From 2011-2013, head football coach James Franklin did the impossible as he turned the Vanderbilt Commodores into a contender in the Southeastern Conference. Under Franklin, the Commodores went 24-15 and made a bowl game in each year on his watch which was a far cry from a program that only had four bowl appearances in 107 years prior to his arrival. What Franklin did at Vandy wouldn’t go unnoticed and in 2014, he was asked to become the head football coach of the Penn State Nittany Lions.
At Penn State, Franklin was taking over a program that is one of the most storied in college football history, but they were teetering on the brink after NCAA sanctions in wake of the Jerry Sandusky which included a $60 million fine, a four-year bowl ban, and a loss of scholarships which came down in 2012 threatened to make the Nittany Lions an afterthought.
As expected it wasn’t easy for Franklin in his first two years in Happy Valley as Penn State was still recovering from NCAA sanctions. In each of Franklin’s first two years at Penn State, the Nittany Lions went 7-6, but the NCAA did lift the school’s bowl ban which made them eligible for the postseason. And as the 2016 college football season began, Penn State once again had their full compliment of scholarships which is allowing them to reemerge as being a force in the Big Ten Conference.
The month of September wasn’t kind to Penn State as they lost a pair of tough road games. On September 10, Penn State lost a heartbreak to one of their in-state rivals in the Pittsburgh Panthers before they were taken behind the woodshed by the Michigan Wolverines 49-10 on September 24. But who knew that a 29-26 overtime victory on October 1 over the Minnesota Golden Gophers would spark the Nittany Lions to their current run.
Since the beat down by Michigan, Penn State has won five consecutive games to run their mark to 7-2. The highlight of this came on October 22 when the Nittany Lions scored a 24-21 upset victory over the Ohio State Buckeyes in what was Franklin’s biggest victory to date at Penn State. Penn State finds themselves tied with Ohio State for second place in the Big Ten East, and with a very winnable schedule remaining, their first 10-win season since 2009, along with still having a legitimate chance to make their first conference title game appearance are realities. But for anyone who has followed Franklin’s brief career as a head coach should not be surprised with what is going down at Penn State.
During Franklin’s time at Vanderbilt, the Commodores defeated the Tennessee Volunteers twice, while in 2013, he engineered a 34-17 victory over the Florida Gators which saw them end a 22-game losing streak to their rivals from the Southeastern Conference. Franklin was on the fast track to making Vanderbilt a household name, but when Penn State came calling, it was hard for the native of Langhorne, Pennsylvania to say no.
Now Franklin has the opportunity to flex his muscles in the Big Ten, and he is beginning to get the top high school football players from the Keystone State to remain home.
Franklin’s first big signing at Penn State was running back Saquon Barkley. Originally from the Bronx, New York, Barkely attended Whitehall High School in Whitehall Township, Pennsylvania. As a high school senior in 2014, Barkley was Pennsylvania’s Mr. Football and after flirting with playing football for the Rutgers Scarlet Knights, he decided on Penn State.
In 2015, Barkley was the Big Ten Conference’s Freshman of the Year as he rushed for 1,055 yards, while averaging 6.3 yards per carry. This year Barkley has already eclipsed those numbers as he has gained 1,076 yards while he is in the running to be the Big Ten’s Offensive Player of the Year as he is restoring Penn State’s reputation for being “running back U”.
The last two years saw Franklin not adjust his system to former quarterback Christian Hackenburg who is now in the National Football League with the New York Jets, but he has found his guy in sophomore Trace McSorley. McSorley is a dual-threat quarterback that is ideal for Franklin’s system and the numbers prove that. This year McSorley has thrown 14 touchdowns to just 3 interceptions, while he has not turned the football over since the loss to Michigan.
According to ESPN.com, Penn State currently has 21st ranked recruiting class for next year as they are showing that they are more than ready to rub elbows with Ohio State and Michigan in the Big Ten East. There were some that wanted to put Franklin on the hot seat in Happy Valley, but the powers to be there hired the right man who in Pennsylvania at heart. And as the wins continue to pile up for Franklin, he’ll continue write his own legacy while helping Penn State move further away from their darkest hour.
Leave A Comment