Penn State: James Franklin is out, now what?

Saturday afternoon the hammer finally came down on former Penn State head coach, James Franklin. Penn State dropped their third straight game to Northwestern 22-21. After another disappointing loss the powers that be at Penn State pulled the cord on the James Franklin era.

Did James Franklin deserve to lose his job now? Possibly.

Was this firing going to happen regardless of what Coach Franklin did this season? More than likely.

Franklin’s Issue

Let’s take a look at what happened this past weekend. Penn State fired a coach that played in the College Football Playoff semifinals last season. The team was an overtime play away from being ranked number one just a couple of weeks ago. Plus, school administrators are trying to line the pockets of the school with private equity money because of a $700 million stadium renovation. Then the school decided that giving James Franklin his $48 million buyout was not a high price to pay to get him out of the school. All this for a coach who had five top-10 finishes in the last nine years.

However, this firing was not surprising at all.

I believe they were looking for any reason to fire James Franklin at this point. A mid-season three game losing streak was the perfect storm for this firing. Penn State had championship dreams heading into this season. Those thoughts are all gone now. Losing to Oregon at home, then UCLA on the road, and finally losing Northwestern at home sealed Franklin’s fate.

Penn State athletic director, Pat Kraft, addressed the firing on Monday.

“I’m here to win a national championship,” Kraft said. “And I believe our fans deserve that.”

Unrealized expectations at a big time football program like Penn State have repercussions, but was this the right time to fire Coach Franklin?

Fire Franklin now or later?

If the thought with Penn State was that they would fire Coach Franklin regardless then the firing should have taken place at the end of the year.

College football players have more power now than they have had in the past. The interim head coach, Terry Smith, is now the substitute teacher for the program. The problem with being in this role is that while Terry Smith may win a few games he may not be the right guy for the job. He’s never been the head coach that has to deal with admin, the AD, alumni, recruits, players, and staff. More specifically, he’s not been a head coach at a big time Power-4 school like Penn State. Terry Smith will have to be ready for all sorts of criticism coming from all different places. Coach Smith will be learning this part of the job on the fly.

Do Nittany Lion fans want that type of on the job training with their coach?

Here’s where the power of the Nittany Lion players can cause some issues for the football program. If a coach is let go during the season the players can jump into the transfer portal almost immediately. The Nittany Lions could lose some talent over the next few days and weeks. Plus, if the team wins some games the players could say, “Hire him. He’s our guy. Or we transfer.” With a team like Penn State that has talent this type of statement by the players could have a devastating consequence.

For those Nittany Lion fans that don’t believe the players would drop an ultimatum like that I say don’t be so sure. Players go in the portal for all sorts of reasons. Coaching change portal entries happen every year. Just because you’re Penn State and all the tradition that comes with that doesn’t mean the players won’t look out for themselves. This is not your dad’s Nittany Lions or college football anymore.

Penn State Search Begins

Can people just stop with the thought that Indiana head coach, Curt Cignetti, will be hired in Happy Valley? He’s not coming. Coach Cignetti will not move from one Big Ten university to another Big Ten university. What Cignetti has going at Indiana is phenomenal. Plus, after beating the Oregon Ducks in Eugene, Hoosier officials will throw their checkbook at their coach. Indiana has a ton of money coming into their NIL now, so why would he move from a great situation? You could argue it would be a lateral move to go to Penn State for Cignetti.

I think the coaches you have to keep your eye on about taking the phone call from Penn State are Matt Rhule at Nebraska, Matt Campbell at Iowa State, Manny Diaz at Duke, and Clark Lea at Vanderbilt. I believe Rhule and Campbell will be the first couple of calls.

Whoever gets the job will be taking on one of the top jobs in college football, but will need to have some very thick skin. Complaints will come from alumni, fans, and the media. The ability of the next coach at Penn State to navigate all of these landmines will determine how successful they will be.

Michael J. Wilson-The Daily Waiver

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