ACC FOOTBALL COMPANION GUIDE • ALPHABETICAL 16 OF 17
2026 Season Snapshot • Blacksburg, Virginia
3–5 under interim Montgomery (after 0-3 start under Pry)
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HEAD COACH
James Franklin — 1st season at Virginia Tech
LIFETIME COACHING RECORD
Multiple programs (Vanderbilt, Penn State)
Fired by Penn State in October 2025 despite a $49M+ buyout, Franklin was hired at Virginia Tech in Nov. 2025 in one of the most unusual coaching moves in recent memory: he brought back Brent Pry — the very coach Virginia Tech had just fired — as his new defensive coordinator. Pry had been Franklin's DC at Penn State and Vanderbilt for years before taking the Hokies job himself in 2022.
VIRGINIA TECH ATS RECORD
No single published career ATS figure
Virginia Tech fired Pry after an 0-3 start in 2025 (its worst start since 1987) following a 45-26 home loss to rival Old Dominion. Interim Philip Montgomery went 3-2 the rest of the way, including ACC wins over NC State and Cal, before Franklin's hire reset the program again for 2026.
HEAD COACH SALARY (2026)
$6.0M
TEAM NIL VALUATION (EST.)
Not disclosed
PRIMARY NIL COLLECTIVE
Not publicly named
Coach salary per FootballScoop (FOIA'd staff salary list: 5-yr deal starting at $6M in 2026, topping out at $13.25M by 2030). Virginia Tech is simultaneously paying Brent Pry's renegotiated $3.1M buyout (from his Sept. 2025 firing) plus his new $1.5M/yr DC salary, and still owes the remainder of Pry's original $6M+ obligation — the program is funding multiple overlapping coaching commitments at once. Virginia Tech has not disclosed a team NIL figure.
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR
Ty Howle • 1st season • Multiple
New hire ($900K) inherits Kyron Drones, who struggled to find rhythm for much of 2025 (one passing TD in his first 10 quarters under a different since- departed OC) before finishing stronger late. A real, full offensive reset for a defensive-minded head coach's program.
DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR
Brent Pry • 1st season (2nd stint at VT) • Multiple
Returns to Blacksburg on a 3-year, $5M deal ($1.5M annually in 2026-27) just months after being fired as head coach there — a real, singular career arc reversal, now reporting to the man whose staff he once served on at Penn State and Vanderbilt.
2025 RECORD
3–5 under interim Montgomery (after 0-3 start under Pry)
Fired Pry after a 45-26 home loss to Old Dominion dropped the Hokies to 0- 3, the program's worst start since 1987. Interim Philip Montgomery rallied the roster to a 3-2 finish, including wins over NC State and Cal, before the Franklin hire reset the program for 2026.
HOME FIELD
Lane Stadium
Grass, Blacksburg. One of the most intimidating home environments in the sport (Enter Sandman entrance) under Frank Beamer's legacy — now hosting one of the strangest coaching reunions in recent memory as Franklin and Pry reunite under reversed roles.
| SLOT | PLAYER | YEAR | HS Stars | NOTES / NFL OUTLOOK |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| QB1 | Kyron Drones | RS-Sr | ★★★★★ | Four-star signee (Shadow Creek HS, Pearland, Texas; led his team to a 16- 0 state title as a junior). 2025 ACC Media Days attendee and Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award watch-list honoree; battled injuries and inconsistency through the coaching change but rallied the team's leadership after Pry's firing. |
Four-star signee (Shadow Creek HS, Pearland, Texas; led his team to a 16- 0 state title as a junior). 2025 ACC Media Days attendee and Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award watch-list honoree; battled injuries and inconsistency through the coaching change but rallied the team's leadership after Pry's firing.
| PLAYER | POS | YEAR | HS Stars | NOTES |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Line under third OC in three years | OL | — | ★★★★★ | Protecting Drones through a real, repeated pattern of offensive coordinator turnover; specific 2026 starters to be confirmed closer to Week 1. |
Protecting Drones through a real, repeated pattern of offensive coordinator turnover; specific 2026 starters to be confirmed closer to Week 1.
| PLAYER | POS | NOTES |
|---|---|---|
| Front seven under returning DC | DL | Brent Pry's return brings real scheme familiarity for defensive players who played under him as head coach through 2025 — a genuinely unusual continuity thread despite the head-coaching change. |
Brent Pry's return brings real scheme familiarity for defensive players who played under him as head coach through 2025 — a genuinely unusual continuity thread despite the head-coaching change.
| PLAYER | POS | HS Stars | NOTES / NFL OUTLOOK |
|---|---|---|---|
| Secondary under Pry's | — | — | Also benefits from Pry's familiar defensive principles returning, even under the new organizational structure; specific 2026 starters to be confirmed closer to Week 1. |
| — | DB | ★★★★★ | |
| returning system | — | — |
Also benefits from Pry's familiar defensive principles returning, even under the new organizational structure; specific 2026 starters to be confirmed closer to Week 1.
2025 ATS
3-9
25% cover rate — 80th of 82
2025 Straight up
3-9
Point differential -105
Scoring environment
51.6
Combined points per game — 43rd highest of 82
Home / road ATS
2-5 · 1-3
Totals 5-7 O/U (5-2 home, 0-4 road)
Points scored / allowed
21.4 per game scored (70th) · 30.2 allowed (66th)
Margin & schedule
Margin of victory -8.7 (72nd) · Strength of schedule +1.9
SRS power rating
-7.7
66th of 82 — projected points vs. a league-average team on a neutral field
Offensive SRS
-2.9
57th of 82
Defensive SRS
-2.6
58th of 82
Points (margin of victory)
-8.7 · 72nd of 82
Against the spread
3-9 (25%) · 80th of 82
Totals (combined PPG)
51.6 · 43rd of 82
Computed from CollegeFootballData 2025 results and closing consensus lines.
Saved Just J research for Virginia Tech.
Franklin hiring the coach he's replacing (Pry) as his own defensive coordinator is a real, highly unusual structure — Franklin has publicly cited the emotional connection through Pry's late father, who coached Franklin in college.
After Pry's firing, QB Kyron Drones and other captains held players-only meetings ("if you're all in, stay... if you're out, you can leave") — the team that remained went 3-2 down the stretch under Montgomery.
Virginia Tech is paying Pry's renegotiated buyout, his new DC salary, and Franklin's $6M contract simultaneously — a real, quantifiable cost of the coaching chaos, even before accounting for what remains owed on Pry's original deal.
Notes are maintained in the Admin area — no code changes required.
