James Franklin Defends Penn State Nittany Lions Legacy After Firing
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When head coach James Franklin first got to Happy Valley, the Penn State Nittany Lions were a mess. Still dealing with fallout from the Jerry Sandusky scandal, the program faced very real questions about where it would sit in the world of college football moving forward, and under Franklin’s leadership, they consistently became a Top 25 program again.
There was certainly room to criticize Franklin at Penn State. In particular, for the team’s struggles in big games. However, it shouldn’t be lost that he did build the Nittany Lions into a team that could win double-digit games with some consistency.
Still, head coaching tenures often end unhappily. That was the case for Franklin, getting fired in the middle of a frustrating 2025 season. Even with that, when he made a recent appearance on The Triple Option, Franklin made sure to defend his legacy at Penn State.
“That’s not for me to decide or say. But I do know this, … we got there at a challenging time. And after Year 3 when we win the Big Ten championship before people thought we were ready to do that and put (the program) back on the map. Then we were consistently, after that, between a Top 10 and Top 15 program pretty much year-in and year-out,” Franklin said.
“So, I know that we left the place a lot better than we found it, and I poured my heart and soul into that place and those people, and most importantly those young men. And I’m proud of it. But the page has been turned, and our focus is on Virginia Tech and the maroon and orange.”
Franklin would ultimately spend 12 seasons at Penn State. During that time, he had a 104-45 record with a 64-36 record in Big Ten play. It’s tied for the second-most wins in Penn State history with Rip Engle. On top of that, Franklin took the Nittany Lions to nine bowl appearances and one College Football Playoff appearance. He had five AP Top 10 finishes.
James Franklin Was ‘Blindsided’ by Penn State Firing
GettyJames Franklin with Penn State in 2023
By all accounts, the 2025 season was one where Penn State was supposed to compete for a national championship. Going 3-3 at the time James Franklin was fired was a massive disappointment. Even with that, though, Franklin still felt blindsided.
“I think, again, when you give yourself to a place for 12 years and you turn down a bunch of jobs and you build it back to pretty much a consistent Top-10 program competing for championships, that’s where you felt blindsided,” Franklin said on Next Up.
“You felt like you had earned at least that, a conversation. But again, I’m appreciative of my time. I wanted to make sure that I wasn’t going to turn into this bitter, old ball coach. Again, very, very appreciative. Loved those families, loved those kids, loved the staff that I got to work with. But yeah, I felt like I had earned a little bit of grace in how it was handled at the end.”
At the time Franklin was fired, Penn State had lost three games in a row, two of which were massive upsets. Still, a year removed from playing in the College Football Playoff semifinal, it was a quick trigger.
Penn State Turns Its Attention to the Matt Campbell Era
GettyMatt Campbell with Iowa State
It would take Penn State some time and going down the road with multiple candidates before landing on Matt Campbell as their next head coach. Despite the long path to get there, it’s widely been regarded as an excellent hire.
Campbell was the best coach in Iowa State history, going 72-55 there, playing for the Big 12 Championship twice. For a traditional basement program in the Big 12, it was a massive turnaround, and he would be named Big 12 Coach of the Year three different times.
In fact, Campbell is so well-respected, that he even briefly accepted the Detroit Lions job. However, he would end up changing his mind and returning to college.
In all of this, Penn State will hope that Campbell can make the jump to the Big Ten and compete at the top of the sport. It won’t be easy, but there’s plenty of reason to be excited for this new era in Happy Valley.
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