It’s Game week! Franklin era begins Saturday under the lights at Lane Stadium

By Bill Roth

The opening of the 2026 college football season, and the James Franklin era at Virginia Tech begins Saturday at Lane Stadium when VMI visits for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff.   The game will mark the first meeting between the two teams since 1984.

Of course, this contest will be nostalgic for many – VMI was Tech’s archrival for most of the 1900’s and Saturday’s game will mark the 80^th renewal of the “Original Military Classic of the South.”

And while we celebrate this retro-rivalry and a vintage Commonwealth of Virginia clash, the headline here is Franklin’s debut at Tech where he will coach his first game for the Hokies after spending 12 seasons at Penn State.

The last 10 months have been quite transformational for Virginia Tech Athletics. From the coaching staff to the administration, to much of the roster, things look much different today than when the Hokies last played don’t they?

What will you notice on Saturday?

You’ve probably heard about the new LED Lights that have been installed at the stadium. They’re going to add some very creative and interactive components to the in-venue production. Plus, they’re much brighter than the previous lighting system which will make the field really pop if you’re watching on TV. 

The Hokievision videoboard has been totally replaced and the resolution on the screen is dramatically sharper than before. The speaker systems in the stadium have been updated, and you’ll notice a huge difference there as well.  Plus, new audio systems have been installed in premium areas throughout Lane’s suite and club locations that include touchscreen controls. You’ll be able to easily toggle between sound sources such as the PA system, the referee’s mic, the radio broadcast, and others.  That’s a welcome upgrade that’s common to most newer NFL venues, etc.

And as you may have heard, in response to many comments and suggestions from fans, Lane will debut the first phase of cellular connectivity enhancements as part of an ongoing effort to strengthen the mobile experience throughout gameday. And more upgrades are planned following the season.

The biggest change, of course, is what you’ll see on the field. This is a much deeper and talented roster than what Virginia Tech fans have seen in recent years which has reinvigorated the Hokie Nation. Everyone has been looking forward to the start of the season and opening night for months! It all starts Saturday night. 

Football Talk
There are dozens of new players who will make their Tech debut on Saturday including 27 transfers who arrived back in January.

That group includes quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer who was officially named Tech’s starting QB Monday. Grunkemeyer started the final seven games for Penn State last season, winning the last four.  He’s the most experienced QB in Tech’s program, having appeared in 11 games for the Nittany Lions where he threw for 1,339 yards and eight touchdowns.  He also rushed for a TD. 

Two wide receiver transfers have really excelled in the pre-season camp as expected. Que’ Sean Brown, one of the ACC’s top receivers at Duke last year, Marlion Jackson who had 46 catches in 30 games for Louisiana Tech have looked the part.

And tight end Luke Reynolds, another Penn State transfer, is a high-level talent who joins what might be the deepest and experienced group of tight end Tech’s ever had joining Benji Gosnell (38 games played), Ja’Ricous Hairston (27 games played), and Harrison St. Germain (34 games played).

While there are plenty of new names, Tech returns 14 starters from last season including electric wide receiver Ayden Greene who is coming off a career-best 2025 campaign in which he was Tech top receiver. Greene had 31 receptions for 516 yards and three touchdowns, averaging a 16.6 yards per catch, and started all 11 games he played. He’s had a terrific camp.

The same holds true for Marcellous Hawkins, Jr. and Jeffrey Overton, Jr. who both look better than ever. Hawkins had 118 carries for 749 yards, averaging 6.3 yards per carry in 2025 while Overton averaged 5.8 yards per carry with a spectacular rushing touchdown against Miami, after missing the first eight games recovering from an injury.

They both had fantastic camps, as did defensive tackle Kemari Copeland will anchor Tech’s defensive front.  Copeland set a new school record by bench pressing an incredible 510 pounds in July.

Ohio State transfer Justin Terry won the starting job at left tackle, per Franklin. Terry, who started his career at West Virginia with Tech offensive line coach Matt Moore, played in six games for the Buckeyes last season.  He truly looks that part.

Kaleb Spencer, Tech’s leading tackler from a year ago, also had a great camp. Virginia native who’s excited to play his final season in orange and maroon.

And Tech’s kicking game should be a real positive for this team. Senior PK John Love tells me his leg is stronger than ever and could be among the nation’s top kickers. Love went 15-of-20 on field goals in 2025 with a season long of 56 yards and has now made 114 straight PAT attempts without a miss in college. Did you know that Love is now seventh all-time in scoring at Virginia Tech with 276 points? He’s had quite a career.

And you’ll enjoy watching new punter Nathan Totten, a Marshall transfer in action. I joked with Nathan this week that we hope he doesn’t have to punt much this season, but this kid is terrific. He set Marshall’s all-time punting record last season and had 19 punts of 50+ yards.

