The Penn State fanbase were horrified after a parody account floated Brian Kelly’s name as a potential replacement for recently fired head coach James Franklin.
The post, which originated from No3 Sports, a parody account on X, claimed Penn State’s Athletic Director Pat Kraft had “zeroed in” on Kelly as the leading candidate. The post garnered nearly 300K views at the time of writing.
NEW: Penn State Athletic Director Pat Kraft has zeroed in on Brian Kelly as the leading candidate to replace Head Coach James Franklin. (Via: @jrs_rankings) pic.twitter.com/057sIRaEPe
— No3 Sports (@No3sports) October 29, 2025
This prompted a lot of reactions from fans on X:
“That would be a horrible decision talk about going backwards,” a fan said.
“Haha, Penn State swapping Franklin for Kelly? That’s like trading a reliable pickup for a Ferrari that runs on drama,” another fan said.
“Not a chance. That guy is a program killer. You don’t go from Franklin to Kelly unless you hate your employer,” a fan remarked.
“Wow that isn’t good for Penn st fans,” a fan commented.
“Maybe you guys can bed Franklin to come back,” a fan suggested.
“So they fired Franklin and want to rehire someone just like him?” another fan added.
Kelly was just shown the door at LSU following a lopsided 49-25 loss against Texas A&M on Saturday. His firing came less than four years into his coaching tenure, with LSU incurring a $54 million buyout.
Franklin’s Dismissal Comes with $49 Million Buyout For Penn State
James Franklin was also dismissed as the head coach of Penn State following a dismal season with a buyout of around $49 million .
Terry Smith is currently the interim head coach and the Nittany Lions are in the process of making staff adjustments.
There’s smoke around James Franklin → Virginia Tech.
If true, this might be the worst landing spot for Penn State’s long-term recruiting outlook (outside of another Big Ten job).
Franklin has deep ties across the Northeast, especially VA, PA, MD, and NJ. In 2023 alone, he… pic.twitter.com/Bs363d2qJu
— Moore College Football (@Moore_CFB) October 29, 2025
Speculation around Franklin’s next move is now rampant, with some odd connections to college programs, but nothing official has been released. Franklin addressed his departure publicly, commenting that he was surprised by the timing of his departure but he intends to return to coaching.
Read More:
- Legendary Ex LSU Head Coach Expresses Massive Desire To Rejoin Tigers Days After Brian Kelly’s Firing
- “Didn’t Even Make a Bowl Game”: Stephen A. Smith Drops Unfiltered Take On Brian Kelly’s LSU Firing
- “It’s Unfair as Hell”: Nick Saban Takes Aim at Penn State for Firing James Franklin Despite Program Success
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