Penn State stunned the college football community after firing head coach James Franklin on Sunday. Franklin was fired just 15 days after he and the Nittany Lions surrendered a two-touchdown fourth-quarter lead to Oregon in a stunning loss. That loss was part of a three-game losing streak that dropped Penn State from third in the national rankings to 3-3 overall.
Josh Pate, host of the Josh Pate College Football Show, didn’t hold back when talking about this decision, calling Penn State’s 2025 season a “dead season”, and argued that at times schools should be prepared for a dead season in today’s college football climate.
“For a million different reasons the dynamics have changed in college football. And you have got to bake in the possibility of a dead season. The best of the best have to bake in that possibility,” Pate began on his college football show (4:58).
“And I don’t think they have. I don’t think fan bases have. I don’t think donors have. In some cases, I don’t think administrative types have. And they have a dead season on their hands at Penn State,” he further explained (5:10).
Pate argued the idea that fans, donors, and administrators have not adjusted their expectations with the changing dynamics in college football. Pate was especially impressed with Franklin’s ability to stabilize Penn State after taking over a program razed by scandal.
“What I’m saying is you can admit all that and also admit this guy’s been really good in his 12-year run here. Mind you that 12-year run is coming not too far on the heels of some of the most scandal-plagued eras in college football history. And this guy didn’t have a whiff of it,” stated Pate in support of Franklin (5:53).
“I thought he (James Franklin) had a lot more equity built up than this,” he further elaborated (6:36).
Pate was impressed with Franklin’s ability to stabilize Penn State once he took over following a scandal. In June 2012, Jerry Sandusky, a former assistant coach, was convicted of 45 counts of child sexual abuse and was given a 30–60-year prison sentence. The shocking scandal existed over a decade earlier when Sandusky was actively coupled with the football program. Franklin subsequently took over the program in 2014.
Penn State Owe a Historic $49.7 Million Buyout Post Franklin’s Dismissal
Just nine months earlier, the 53-year-old coach was one game away from playing for the national championship. His Nittany Lions capped off last season with the fifth-ranked team in the nation for their best finish since 2005.
During Franklin’s time, he had six seasons with 10 wins and had three consecutive seasons from 2022 to 2024. He is second all-time in wins for the program, next to Joe Paterno.
Franklin came to Penn State after Vanderbilt in 2014 on a six-year deal. In 2021, with three 10-wins seasons, he was re-signed to a 10-year extension and would be the head coach through 2031. Now that Franklin has been let go, Penn State will be paying him the second-largest buyout in college football history at $49.7 million, following Jimbo Fisher at Texas A&M at $76 million.
Read More:
- Micah Parsons Reacts To James Franklin’s Firing With Heartfelt Note For Former Penn State HC: “Doesn’t Feel Right”
- Former Ohio State National Champ Trolls Rivals Penn State For Massive $56,000,000 James Franklin Buyout Following Sudden Firing
- Penn State Coaching Candidates: Top 3 James Franklin Replacements as Lions Fire Head Coach
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