James Franklin is known for being able to cultivate deep loyalty from recruits and players, which is part of why he was able to bring 11 former Penn State commits as part of his 2026 class. That seems likely to continue to the transfer portal where it wouldn’t be surprising to see more of his Penn State players follow him to Blacksburg.
One name not on this list is standout rising sophomore EDGE Chazz Coleman. There’s been some legitimate speculation about him and Ohio State, not just a random video of him greeting a family friend who happened to be an Ohio State usher. Obviously, Coleman is still worth a major pursuit to see if the Hokies can become a serious player for him given his impressive freshman season and massive talent even if the odds are low.
So based on who has already announced their intentions to enter the portal as of Tuesday at 9am, here’s a look at some potential transfer targets from Penn State to watch.
OL Alex Birchmeier: The former four-star recruit and Richmond native is the only offensive name for now on this list after he sparingly played during his time at PSU. He likely would be able to work his way into the offensive line rotation at VT but he also may be better off considering a move down to a G5 school in pursuit of a more clear path to a starting opportunity before jumping back up in time for the 2027 season.
During Brent Pry’s tenure, we saw Virginia Tech bring home former four-star recruits who were VA natives but not pleased with their roles at other Power 4 programs. A lot of those moves paid off headlined by the success of Antwaun Powell-Ryland and Kelvin Gilliam.
EDGE Zuriah Fisher: Fisher had a solid 2025 season as one of Penn State’s starting EDGE rushers with 19 tackles including 3.5 for loss with two sacks. His advanced numbers as a pass rusher were more impressive as he had 30 pressures this season per PFF including 3+ in two of his three games against Big 10 teams that made the CFP this season.
