It’s been a rough couple of weeks for Penn State head coach James Franklin. After once again being heavily criticized for failing to beat a top-10 opponent in Oregon, Franklin and the Nittany Lions followed it up with a stunning loss to previously winless UCLA.
For a team that entered the preseason ranked No. 2 in the country, Penn State now finds itself out of the polls entirely after back-to-back defeats. That’s a steep fall from being touted as the Big Ten’s next national champion contender.
Where things stand with Franklin and the Penn State faithful is nothing but pure frustration.
“We try to control the things that we can control,” Franklin said after practice Wednesday, per CBS Sports. “We’ve had this in the past. I obviously don’t want it, nobody wants it. I want the players to have a great experience, I want the coaches to have a great experience. I want the fans to feel good and be excited, and I know that we impact their mood for the week and the year.”
That frustration doesn’t figure to settle anytime soon unless Penn State goes on a mighty run the rest of the way. While that seems unlikely, some — like The Athletic’s Chris Vannini — have suggested that maybe this ends with Franklin and the school reaching an agreement to move on.
“But unless Franklin accomplishes something in the next month that he hasn’t shown the ability to do yet, it might benefit everyone to consider the idea of amicably parting ways at season’s end,” Vannini wrote.
The problem is where Franklin might end up. There are openings such as Virginia Tech and, ironically, UCLA. Bigger jobs could also become available, but USA Today’s Blake Toppmeyer doubts Franklin would be a fit for those.
“With Florida, Auburn, Wisconsin and others employing coaches on the hot seat, more jobs are bound to open within the next several weeks, but Franklin’s loss to UCLA and his poor history against top-10 opponents would make him a tough hire to sell to any fan base dreaming of glory,” Toppmeyer wrote.
Franklin has Penn State sitting at 3-2 this season, with no wins against Power Four competition. Now in his 12th year in Happy Valley, he’s 104-44 overall. But the glaring issue remains his record against top-10 opponents: a meager 4-20.
Wisconsin, which hasn’t won a national title since 1942, might settle for that. But Florida and Auburn — programs that have captured championships in the last two decades — most likely would not.
Of course, this is all a moot point until Franklin and Penn State confront the $56 million buyout the school still owes him.