the fans and the community. And that while there's "a lot of work to do," "Our players are driven and excited and motivated, and we've got a really good core group of guys that stayed at Virginia Tech, and guys that we've brought from a number of other places too."

Again, it's hard not to come away surprised that Franklin went from the semifinal of the College Football Playoff to out of a job after just six games. Yes, Penn State disappointed against rivals and seemed to underperform in big games. But Virginia Tech must be thrilled to get someone with his resume, and it wouldn't be unexpected if that "chip" winds up making the Hokies much more competitive. Quickly.