James Franklin recently signed a five-year contract with Virginia Tech worth over $41.75 million over the next five years. Following his decision, a host of his former players from his time at Penn State have chosen to follow him to Virginia Tech.
Daniel Jennings, a four-star defensive lineman in the 2025 class, has decided to follow Franklin to Virginia Tech. Additionally, Matt Henderson, a former three-star recruit who chose Penn State over Virginia Tech, also decided to follow Franklin.
James Franklin Set to Reunite With 1,348-YD Quarterback
Following the departures of Kyron Drones, Garret Rangel, and Pop Watson, currently the only quarterbacks on Virginia Tech’s roster are True Freshmen A.J. Brand and Kelden Ryan. However, Franklin has finally landed his transfer portal target, according to a recent report.
The current expectation is that Penn State transfer QB Ethan Grunkemeyer will reunite with James Franklin at Virginia Tech, sources tell @On3sports. https://t.co/wMrfFrdlE6 pic.twitter.com/PgZyvnCeGq
— Pete Nakos (@PeteNakos) January 5, 2026
“The current expectation is that Penn State transfer QB Ethan Grunkemeyer will reunite with James Franklin at Virginia Tech,” revealed ON3’s Pete Nakos. Grunkemeyer took over as the starter in 2025 following Drew Allar’s season-ending injury.
During his stint as the starter, the backup quarterback ranked 94th nationally with an impact score of 76.6 according to PFSN’s QB impact rankings. Across his entire career, Grunkemeyer has thrown for 1,348 yards, eight touchdowns, and five interceptions.
“We recruited Ethan because we’ve seen over time that he’s got a chance to be a really talented player nationally,” Franklin stated back in 2023, after he secured Grunkemeyer’s commitment at Penn State. The quarterback has three years of eligibility remaining.
Following Grunkemeyer’s commitment, the quarterback became the third player to join Virginia Tech from the transfer portal. Alongside both Jennings and Henderson, all of Franklin’s business has been with players from his former program.
Additionally, since Franklin was hired last month, he has put together a top-25 recruiting class. Following his efforts, the Hokies’ athletic department was gifted a $20 million anonymous donation that will surely go a long way as they continue to rebuild.
“This gift and others made in support of the university’s commitment to excellence in athletics will empower new head football coach James Franklin and all other athletic programs to build top teams,” the program announced.
While the Hokies have lost a significant amount of talent to the transfer portal, including Caleb Woodson and James Jenette, they also got some good news recently. This came after safety Quentin Reddish announced his return.
After playing in 12 games as a freshman in 2024, Reddish suffered an injury that kept him out for most of 2025. After finishing the season with 15 tackles and one interception, he drew interest from other programs; however, he decided to stay with Virginia Tech.
After all the talk during the season about where Franklin would end up, the former Penn State head coach has hit the ground running at Virginia Tech. After landing his preferred quarterback, as well as a talented class of 2026, with returning players in the running back and wide receiver rooms.
