James Franklin on the firing of Brent Pry: 'You hate to see it for anybody'

The coaching carousel began early during the 2025 regular season with Virginia Tech Hokies head coach Brent Pry getting fired. That was a move that Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin would feel personally, given the long-standing connection the pair have.

At this point in the season, it doesn’t necessarily serve a coach to be worried about someone else’s job. Despite that, Franklin and Pry have worked together, and their families are close with one another. So, it’s not a surprise that he had some kind words for the now-fired head coach.

“I’d prefer to talk about our opponent,” James Franklin said. “But I think you guys also know what Brent Pry and that family have meant to me and what I think about them. The respect I have. Brent’s dad was my offensive coordinator in college. So, we go back forever. We played against each other in college. One of Brent’s first years coaching was at East Stroudsburg and then was with me the whole time at Vanderbilt, him and his family. I watched his kids grow up. And then was with us pretty much the whole time at Penn State before becoming head coach at Virginia Tech.”

Brent Pry coached at East Stroudsburg at the same time that James Franklin was a player there. The two would later work together at both Vanderbilt and Penn State where Franklin was the head coach and Pry consistently filled the role of defensive coordinator or co-defensive coordinator, as well as linebackers coach, on those staffs.

In 2022, Brent Pry was able to parlay that time with James Franklin into the Virginia Tech job. A rebuild from the start, he never found consistent success and was fired following an 0-3 start this season. He would go 16-24 there and 10-13 overall.

“So, challenging situation. You hate to see it for anybody. I hate to see it for Brent and hate to see it for Virginia Tech,” Franklin said. “But Brent is resilient and he’s a darn good football coach, and he’ll bounce back, as I know he will. So, got a lot of respect and a lot of love for Brent and his family. We have texted a bunch. Haven’t talked. I know my wife and Amy have talked, but mainly texts between me and Brent.”

Ultimately, the connection that Franklin and Pry have are part of the overall connection that comes from working within the coaching industry. There, nobody is rooting for someone else to get fired. When that does happen, there is an amount of rallying around one another that tends to occur.

“But, yeah, I think the coaching community,” Franklin said. “And more than just the coaching community, as kind of friends look out for each other. No different than your friends in any other industry. But I hate that for Brent and I hate that for Virginia Tech. So, that’s about my answer.”