Another year, another season where a James Franklin Penn State team came up short in big spots against both Ohio State and Michigan.
Even with the hoopla of Jim Harbaugh being suspended less than 24 hours before kickoff looming over Saturday’s matchup against Michigan, the Nittany Lions fell totally flat and were pantsed at home by the Wolverines 24-15. With that loss, Franklin is now a combined 4-16 against both Michigan and Ohio State during his decade-long stint in Happy Valley.
His only victory over the Buckeyes came by way of the famous Block Six in 2016. He fared better against Wolverines during the early portion of his tenure, but has now been outclassed by Harbaugh’s crew for three straight seasons as Michigan has elevated itself into the ranks of national title contenders.
James Franklin Coaching Record at Penn State
3-7 vs. Michigan
1-9 vs. Ohio State
3-17 vs. Top 10 opponents
That’s not good enough for this program.
Penn State prides itself as one of the blue bloods of the sport and to be fair, Franklin has generally done a fine job during his stint. He has one Big Ten title to his credit, four New Year’s Six bowl appearances, and has posted a winning record for every non-COVID season. However, he’s drastically underperformed against the two measuring stick programs in the league. Their consistent losses in these big games has placed a ceiling of what they can accomplish in State College and it’s hard to justify making this man one of the highest paid coaches in the sport if he continues to fall short in the games that matter.
And the kicker here is that things won’t get any easier for Franklin as the pecking order in the Big Ten is about to drastically change. With the impending arrivals of USC, Oregon, and Washington next season, it may be a yearly struggle for the program to simply fight for third place in the Big Ten. The Nittany Lions have had their opportunities at glory against the “Big 2” and have nearly squandered them all. One has to ask when patience will start wearing thin in Happy Valley.