When James Franklin lost his job as head coach of Penn State last year, speculation was rife about where he was going to end up, as it became clear that college football could not say goodbye to Franklin and he himself couldn’t say goodbye either.
As the options began to become clear, Virginia Tech swooped in with an opportunity after Brent Pry was relieved of his duties following a lukewarm start to the campaign. Franklin took the job and the rest is history.
What is interesting though is that something very rare happened around this time. Franklin extended an olive branch to Brent Pry, and surprisingly the former head coach agreed, taking over the responsibilities of being defensive coordinator at the Hokies.
Franklin and Pry have a rich history together, with Penn State seeing the duo perform their best work together in a similar capacity, so it does feel like a natural fit, and that’s exactly what Franklin referred to in a recent interview about the move.
“I think locally people get it and understand it and appreciate it,” Franklin said.
“I don’t know if it’s ever happened before. The type of humility that you have to have to do that is impressive. I couldn’t have done it. But I think it also speaks to his love of Virginia Tech. He was a GA for Bud Foster, he was here for the Sugar Bowl, and then our relationship – we go back thirty years. There’s trust with me and there’s trust for him.”
Brent Pry and James Franklin’s Long Relationship
There’s something natural about Brent Pry and James Franklin working together. Alongside a friendship of thirty years, their professional relationship is even more impressive.
In 2011, Pry joined Franklin at Vanderbilt and didn’t leave his side till he got the head coach job at Virginia Tech, now choosing a lower role just so he can work with his former boss once again.
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