Of course, there are many other terrific players in both among the newcomers and the returnees on the roster, but two words we heard the most this pre-season were competition and brotherhood.

The depth at so many positions created some terrific competition at many positions, from quarterback to defensive back to offensive line. And the brotherhood and closeness are palpable.  That’s a variable than changes year-to-year for all teams, but Franklin and his staff have focused on team building and that’s one key aspect that is much-improved for this year.

It doesn’t take long to see the overall size of the team, the talent level, and the cohesiveness is light-years ahead of where Tech was prior to Franklin’s arrival.  It’s been 10 months since this rebuild officially began, and we’ll get our first look at this team Saturday night.

Scheduling Talk
Tech officially announced The Citadel will visit Lane Stadium for next year’s season opener.  That will give the Hokies seven home games for both 2027 and ’28, something Hokies’ Vice-President and Director of Athletics Brian White suggested he’d like to see moving forward.

Non-conference football scheduling is a dicey and expensive Rubik’s Cube for administrators nationwide.

How expensive? Some Big Ten conference teams are paying $1.5 million to $1.9 million for MAC teams to visit this season.  By comparison, Tech’s payouts to VMI, Citadel (2027), and Gardner-Webb (2028) are in the $500k range.

Home games generate revenue for Tech Athletics and our region overall which is more vital than ever as we know.

Now home-and-home series with other major conference opponents will still occur. Maryland, Notre Dame, Arizona, BYU, Ole Miss, and Alabama are scheduled to visit Lane in the coming seasons.

But the financial reality is this: Every time the Hokies play a game on the road, they’re leaving millions of dollars of the table. And millions of dollars to the Southwest Virginia economy.   

That’s why Virginia Tech, and any other team that can pack its stadium week-after-week, will strive to play as many home games as possible.  While that drives up the cost of filling out a non-conference schedule, there are shrewd ways to navigate the process.

Here’s a link to Tech football future schedules: https://hokiesports.com/football-future-schedules

Shop Talk
Our coverage of Saturday night’s season-opener begins at 5:30 ET with The Tech Kickoff Show presented by Eagle Construction. Evan Hughes and Mike Burnop will get you ready for the opener from the Lane Lounge with special guests including former Tech Director of Athletics David Braine.   

Over 40 radio affiliates carry Virginia Tech football including some of the region’s most powerful and highly rated stations:

Washington, DC’s 106.7 The Fan.

Norfolk’s premier news-talk station News-Talk 790, WNIS. 

Richmond’s AM 910, 105.1. FM, The Fan.

Roanoke’s legendary news-talk powerhouse, WFIR-AM & FM.

And the Flagship Home of Virginia Tech Sports, The Bear (105.3 FM). You can listen our game broadcast on 105.3 FM with no delay in the stadium.

Here’s the list of all our affiliates throughout the region: https://hokiesports.com/virginia-tech-sports-network

Tech games can also be heard on Sirius XM Radio, this week on channel 235.

And of course, every Tech broadcast, including live games, Tech Talk Live, and our various podcasts can be heard on the Hokiesports Mobile app. Get it here: https://mobileapp.hokiesports.com/

We’re excited to welcome Evan to the broadcast crew for football. He will host our pregame and postgame show, the Kroger Point After, as well as contributing to game broadcasts from the sidelines. Additionally, he will be the play-by-play broadcaster for the men’s basketball program and contribute to other storytelling platforms including podcasts, social media content and hosting Tech Talk Live.   Welcome Evan!

Final Thoughts
The last 10 months have been truly transformational in the evolution of Virginia Tech athletics.  The university’s commitment to athletics, through the Invest to Win campaign, to the launch of Hokie Ventures, to the hiring of Franklin and White and their respective staffs to the many new players in the program show the institution’s commitment to success.

The role athletics plays at Virginia Tech and throughout the Commonwealth can’t be understated and leaders from Burrus Hall to the Board of Visitors to the Governor’s office to the State legislature are on board.  We can see the tangible results of that already in facility upgrades and knowing some of the biggest names in college football are coaching on the sidelines and serving in administrative roles in the Jamerson Center.

We can see all that. But you know what we’re going to feel on Saturday night? We’re going to feel the power of the Hokie Nation, roaring in Lane Stadium. Reunited for an Orange Effect season-opener in a retro-rivalry game against an opponent that pulls on the heart strings of the Old Guard.

And that’s the beauty of this. Whether you’re 80, or 18, or 8 this game brings us all together.

It’s a salute to the past and a taste of the future that we can all experience together.

Start jumpin’!