James Franklin has always considered himself to be an underdog of sorts. From his playing career as a quarterback at Division II East Stroudsburg to working his way up the coaching ladder, culminating in his first head job at then-SEC bottom-dweller Vanderbilt, Franklin’s had to earn it “the old school” way in college football.
Now at Virginia Techfollowing his surprise firing at Penn State during last season’s fall from grace, Franklin’s chief priority during his first meetings with players at his new gig was to relay a clean slate. He didn’t want any Hokies to assume that any of the 11 Penn State transfers would ascend the two-deep simply because of their relationship with him.
Everyone’s equal from that start, and that matters to Franklin, who’s motivated to contend in Year 1 and not wade through a rebuild at the ACC program…