Virginia Tech's James Franklin gets 5-year, $42M deal

New Virginia Tech football coach James Franklin's five-year contract is worth at least $41.75 million, according to documents released by the school.

The deal disclosed on Friday is largely backloaded, with Franklin earning $6 million in 2026 and up to $13.25 million in the final year of the agreement in 2030.

Franklin, 53, was hired Monday to replace Brent Pry, his former defensive coordinator at Penn State, who was fired in September after going 0-3 this season and 16-24 over four seasons with the Hokies.

Penn State fired Franklin on Oct. 12 after a 3-3 start to the season. He was 104-45 in 12 seasons there, guiding the Nittany Lions to the 2024 College Football Playoff and a 2016 Big Ten championship.

Franklin's perks in Blacksburg include bonuses of up to $800,000 annually based on television viewership, as well as bonuses for appearances in the ACC championship game or College Football Playoff.

Virginia Tech also has committed more than $15 million for Franklin's assistant coaches and support staff. Franklin told ESPN he also anticipates significant facility upgrades and other infrastructure investments.

"I'm going to walk the facility and make it very obvious that, these things are nice and first class, and these things are dated and problematic and we need to get them fixed and fixed fast," Franklin said. "There's work that needs to be done. But there's also promises that have been made. That's all of it."

Philip Montgomery has been the interim coach since the firing of Pry. The Hokies are 3-4 under Montgomery with games against No. 13 Miami on Saturday and No. 19 Virginia on Nov. 29 remaining.

--Field Level Media