James Franklin Wants to Bring Virginia Tech Football Back to Its Roots: ‘You Better Button Up Your Chin Strap’

By: Brad Sherrod

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — During ACC Kickoff in Charlotte, NBS Media asked new Virginia Tech head coach James Franklin a simple question:

What will Virginia Tech football look like under James Franklin?

His answer wasn’t about offensive schemes or statistics. It was about restoring a culture.

“We want to reestablish what Virginia Tech football was,” Franklin said. “What Coach Beamer built. What Bud Foster built.”

Franklin made it clear that his vision isn’t to create a new identity, but to revive one that made the Hokies one of college football’s premier programs for decades.

That history is already present around the program. Bud Foster remains a regular presence at practice, while legendary head coach Frank Beamer continues to stay connected. Franklin even recalled having Michael Vick and the Norfolk State coaching staff spend multiple days with the Hokies during spring practice.

“I looked out there, and it was Mike Vick and Coach Beamer at practice,” Franklin said. “I was trying not to fan-boy out.”

Franklin believes reconnecting with that tradition is essential to Virginia Tech’s future. He also pointed to safeties coach Anthony Midget, a former Hokies captain who helped lead the program to a national championship game, as another link between the program’s past and where it hopes to go.

The standard Franklin described extends far beyond wins.

“I want Coach Beamer to turn on the TV and say, ‘That’s what Virginia Tech football is supposed to look like.'”

For Franklin, that means playing with the toughness, discipline, relentlessness and physicality that once defined Virginia Tech football. He also wants the Hokies to reclaim their reputation as one of the nation’s premier special teams programs—another trademark of the Beamer era.

Of course, no conversation about Virginia Tech is complete without mentioning Enter Sandman, one of college football’s most iconic entrances.

But Franklin says the energy can’t end after the opening kickoff.

“Right now it’s all about Enter Sandman. Well, that’s the entrance,” Franklin said. “We need that same type of enthusiasm and excitement in the fourth quarter… If we’ve got to play Enter Sandman the whole game, then we’ll play it the whole game.”

His closing message may have been the strongest of all.

“When you play us, you better button up your chin strap, and you better be ready for four quarters because we’re going to come after you with everything we’ve got.”

For Virginia Tech fans, Franklin’s vision is clear. The goal isn’t to reinvent Hokies football—it’s to restore the identity that once made Lane Stadium one of the toughest places to play in college football. If Franklin succeeds, he hopes fans, alumni, and legends alike will recognize exactly what they’re watching.