Penn State didn’t enter 2025 as the No. 1 team in the country; Arch Manning’s Texas Longhorns held that distinction, but the Nittany Lions were the offseason darling. James Franklin brought back a proven group of veterans that had just been to the College Football Playoff for the first time, supplemented with a talented transfer class, and plucked Jim Knowles out of Columbus to be his defensive coordinator.
You could say that Penn State won the offseason, and we all know how that played out when they took the field. Now, the head coach of the Virginia Tech Hokies, a year later, James Franklin is saying that at his first ACC Media Days.
“We have won the offseason. We had a great offseason,” Franklin told reporters during his media availability in Charlotte.
Franklin just can’t help himself. He’s always going to say too much, give the media red meat, and for the past few months, get his former fanbase to roll their eyes. This quote accomplished all three.
Virginia Tech's James Franklin: "We have won the offseason. We have had a great offseason."
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) July 16, 2026
James Franklin declares offseason victory at ACC Media Days
Franklin provided a bit more context to the statement, saying, “We are bigger, we are stronger, we are faster than we have been. There's no doubt about that. We've won the offseason. That's a great soundbite. The reality is we've got to make sure those things translate to the season.”
And that’s always been the hard part for Franklin. Not just getting it to translate to the season, but to the biggest games. Until he wins a few of those, even with a new fanbase to love him and buy into the hype, he should probably keep his mouth shut about offseason victories.
Ultimately, his point is a fair one. Virginia Tech had a fantastic offseason. The Hokies upgraded massively at head coach over Brent Pry, kept Pry on staff for what he does best as a defensive coordinator, got a massive influx of money, landed a 27-player transfer portal class, and currently has the No. 15 high school class in the 2027 cycle.
That’s all massive steps in the right direction for a program that has been lost in the wilderness for years, trying to replicate Frank Beamer’s success. But even if the statement is true, there’s absolutely no upside to making it. It puts an even bigger target on his and his team’s back in the ACC, adds more pressure to a program that surely isn’t equipped to handle it yet, and reignites all the doubters who don’t think that big game win will ever come.
This is classic James Franklin. Honestly, it’s why he’d be fantastic on TV if that was the route he chose after he was ousted in Happy Valley this offseason. It is, as he acknowledged, “a good sound bite.”
It’s not, however, the approach a championship-winning head coach would ever take. Winning the offseason is meaningless. Franklin, in part, acknowledged that, but even mentioning that you won the offseason proves that it’s on his mind. That’s all well and good in Year 1, but as it did in Happy Valley, that will get old in Blacksburg.
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