Interesting details emerge about James Franklin's contract with Virginia Tech

James Franklin is headed to Virginia Tech on a very interesting contract structure.

Virginia Tech announced on Friday that Franklin is getting a five-year, $41.75 million contract to become their new head football coach. Ross Dellenger of Yahoo Sports also shared some notable details on Franklin’s new contract.

Dellenger notes that Franklin’s salary is expected to start at $5 million per year through the first three years. Then, Franklin’s salary will jump to $12 million in the fourth year and $13 million in the fifth year, Dellenger adds.

The 53-year-old Franklin had been the head coach at Penn State since 2014 and led the team to six different 10-win seasons, six bowl game victories, a Big Ten Conference title in 2016 and a College Football Playoff (CFP) berth in 2024. But Franklin was fired by the Nittany Lions after a flat 3-3 start to the 2025 season.

Franklin was initially owed a massive $49 million buyout figure by Penn State as a result of his firing. But we got word earlier this week that Franklin had agreed to a major concession with the university in which he would only accept a fraction of that amount.

Of course, Franklin’s buyout clause with Penn State came with offset language regarding what he might earn at a new job. Now his new contract with Virginia Tech is reflecting that (and may also give Franklin some incentive to stick around for the long run since it is heavily backloaded).