Brent Pry Returns to Familiar Territory as Virginia Tech's Defensive Coordinator: How's He Back?

Pry's back as defensive coordinator following three-plus seasons as the Hokies' head whistle.

Thomas Hughes

BLACKSBURG, Va. — Brent Pry knows his way around the town of Blacksburg. After all, the affable 56-year-old Pennsylvanian served as the head coach of Virginia Tech football from 2022 through the first three games of the 2025 season.

Before that, he spent three seasons in Blacksburg (1995-97) as a graduate assistant for the program following an outside linebackers stint with East Stroudsburg. While with the Division II school, Pry met a figure who continues to be prominent in his life: James Franklin, who was an All-PSAC quarterback at the time.

The two linked back up in 2011 and went through three seasons at Vanderbilt and eight at Penn State before Pry accepted the Virginia Tech head coaching vacancy for 2022. Pry compiled a 16-24 record as head whistle and was fired after an 0-3 start — the Hokies' first since 1992.

The two reconnected in the aftermath of Pry's dismissal on Sept. 14, when Franklin reached out to offer support to his longtime colleague and friend. Soon after, Franklin found himself in a similar position. After Penn State stumbled to a 3-3 start — punctuated by a three-game losing streak that stretched to six consecutive defeats following his Oct. 12 firing — the two coaches found themselves on parallel paths, both free agents in the coaching landscape.

"Virginai Tech became a little bit more of the conersation as we kept moving forward," Pry said at media availability June 16. "... When we finally discussed the possibility of me staying, it was more, 'Hey, let's see if this works out for you first.' I really wanted it to. I thought it would be great for Tech, and it would be a great fit for him, [so] that he could be successful — particularly with his ties to their footprint, just the investment they were making, the leverage he would have... We said for both of us, it would take a little work to get to a place where we would do this."

That 30-year friendship — one forged across three different programs — ultimately brought Franklin to Virginia Tech as the program's new head coach on Nov. 17. Twenty days later, reports surfaced that Pry, fewer than three months removed from his dismissal, would reunite with Franklin in Blacksburg as the Hokies' defensive coordinator.

As always, money plays a role. Pry is still set to be paid a buyout from his role as the Hokies' head coach — and simultaneously getting paid a defensive coordinator's salary. Both add up to be roughly in the ballpark of what Pry would have received had he remained the Hokies' head whistle through the duration of his contract.

That, and the Invest to Win pledge. Virginia Tech is set to receive $229 million over the next four years — $120 million of which will arrive from philanthropy. Virginia Tech recently announced a $75 million financial gift, the largest in university history.

"[The financial investment is] a testimony when I'm talking to families that I'm here because I do believe in James [Franklin] and I believe in this place," Pry said. "I believe that the investment is going to make a gigantic impact on our program."

#Hokies DC Brent Pry on the financial investments: "It's a testimony when I'm talking to families that I'm here because I do believe in James [Franklin] and I believe in this place. I believe that the investment is going to make a gigantic impact on our program."

— Thomas Hughes (@thomashughes_05) June 16, 2026

In addition to his defensive coordinator duties, Pry will also assume responsibilities as the team's linebackers coach — a reflection of Franklin's preference against employing a "roving" coordinator.

Instead, Franklin wants each coordinator firmly attached to a position group, ensuring they remain directly involved in player development and day-to-day instruction. For Pry, that means balancing his defensive coordinator duties with hands-on work alongside Virginia Tech's linebackers.

Pry steps into a favorable situation. While Virginia Tech's defense lost several contributors to graduation and the transfer portal, it returns key pieces at each level, including defensive tackle Kemari Copeland, linebackers Kaleb Spencer and Noah Chambers, and safety Quentin Reddish. Pry spotlighted Copeland in particular, saying that the financial investments played directly in keeping the rising redshirt senior.

"I think [the investment is] an asset for James and Virginia Tech, and I couldn't have afforded to hire Brent Pry," Pry said. "Couldn't have afforded to hire Sean Spencer, and some of the things that we're able to do that can really impact this place. We couldn't have kept Kemari Copeland."

However, there are still questions surrounding depth and overall cohesion — plus how Pry himself will adapt after multiple years of not being a defensive coordinator.

Virginia Tech's 2026 season starts against VMI on Saturday, Sept. 5, at 7:30 p.m. ET, with viewing available on the ACC Network. Ahead of the clash, it'll be a different viewpoint for Pry. For the first time in four-plus seasons, he'll be on the sidelines without serving as the program's head coach.

In some ways, though, the adjustment has already begun. During Virginia Tech's spring game, Pry said his focus had shifted from overseeing every facet of the operation to something far more familiar: studying his call sheet and concentrating on the defense.

Irrespective of what role he takes at Virginia Tech, the impact of the program is clear for Pry, whose attachments to the programs run deep. Pry served as a graduate assistant for the program from 1995-97, but his attachments run before that, too.

"This has been my place since before I started GAing in here," Pry said. "I was coming to camp here, and I was a Hokie in high school. Wanted to be here, so that part of it is still special to me."