After another 10-win campaign, critics of Franklin are off base
Believe it or not, Penn State football fans are watching one of the most successful four-year stretches in program history. Really. With their sluggish 27-6 win over Rutgers, the Nittany Lions ended the regular season at 10-2, in second place in the Big Ten East. They’ve exceeded expectations after few analysts picked them to finish higher than fourth in the division.
The seniors walked out of Beaver Stadium for the final time Saturday with
41 wins in four years, tying for the third-most in school history. A bowl victory would tie the Class of 1996 for second place.
They’ve posted three seasons of at least 10 victories and have a shot to land in a New Year’s Six bowl for the third time. They’re probably going to be one of only five teams to be in the top
12 of the final College Football Playoff rankings for the fourth straight year.
For some peculiar reason, though, Penn State fans haven’t fully appreciated the Lions or coach James Franklin. It’s a headscratcher.
“Obviously we see what people say on Twitter about him,” punter Blake Gillikin said last week. “I obviously wouldn’t want to have any other man as my head coach for four years. … I think he’s really underappreciated and really doesn’t get enough credit for everything he does for this university.”
Don’t feel sorry for
Franklin: He’s paid handsomely, receiving $5.7 million this year, 11th-highest in the country and third in the Big Ten, behind Michigan’s Jim Harbaugh and Purdue’s Jeff Brohm. With his name mentioned as a candidate at Florida State and USC, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him get a raise.
Despite his success, Franklin seems to receive far more criticism than he should. He’s made questionable in-game decisions. Every coach has. But those who rip everything he does and who want to see somebody else lead the Lions are just goofy.
“I’m pretty confident in what we have been able to do in helping guys reach their dreams academically, athletically, socially,” Franklin said. “Our record stacks up pretty good against pretty much anybody. We’re in a good place. I’m in a good place.
“I want to get better. We want to get better.”
The 2019 Lions have played a challenging schedule that included the program’s most difficult sixgame stretch (five ranked opponents) since the Associated Press poll started in
1936. They have wins at 9-3 Iowa and over 9-3 Michigan. Their losses have been to at 12-0 Ohio State and at
10-2 Minnesota.
They played with a firsttime starter at quarterback and just nine five-year seniors on a roster with more than 70 freshmen and sophomores. Yet there’s a sense that it’s been a disappointing season, at least among some fans. And it’s puzzling.
“I know where we want to be,” Franklin said. “I know where they want us to be. I think the most telling statistic is the consistency. If you look over the last four years, pretty good. There are only five programs in the country that have had the level of consistency that we’ve had.”
One of them is Clemson, coached by Franklin’s friend, Dabo Swinney. In Swinney’s first six seasons, the Tigers went 11-2 twice and had seasons with five, seven, four and three losses. But in the last five years, they’ve gone 67-4 with two national titles.
Swinney, though, didn’t take over a program reeling from massive NCAA sanctions, from the Jerry Sandusky scandal. Franklin did.
“I think we’re going to be competing for national championships,” safety Garrett Taylor said. “I think we’re going to be in the playoff, all that good stuff. I’ve seen where this program has been (7-6 his first season as a redshirt) and I see where we are now.
“If the leadership can keep everyone together and everyone can stay bought in, then I don’t see anything really changing the trajectory that we’ve been on these last couple years.”
Penn State started just six seniors against Rutgers, five on defense and one on offense. The Lions expect to be even stronger in 2020. But can they please the critics of their coach?
“I don’t want to ever come off like I’m satisfied because I can guarantee you I am not,” Franklin said. “And neither are our players and neither is the staff. But I do think there comes a point where you look at the big picture and you say, ‘Wow, there’s a lot to be proud of.’
“I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished, but I’m not satisfied. And I think 96, 97 percent of our fan base feels the same way.”