James Franklin says success at Virginia Tech will honor Frank Beamer, ‘respect the past’

James Franklin wants to usher in a new era at Virginia Tech but not without hints and references to the past success of the football program. Namely, he wants to honor Frank Beamer, the legendary former coach of the Hokies. Beamer, 79, coached Virginia Tech from 1987-2015 and played for them as a cornerback between 1966-68. He’s a legend in Blacksburg, going 238-121-2 at VT, winning three Big East titles, four ACC titles and leading the Hokies to the 1999 BCS National Championship Game vs. Florida State. $19.99 gets you a FULL year of On3 | Rivals national coverage Can Franklin achieve those highs here? Maybe so after coming so close at Penn State. But before he even took the job ahead of this new year, Franklin had to make a call to Beamer. “How do you take the Virginia Tech job and not have a conversation with Frank Beamer and ask for his blessing,” Franklin said on Sirius XM. “The good thing is we’ve known each other for a long time. I was with Ralph Friedgen at the University of Maryland. Ralph and Coach Beamer were together back in the day at Murray State and go way back, so I knew a ton of people that knew Coach Beamer. We had crossed paths for a lot of times. We both have a place in Lake Acone, so I would see him at the lake every summer and his family. “So yeah, that was important to me. The only issue is I called twice. He wouldn’t answer the phone because he thought I was spammed. So then I had to call Bud Foster and get his wife’s number. Called his wife. She answered. She thought it was spam too. I said I was Coach Franklin. I’m trying to get in touch with your husband. And then I was able to get on the phone with him. And then he came to dinner with us last night because they now live in Charlotte. Okay. So that was great as well. Coach Beamer came by and had dinner with us. So it was good.” James Franklin wants to honor Frank Beamer at Virginia Tech Franklin went 104-45 at Penn State, leading them to the CFP in 2024 and won the Big Ten back in 2016. He is 128-60 overall when you include his time at Vanderbilt. At 54 years old, does Franklin have two more decades in him? We can hardly know that at this point. But, if he’s in Blacksburg for the long haul, perhaps he can build a sustainable winner once again. Beamer would certainly be proud, as well as other Virginia Tech legends. “I just, you know, the guy built something phenomenal here, and he’s respected, and that he’s such a good man. He’s such a good man, and he’s so humble,” Franklin said. “He’s so down to earth, and you know, I want to learn from him, and I want him to be proud. I want him to be watching on Saturdays and say that’s what Virginia Tech football is supposed to look like. “I want Bruce Smith to say that’s what Virginia Tech football is supposed to look like. I want Michael Vick when they’re not playing at Norfolk State to say that, right? I want Bud Foster to be like that’s what it’s supposed to look like. So I think to move forward, you also have to make sure to respect the past.”