James Franklin's new buyout from Penn State revealed after accepting Virginia Tech job

Monday was likely a happy day for James Franklin, as the fired former Penn State head coach was announced as the next head coach of the Virginia Tech Hokies. But Penn State was also able to turn the page on that chapter in its history-- thanks to news that Franklin and the University reached a settlement on the buyout fee owed by the school in regard to his PSU contract.

Franklin's Buyout Payment

Reports on Monday confirm that Franklin accepted $9 million from Penn State as a final buyout payment. This certainly represents a substantial discount on the intiial reported buyout fee from Franklin's contract, which was reported at between $47 million and $54 million at the time of his firing.

Franklin's contract with Penn State reported included a mitigation clause, which would have required him to seek equivalent work and would have offset monies due under the buyout by the salary earned at his new job. Given Virginia Tech's long reported interest in Franklin, it is possible that finalizing a resolution with Penn State on the buyout was one reason the school waited until November 17th to announce Franklin's hiring.

Other, Less Agreeable Coach Firing Buyout Deals

The clear resolution in Franklin's situation is drastically different than other pending situations. Brian Kelly has reportedly filed suit against LSU in regard to his claimed $54 million buyout following reports that the University initially attempted to negotiate with Kelly and then apparently decided to claim that Kelly was fired for cause (which would eliminate the buyout).

Texas A&M reportedly owed Jimbo Fisher a $77 million buyout fee after his 2023 firing, which was scheduled to be paid at $19 million within 60 days of his firing and the remainder in annual payments of $7.2 million through 2031. There has been no indication of any sort of agreed resolution there, and Fisher has remained out of college football since his firing.

Win-Win Settlement on Franklin, PSU

Penn State's resolution with Franklin allowed the former coach to become a current coach again after just a month and will allow the university to pursue its next head coach without an eight-figure financial millstone hanging around its neck. Could this herald a new era of coaching buyouts or is Franklin and Penn State destined to be remembered as the rare case where an ugly split led to a productive separation? Only time will tell.

LSU coach Brian Kelly is still fighting out his $54 million buyout, but James Franklin gave a deep discount to resolve his $49 million buyout. | Stephen Lew-Imagn Images