Triton senior Pierce Petersohn celebrated Thanksgiving by announcing where he will play college football next season, switching his commitment Thursday from Penn State to Virginia Tech.

Petersohn, a four-star prospect, didn’t leave his recruitment open for long after James Franklin, who recruited him to play at Penn state, found a new home with the Hokies. Virginia Tech hired Franklin on Nov. 17.

After Penn State fired Franklin following a 3-3 start in mid-October, Petersohn said he was shocked by the news. He valued the relationship his family built with Franklin.

“Awesome dude,” Petersohn called Franklin. “He’s only treated me and my family well. Reaching out multiple times per week via text and [phone] calls, which he obviously didn’t have to do.”

The 6-5, 200-pound Petersohn played quarterback for Triton this season, but he’s projected as a college tight end. He is one of the state’s best multisport athletes, a star on the basketball team who has high-jumped 6 feet, 10 inches.

Ranked among the top five players in the state, Petersohn had the Gophers and P.J. Fleck as finalists initially but picked Penn State. Gophers fans had remained hopeful Petersohn would flip back to the U.

Fleck still landed the state’s top three seniors in Jackson County Central’s Roman Voss, Rocori’s Andrew Trout and Forest Lake’s Howie Johnson. Voss, the No. 1 player in Minnesota’s 2026 class, and Petersohn were both recruited as tight ends.